 | |
 | |
Price: £1,000
More info: KEF
Size: 245 x 125 x 150mm (satellite), 130 x 300 x 185mm (centre), 390 x 440 x 195mm (sub)
Weight: 2kg (sat), 2.6kg (centre), 11.3kg (sub)
Drivers: 115mm Uni-Q, 19mm aluminium tweeter (satellite), 115mm Uni-Q, 19mm aluminium tweeter, 2x 75mm subs (centre), 1x 250mm (sub)
Power handling: 10-100W (sat, centre), 250W built-in (sub)
Frequency response: 70Hz-55kHz (sat), 65Hz-55kHz (centre), 30Hz-250Hz (sub)
Max sensitivity: 88dB (sat), 90dB (centre)
Nominal impedance: 8ohm (sat, centre)
Max output: 108dB (sat), 110dB (centre),
Crossover frequency: 500Hz / 2.2kHz (centre),
Finish: Silver or black
Plus points:
Great looks, easy placement, comfortable when loud
Minus points:
Not the most dynamic of systems
|  |
|
KEF's really rather beautiful 'egg' speakers have been around for a while now in various incarnations, but as well as updating the look the latest version makes a few improvements to the sonic picture.
Each of the two-way oval satellites comes with several mounting options. There are wall brackets, small bookshelf stands and for a few quid extra you can use taller (and very tasteful) pole stands. The three-way centre channel meanwhile is supplied with a small rubber base mat which helps keep it in place in its recommended position atop your TV.
The smooth lacquered surface over cast aluminium enclosures combined with the oval shape makes for a very attractive package, but these are very much of the out-and-proud school of home cinema design - they won't blend into the background, but make a virtue of their presence with their exceptional styling.
The speakers incorporate KEF's clever Uni-Q design, where the tweeter is ensconced in the middle of the midrange cone, and which is designed to offer optimum integration between the speakers and smoother dispersal around the room - a useful solution if, like most of us, you don't have an evenly angled listening room.
The Uni-Q principle has been around for a while of course, but KEF reckons it's improved it with a little something they're calling Sealed Suspension Technology (SST), which seals the gap between tweeter and midrange cone to offer a punchier image and an improved magnet which allows a bit more movement of the speaker cone, which should allow it to deliver more thump in the bass. There's a bass port on the back too, with its own supplied foam plug, but there are no options for terminated cables, you'll need to thread your speaker wires into the slots at the back.
The centre channel looks distinctively different from the satellites though it has the same midrange and tweeter inside. But it also has twin mini subs on either side, which help to give a rounder tone and greater presence, especially with speech.
The subwoofer matches the curved lines of the satellites though it's more roughly circular in shape. It can be mounted either vertically on its stand or horizontally, allowing you to shove it under the sofa out of sight. It's an active model of course, with a built-in 250 watt amp and an 'auxiliary bass radiator' (ABR) which means it has an additional radiating panel behind the driver, which augments the sound and adds additional low-end heft beyond what you would normally expect from a 10in cone. The SmartBass set-up system doesn't give you much room for tweaking, but there is a three-setting bass boost option, and a simple phase control.
|
| The KEF KHT 3005's SmartBass controls
|
Performance
For the price we expected a decent performance, and we weren't disappointed. Despite their relatively small size, the satellites can punch out a fair degree of power when required to, and showed no sign of breaking up even at high volume. They also sounded impeccably clear, with many fine details making themselves felt where they had previously gone unnoticed.
The centre channel too does exactly what it should, focussing the attention on clearly enunciated speech (or as clear as it can be in the case of Colin Farrell) and not stinting on centre screen sound definition.
The improvements to the satellites may allow for more heft in the lower regions, though there's no shortage of punch coming from the subwoofer. Its 250 watts of power can go a long way and with the bass boost adjustment there's more than enough low end thud to justify its room space. It's no blunt instrument either, offering tight control on the relentless action scenes which characterise King Kong for instance, keeping the focus on what's happening on-screen where some systems can lose it to muddy noise.
There is a suspicion of a uniform even-handedness to the sound, which isn't entirely unattractive, though it does mean that perhaps the jumps and starts of some movies aren't quite as thrilling as they could be (Pirates Of The Caribbean has some pounding moments that aren't quite done full justice here), but it's a small niggle, and arguably can make extended viewing less wearing.
The system is a good contender with music too. Listening to the new Doors box set which includes both stereo CD and surround sound DVD-Audio options, there's a fine degree of detail in the surround option - perhaps a bit too much than is really desirable with recordings which were as often as not gleaned from a four-track source. The remastered stereo versions on the other hand sounded impeccable - laced with dark-side sixties ennui and full weight given to both Jim Morrison's histrionic baritone and Ray Manzarek's scene-stealing organ.
 |
|
|
|
Of course it's not cheap, but just nudging into four figures, it's far from silly money valley either. For this level of sound quality and style, it's perfectly reasonably priced. In many ways it's comfortable, even cosy system, that delivers well on detail and mood, though it sometimes lacks the dramatic warp and woof of some arguably more exciting, but also potentially more exhausting systems. For most movies, you won't be disappointed, and the fact that it delivers equally well as a music system is a welcome bonus.
|
 |
