Living Voice Introduces the R80

by The Audio Beat | March 1, 2023

iving Voice will use Audio Show Deluxe at Whittlebury Hall in rural Northamptonshire, UK, Saturday and Sunday March 25th and 26th, to debut its new R80 speaker (£52,000 per pair with matching outboard crossovers), which was three years in the making. The R80 features a symmetrical MTM two-way driver configuration in a reflex-loaded enclosure. The speaker uses two 8" midrange/bass drivers and a 1 1/4" soft-dome tweeter.

The R80's unique cabinet construction is further development of what Living Voice created and improved on for its Auditorium series: a stiff, light, and diffusive substrate that benefits tonality and dynamics. The R80's form relies on classical golden-ratio proportions, making for what Living Voice calls "a timeless aesthetic."

According to Living Voice, the R80's sensitivity is "in the mid 90s" with a very benign impedance characteristic, "making life easy for all types of partnering electronics but playing to the strengths of single-ended triode electronics." As with all Living Voice speakers, the R80's calibrated crossover components are mostly proprietary and are either made in-house by hand or by specialist suppliers.

With the R80, Living Voice "wanted to create a speaker that combined the lyricism, coherence, and innate musicality of the OBX-RW4, with the scale, dynamic range, and visceral thrill of the Vox Olympian." The R80 is "a loudspeaker for music lovers who listen with their feelings as well as their ears."