Cambridge Audio L/R Series Active Streaming Speakers announced

[pieterv1]

Didn't see these coming! Cambridge Audio is launching a series of active (streaming) speakers in 3 different sizes. The design has hints of Buchardt, Ascilab, with various color options like the Pro-Ject bookshelfs.

Streaming functionality is reserved for the larger "M" & "X" variants and can be controlled with the StreamMagic app.
Specs for the "X" version for a single speaker include up to 400W amplification, 2x 5" active woofers (one downfiring), 2x 6” passive radiators (sides) and a 28mm tweeter with waveguide.

I was thinking about buying the new 3e Audio amp with built-in PSU and swapping my Wharfedale Lintons for the Ascilab C6B's later this year, but man these look sleek!

https://www.cambridgeaudio.com/eur/en/products/lr

 

[Puddingbuks]

Wow, just wow. I love to see more companies get on the active dsp roomcorrection speaker bandwagon!

Looks fantastic also. Imagine if they get it right and make a well measuring active speaker at this pricepoint.

 

[pieterv1]

Wow, just wow. I love to see more companies get on the active dsp roomcorrection speaker bandwagon!

Looks fantastic also. Imagine if they get it right and make a well measuring active speaker at this pricepoint.

Yeah and I suppose they can keep finetuning the DSP through software updates (as with most wireless speakers).
Matching stands should be revealed soon.

Just had a look at the Kef LS50 Wireless II and you get so much more power & functionality (phono stage especially) for €500 less with the Cambridge Audio's largest option...

 

[Matias]

I was about to post a new thread about these too. I usually don't follow much of Cambridge Audio, but these speakers look impressive to say the least. Not only literally (aesthetically), but the specs, the driver configuration and placements on the cabinet, the tweeter waveguide and back absorbing chamber... Looks like a very thoughtful and modern design.

I bet these will measure great too.

More here.

First Listen Review: Cambridge Audio L/R Series Streaming Speakers

Cambridge Audio’s L/R Series stereo streaming speakers mark a new era for the independent British brand.

stereonet.com

 

[Somafunk]

Joel from gadgetrytech interviews the designer

 

[Rick63]

Those do look nice! I could do without the (plastic?) bottom pieces though. Looking forward to seeing them reviewed, preferably here.

 

[pieterv1]

Those do look nice! I could do without the (plastic?) bottom pieces though. Looking forward to seeing them reviewed, preferably here.

They're actually functional vents for the downfiring woofer!

 

[Rick63]

They're actually functional vents for the downfiring woofer!

I assumed that since they have dual side firing passive radiators, that the cabinets would be sealed?

Not sure I've ever seen a passive radiator monitor have a ported cabinet as well??

 

[Puddingbuks]

They're actually functional vents for the downfiring woofer!

Yes it is a nice design twist to have an active woofer on the front AND bottom and use the sides for two passive radiators.

 

[pieterv1]

I assumed that since they have dual side firing passive radiators, that the cabinets would be sealed?

Not sure I've ever seen a passive radiator monitor have a ported cabinet as well??

Well the actual cabinet seems fully sealed. The structure at the bottom just gives the woofer some room to breathe and do its job - by lifting it from the ground

 

[Arindal]

I assumed that since they have dual side firing passive radiators, that the cabinets would be sealed?

Not sure I've ever seen a passive radiator monitor have a ported cabinet as well??

Usually, passive radiators are the resonators used instead of a port. PR PLUS port at the same time does not make sense in my understanding, and I do not see any port here at play.

 

[FrantzM]

Hi

This thread is an interesting illustration of the power of marketing ... We are a Science oriented forum, yet we are discussing a speaker line for which , on the website there is not (no?) much mentions of measurements of these speakers .. Or are there that I, could not find ?

There are mentions from What Hi-Fi and GQ ...however

oOoooook...

Carry on.

 

[Puddingbuks]

@FrantzM I said “Imagine if they get it right and make a well measuring active speaker at this pricepoint.”

