ACE Technology

J.R.Wright Head of Research February 2001

Ever since loudspeaker designers realised the acoustic benefits of partially or fully enclosing a loudspeaker in a cabinet they have sought to extract the maximum bass performance from a minimum cabinet size. It has become the ultimate aim - the 'holy grail' - of loudspeaker design to achieve 'big bass from small boxes'.

It is not possible to break the laws of physics.

But we can bend them!

Maintaining a 40-year tradition of genuine innovation in loudspeakers, KEF now have that enviable ability to bend the laws of physics and produce the Virtual Loudspeaker Cabinet.

By introducing a 'magic dust' into the cabinet interior we can make the box acoustically bigger without physical change to the cabinet.

Let us be clear. This is a real innovation: not an evolution, not a slight improvement, no tricks, just something totally new and remarkable. We call it Acoustic Compliance Enhancement (ACE).

Compliance Enhancement - A Brief History

Given the potential competitive advantages, it is not surprising that numerous attempts have been made to extend the low frequency performance of small loudspeaker systems. However, thus far none have reached commercial viability. Most attempts have involved putting a specialised gas contained within an impervious bag into the enclosure, the condensation of this gas into its liquid phase providing an effective increase in acoustic compliance. These systems [1-4] usually required the presence of an active heating element in the loudspeaker to maintain
thermal conditions critical to successful operation.

There are too many practical obstacles in these approaches. What if we could just use air and avoid the need for active elements?

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