LX521-The Reference

From: 13.900,00 /pair

The LX521® exemplifies the best of 50 years of experimentation about rendering stereo recordings in domestic living spaces.

Designed by Siegfried Linkwitz, free of commercial pressures, aiming for a fully satisfying enjoyment of his favourite music. With the LX521®, he has arrived at a level of performance, which makes him search no further.

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Description

LX521 – The Reference: “…I’ve used dipoles for years (Maggies, Martin Logan, Podium and Quad)
and I thought I understood what an open baffle speaker sounded like.I was wrong, very wrong. Siegfried Linkwitz` term “phantom scene” is
absolutely bang on. I’ve just emerged from 4 hours straight with a broad grin on my face, and am
about to go in for more…..” (Craig, Oxford/UK, LX521 owner)

“The speakers naturally disappear as soon as you start the music; you don’t even have to close your eyes. I would go even further—you have to make a slight mental effort to be aware that the speakers are actually there! It’s uncanny. The precise phantom images produce:d by the LX521 create the most solidly three-dimensional soundstage of any stereo system in my listening experience.” (TheAudioCritic.com, Peter Aczel)

(Mikael K, Sweden on new cascaded ASP with Linkwitz22MG drivers) “..a big difference in transparency and details, and this filter is completely silent if you listen close to the speaker elements. First impression of the new ASP filter was really good! The ASP change was a big upgrade, so I do not know exactly how much difference happened when I also switched to the new midrange L22MG. Can’t tell if ASP of midrange. But the sum is really good. Frank the magician 🙂

“Just wanted to tell you that a nephew recently paid me a visit. He had just bought an advanced surround system with B&W speakers and a NAD amplifier.  Because of budget restrictions he had to go for the CM9, but during the selection process he listened (blindly) to the store’s best speakers and (unsurprisingly) selected B&W 800 Diamond as the best-sounding. On this background, he was completely shocked by the performance of the LX521. First of all he was impressed by the quality of the bass which was the best he ever heard, but also praised the transparent highs and the open midrange. Looking at the price, he declared that this had to be the bargain of the century. .. I am extremely satisfied with my system now,…..thank you (and Siegfried, of course) for the best speaker system I (and my nephew) have ever heard. Kind regards(Terje S. Norway, LX521-owner)

-more testimonials-

 

 

Neutral sound, clarity, speed, spatial openness and disappearance from one’s auditory illusion. It renders a superb recording, probably as good as it gets. A highly enjoyable experience.

The LX521® is a 4-way loudspeaker, designed as full-range dipole, for flat on-axis and off-axis response in the horizontal plane and frontal hemisphere. The speakers need breathing room of at least 1 m to the nearest large reflecting surfaces and a room with a minimum floor size of 25 sqm.


LX521 – The Reference, Execution

  • LX521® cannot be powered by just one stereo amplifier, like a conventional box speaker. For a good reason. Active Line Level crossovers boost LX521 performance and fidelity in terms, that are far beyond capabilities of passive crossovers. Each branch is fed by its tailored amplifier.
  • For easiest setup, we recommend ordering a full system, “PowerBox Set”, dropdown menu: This includes two PowerBoxes and two 0.7m SpeakOn cables. You just connect your analog music source (with volume control) to the balanced XLR input of the PowerBoxes and enjoy!
    The signal path stays analog! No DSP! The analog music source may be e.g. a DAC, a CD-player, a turntable, a preamplifier, a tape machine, etc.
  • If you want to provide your own 10-ch amplification and multi-cabling, see details below “Setup”
  • V-frame woofers LXsub4 are dull dark anthracite
  • Bridges and top baffles colored in individual custom color or made from precious multilayer birch ply core wood or HDF with veneer of choice American Walnut or
  • Panzerholz, Panzerholz/precious veneer and Alu-Panzerholz-Alu topbaffles, are available on special request. Many other wood types are available on request as well: Cherry, Bubinga, Paduk,… ask us via email
  • Bridges come with elegant 45deg miters.
  • All turn-key LX521.4 will be fitted with the new low distortion LINKWITZ22MG drivers.
  • People usually wonder, how compact the real LX521 appears. The pictures seem to suggest too big dimensions. The LX521 is only ca. 125cm (49,25″) high, width 38cm (15″) and depth 38cm (15″)

Setup

LX521®, PowerBox 6pro NCore and 0,7m SpeakON Multicore cables is the standard speaker cable length in the bundle. If you want to place the PowerBoxes further away from speaker cabinets, you may choose longer speaker cables, instead. Just notify us to adapt your order:
For additional cable length notify us in the comment section of the order. We´ll adapt your bill manually:
2.5m per side: add  400€ (476€ incl VAT) for a stereo pair.
5.0m per side: add  800€ (952€ incl VAT) for a stereo pair.

If you choose to provide your own 1o amplifier channels, you may order the LX521 speakers and the precision ASP.
6 balanced interconnects and 2 balanced Y-cables (2 ASP sub channels into 4 amplifier sub channels) route the processed analog signals from ASP to your 10 amplifier channels. Make sure all amplifiers amplify the signals with an identical voltage gain, e.g. 26dB (20x)

Placement

When placed against a wall, the LX521 performs as a conventional loudspeaker. To enjoy the magic of LX521´s legendary sound stage illusion, pull it out at least 1,2m/4ft from the front wall and give it at least 2-3ft/0,7-1m reflection free zone from sidewalls. Behind your listening chair, look for some openness, that avoids early reflections. Listening chairs with chair-backs not higher than shoulder height are preferred to avoid early reflections.

LX521 – The Reference, Shipping Information:

The V-Frame woofers LXsub4 are 33kg each.
The system, with all woofer drivers installed, usually ships in a 130kg airfreight container.
The insured airfreight rates to the US vary: usually 1400-2200€.

Additional information

Cabinet

American Walnut on Black HDF Core, American Walnut on Panzerholz Core, Amer. Walnut High Gloss Finish, Aluminum-Panzerholz Sandwich Top, Individual Choice of Wood Type and Finish

PowerBox Set

no, 2x PowerBoxNCore, SpeakOnCables