Lifestyle audioWith High-end aspirations

KHARMA BUTTERFLY SATELLITE & SUBWOOFER LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM

For many years, the authentic Dutch company Kharma International and its special loudspeakers, cable solu-tions and amplifiers options has been among the best of the world. It is for good reason that these generally valu-able and technically advanced products can be found with a large group of critical music lovers throughout the world. This is quite an achievement which – besides the diligent work of the entire Kharma team – is also due to the ever progressive view and perfectionist ten-dencies of founder Charles van Oosterum. The Khar-ma Butterfly system is a remarkable step sideways for the company and may even be considered somewhat of a risk. These very small loudspeakers for a vari-ety of uses and their intended high-end sound quality and serious price tag, may well be the first of its kind. So, will it be a resounding success and a meaningful further addition to continued Kharma success, or will it severely discredit its worldwide quality image?!

Lifestyle audio

Even if Kharma – originally a loudspeaker brand – is mainly known for its impressive loudspeaker and amplifier creations today, its designs have not always been this (extremely) valuable and exuberant. In the early eighties, Charles was working in the same busi-ness premises, but he was busy designing and selling his O.L.S. (Oosterum Loudspeaker Systems) self-build loudspeakers. Although these designs pleasantly surprised music enthusiasts regularly, with their fa-miliar rectangular ‘boxes’ they were quite similar to most other designs in those days. Partly due to the suc-cess and his customers’ growing demand for custom products and designs, Charles’ imagination was con-stantly fuelled and the need arose for a (much) more exclusive side-line. This was the start of ‘manufac-turing brand’ Kharma, which also indirectly marked the end of the O.L.S. self-build era. For the vision-ary that van Oosterum is it meant the beginning of a wonderfully creative time. Not in the least because his preference for really going ‘all the way’ in a design was now less hindered by a predetermined budget. This eventually led to four loudspeaker series with prices starting from a – for Dutch standards – costly € 12,500 for a set of Elegance Single Seven repro-ducers up to an exorbitant € 415,000 for the truly ex-treme Exquisite Extreme Limited Edition 25 sound

sculptures! And there is still more to choose from and in keeping with the universal Kharma philosophy, there is a seemingly endless selection of options and custom-izations available for each type. In addition to the ex-tremely high level of quality, to me it is the latter aspect that makes the Kharma brand truly unique. Even on a global scale, there may well be no other manufacturer of loudspeakers that takes this much effort and applies these options as often (practically all models sold!) as this very successful Dutch one. In the Netherlands it is probably not widely known that this customization does not solely involve loudspeakers, but that Kharma is also firmly established in the automotive industry, yacht building and exclusive total audio/video solutions.

Butterfly the movieI cannot help but chuckle while I am writing this arti-cle; readers of the facts mentioned above will probably increasingly question such an apparently tiny total sys-tem as the slim and frivolous looking Butterfly designs. Yet they have more things in common with the ‘big’ Kharma designs than would become clear at first glance. In addition to its loyal team of employees – recently joined by his technically well-educated son Mitchell and daughter Vivienne van Oosterum, who is a mar-keteer – Charles always enjoys stimulating challenges,

he likes to surprise people and tries to make the im-possible possible. But in addition to all these super high-end designs, Kharma the company is also aware of the changes that can be seen in the various markets throughout the world in recent years. Even though they vary in process and pace for each country, a global trend in other and newer generations of loudspeakers becomes clear. With an always progressive and innova-tive European market leading the way, the tiniest design possible with flexible usage at an affordable price is currently popular. Almost five years ago, Kharma very secretly began its commercial turnaround. That did not mean the impressive large super high-end designs were to become a thing of the past, but more in the sense of wanting to add a statement intended for the lifestyle market as well! An ambitious project with far-reach-ing consequences for the entire business operations and an all-new manufacturing and logistics process.

To be or not to beThe challenges and the issues that had to be overcome were truly huge. In addition to a different design meth-odology intended for large-scale production, the cost and calculations had to be more closely monitored as well. Another matter was how the consumer should be persuaded to pay a much higher purchase price, which is not an easy thing to do. Such features as size and striking materials, which made the large Kharma types an instant eye-catcher, are not that obvious in the Butterfly. Despite the truly wonderful design (lovely idea to use a butterfly!) well-considered possibilities, perfect finishing and well-chosen materials it still re-sembles the products consumers think they have seen in shops before – albeit in a simpler shape, in less ex-clusive materials and constructions and usually at a lower price. Those who take the time to pay attention to this ingenious system will see after more serious con-sideration that this is indeed something very special.

Butterfly the systemYet, I too fell into the all-familiar ‘saturation trap’ when I saw the first photographs of the Butterfly. At first, I almost thought out loud, o boy, what is this supposed to offer?! Just to be clear: I do not want to waste my valuable time on those horrible ‘me too’ products; designs that may just, or more often than not, hardly sound much better than any discount multimedia set. Therefore, I immediately frowned, until I quickly re-alised that it was the Kharma brand name on these loudspeakers and Charles and his team would not be foolish enough to market something inferior. When you have reached the quality heights this brand has, you are especially aware of the degree of image dam-

age involved, as it may even turn out to be dangerously disastrous! Hmm, is this really a serious mini system for once, I thought. As a next step, Vivienne van Oosterum then quickly supplied information and we also agreed on a date to have the complete set delivered to my home address. On that particular day, two standing satellite loudspeakers with the corresponding stands, in which special thin loudspeaker cables can be integrated and one single active subwoofer were supplied as agreed. While I study all components carefully and wonder about the high finishing level and ingenuity of the detailing, I am yet again surprised when I want to carry it all down the stairs to my underground listening space. The weight and super solid feel go hand in hand with the higher than expected weight. I would estimate the weight of one single strikingly slim satellite (11.7 cm wide, 16.3 cm deep and 27.2 cm high) with the stand at some 3 kilos, with a total top height of 108 cm. The very solid 15 kilo subwoofer (33.6 cm wide, 33.7 cm deep and 31 cm high) is also surprisingly heavy for such compact dimensions. Although nothing is more subjective to taste than design,