So the upcoming real reviews (not whathifi ) and measurements will tell if these are good or not.

 

[pieterv1]

The first few reports have

Hi

This thread is an interesting illustration of the power of marketing ... We are a Science oriented forum, yet we are discussing a speaker line for which , on the website there is not (no?) much mentions of measurements of these speakers .. Or are there that I, could not find ?

There are mentions from What Hi-Fi and GQ ...however

oOoooook...

Carry on.

Obviously we'll have to wait for scientific reviews/measurements. The first few reports have said that Cambridge Audio are still working on the tuning.

 

[pieterv1]

Yes it is a nice design twist to have an active woofer on the front AND bottom and use the sides for two passive radiators.

Curious to see how they would configure the (digital) crossover between the woofers. Would it be sub+midrange for the front and only sub for the bottom?

 

[pieterv1]

Here's the insides of the largest "X" speaker.

It's a bit of a shame they seem to be using cheaper Chinese capacitors inside. They read "Chengx".
On the other hand: Chinese manufacturers of amps and other components like Fosi, FiiO, Topping, 3e Audio manage to use name brands like Rubycon, Nichicon etc...

 

[ads_cft222]

They say they are still tuning these speakers (lr x), so there is no final product yet, as they may change internal components during the tuning phase. The speakers will be available around June this year.

 

[pieterv1]

I got the following response on the Cambridge Audio community regarding the components (and the remote):

The amp boards are finalised and will be like the ones in the videos, we have a huge list of caps we have tested so rest assured they have been vetted by our team to be up to spec. In an active speaker, we are using a lot of DSP to get everything working in sync, so whilst they still have to perform well, they are not as critical a part in the sound tuning here.

In our main HiFi amplifiers, we do a lot of capacitor swapping during tuning to get the sound we want, and we are not loyal to any specific brand.

Also, Chengx have been around for a long time and produce a lot of power supply capacitors - https://hwbusters.com/freestyle/visiting-a-capacitor-manufacturer-in-dongguan-chengxing-electronic/

We don't have any finalised pictures of the remote just yet, they will come soon.

 

[Matias]

This thread is an interesting illustration of the power of marketing ... We are a Science oriented forum, yet we are discussing a speaker line for which , on the website there is not (no?) much mentions of measurements of these speakers .. Or are there that I, could not find ?

Since I wrote "I bet these will measure great too", I feel the quote above relates to me. So let me explain some design elements that lead me to this.

• The tweeter waveguide is more or less the same size as the front woofer. AFAIK this usually results in a smooth transition on the horizontal directivity between the drivers, and better soundstage accuracy.
  
  
• RoomEQ not only helps with room modes, ok, but also means that the speaker has DSP, which is common for active speakers nowadays. This means they have easy access to optimize linearity. Linear on axis + smooth off axis = linear in room response.
  
  
• Passive radiators result in deeper bass than a sealed enclosure of the same size. Also it avoids chuffing noises and inner space wasted with a port.
  
  
• The larger X model has a total rated power of 400 W per speaker, of which 135 W to the tweeter if I got this right. That is a healthy amount of power per driver, which should help with compression.
  
  
• The tweeter has back chamber absorption. This is as old as B&W Nautilus tapered tweeter in the 90s, whose engineer Laurence Dickie continued the concept with his own brand Vivid Audio until now. Later in 2020 KEF followed the same concept of back chamber absorption with metamaterials starting with the LS50 Meta and updating all their lines. So big brands with respectable R&D following this path makes me conclude it is a worthwhile design element to reduce tweeter distortion (see KEF whitepaper about it). Back to Cambridge, if they are following this concept too, to me it is a good sign. They would not waste time designing and adding material cost for nothing.

All this can go wrong and the speakers measure terrible, of course. That is why I wrote "bet" since it is not a certainty. But apparently the foundations are all there for a great measuring speaker. Let's wait and see the reviews when they come out (hopefully) here in ASR or at Erin's.