Simon Price
The first time that meta-materials have been used in a speaker design, KEF say….
But how do KEF’s new LS50 Meta speakers compare to some designs around the same price. In the UK, Neat’s £1,385 Iota Alpha and Definitive Technology’s $1000 Demand D11 speakers, are competition.
But it’s a tough act to follow these KEF’s which have seemingly gone through so much design and tweaking.
KEF’s Jack Oclee-Brown says ; “we have refined the motor system of these speakers to reduce distortion, improved the cone performance by having a second generation de-couple, and have added a tweeter gap damper which helps with resonances around the tweeter”. He goes on to say however; “the killer feature is really our new meta-material technology”.
The ports differ in shape to the original LS50’s but which KEF have re-designed to delay the onset of turbulence. They say the port walls prevent resonances from colouring the midrange which leads to improved clarity, depth and detail. Interestingly putting ones finger into the port you can feel a velvet like material.
The curved appearance of the front baffle helps with nothing being in the way of sound, common to the hard edges of box designs refracting sounds.
Watch my KEF LS50 Meta Film Review :
In my next film I am going to be trying these KEF’s with a NAD M10 streaming amp, apart from the test with my Hegel H390 amp here. How do they sound longways in the room, is this a good idea, and what are the KEF’s like with more price appropriate amplifiers?
Specifications
- Design : Two-way bass reflex
- Aluminium Uni-Q Drive Units : HF: 25 mm (1 in.) vented, MF/LF: 130 mm (5.25 in.) aluminium cone
- Crossover Frequency : 2.1 k Hz
- Frequency range (-6dB) : 47 Hz – 45 kHz
- Maximum output : 106 dB
- Recommended Amp Power : 40-100W
- Nominal Impedance : 8 ohms (min 3.5)
- Sensitivity (2.83V/1m) : 85 dB
- Weight : 7.8 kg (17.2 lbs)
- Dimensions HxWxD : 305 x 200 x 311mm
