While most speakers are relatively conventional, English KEF goes its own way. Material choice and shape are not the only thing they play with, they have also made perhaps the best coaxial speaker element in Uni-Q, which is now in its 12th generation.
The special element with the treble centrally located on the vertical and horizontal axis, is found in everything from KEF’s affordable R-series, to the much more expensive Blade speakers, and the extreme Muon.
But in KEF’s new LS50 Meta, the Uni-Q element has been upgraded with new technology – Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT), which will attenuate high-frequency internal resonances by as much as 99 percent.
It should provide much cleaner sound with better resolution and lower distortion. MAT looks like a round plate with a kind of labyrinth milled out from the center to the outer edge, and this is mounted on the back of the Uni-Q element, where the energy from the back of the treble flows out through the opening in the middle. 30 small openings in different sizes will absorb the energy from the treble inside the cabinet, thus removing 99 percent of the distortion that can occur.
KEF has upgraded the compact LS50 and the wireless version LS50 Wireless, with MAT, and made several other improvements. Among other things, the crossover filter has been changed and small tweaks have been made to the 13 m large Uni-Q element, which is used in both versions of the LS50 Meta.
The cabinet construction is similar and cast in a composite material with calcium carbon and fiberglass to achieve rigidity and acoustic damping, but the backs are of course different. Where the LS50 Meta has surface-mounted cable terminals, one of the speakers in the LS50 Wireless II has several connections.
HDMI for connection to TV, so you do not need a soundboard, optical and coaxial input, output for subwoofer, 3.5mm jack input and Ethernet for wired network connection.
LS50 Wireless II has Bluetooth, AirPlay 2 and Chromecast built-in, it supports MQA files from Tidal Hi-Fi, and will eventually support Roon. It also handles audio files up to 32-bit / 384 kHz and is adapted to all available streaming services.
The wireless version has a total of 760 W amplifier power, and you do not need a cable to connect them in stereo.
The Wireless II is expected to be available from November in Carbon Black, Mineral White, Titanium Gray and Crimson Red Special Edition. The price: 2,499 euros per pair. You can also use the LS2 standards for these speakers.
There is also a custom floor stand, which can also be delivered in different colors, with screws to attach the speakers to the stands with.