Vivid Audio K1 Loudspeaker

2012 Stereophile Product of the year 

"Vivid's Oval K1 is one of the best loudspeakers I have ever heard." John Marks, Stereophile

"The Vivid K1 is undoubtedly one of the finest loudspeakers on the planet."Jason Kennedy, Hi Fi Choice

"Breathtaking transparency, superlative coherence, dizzying speed and an unyielding musicality." David Price, Hi FI WORLD

Positive Feedback review of the Vivid K1

UK's Tech Radar Reviews the K1

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"Music through the K1s simply sounded more alive and dynamic with their—super-sophisticated and engineered to the max—cabinet and driver combo really doing their thing. There is less of the speaker being in the room; the K1s sound light and fast… not heavy and dense like something made from a ton of wood. "

Big Speaker Performance, Small Speaker Agility

The K1 floor standing loudspeaker is the largest in Vivid's product range that incorporates the coupled front and back bass driver system and integral stand. When designing the K1, the Vivid Audio engineers wanted to gain the bass response of a larger speaker yet retain the agility and speed of a smaller design. Through extensive research, they perfected a reaction cancelling bass loading system that, when combined with a newly developed crossover, delivers progressively focused power with increasing frequency. The result? All the bass expected of a much larger design yet with the coherent detail of a simple driver.

The Drivers

The K1 employs a single D50 midrange driver that operates between 900 and 4 kHz. The D26 high frequency driver handles the frequencies from 4kHz on up. The two anodised aluminium domes are not hemispherical but catenary in shape, which is like a suspended chain, or parabola. This shape, more precisely described as a rotated catenary, was chosen because it pushes the first break-up mode of the driver up to 50 per cent higher than can be achieved with regular aluminium domes.

"The two anodised aluminium domes are not hemispherical but catenary in shape, which is like a suspended chain, or parabola."

Below 900 Hz, the K1 uses four C125 midbass drivers (twice as many as the B-1), two mounted on the front baffle coupled via tensioning rods to two mounted on the rear. None of the drivers in the K1 are fastened directly to the enclosure.

Unique and innovative

The K1s incorporate unique and innovative crossover technology allow the rear drivers to operate from 100 Hz and below, while the front drivers operate up to 900 Hz, ensuring good vertical dispersion. Fourth order filters ensure phase coherance, seamless integration and a symmetrical polar response. Laurence Dickie calls this crossover a series parallel square because it maintains linear impedance across the band. It's a good example of the ingenuity that he has brought to this and the other Vivid speakers.

The Sound

The bottom line however is how do they sound? For one, this is a speaker that has absolutely no enclosure colorations, very few speakers accomplish this feat, the end result is a clarity from the bass to the upper midrange that is electrostat-like. The bass is extraordinarily powerful and solid into the 30 Hz range. The speakers perform a disappearing act that only a handful of much more expensive speakers accomplish. You will find yourself listening for hours, and forgetting about the speakers, enjoying the music. I know I did.

Finishes

Vivid Audio Tech Talk - Read more about what makes Vivid Audio loudspeakers the most advanced and musical designs in the world.

Vivid K1 Specifications
Configuration				3 & 1/2 way vented cabinet
Cabinet material				Complex loaded carbon fibre filled polymer
Finish				High gloss automotive
Drive units				26mm metal dome hf unit
				50mm metal dome mf unit
				158mm metal coned lf unit (two pairs coupled)
Sensitivity				89dB/1w @1m
Nominal Impedance (Ω)				6
Frequency range (hz)				-6dB points 35 - 44,000
Frequency response (hz)				39 to 41,000 +/- 2dB on reference axis
Harmonic distortion (2nd and 3 rd harmonics)				< .0.5% over frequency range
Cross over frequencies (hz)				100, 900, 4000
Power handling (music program) watts rms				600
Loudspeaker dimensions (H, W, D cabinet )				52" x 17 x 20
Net mass (kg)				56
Shipping dimensions (H, W, D)				55 x  18 x  22
Shipping mass (kg)				150