Why is LEGEND so passionate about music!
LEGEND aims to make state-of-the-art speakers that enable you to hear your music and home-theatre through a “clear open window” as it was recorded and not through layers of distortion, however “benign”, so they will become “alive”.
Some manufacturers deliberately ‘voice’ their loudspeakers to sound good with certain types of music, but they usually don’t sound so good with other sorts of music. Alternatively, they voice them to sound ‘nice’ with every recording. This usually involves adding some ‘benign’ distortion – but it makes all music sound much the same.
At LEGEND, they try to eliminate all forms of distortion as much as possible. Then what you hear is recorded, whether it be classical, jazz or rock/pop, and the nuances that distinguish individual performances.
Craftsmanship, design philosophy & practice
LEGEND Acoustic’s mission is to produce world-class loudspeakers, both in build & sound quality so that you can experience maximum & long-lasting emotional enjoyment from your music and home theatre.
Their cabinets are built in Australia by craftsmen who have a long experience and use modern manufacturing techniques such as CAD and CNC engineering. Thier drivers are carefully sourced from leading manufacturers before extensive modification by us. And thier crossovers employ the finest electronic components from around the world, and each part soldered directly together with the crossovers fused to the drive units using high-quality cables.
Finally, each loudspeaker is assembled in Australia at a single work-station and rigorously tested both by listening and by computer-controlled measurements. But world-class loudspeakers require designing a whole that is more than the sum of the parts. Achieving the synergy needed for the magic inherent in every loudspeaker requires a passion for what live music sounds like and, secondly, a deep understanding of loudspeaker design that comes from extensive experience and comprehensive knowledge of the physics involved.
Thus LEGEND create in Australia the famous “fast, open, natural sound” of LEGEND loudspeakers. They enable you to hear your music & home theatre through a “clear open window” as it was recorded and not through a layer of nasty distortion – or with three tea-spoons of sweetener added to everything! Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” will sound raucous, and Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” ephemeral. Your emotional enjoyment will depend only on the content and quality of your CDs, DVDs & other sources.
Meet LEGEND’s designer, Dr Rod Crawford
LEGEND was founded in 1995 by Dr Rod Crawford to design and manufacture world-class speakers in Australia. The decision was based on a wide range of experiences from around the world. He obtained first-class honours in physics & metallurgy. He was awarded the Melbourne University Travelling Scholarship to continue his studies in the Department of Materials Science at the University of Oxford. He gained a D Phil for his research into ordered alloys’ fundamental properties using X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy.
But he didn’t pursue the traditional speaker designer’s career path of designing loudspeakers in the back shed. He started his hi-fi career at the top: as Project Leader for the loudspeaker design team at the famous Linn Products establishment in Scotland. There he designed a range of speakers to replace the aging and somewhat agricultural-looking Isobarik and Kan. His role-model was BMW cars – high performance and good looks were not mutually exclusive. In collaboration with a highly talented team, Rod’s designs included the Kaber, Nexus, Helix, Index 2, Tukan and Keltik loudspeakers.
After returning to Australia, Rod studied for a 2-year full-time MBA at the Australian Graduate School of Management in Sydney to improve his business skills before setting up LEGEND Acoustics. LEGEND has since grown to become one of Australia’s most innovative and successful loudspeaker companies, winning numerous awards.
