R80
The R80 is a sophisticated and uncompromised 2-way loudspeaker that combines the visceral thrill and lyricism of our Vox Olympian horn loudspeaker with the musical coherence and tonal beauty of our Auditorium Series.
It shares the same musical values and priorities as all Living Voice loudspeakers, designed for discerning listeners who share our passionate love of music.
To reach our goal we chose a symmetrical mid treble/ mid (MTM) two-way driver topology in a reflex-loaded enclosure using two state-of-the-art 8″ bass/mid drivers and 34mm tweeter. We set out on this path several years ago and here we are – 2023, and the R80 is born.
It is a complicated business making something simple. The past 12 months bear testament to this with painstaking incremental progress and seemingly endless iterative developments on both the cabinet tuning and crossover.
The Living Voice R80 loudspeakers truly energized that large and beautiful space, yet still managed to sound light and airy and detailed at the same time. This was another room that was constantly packed throughout the show, and for good reason.
Marc Phillips, Part-Time Audiophile, USA.
As with all Living Voice loudspeakers the precision-calibrated crossover components are largely proprietary and are either made by hand in-house or by specialist suppliers specifically for this model. The crossover topology has been arrived at through a 4-year empirical development programme.
The R80 has a unique cabinet construction that is a further development of what we have evolved for the Auditorium Series over the past 30 years. This translates beautifully into the R80 design aiding its natural tonal filigree and easy dynamic contrast.
Paradoxically, truly great listening experiences are few and far between at hi-fi-shows.
Still, there are rooms I return to every year, safe in the knowledge I will find both great sound and great music. One such room is that of Kevin Scott of Definitive Audio and Living Voice, the English maker of ultra-expensive horn speakers and somewhat less expensive dynamic speakers.
JAN OMDAHL, TRACKING ANGLE, USA.
The form factor of the R80 is clean, simple, and unornamented, relying on classical golden ratio proportions and premium materials which makes for what we hope is a timeless aesthetic.
It has a wide bandwidth and deep extended bass with a benign amplifier load that deviates by only 4 ohms from 120 Hz to 20 kHz. Overall sensitivity is high, making life relatively easy for all types of partnering electronics and playing to the strengths of single-ended triode amplifiers, including those of 7–10 watts.
The R80 brings a new level of performance to the Living Voice range with a natural tonal response across all types of music. The sound quality is sophisticated and transcendent, and we hope that everyone who buys a pair has their passion for music reignited.
R80 has been a process of patient development. It is a loudspeaker for music lovers who listen with their feelings as well as their ears.
