Outdoor Speakers - KEF Speakers
Outdoor Speakers allow you to enjoy music outside, perfecting an outdoor space for entertaining or relaxing in your garden, or on your patio or decking. Wherever you want your music outdoors, you can have it. These outdoor speakers are premium branded, rugged and durable options, designed to sound much better than cheaper alternatives. These speakers must be connected to a suitable hi-fi amplifier indoors, or Sonos system indoors (to control outdoor music as a separate zone), connected via outdoor speaker cable. We also sell a wide range of indoor in-wall and in-ceiling speakers. Please call or e-mail if you need advice. Looking for something simpler? See portable speakers.
KEF is a British speaker manufacturer developing industry-leading products for over 50 years. KEF has received a host of awards and stellar reviews and currently offers a wide range of hi-fi speakers and AV speakers.
The flagship KEF Blade and smaller KEF Blade 2 speakers are renowned for their excellence and superb reproduction, and their advanced pioneering technologies and Uni-Q Driver Array designs have filtered down into lots of KEF’s consumer-end products, such as the KEF LS50 wireless speakers.
In 1961, KEF was founded by Raymond Cooke OBE an ex-BBC Electrical Engineer and headquartered the company near Maidstone, Kent. The company was set on the banks of the River Medway in the premises of a former metal working company, Kent Engineering & Foundry. Overtime by experimenting with new technologies and materials, Cooke aimed to produce superior acoustic quality with recordings reproduced to the exact nature of the original performance.
KEF became the first company to utilise the stability of Bextrene as a cone material, which has since been incorporated in many drivers for many leading audiophile speakers. Another major breakthrough a few years later, KEF became the first to design and test loudspeakers with computer modelling leading the industry in the digital analysis of speakers. Their revolutionary work resulted in KEF being able to match speaker pairs to within half a dB for flawless audio reproduction.
KEF eventually went on to produce their signature technology, the Uni-Q point source driver array in the next decade using NASA-developed magnets that were ten times more powerful than conventional ones. KEF stayed ahead of the game in the nineties with the advent of 5.1 home cinema recording by creating the first dedicated centre speaker in the UK, the Model 100 benefiting from Uni-Q.
Through the years, they have been developing impressive expertise in the use of advanced acoustical, magnetic and mechanical modelling techniques such as Finite Element Analysis resulting in an accuracy that was not previously achievable. Kept under wraps since the 1980s, KEF revealed their ACE technology in 2005 demonstrating the advantages of activated carbon inside a compact speaker enclosure and its effect on internal volume and bass extension.
Now five decades from the company’s inception, KEF's scientific innovation and hands-on experimentation cements their ultimate audiophile reputation and allows them to continue to lead in developing products ahead of the market. We stock the complete KEF range, from the multimedia range (that includes active speakers, headphones and earphones) to the Q series range, LS50 range, both the wired and wireless LS50, R series range, KEF Reference range and KEF Blade, along with custom install speakers and 5.1 speaker packages for a home theatre experience.
These Outdoor Speakers are typically fixed firmly to the wall, allowing for adjustable positioning for optimum performance and imaging. These will require drilling in order to fix them to an outside wall or surface, and most models include the necessary mounts and fixings.
The speaker fitting and bracket is more substantial than those used domestically and indoors, and is designed to be more heavy duty. Most models will not include screws and wall plugs, as what is required will differ depending on the material that the speakers are being fixed into. This leaves you free to use whatever fixings you require, and to tailor the mounting to your requirements.
Obviously, as they are permanently exposed to the elements, Outdoor Speakers are designed and built to rigorous specifications in order to be durable, weatherproof and rugged. The drivers are protected by a metal mesh which eliminates the risk of any particles damaging the drivers and compromising the sound quality of your system. Bookshelf speakers typically use a combination of real woods and veneers to construct their cabinets. While this has sonic advantages and is aesthetically pleasing, it is not very durable and susceptible to knocks, marks and scrapes. Outdoor Speakers are designed to withstand virtually anything, within reason, typically constructed from a combination of plastics and poly
While they are described and marketed for outdoor use, our range of Outdoor Speakers may also be ideal for indoor environments where a rugged and splash proof or waterproof speaker is required. For example, these speakers may be ideal for a kitchen or commercial environment where due to their durability. Outdoor Speakers can offer similar performance to hi-fi stereo speakers, and feature similar or identical drivers to their bookshelf or floorstanding counterparts, only built to withstand more testing environments.
Outdoor Speakers are typically passive, meaning that they will require and amplifier in order to power them and provide signal. They typically connect with standard speaker cable, and in most regards are similar to stereo hi-fi speakers. Outdoor Speakers may be set up in a multiple channel configuration – in this case a multi-channel power amplifier or AV Receiver would be necessary in order to power all of the speakers.
Some Outdoor Speakers are designed to be discreet and blend in to a greater extent than typical speakers. These are designed to look like rocks, and remain inconspicuous in your garden, recreation park, swimming pool or other outdoor area. They are made from an extremely durable poly resin which is built to be rugged and withstand the elements. These materials are also selected as, should any accidental chips or damage occur, the overall aesthetic of the speaker is not ruined.
