KEF R5 - Pair

Kef R5 are the HiFi floorstanding loudspeakers, a true entry into the Olympus of the English R Series. 3-way speakers, equipped with Uni-Q with 25mm tweeter and 125mm midrange and 2 130mm woofers. Measures 1,025 x 175 x 343.5 mm. The frequency response is between 58 Hz and 28 KHz with a sensitivity of 87 dB and an impedance of 8 Ohms. 1,043 individual changes compared to the previous generation make it a new absolute reference.

Kef R5 are the best HiFi floorstanding speakers for any occasion

Kef R5 are the entry level HiFi speakers of the R Series by Kef. The most extreme acoustic technologies are housed in a slim and compact body. The R Series is the natural evolution of one of the most complete, loved and acclaimed speaker lines in the world. Bringing within an endless list of technological innovations and countless improvements over the previous generation, the R Series aims directly at the acoustic peaks of the Kef Reference series. For the first time ever, top-notch features and performance are brought into this category and price range. No fewer than 1,043 individual changes were made in making the new R Series. The result of this massive production effort is exemplified by the R5. While falling within the same size range, the performance of the new proposal outclasses those of the previous R500. The two woofers dedicated to low frequencies, suffice it to say to understand where evolution has taken place, have a double excursion compared to previous models.

"... the Kef R5 speakers are expertly balanced from the sound point of view and work well on a wide range of systems" WHAT-HiFi

At the heart of R5 you find the twelfth generation Uni-Q

Kef's Brits don't like compromises. The lean styling of the Kef R5 shouldn't be misleading: these speakers are equipped with the same Uni-Q as the larger R7 and R11 siblings. With a 125mm midrange driver and 25mm aluminum dome tweeter, mounted in line with each other, you'll get incredible levels of detail and realism.

Come i ben informati sanno, questi due componenti – tweeter e midrange – costituiscono l’Uni-Q, il più importane brevetto del brand di Maidstone. Grazie all’Uni-Q avremo una sorgente di emissione puntiforme in cui alte e medie frequenze vengono riprodotte da un singolo punto – come nella realtà. Non più due diversi driver, non più suoni che arrivano da punti diversi dell’altoparlante! Uni-Q si ispira al quanto di più vero e reale succede in natura ed offre la riproduzione più accurata esistente.

R5 è a tutti gli effetti un diffusore da pavimento ad Alta Fedeltà, al pari del resto della sua serie. Per sonorizzazioni di ottimo livello ma più convenienti consigliamo di rivolgersi verso la Serie Q.

Woofer e Cabinet

Nella nuova Serie R al fine di ottenere maggiore “punch” e controllo, i driver per le basse frequenze sono stati oggetti di totale redesign. Qui i due woofer attivi riescono, più che mai in questa fascia di prezzo, a riprodurre bassi eccezionalmente puliti. I bass-driver della R5 presentano un’escursione doppia rispetto alla vecchia serie, a garanzia di performance assolute e di grande tolleranza alle escursioni di volume! I nuovi woofer beneficiano anche di un motore migliorato, ora a bassissima distorsione, ed un nuovo cono caratterizzato da maggiore rigidità. Il risultato è una prestazione dei bassi superba, con potenza, profondità, velocità e articolazione. Hard Rock a palla? No problem! L’utilizzo di driver compatti ha consentito al cabinet di essere più sottile. Il beneficio che ne deriva è duplice: un altoparlante sottile è più facilmente inseribile in ambiente ed allo stesso tempo interagisce meno con l’ambiente d’ascolto. Infine il cabinet è stato realizzato utilizzando una nuova tecnica che combina una struttura ultra rigida e giunzioni di smorzamento. La struttura risultante è inerte e costituisce la culla nella quale trovano alloggiamento i nuovi, sofisticati driver.

“La qualità complessiva della costruzione è eccezionale. I diffusori Kef R5 mostrano un livello di intuizione e risoluzione dei dettagli che va ben oltre quello della maggior parte dei rivali” WHAT-HiFi

Shadow Flare

As well-informed people know, these two components - tweeter and midrange - make up the Uni-Q, the most important patent of the Maidstone brand. Thanks to the Uni-Q we will have a point-like emission source in which high and medium frequencies are reproduced from a single point - as in reality. No more two different drivers, no more sounds coming from different points of the speaker! Uni-Q is inspired by the most true and real that happens in nature and offers the most accurate reproduction in existence.

R5 is in effect a High Fidelity floorstanding loudspeaker, like the rest of its series. For excellent sounding but more convenient, we recommend turning to the Q Series.

