KEF Reference Model Two loudspeaker

Reference Series Model Two (1994-99)

Model Two was a three-way floor standing system with a twin coupled cavity bass section. It offered a significant performance increment over the Model One and was the direct descendent of Model 103/4. It was ideally suited to use as a main speaker in small to medium sized rooms in a stereo or multi-channel system. It was updated in 1997 to include a boundary compensation device – switch-able attenuation of the bass output for use in small rooms or for positioning close to the room boundaries

Model Two Twin bass drivers and advanced,, large diameter force-cancelling rod provide prodigious levels of bass from a surprisingly slim enclosure. The Uni-Q mid and high frequency driver ensures that the sound stage is both wide and deep.

But if, like most people you tend to sit in different places, and want great sound for more than one person at a time, a pair of KEF Reference Loudspeakers will be music to your ears. The Uni-Q Drive Unit with its high frequency driver at the acoustic centre of the Mid-range cone turns the entire room into a "sweet spot".

Music in Minutes, not Hours.

It's the Uni-Q Driver Unit that makes KEF Reference Loudspeakers so simple to position. With ordinary loudspeakers their restricted "sweet spot" means that finding just the right position in your room can literally take hours. Furniture, curtains, walls, ceilings, even the sort of music you're playing can affect how they sound.

KEF Reference Loudspeakers on the other hand, with their ultra smooth off-axis response can be placed, plugged in and played in minutes. After all, it's the music that should be moving you, not the other way around.

Sound Where You Need It Not Where You Don't

It's not just the front of some loudspeakers that give out sound. A badly designed and ill-constructed unit can transmit vibrations through the back and the sides. This unwanted "cabinet Talk" can blur the stereo image and mar the reproduction of fine details.

At KEF we've virtually eliminated this problem in two ways. First, the drivers on the front of the loudspeakers are acoustically decoupled from the cabinet by a soft rubber mounting. And second, the internal bass units are joined back-to-back by a new and vastly improved force-cancelling rod that eliminates much of the vibration that can come from a bass unit and result in the cleanest possible reproduction.

Force-cancelling rods and acoustic decoupling reduce "cabinet talk" dramatically.

Specifications

System Type: Three-way, floor standing

Enclosure Type: Twin coupled cavity

Design:  3-way, 4-driver

Amplifier Requirements: 50 - 200 W

Frequency Response:  43 Hz to 20 kHz ±3 dB at 2 m on reference axis

Sensitivity:  90 dB at 1m/2.83V (anechoic conditions)

Maximum Output: 113 dB on programme peaks under typical listening conditions

System: SP3188

Drive Units

2 x B160 bass unit (SP1349),

B160 midrange unit (SP1345),

NT25 tweeter (SP1353)

Crossover: SP2224

Crossover Frequency:  3 kHz, 150 Hz

Nominal Impedance: 4 Ω 

Dimensions (H x W x D); 1012 x 230 x 300 mm (39.8 x 9 x 11.8 inches)

Weight" 29.6kg (65 lbs)

Finishes:  Rosetta burr/ Black ash

 

KEF Uni-Q Driver

 A New Direction In Sound

The "Q" Factor  - or why speakers sound different in different rooms.

The Uni-Q principle, developed by KEF engineers, realises the long-held ambition of loudspeaker designerd to create the drive unit where all the sound radiates from a single source.

"Q" is the measure of a loudspeaker's directivity - how it bearns its sound towards the listener. It is this factor which very largely determines how a loudspeaker will sound in any given room.

When we listen to live music we hear each instrument, a trumpet, say, from one discrete point in space, together with a proportion of the sound reflected from around the hall or room.

With reproduced sound however, a single drive unit does not exist which peroduce the entire audible spectrum. Most loudspeakers employ two or more drive units, separated from each other. So now different parts of the trumpet come from two different locations - and at slightly different times.

 Because the directivities of the two units do not match at crossover, the sound is different at different listening positions. The tonal balance shifts as the listener moves. Sit off-centre and the trumpet becomes muted, the singer catches a cold.  Listeners in different posiitions, or indifferent roomscan heara coloure and out-of-focus soundstage.

