FINE SOUND FROM SMARTER SPEAKERS

Combining novel driver technology with active operation and all-round bass, can these little Danish speakers tempt Caroline Osborn?

The idea of making equipment 'for those who discuss design and quality before price' has served Bang & Olufsen well for most of its 80-year history. However, a reputation can only be sustained if products have a sound that goes with that style and price tag, and in the past couple of years the company has intensified its focus on all things desirable and good looking.

But technology and engineering goes hand in hand with styling and design, and the idea of active speakers, combining drive units, crossover and amplification in one enclosure, has been a central part of the company's speaker design since the Beolab 2500 of 1991. For the Beolab 3 the engineers in Denmark have wrung the best out of what is in effect a very small speaker by the use of ICEpower amplification — the acronym stands for Intelligent, Compact and Efficient — and some innovative driver technology.

The BeoLab 3 is about the size of a ten-pin bowling ball, at about 24cm tall, and looks like one, too. Well, one with flat front and sides, a top hat on and a plinth to allow it sit on a shelf, anyway! As with other products from this company, the engineers make a strong case for function having dictated the form: the novel shape is an attempt to tackle the problem of the effect room boundaries have on front-firing speakers.

To that end the speaker uses three bass/mid-range units: one of these, on the front of the enclosure, is driven, the other two being passive radiators working to left and right. This section is driven by one of two 125W ICEpower amplifiers built into the speaker, the other one being used to drive the other innovative part of the design, the Acoustic Lens Technology tweeter.

The ALT design is licensed from American company Sausalito Audio Works and comprises a precisely shaped aluminium lens, on the top face of the speaker, directing and controlling the dispersion of the upward-firing tweeter. That's the 'top hat' I referred to: it's designed to give a good sense of location and position from the treble by controlling the driver's radiation, neither wasting energy by scattering it nor allowing spurious reflections to affect imaging.

Performance

These speakers are principally designed for use with the company's own systems, using DIN-type connectors to carry control and music signals. The company supplied a BeoSound 3200 system (E1725) for the purposes of this test.

A switch on the speaker allows the choice of left or right channel, so each Beolab 3 in question only takes the appropriate information, while a 'line' setting, together with a suitable phono socket to DIN plug adapter, allows the speakers to be used with conventional preamplifiers. A three-position switch adjusts equalisation to compensate for the position of the speaker in the room: in a corner, adjacent to a wall or in free space. Each speaker needs to be connected to the mains, and can be used on shelf stands or brackets or the optional floor stands I used, which put the centre of the speaker about 71cms above the floor. The sound is well judged, with an attractive mix of tonal information and dynamic range resulting in a thoroughly integrated sonic picture. The sense of immense power in reserve is not thrust at you, but you're always conscious that more is available if required. I was immediately converted by the lifelike and full sound; on the LSO Live CD of Dvorak's Seventh Symphony, Sir Colin Davis conducting, the warmth and lyrical quality is always there and when the brass attacks there is no doubt that these speakers sound big enough to be handle all the complications and intricacies that the music might demand.

The acoustic lens system gets the spatial information to the listener in a clean and uncluttered way that never seems strained or under pressure. Were you not to have sight of the BeoLab 3s you might be fooled into imagining a significantly larger speaker with a much bigger volume; at least one listener was convinced I had the Beolab 2 subwoofer in harness when in fact they were listening to the little Beolab 3s alone.

Adding the subwoofer enhanced the authority of the 3s, and their ability to deliver one of the sweetest sounds I have heard. In an all-B&O configuration a single feed from the system is all that is necessary: the left and right signals are fed to the Beolab 3s in the usual 'daisy chain' manner. Integration is excellent, with a smooth blend of sound from speaker to speaker and the power at the bottom end is powerful and pleasing: there's no uncontrolled waffle, but rather fine low-end precision to match the refinement of the Beolab 3s.

Do you need the subwoofer? In relatively small rooms, I'd suggest not — even in my rather large space the speakers seemed capable of doing the job unaided. But the beauty of the Bang & Olufsen system approach is that you could start with the speakers alone, then add the subwoofer later if required — it's just a matter of pulling one plug and connecting an extra cable. Fine sound with simple elegance — where have we heard that before? CO

Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 3

Type Shelf/Stand active speakers

Price £1975/pr

Drive units 18mm tweeter, with ALT (Acoustic Lens Technology), 11cm mid/bass with 2x11cm passive radiators Power amplifiers 2x125W ICEPower, one each for bass driver and tweeter

Usable frequency response 50Hz-20kHz Inputs DIN terminal, phono with adapter Dimensions (HxWxD) 23x14x19cm, 82x19x19cm with stand

Bang & Olufsen BeoLab 2

Type Active woofer speaker

Price £1626

Drive units 22.9cm bass, 2x22.9cm passive Power amplifier 850W Class D

Usable frequency response 23Hz-120Hz Inputs DIN terminal, phono with adapter Dimensions (HxWxD) 32x26x31cm

Made by Bang & Olufsen, Struer, Denmark Distributed by Bang & Olufsen UK Ltd, 630 Wharfedale Rd, Winnersh Triangle, Berks RG41 5TP

Tel +44 (0)118 9692288

Web www.bang-olufsen.com