KEF Reference 1 Meta

Standmount speakers

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We first came across KEF’s Reference 1 speakers back in 2018. They made quite an impression due to a truly compelling blend of an insightful yet balanced presentation, superb build and thorough engineering. But it is never sensible to stand still for long in the hi-fi industry, so five years on from that original review we are sitting in our test room, having just unpacked the new Reference 1 Meta.

We were introduced to KEF’s Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT) a few years ago through the company’s updated LS50 Meta speakers. The MAT element sits at the rear of the tweeter and takes the form of something looking like an ice-hockey puck. Inside that housing is a maze-like structure that is designed to absorb the sound that comes off the rear of the tweeter dome, so giving cleaner, less distorted results. KEF claims the technology absorbs as much as 99 per cent of this unwanted rearward sound radiation and is much more effective than the damped chambers that most rival designs use to do the same job.

Adding MAT to KEF’s trademark Uni-Q driver array – where the 25mm aluminium tweeter sits in the throat of the midrange unit – is a lot more involved than just plonking the tech on the back of the driver. It involves significant re-engineering, and the company has taken the opportunity to add a whole host of refinements to the array’s structure, motor system and geometry to eke out a better performance. The Uni-Q array is even decoupled from the Reference 1 Meta’s cabinet to reduce the amount of vibration transmitted into the enclosure.