Canton Electronics has introduced the Karat L 800 DC, a full-range, three-way floorstanding loudspeaker that incorporates many of the engineering principles developed for the company’s flagship Reference 2 DC speaker. The L 800 DC features the side-firing woofer and elegant slim face that distinguishes the Karat family, providing for superior upper-frequency dispersion and off-axis imaging..

The Karat L 800 DC incorporates many of the engineering principles developed for the company’s flagship Reference 2 DC speaker. The L 800 DC features the side-firing woofer and elegant slim face that distinguishes the Karat family, providing for superior upper-frequency dispersion and off-axis imaging.

The L 800 DC features Canton’s Displacement Control (DC) technology, which uses a proprietary high-pass filter to prevent infrasonic frequency signals (below 20 Hz) from interfering with the bass driver. In conventional speakers, these signals can generate high levels of unwanted harmonic distortion in the audible lower bass range, causing a muffled or “blatty” tonal quality. DC technology allows the speaker’s 12-inch cellulose-graphite woofer to provide clear, linear bass reproduction to 20 Hz, the bottom of the audible sound spectrum.

The Karat L 800 DC includes two 7-inch midrange drivers, which are made of lightweight and extremely rigid aluminum. The diaphragms benefit from a concave shape that contributes to the speaker’s highly symmetrical mid and upper frequency radiation pattern, and helps defeat the standing wave modes that can occur with conventional dome style voice coil caps.

High frequency reproduction is handled by Canton’s legendary 1–inch aluminum-manganese tweeter. This remarkable transducer’s dome and voice coil former are constructed as a single structure, giving the driver a lower mass, and greatly improved heat dissipation characteristics. The diaphragm is also much less susceptible to deformation at extremely high frequencies, allowing it to retain its linear output all the way out to 30 kHz, far beyond that of most tweeters.

All of the drivers in the Karat L800 DC were designed and developed by Canton’s own engineers, and matched tonally to generate a smooth and extended response across (and beyond) the entire audible frequency range. The cabinet is constructed of reinforced 1-inch MDF, and is 8 inches wide, 45-1/4 inches tall, and has a depth of 18-3/4 inches.

The L 800 DC will be available in January, 2003 in Ash black, Cherry, or Beech veneer finishes, as well as the Karat family’s unique silver lacquer finish. It has a suggested retail price of $4,200 per pair.

Canton Electronics Web Site

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