Using Neodymium-Iron-Born, a newly developed magnetic alloy which has ten times the energy product of conventional ferrite, KEF designers have engineered a tweeter assembly small enough to be located in the neck of the bass unit's cone, precisely  at the point where the sound sources, the acoustic centres, of the two units coincide.

The direct and refflected path-lengths from both units to the listener's ear are now the same. Correct phase relationships ensure that high and low frequencies add up correctly to produce the desired response.

With Uni-Q, not only has KEF placed the woofer and tweeter on the same axis, their acoustic centres are also in the same plane. The directivity of both units is identical. The trumpet is back in one piece, unmuted and the singer's centrestage, in perfect health.

The unification of woofer and tweeter "Q" lies behind the revolutionary unit's name _the KEF Uni-Q Driver. More accurate sound in more locations, and from more listening positions is the keynote of Uni-Q.

KEF Q90 (1990-1994)

 KEF Q90

For those wanting the additional headroom and freedom provided by a full three-way system, the Q90 is the speaker of choice. This reflex-loaded floorstanding speaker is a no-compromise design, with a bold, dynamic and truthful performance. The 200 mm (8') unit, loaded by its own 11,7 litre sealed enclosure, gives wide open soundstanding, with outstandingly natural reproduction of voices and strings - the "difficult" areas of sound reproduction.

The reflex-loaded polymer-cone bass unit delivers powerful, extended but quick-sounding bass, with high output and power handling capability.

Twin gold-plated terminals allow bi-wired or bi-amplified operation. Adjustable, lockable feet give high stablility on any surface, and ensure that the Q90's exceptional dynamic qualities and midrange transparency are not compromised.

With all this, the Q90 has a small "footprint" - less than room square foot of floorspace - is elegantlt proportioned and easy to integrate into any listening room or hifi system.

Compatibility,flexibility, and high performance are the keynote features of the KEF Q90.

Specifiactions

Type:  3-way floor standing

System:  SP3138

Drive units:

Bass unit (SP1285) : 200 mm (8") with 38 mm (1,5") coil (B200)

Midrange unit (SP1280) : 200 mm (8") with 38 mm (1,5") coil (B200)

B200 : midrange unit (SP1280),

Tweeter (SP1353) : Polymer dome with 25 mm (1") coil Fluid cooled, High Energy magnet Ne-Fe-B (NT25)

Crossover network:  SP2183

Frequency Range (±3 dB measured at 2m on reference axis):  40 - 20,000 Hz (-6dB 35 Hz)

Maximum Output (measured spl on programme peaks under typical listening conditions):  112 dB

Characteristic Sensitivity level:  89 dB (measured at 1m on reference axis for pink noise input of 2,83V rms[anechoic conditions] Q60 corrected for wall mounting)

Amplifier Requirements (into 8 ohms):  10 - 150 W

Nominal Impedance:  8 ohms

Enclosure Type:  Reflex

Internal Volume: 

MF: 11,7 litres (0.4 cu.ft.)

LF:  33,4 liter (1,18 cu.ft.)

Net Weight:  18,7 kg (41,1 lb)

Dimensions (H x W x D):  890 x 246 x 319 mm (35,0 x 9,7 x 12,5 inch)

KEF Q80

 For thirty years KEF has proved to be a worthy holder of the title "The Speaker Engineers". Taime and again, highly advanced and innovative engineering techniques coupled with the most exacting attention to detail at every level and stage of production has ensured that KEF has led the world with a succession of major advances in loudspeaker design and technology. The KEF "Q" Series is no exception.

 KEF Q80

The Q80 is a floorstandig speaker of relatively compact dimensions. It is designed for the listener who needs big speaker performance without big speaker dimensions.

