Ready for the Spotlight: KEF R2 Meta Center-Channel Loudspeaker Sails Through Complex Soundtrack Information, Features MAT and Uni-Q Driver Array

"Don't skimp on the center channel" is a common refrain of home-theater professionals. In that spirit, the KEF R2 Meta center-channel loudspeaker comes prepared to sail through the sonic demands of the film industry's increasingly complex soundtracks. Supplemented by Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT) that eliminates 99% of the unwanted noise from the rear of the Uni-Q driver, R2 Meta features two 5.25-inch hybrid aluminum drivers within its 6.9 x 21.7 x 12.2-inch (HWD) cabinet. In laymen's terms, it means R2 Meta can deliver  sound effects that transverse the center stage with convincing clarity and depth. 

Inside, the 12th generation of KEF's famous Uni-Q driver – which combines a one-inch vented aluminum-dome tweeter with a five-inch aluminum-cone midrange – takes instant command of your source material. This improved Uni-Q variation boasts a redesigned midrange motor system devised on KEF's in-house simulation and analysis tools. Featuring a shaped and undercut pole as well as symmetrical aluminum demodulation rings that combine to significantly reduce the inductance in the lower midrange, the assembly lessens distortion and enhances imaging.

Customized for stellar home-theater performance, R2 Meta’s Shadow Flare – a forward-thinking method of diminishing cabinet diffraction – functions as a trim ring while serving double duty as a surface that extends the Uni-Q waveguide effect. In R2 Meta, the tweeter no longer has line of sight of the cabinet edges, thereby creating a shadow region at the points where the potential for diffraction remains highest, and minimizing the acoustic impact to negligible levels. As such, the Shadow Flare greatly assists the reproduction of subtle cues and nuances in the spotlight of your favorite soundtracks.

For low frequencies, the 5.25-inch drivers provide deep, punchy, soulful bass. Each woofer is built using a two-part structure, whereby a shallow concave aluminum skin sits atop a paper cone. The stiffness – combined with the cone's unique geometry – reduces additional resonances and delivers pistonic movement that accounts for superb timing. Last but not least, for the cabinet, constrained Layer Damping bracing (in which the internal braces are joined to the panels by a lossy interface) helps dissipate unwanted vibrations.

An ideal match with any of the R Meta Series towers as well as the R3 Meta bookshelf model, R2 Meta knows its place in a surround system. Whether it's subtly spoken dialogue or the impact of a car collision, that sound is ready for the center spotlight with R3 Meta. 

MAT: Breakthrough Sound Absorption
Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT), a revolutionary innovation that takes the performance of the 12th generation Uni-Q driver array to another level in terms of accuracy and clarity, is a hallmark of the R Meta Series. MAT is a highly complex maze-like structure, where each of the intricate channels efficiently absorbs a specific frequency. When combined, the channels act as an acoustic black hole, absorbing 99% of the unwanted sound that comes from the rear of the tweeter, eliminating the resulting distortion and providing a purer, more natural acoustic performance.