Astronomically priced and with only 100 pairs in existence they have been compared to Henry Moore sculptures. The air the Muon speakers breathe is as rarefied as it gets in the high-end world of AV.

They are two metres tall and wouldn’t get out of bed for less than US$140,000 a pair. This isn’t an allusion to the stature and catwalk cost of a high-end supermodel but the truth about some of the most exclusive speakers in existence – so exclusive that only 100 pairs exist.

Launched last year in Milan, the speakers – created by sound technology company KEF and award-winning designer Ross Lovegrove – are fabricated from malleable sheets of heated aluminium in a moulding process similar to vacuum forming.

According to the manufacturer, this process gives them an appearance similar to the abstract sculptures of Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth.

The 6mm thick, heavily damped aluminium shell provides a rigid structure intended to minimise any sound-distorting vibrations.

The speakers are named after an elementary particle and all come individually signed by Ross, who has some of his work on permanent exhibition in London’s Design Museum and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

A prototype of the speakers was milled from an enormous chunk of solid aluminium using state-of-the-art computer-aided manufacturing software. Cutting away the excess material from the two-metre long block of solid metal took about a week.

“We wanted to take our technology to the limit and develop some more along the way,” says KEF senior acoustic engineer Andrew Watson.

Muon’s four-way speaker system is mounted in the front of the structure, with two additional base drivers mounted in the back.

“Some of the Muon’s key technology lies in the upper mid-range and treble, in the form of the drive unit array, delivering a seamless sonic picture throughout the listening environment,” Andrew says.

KEF says it has used acoustic compliance enhancement technology to effectively double the available volume through absorption of air molecules on activated carbon.

Due to a high level of success and rapid growth in the Middle East market KEF is in the process of setting up their own distribution for the region which will be known as GP ME.

Someone who has experienced first hand the sound of the speakers is Amber Custom Install marketing manager David Small who handles the distribution of Muon speakers in Australia. He heard the speakers on display in Munich and describes them as fantastic.

“We have had an expression of interest from one guy in Sydney who is going to listen
to them in Hong Kong, where they are on display,” he says.

The speakers were made available late 2007.

“At that price I’m not going to get a pair in on spec, but if we could sell one or two pairs
I would be delighted.”

David estimates that 50 pairs of the speakers have so far been delivered to customers around the world.

Design Week has described the speakers as a brave and audacious statement of KEF’s intent to combine excellent audio quality with the highest level of design and take a lead in a competitive international market.

The Muon speakers were named an ‘honouree’ in the high-performance audio
category at the Consumer Electronic Show’s Innovation Design and Engineering Awards in Las Vegas in 2008.