You talk about the character of these speakers how would you describe it, and what makes that BBC character so special? These days I wouldn’t know, but I don’t think so much is invested in the acoustics of the speaker. If you look at the quality of the R&D and the resources available to the BBC at the time, there must have been millions of pounds spent on developing the 3/5A – or certainly a considerable amount in today’s money. Maybe it’s a bit like driving a Morgan car: it’s not going to set the world alight with its 0-60mph stats or top speed, nor is it the last word in handling, but it still provides a purpose. It has a certain character you don’t get with modern products. I’d start listening to the older stuff and think, that sounds better than some of the newer stuff. I was in the audio industry, travelling around to shows and, without being arrogant, most of what I heard didn’t actually sound that good. There still seemed to be an appetite for BBC-designed products. Why did you want to start making these BBC speakers again? We’re also looking at making an active LS5/8 we’re doing the amplifier design and are hoping those will be ready this September. We have a BBC licence for that and do the same for the LS5/9. We’ve been doing that now for about 2.5 years. They come in from China, we finish the drive units here and we assemble the tweeter – we put the dome into the magnet – so the final assembly is done here. I reverse-engineered the drive units, because KEF doesn’t make those anymore. So we get the cabinet and the crossovers made here in the UK. We got those made, then I said to Richard Lee, the chairman of Wo Kee Hong, ‘Why don’t you just start making the 5/9 and 3/5A back in the UK?’ My friend Kevin from Talk Electronics has a factory, so I spoke to him and that’s what we did. I kept in touch with the Rogers people, and a few years ago they contacted me and said they were looking to make a small batch of speakers in the UK for Rogers' 70th anniversary. ![]() ![]() But that was all kept in the domestic China market.Īfter that, I ran Exposure for about five years, and then for the past ten years, I’ve been working with Audio Note UK. They weren’t making those products in Hong Kong or China, they were basically making their own products and introducing them to the domestic market so they moved a bit more mainstream, doing more AV stuff. They ran it for four or five years before the big financial crisis in the late 90s when they pulled the plug on the UK manufacture. Michael O’Brien, who owned Rogers, sold the company to the Wo Kee Hong Group in Hong Kong. I did the AB1 subwoofer that went with the 3/5A, and then we did the DB101. I carried on the Rogers tradition of the BBC-balanced sound and brought out one or two new ranges. At that time, Rogers was making all the BBC monitors. It’s a small industry, of course – everyone moves around and knows everybody else. I ended up working with Robin Marshall on the Epos ES11 bass unit. TGI also had Epos and Creek Audio, and there was a period in the late 80s when we were all together under one roof. It’s like, let’s look through the other end of the telescope and see what happens.Īfter that, I did a bit down at Mordaunt-Short, which was part of the TGI group that owned Tannoy and Goodmans. It's interesting – you spend most of your career trying to get rid of distortion and then someone asks you to put it back in. You want some break-up, but also a particular tone. Extra features: All powered speakers include at least one analog audio input, but we try to find models that also have other useful features, such as a phono input, digital audio inputs, and a remote control.You’re actually trying to colour the sound there?.Some of the models we’ve tested offer support for more advanced Bluetooth codecs, such as aptX or aptX HD, but we don’t require that. Wireless connectivity: Among powered speakers, we look only at models that include Bluetooth support.Above that price, you’re getting into models for serious audio enthusiasts, who probably already have strong ideas about speakers. Cost: Our price limit for both the passive and powered categories is $600 per pair.Note that you can get better sound from these speakers by placing them on stands (such as the Sanus BF24B or Monoprice 39494 stands) rather than on a shelf, because placing them near a wall can make bass sound boomy, and whatever else is on the shelf may rattle. ![]() If you need something to use with a computer-for gaming or audio production-check out our best computer speakers guide. Size and styling: These speakers are sized and styled to suit a living room or den.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |