For perfectionists who demand uncompromisingly accurate sound that captures the full emotional range, depth, and detail of the original performance.
THE REFERENCE
REFERENCE 5 Floorstanding Speaker
HK$135,000
Flagship of the new R Series range
KEF REFERENCE 1's innovative technology means that you don't need a big cabinet to enjoy expansive, premium quality sound.
REFERENCE 4c Centre Channel Speaker
HK$99,000
Midsized floorstanding member of the new R Series
KEF REFERENCE 2c delivers an uplifting listening and viewing experience. For clarity, detail and emotional depth, it's a revelation.
REFERENCE 3 Floorstanding Speaker
HK$63,000
KEF engineers do not believe in compromise
KEF REFERENCE 3's three-dimensional soundstage places you right at the heart of the original performance. it gives you the soul.
REFERENCE 2c Centre Channel Speaker
HK$42,000
R3 redefines standmount performance
KEF REFERENCE 4c combines breath-taking sonic accuracy with spatial precision. For movie buffs looking for total immersion, it's the perfect centre.
REFERENCE 1 Bookshelf Speaker
HK$58,000
Exemplifies the passion for innovation underpins THE REFERENCE design philosophy
For music or film, it reveals subtleties you'd never noticed while gripping your emotions with the full power of the performance.
REFERENCE 8b Subwoofer
HK$00,000
The R8a is a flexible solution for anybody
KEF REFERENCE 8b delivers exceptional bass precision and control with zero distortion. Only a truly great subwoofer could do justice to THE REFERENCE standards of home theatre, and it does.
THE REFERENCE
The standard by which others are judged, and to which they aspire.
The perfect reproduction of recorded sound is what KEF's legendary Reference Series has always stood for. And after 40 years of continuous development, the Reference has earned its name as the yardstick of high-end acoustic engineering.
If you're a perfectionist when it comes to enjoying movies or music, it's the one name that towers above the rest.
THE REFERENCE. It speaks for itself.
"A description was needed to convey the idea that every loudspeaker is subject to scrutiny at all stages of assembly, culminating in a final test comparison with a laboratory-maintained reference standard. So the method became the name: Reference." -- Laurie Fincham, Engineering Director 1968-1991
Benchmark Technology
KEF has never been a 'me too'. We create. And we never stop learning.
The list of KEF patents and innovations is unequalled. Although the Uni-Q point source driver array is our most famous breakthrough, it's just one of many. There's the unique 'tangerine' segmented waveguide. Cleverly stiffened and optimised aluminium domes. Sophisticated vented tweeters. The ingenious use of new materials to boost motor performance and power handling. Constrained layer damping. Acoustic Compliance Enhancement. The brilliant Z-flex surround - these and many others are what account for the reputation of KEF's multi-award winning drivers.
No other manufacturer has done more to advance the state of the art - and no other range personifies KEF's passion for perfection more than The Reference.
A Class Apart
With six models - two elegant three-way floorstanders, a formidable three-way bookshelf speaker, two three-way centre channels and an awesome 1000-watt sub – and a newly introduced in-wall based on the REFERENCE 5, The Reference range combines benchmark high fidelity with complete multichannel versatility. And as you’d expect, they all exude the sense of sheer quality that comes from being hand built by KEF’s master technicians in Maidstone, Kent.
Uni-Q driver array
At the heart of The Reference is a stunning new iteration of KEF’s landmark innovation: the Uni-Q point source MF/HF driver array. With a state-of-the-art 25mm (1in.) vented aluminium dome tweeter at the exact acoustic centre of a highly sophisticated 125mm (5in.) midrange driver, both act as a single source that floods the listening space evenly with a flawless natural soundfield, no matter where you sit. Capturing all the nuances of the human voice, whether whispered, spoken or sung, it sounds as if the person were right there with you in the room.
Bass drivers
At the heart of The Reference is a stunning new iteration of KEF’s landmark innovation: the Uni-Q point source MF/HF driver array. With a state-of-the-art 25mm (1in.) vented aluminium dome tweeter at the exact acoustic centre of a highly sophisticated 125mm (5in.) midrange driver, both act as a single source that floods the listening space evenly with a flawless natural soundfield, no matter where you sit. Capturing all the nuances of the human voice, whether whispered, spoken or sung, it sounds as if the person were right there with you in the room.
Flexible port technology
The Reference has innovative adjustable ports for fine-tuning the bass output to your personal taste and the room characteristics. The flexible port technology pioneered for the multi-award winning LS50 is used to reduce midrange port resonance, with the flare and profile of each port calculated by computational fluid dynamics to avoid turbulent air noise that might colour the sound.
Crossover design
KEF engineers computer-modelled the ideal crossover networks before exhaustively auditioning every high grade component, individually and together, to select those with the lowest distortion and the smoothest response. Perfectionism takes time, but the difference is plain to hear. Nothing is overlooked - Reference crossovers are even mounted on separate boards and decoupled from the cabinet walls to minimise vibration and crosstalk.
Cabinet design
Finished by hand in pair-matched wood veneers to complement the composite front baffle, the shape and bracing geometry of the cabinets are computer-optimised to minimise secondary radiation from the cabinet walls and distortion from standing waves. With constrained layer damping to absorb residual vibrations, they’re engineered to eliminate any panel resonance, stray reflections or box colouration effects that would compromise the purity of the sound.
Crossover design
The Reference drivers are set in a smooth, strikingly distinctive front baffle engineered to eliminate response anomalies caused by diffraction. Made from an exceptionally strong laminated aluminium/resin composite and secured via high-loss pads and high tensile bolts, it adds tremendous rigidity to the inert cabinet.
Plinths and stands
The Reference 3 and 5 are solidly grounded on a plinth and spike set developed with characteristic KEF attention to detail, with a spirit level built into the plinth and spike sets easily adjusted by neatly concealed screws. The bespoke stands for the Reference 1 have a discreet cable management channel to keep the cabling neatly out of sight. Provision is also made for bolting the speaker to the stand for maximum rigidity, and the upright has a vertical compartment which you can fill with your choice of inert material for greater stability and acoustic damping. The stands are finished in Satin Black.
Kent Engineering and Foundry Editions
When Raymond Cooke set out to perfect the reproduction of recorded sound in 1961, he set up his first research lab on the banks of the river Medway in the Garden of England in a wartime Nissen hut formerly occupied by Kent Engineering and Foundry. Hence the name: KEF.
To celebrate KEF's unrivalled heritage of continuous innovation in the half century since, and the part that the legendary Reference Series has played over the last 40 years in consolidating KEF's reputation among serious audiophiles, we've commissioned two bespoke editions of the latest range.
With two striking special finishes - Blue Ice White, hinting at the blue of the original KEF logo, and Copper Black Aluminium - the Kent Engineering & Foundry editions combine the latest Reference technology with an aesthetic that subtly evokes this rich pedigree.
