Additional information
| Finish | |
|---|---|
| Warranty | 2 Years |
| Country of Manufacture | United Kingdom |
Graham Audio LS3/5 Bookshelf Speakers
Range £1,945 – £2,280
Description
The LS3 is perhaps the best-known of all the BBC’s monitor designs. The BBC needed a small monitor that was suitable for critical assessment of programme quality in cramped OB vehicles and control rooms, and nothing suitable was available commercially. At the same time, a separate research project – an investigation into acoustic scaling of studios had developed a miniature loudspeaker and it was realised that it could be adapted for monitoring use. After much development, the original LS3/5 was born.
Initially, 20 units were built in-house for field trials, but upon deciding to build another batch, it became apparent that KEF had altered both of the drive units, and the new units were sufficiently different to the originals to affect the way the loudspeaker measured and sounded. As a result, significant re-engineering work had to be completed by the BBC’s Designs Department, and this was such a significant deviation from the original model that the A suffix was added.
The new B110 needed to be decoupled from the baffle in order to prevent an interaction with the cabinet. Next, when fed from the existing crossover, the new HF unit exhibited significant colouration which required modifications to the crossover and the addition of the familiar protective grille and felt pads. The small number of loudspeakers from the original batch were now considered obsolete, and the true LS3/5 was never manufactured commercially.
While the revised LS3/5A sounded very similar to the original, many felt at the time that the original loudspeaker was better. Could this version be re-created today?
Graham Audio presents the ultimate version of the most famous of all the BBC loudspeakers, and is doing so under one of the most cherished names connected with the LS3/5A: Chartwell. The bespoke drive units and crossover networks are developed by Derek Hughes working in conjunction with Volt and Seas loudspeakers to produce a fully licensed loudspeaker using the very finest materials available.
Key Features
- System: 2 Way, sealed enclosure
- Enclosure: Thin wall construction, 9mm birch plywood, removable rear panel
- Frequency Response: 70Hz – 20kHz, ±3dB
- Nominal Impedance: 9Ω
- Sensitivity: 83dB SPL (2.83V, 1m)
- Maximum Output: 95dB for a pair at 2m
- Bass/Mid-Range: 110mm Bextrene
- Tweeter: 19mm Dome tweeter
- Recommended Amplifier Power: 25 – 50 watts unclipped programme
- Dimensions (W/H/D): 19 x 30 x 17 cm
- Weight: 5.3 kg
Richard –
I heard a couple of tracks from one of the classical CDs we brought to you on the BKS speakers first and then turned to the Graham 3/5s. The first surprise was that I needed to turn the volume up when I expected to have to turn it down. But within a couple of bars the improvements over the BKSs were blazingly obvious. Winnie could tell from the kitchen! So much more clarity and details I’d never heard before. Just so much more musical and natural – and the soundstage was solid and dimensional – deeper and higher than the speakers which really disappeared.