Loudspeakers

An oft-told tale, in the 1970s the BBC needed a small nearfield monitor for on-location usage and for equipping studios throughout the land. I recall them in a local BBC outpost in Kent, smaller than my bathroom. What they offered was consistent sound quality, site to site, especially for voice.

Conceived as the LS3/5, the final LS3/5a version was licensed to 11 brands for production, the Beeb limiting it to three at any one time. With minor variations (connector types ranging from multi-way binding posts to screw terminals), the specification was tight. It included the KEF B110 mid/bass driver with doped Bextrene cone and neoprene surround and the KEF T27 Mylar dome tweeter, fitted with a perforated grille. The 131x19x16cm (hwd) enclosure had an internal volume of approximately 5 litres and was made from 12mm birch plywood strengthened with beech braces. And oh – how they worked!