M&K K- series hits new heights.

The land of the free is also the land of the huge: a nation of generous sandwiches, the big people they cause, and the oversize cars to accommodate those ample derrieres. You’d think, then, that our colonial chums would be besotted by huge hi-fi too, but oddly enough, where speakers are concerned, small is ‘big’ over there.

Miller & Kreisel’s K- series system is a case in point. The smallest package to emerge from the Californian company, it comprises K-7 front satellites, K-4 Tripole rear speakers, and – insert your own Doctor Who gag here -  the K-9 subwoofer. As with most M&Ks, these speakers won’t win beauty pageants (dismiss hopes of real wood or burnished alloy), but the core elements of the company’s design philosophy are present and correct. That includes sealed cabinets throughout, from the satellites to the subwoofer, and the use of identical drivers – in the form of 25mm neodymium dome tweeters and 10cm midrange drivers – for each satellite.

The K-9 subwoofer is just 23cm deep, 25cm tall and 35cm wide, which limits it to using a 20cm driver, but with 75W on tap should be ample for most smaller rooms. The K-4 Tripole surrounds add opposed 6.3cm tweeters to usual complement of forward-firing tweeter and midrange driver, yet each is just 18cm tall.

M&K systems demand decent amplification, the speakers’ 4ohm impedance meaning something gutsy is a must. Plenty of running-in time is vital too, as straight from the box the Ks sound hard and bright. A solid weekend’s thrash is sufficient to take off the rougher edges, and certainly worked wonders for our set-up.

In action, the K-3 sound is very M&K: clean, crisp and dramatic, with speed and energy prominent features of the balance. According to the company blurb, the Ks have been designed with greater consideration for music reproduction, as a reflection of the supposed move toward multichannel audio, and there’s no denying that, for some listening, they could make intriguing hi-fi speakers.

There’s snap to rhythms, fine clarity and punch galore on everything from SACD multichannel through to stereo CD. However, to our ears, there’s not quite enough warmth in the balance for first-rate hi-fi set-ups. Instead, this system’s true forte is movie sound. Feed it an action flick, and it powers out a fiery mix of midrange energy and low-end thump that’s thoroughly addictive. Those tripole surrounds really do the business, wrapping you in creepy atmosphere of Event Horizon’s cosmic horror to a tee, while the thunderous bass dynamics are more than beefy enough, even with such a compact subwoofer.

This ability is impressive from cabinets so small, and goes some way towards justifying the lofty pricetag. You’ll need good kit to make the M&Ks sing, but in the right set-up, this system is well worth a look.

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