Kali Audio, a company as the name might suggest originating in California and started by a number of ex JBL staff is still a relative newcomer to the market. In recent years they have however made a respectable decent name for themselves in terms of offering small studio speakers at often great value price points.
Today however Kali Audio introduce a very different beast, in the shape of a new powered SM-5 speaker model from their flagship level Santa Monica range. Offering a 3-way design we see the front of the speaker includes a 4″ mid and 1″ aluminium dome tweeter in co-axle arrangement, along with a 5″ woofer and ported finish with an advised optimized design for high linearity and low distortion. Similarly, the specialized geometry applied to the tweeter design aims to eliminate any harshness and ensure a smooth frequency response and minimal ear fatigue.
Around the rear of the speaker we find a regular balanced connection jack, along with AES/EBU over BNC along with ethernet connectivity for network control and Dante. We also find a number boundary EQ switches, designed to quickly dial in adjustments to account for various common speaker positions, we find 8 such scenarios already preset.
For more in-depth control over tuning the setup, the network connectivity allows you to run the SM-5 control application for a much more granular setup. Featuring DSP that allows you to delay, trim or process through 8 bands of EQ, where you can tune each speaker in the arrangement, be that a regular stereo pair or full Atmos surround configuration and then save your custom configuration for later recall. The speaker also has a hidden USB at the bottom of the front panel, which gives you a further way to import and export settings to the speaker when a network connection is unavailable.
With an advised THD of less than 1% and the lower frequency response quoted around roll-off is 39 Hz at -10 dB. With 150W of amplification, the SM-5 can deliver 117 dB peak SPL, making it suitable for full-range mixing from up to 4 meters away. In terms of mounting the speaker design includes a 4.25×2 inch hole arrangement, which should allow for these to be easily mounted as long as the support can handle the loudspeakers full weight of 25lb.
What Kali look to have developed here is an interesting entry into the Pro studio end of the market and a world away from their existing models lower down in the range. With a reputation for punching above their weight, it’ll be interesting to hear what the Kali design team can build into this new model. With a price point that places them up against other well established 3-way models such as the HEDD Type 20’s, Neumann KH310A’s or Genelec 8331 APM’s, as with many choices at this point in the market it’s likely to come down equally to personal preference and how the speakers translate within your environment. Ultimately, a worthwhile consideration for auditioning if you’re looking to upgrade to a new set of 3-way monitors.