Woofer and Cabinet

In the new R Series in order to achieve more punch and control, the low frequency drivers have been completely redesigned. Here the two active woofers are able, more than ever in this price range, to reproduce exceptionally clean bass. The bass drivers of the R5 have a double excursion compared to the old series, guaranteeing absolute performance and great tolerance to volume excursions! The new woofers also benefit from an improved motor, now with very low distortion, and a new cone characterized by greater stiffness. The result is superb bass performance, with power, depth, speed and articulation. Hard Rock at the ball? No problem! The use of compact drivers has allowed the cabinet to be thinner. The resulting benefit is twofold: a thin speaker is more easily inserted into the environment and at the same time interacts less with the listening environment. Finally, the cabinet was made using a new technique that combines an ultra-rigid structure and damping joints. The resulting structure is inert and constitutes the cradle in which the new, sophisticated drivers are housed.

“The overall build quality is exceptional. The Kef R5 speakers show a level of insight and detail resolution that goes far beyond that of most rivals. ” WHAT-HiFi

Shadow Flare

In addition, in these new Kef R5 the role of the Uni-Q driver as a wave guide is further expanded by the innovative design of the outer ring called "Shadow Flare". The Shadow Flare is a typical refinement of Kef and is engineered with absolute precision to drastically reduce the diffraction effects that are inevitably created in a normal loudspeaker with edges and edges. This makes the sonic performance even more convincing and realistic.

R5 is recommended for small to medium-sized environments

The compact size of these speakers, combined with the perfect management of bass and reflex, makes them easy to place even in a small room, say 10 square meters. Up to about 30 m2 the R5 is absolutely perfect as a HiFi system. In addition, for rooms of 40 or 50 square meters, a reinforcement subwoofer or a speaker with a wider woofer is recommended. Of course R5 are also ideal as surround or side speakers in a high-level Atmos project.

"Kef's new patented grilles eliminate the classic MDF frame that compromises the performance of most speakers" - DIGITAL AF

New patented grids

The Kef R5 speakers combine high performance with a build quality that is unmatched in the audio industry. One of the most evident innovations is the front protection grille, created by the sandwich of 13 layers of composite materials and microfibre. The new grids, or screens, are ultra-thin, very rigid and in tone with the specific finish of the diffuser.

Forget the old grids with MDF frame and glued mesh! These new grids make a clean break with the past and the obstacles to emission. The new grids feature as many as 1,801 precision holes for each of the different drivers. Rigid, elegant, ultra thin, magnetic. If you had given up on protecting the drivers because the old grilles did not satisfy you, now the new protections are the real icing on the cake. Not a simple accessory but an integral element of the diffuser system. The new grilles of the R5 represent the new peak in hearing protection design.

Reflex ducts on the back of R5

Kef R5 are equipped with Reflex ducts with flexible design. The reflex ports - rear - of the 2019 R Series speakers are positioned with absolute precision (not in axis with respect to the speaker cones) and are equipped with flexible walls that hinder mid-range coloration. The pressure inside the ducts is constant at any pressure and frequency level. The final listening result? The elimination of unwanted resonances and the return to the ear of the pure sound of the artist.

Gamma R

Kef R5 is available - like the rest of the range - in three precious finishes, the result of an unparalleled aesthetic research: glossy lacquered black, glossy lacquered white and real natural walnut. All the finishes are characterized by exclusive and sophisticated tone-on-tone details, from the feet to the drivers, from the logo to the shadow flare, everything recalls the dominant color.

Tried and recommended combinations

The Kef R5 tower speakers are the floorstanding speakers that mark the real entry into the world of High Fidelity by the famous English brand. To make the most of it and to ensure that the listening is excellent, we recommend a possible combination with neutral HiFi amplifiers, with good dynamics and good current control. These floorstanding speakers always sound very good any type of music, with a neutral response and a large soundstage. They need a good running-in to play at their best, we even talk about 100 hours, and the final acoustic result is truly amazing. Kef officially proposes Hegel amplifications in many countries, in this case the balanced model is the H120 while the "generous" one is the H190. For those who really want a lot of power and listen at high volumes the recommended model becomes H390.

SPECIFICHE TECNICHE

WEIGHT 27,3 Kg

FINISHES Black / White / Walnut

DIMENSION (H X W X D) 1025 x 175 x 343,5 mm with terminal*

DIMENSION (H X W X D) 1071,4 x 271,6 x 343,5 mm with feet*

DESIGN Three-way bass reflex

FREQUENCY RANGE 38 Hz – 50 KHz (-6 dB)

TYPICAL IN-ROOM BASS RESPONSE 29 Hz (-6 dB)

FREQUENCY RESPONSE 46 Hz – 28 KHz (±3 dB)

HARMONIC DISTORTION <0.3% 120 Hz – 20 KHz (90 dB, 1m)

SENSITIVITY 87 dB

MAXIMUM OUTPUT 110 dB

AMPLIFIER POWER 15 – 200W (recommended)

NOMINAL IMPEDANCE 8 Ohm (min 3.2 Ohm)

DRIVE UNITS Uni-Q Driver Array: HF: 25mm (1in.) vented aluminium dome MF: 125mm (5in.) aluminium cone

BASS DRIVER: 2 x LF: 130mm (5.25 in.) hybrid aluminium

CROSSOVER FREQUENCIES 400 Hz, 2.9 KHz