Spiritland at the Barbican

Photo credit and link: FLO London

Living Voice, the UK's speaker brand famous for its Vox Olympian hornspeaker, recently installed their new R252 loudspeaker at London's Barbican Centre. Chris Purcell and his team from Right Angle films have been with the LV crew over the past three weeks to produce some films currently in the editing room: "We're so thrilled to be collaborating with Spiritland¹ again. What could be better than a new listening bar in London's most iconic art venue? The Barbican is famous for its creative year-round programme of music, dance, theatre, film and arts. It is an absolute joy to be there especially with Paul Noble and Sophie Uddin, our musical collaborators in chief. Spiritland at the Barbican opened its doors on Tuesday night to a full house and it immediately felt as though it had been there always. People came to listen, have a cocktail and a bite to eat. The music flowed effortlessly, the atmosphere was warm and inviting and what really struck us was a new generation of people embracing the listening-lounge culture. No doubt some are emerging from the cocoon of the solitary headfi bubble. There's a fascinating retrospective doing the rounds at the moment—on the history and legacy of Japanese Kissa bars that tap straight into this. It's refreshing to see people seek out a place where they can spend time together and enjoy a shared musical experience. Some listening bars have a strict silence or whisper-at-low-level mode. Paul and Sophie take a more forgiving attitude. Nobody is going to be thrown out for speaking. As Paul said, "we're in London. There's a level of energy here that can't be squashed."
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¹ London's original listening bar, Spiritland is a space for music lovers – a café, bar and radio studio in King's Cross and a production company all built around a deep love of music and the culture that surrounds it. The starting place is a desire to engage with music in the deepest possible way, to hear it as the artist intended, to connect with the emotions within. The King's Cross café and bar is home to a world-class Living Voice sound system – a unique creation playing in-depth musical programming along with talks and album launches. There's also a full radio production suite available to hire.

The Spiritland Barbican system was designed by Kevin Scott, founder of Definitive Audio UK and creator of Living Voice loudspeakers well known for their collaborations with Spiritland at Kings Cross and Royal Festival Hall. Definitive Audio practice a unique holistic total-system approach, bringing together equipment from some of the world's most gifted audio designers to create a quality of musical experience that transcends the means of reproduction. The Spiritland system at the Barbican is centred around a substantial pair of new Living Voice R252 loudspeakers. These project the natural scale, timbral authenticity and dramatic intention of musical performance to the audience. They have unusually wide even dispersion with no strict listening hot spot; ideal for this largish listening space. Their high sensitivity permits the use of inherently superior amplifiers as designs which prioritise quality over quantity. This is a win-win in any system, particularly when the programme material is mainly acoustic, ranging from all forms of Jazz through closely argued chamber music to large symphonic works. The music curation will tie in with the Barbican Centre's music programming as well as allow artists and performers to present their work in person to an audience that craves a closer connection to their musical heroes. Of course ambient, electronica and Latin grooves will not be excluded. Emotional communication is the key element in all music and at the heart of this Definitive Audio system. It will be living and breathing in the Lakeside Room on level 2 opposite the library until July 2027.

Music by: Fila Brazilia – Black Market Gardening, Pork Recordings – Felix Laband / Luke Vibert – Righteous Red Berets, Compost Records Beethoven – Egmont Overture, Famous Classics, Incompetcech

The performance balance of any system is dependent on a sympathetic relationship between each of the components as well as their dynamic interactions and relationship with the acoustic environment. This system has balanced these considerations with musical artistry as its guiding light. The system therefore has a marked international flavour with components from Bulgaria, Slovenia, England, Estonia, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong and the US. All its designers have a long-standing history in the audio industry and each is a leader in their respective fields. More importantly, we have chosen these components because they work together as a hand-in-glove team. Digital sources are from APL. Chief designer Alex Peychev's goal is to push the performance envelope of digital streaming beyond that of analogue. In an era where this is again increasingly the way people listen to music, it is wonderful to have his skills and sensibilities in the vanguard. Vinyl sources are from Kuzma. This esteemed Slovenian company have a 40-year history at the leading edge of what is possible from record replay. All Kuzma designs are performance centred with engineering excellence at their foundation. Their form-follows-function aesthetic has refreshing honesty in todays' 'designer' age. Phono cartridge transformers are from Consolidated Audio in Berlin. Designer Michael Ulbrich's' nano-crystalline-core transformers convert the tiny phono cartridge energy into living breathing music. Electronics buffs will know all about Class A amplifier bias and feel reassured that this system uses pure Class A amplifiers. We have selected solid-state models from Sugden and valve models from SJS Electroacoustics, two UK-based artisanal companies distinctly in the 'boffin' camp where real genius happens. The entire system is isolated from the National Grid by receiving clean pure power from a bank of Audes power conditioners. These balanced-power transformers with DC blocking are the bedrock of the system. A full complement of DH Labs silver cables connects the system throughout. Take One tables provide rigid well-damped support isolation from external disturbances. Various GRP acoustic treatment devices absorb, reflect and diffuse discrete frequency bands in the room; and retain a natural overall tonal balance within the listening space.

The main system in full:

More on the Living Voice R252.

This is a substantial full-range 4-way speaker with very wide even dispersion. In contemporary loudspeaker design, dispersion is a neglected performance parameter. More than half of what we hear comes to us indirectly as reflected sound from the room's boundaries. This majority sound is known as the 'reverberant field'. If energised with the same tonal balance and phase characteristics as the directly radiated sound, something magical happens. Music portrays with a naturalness of tone, subtlety of inflection and clarity of articulation that is as arresting as it is compelling. There is no need to seek a listening sweet spot because throughout the room there is focussed 3-dimensional musical performance. The R252 is fresh, new and different.

Specs:

♦ Twin 15" woofers in 252-litre reflex-loaded enclosure. Downfiring vent. 20Hz–100Hz.
♦ Symmetrical mid/treble/mid array in sealed enclosure. 21cm mids, 34mm tweeter. 100Hz-18kHz.
♦ 19mm super tweeter. 18kHz–40kHz.
♦ Sensitivity: 94dB/W
♦ Impedance: 6Ω
♦ Dimensions: 93 x 50 x 130cm WxDxH
♦ Weight: Heavy to very heavy.
♦ Recommended amplifier power: 6 watts or more.

For more Kevin Scott chats, use the Living Voice link below.