In addition to the 200 mm (8') Uni-Q unit, a passive rediator of the same diameter smooths, extends, and increasses bass output.Adjustable.lockable, spiked or capped feet allow the Q80 to be located firmly on the floor, with optimum stability on any surface, enabling the Uni-Q unit's outstanding imaging capability to be fully exploited.

All three Q Series models are fitted with heavy-duty twin gold-plated terminals suitable for bi-wired or bi-amplified use.

An easy 8-ohm load offers the amplifier no driving problems, and the Q80's high sensitivity allows lifelike levels of up to 110 dB, an outstanding figure for a speaker of Q80's size.

Specifiactions

Type:  2-way floor standing

System:  SP3137

Drive units: 

Bass/midrange unit (SP1280) : 200 mm (8") with 38 mm (1,5") coil (B200)

Passive radiator (SP1288) : 200 mm (8") (BD200)

Tweeter (SP1353) : Polymer dome with 25 mm (1") coil Fluid cooled, High Energy magnet Ne-Fe-B (NT25)

Crossover network:  SP2189

Frequency Range (±3 dB measured at 2m on reference axis):  57 - 20,000 Hz (-6dB 40 Hz)

Maximum Output (measured spl on programme peaks under typical listening conditions):  110 dB

Characteristic Sensitivity level:  89 dB (measured at 1m on reference axis for pink noise input of 2,83V rms[anechoic conditions])

Amplifier Requirements (into 8 ohms):  10 - 125 W

Nominal Impedance:  8 ohms

Enclosure Type:  Passive Radiator

Internal Volume:  33,8 litres (1,9 cu.ft.)

Net Weight:  14,5 kg (32 lb)

Dimensions (H x W x D):  855 x 246 x 274 mm (33,6 x 9,72 x 10,8 inch)

KEF Q60

 Why "Q"

KEF's Uni-Q two-way coincident-source drive unit is incorporated into all three "Q" series models. This unique drive unit combines both tweeter and bass/midrange units into one single chasis. This radical KEF development allows the sound from both units to reach the listener's ears at the same time, bringing readily audible benefits in terms of transparency, image stability and more natural sound reproduction.Uni-Q speakers are highly versatile in use. Being less affected by differing room acoustics, they will operate well in a wide range of placements and listening positions. Furthermore, an advanced and innovative design feature, unique to KEF ensures that all three Q-Series models share quite exceptionally low levels of cabinet colouration, even at high volumes.

 KEF Q60

Fast, well controlled bass performance with accurate, detailed, midrange and the capability to play at realistic levels with modest power requirements sums up the remarkable Q60. Designed for stand mounting 400-450 mm (15' - 18') high, a 200 mm (8') Uni-Q bass-midrange unit, with 25 mm (1') NIB magnet tweeter centrally placed, is loaded by a 20 litre reflex enclosure, 18 mm (3/4') thick. Careful bass alignment makes the Q60 tolerant of positioning, with the ability to recreate the life-like three-dimensional qualities of well recorded music in almost any environment.

Specifiactions

Type:  2-way bookshelf

System:  SP3136

Drive units: 

Bass/midrange unit (SP1280) : 200 mm (8") with 38 mm (1,5") coil (B200)

Tweeter (SP1353) : Polymer dome with 25 mm (1") coil Fluid cooled, High Energy magnet Ne-Fe-B (NT25)

Crossover network:  SP2181

Frequency Range (±3 dB measured at 2m on reference axis):  60 - 20,000 Hz (-6dB 45 Hz)

Maximum Output (measured spl on programme peaks under typical listening conditions):  110 dB

Characteristic Sensitivity level:  90 dB (measured at 1m on reference axis for pink noise input of 2,83V rms[anechoic conditions] Q60 corrected for wall mounting)

Amplifier Requirements (into 8 ohms):  10 - 100 W

Nominal Impedance:  8 ohms

Enclosure Type:  Reflex

Internal Volume:  19,8 litres (0.7 cu.ft.)

Net Weight:  7,2 kg (15,8 lb)

Dimensions (H x W x D):  479 x 246 x 274 mm (18,9 x 9,72 x 10,8 inch)