Kam Extreme Series

The Extreme 215 contains two 15-inch LF/MF speakers and a 1.8-inch titanium diaphragm compression driver mounted on a 60x60 degree moulded horn assembly. The components are housed, totem pole-style, in a tall trapezoidal enclosure that is finished in black carpet. The front panel (what I'd call the baffle board) is made from a type of injection moulded plastic material and feels very rigid, and the two 15-inch drivers are protected by two round steel mesh covers which fit neatly and flush with the surface of the panel. At the rear of the cabinet there are input connections for both Speakon and quarter-inch jacks, and parallel 'through' connections are provided for both types. The Extreme 215 is rated at 550 Watts RMS, presents a nominal 4-Ohm load impedance, and according to the official Kam specification sheet can deliver a maximum sound pressure level of 103dB (although it doesn't say at what frequency this was measured/calculated). Frequency response is quoted as 50Hz up to 20kHz at the 3dB points and the internal crossover point is 2.5kHz, which should mean that the horn isn't trying to work too hard in the middle frequencies. The back panel also gives access to a high-frequency protection lamp which can be replaced without the need to get inside the cabinet at all — a really useful feature, and I believe that they even give you a spare lamp with each speaker.

The Extreme 215 and the 18S subwoofer are both constructed of 18mm thick ply. The 215 model weighs in at 41kg, which is quite manageable and not at all unreasonable for a cabinet of this size. The handles built in to each side are comfortable, sturdy and at a good height, but the front of the cabinet is heavier than the back and it tends to tip forward when picked up — with two people carrying it I found that I had to use my 'outside' hand to stop it tilting forward too far, but I found it quite easy to lift up on my own due to the relatively slim trapezoidal shape. The 18S sub weighs slightly less at 36kg, and is easy to lift and carry around — it's possible (but not recommended) for one person to lift it provided they have long enough arms to reach the side handles!

I rigged the Extremes in the open air using a pair of C-Audio ST600 power amps and an external crossover. The top end was clear and bright, and I experimented with several different crossover frequencies before deciding that somewhere around 150Hz (which is the same as the internal crossover in the sub) worked best for me. There was enough low end thump to annoy even the most placid neighbours, and a particularly strong low-mid drive which worked very well with heavy rock tracks. Upper frequencies were pleasingly clear and clean and stayed that way when I turned up the wick. Sound-wise, these speakers are clearly built to take a beating and they seemed to handle everything I gave them without any signs of stress. So far, so good. It was time to go 'over the top'

For my road test, I decided to take the Extremes along to an outdoor 'Battle Of The Bands' PA job. At this type of gig it's never completely certain what kind of material you're going to deal with, but I strongly suspected that the word 'metal' might crop up once or twice — so I needed main speakers that could take a bit of a hammering if necessary. For various reasons connected with the weather and the size and shape of the stage canopy we decided to put the speakers on the front edge of the stage, and to run them from a C-Audio ST600 power amp each side, using an external crossover, as in the first static test. The area to be covered was about 50 metres deep and about the same wide, so having set everything up and played some 'nice, relaxing' music through the system to check everything was working properly, the first of the eight bands came on stage for their soundcheck. One thing I have often noticed when sound checking young bands within the 'metal' genre is that their main vocalist almost never gives you his performance level until the gig actually begins — the sound check can be a 'one two, huh, this is embarrassing' type of affair but when they kick off for real, that's when the screaming starts and you'd better have the kit to take it happily that's just what these Extreme Series speakers are extremely good at — taking stick, and a great deal of stick.