I would like to add that now I have the system in front of me it really looks wonderful from all angles. That I, a self-confessed audiophile, usually have difficulty liking small design loudspeakers is mainly due to the fact that the majority of these products simply do not perform sufficiently well. Yet, I do thoroughly appre-ciate this well thought-out concept. It is obvious that even the smallest of details have been given much thought. In addition to the elegant standing option delivered to me, there are also wall-mounting brack-ets, a table stand to be used on top of furniture and even an elegant ceiling bracket! However, a nice look and beautiful materials alone do not create a ‘win-ner’. So, what is it that makes this valuable small life-style loudspeaker system stand out among all other options? First of all, both the satellites and the sub-woofer have a casing of cast aluminium, which not only allows for its special flowing design and very sturdy casing that is poor in resonance, but also cools the subwoofer. This is no luxury considering the fact that this sub is equipped with an above-average sup-ply of electronics and seriously heats up. In addition to the well-known active amplifier part for the bass loudspeaker, which basically is an active sub-woofer, additional (class D) amplifiers for two, four of even five satellites are a possibility. Two or four butter-fly systems (in fact, four means double stereo) can be operated with the built-in amplifiers, while a 5.1 set-up can be chosen for either an additional exter-

nal 3 channel module or an entirely central amplifier module with all five channels. In other words, the but-terfly concept is not just suitable for stereo sound, but can grow into a 4.1 and even 5.1 set-up by adding extra multi-functional butterflies. For the sake of complete-ness and flexibility, the concept now includes a ‘master/slave’ switch to make it possible to use several inter-linked subwoofers when required. In terms of power, the subwoofer has a healthy 2x120 Watt for the satel-lites and 180 Watt for the low frequencies available.

Practical and smartWhat the butterfly concept really provides its dynamic on a sound level is the clever use of DSP. Not only does this allow for a perfect distribution of the frequency range between subwoofer and satellites in terms of manufacturing, but compared to analogue filtering, dig-ital has the advantage of allowing for incredibly steep, without being bothered by annoying phase errors. In case of the Butterfly there are also a number of sim-plified settings for mainly the low range available, al-lowing for the best possible tuning of the low frequen-cies for the chosen installation and listening space. In doing so, it is essential that the satellites include true top-quality loudspeaker units. For the high frequen-cies the celebrated Air Motion Transformer is utilized, while the mid-range uses no less than a true 8 cm high-end Kharma Composite Driver. In other words, a loud-speaker unit fully developed in accordance with the

latest Kharma standards and built to the same un-compromising philoso-phy as the more expensive conventional high-end types. Lastly, the woofer contains a long stroke voice coil and aluminium cone. The satellites them-selves consist of two mir-rored parts that do indeed resemble the wings of an elegant butterfly. The tweeter is installed in the top compartment of one complete satellite, and the mid-toner is in the bottom half. Very practical and clever is the fact that both units can be tilted hori-zontally independently of each other to achieve an even better sound that can reach even more (dif-ficult) spaces in the inte-rior. The corresponding stands are a different sto-ry altogether. In addition to invisibly guiding the thin Kharma loudspeaker cable, it also has a setting screw and a hinge, mak-ing it possible to also ad-

just the satellites vertically up or down over quite a distance. The Butterfly comes in the colours grey, piano white or piano black, while all stands or brackets are made of perfectly polished aluminium for a fully even, distinguished shiny surface. This finish can also be found on the decorative edges of the satellites and on the floor plate of the subwoofer.

ListeningBecause all power amplifiers required have already been built into the sub, all I need for the test is a source, a preamplifier (output) and a few long in-terlinks. As a standard all inputs for the subwoofer have RCA input, but XLR connections are available on request. Partly because of the convenient satellite loudspeakers and the informative subwoofer, I have no trouble achieving a good sounding system in a remarkably short space of time. Actually, ‘good’ is a huge understatement, because during the first mu-sic I play, the Butterflies appear to have qualities I have never deemed possible before. Yet the mental discrepancy between what I see and hear, especially in the beginning, funnily continues to baffle me. It is and will continue to be a strange sensation to hear a broadband, dynamic and even grand sound from something this small and slim. Its sound is even so ‘nice’ and mature that, as far as I am concerned, the Kharma Butterfly system sets the new standards with regard to (extremely) small loudspeakers!Transferred to the daily listening practice, I ended up placing the subwoofer half a meter behind the satel-lite loudspeakers, which in their turn are some 250 cm apart. Closer together should not be a problem,

but when they are further apart there is a risk that the beautiful mutual connection of the rendering will even-tually get lost. Another strong feature of the rendering is that it allows you to both read a book and to relax and concentrate to take in the music. The installation takes a kind of ‘centre theatre room’ position and is, there-fore, not up-front or too laid back. In terms of space the Butterflies provide the necessary room for ambiance sound, which is an indication for an above average res-olution. Yet the sound is never completely holographic or truly three-dimensional as the ‘true’ Kharmas of the brand, for instance an Elegance S7 or DB11, tend to do so beautifully. On the other hand, the Butterfly is supposed to be a lifestyle product and have you ever heard such a reproducer with a truly beautiful layered space presentation? I for one, never have. Very remark-able is the impartiality and flexibility with the various music genres. Whether it is speech, classic, jazz or even rock, the Butterflies do not have a problem with any of them. If I were to sum up the basic features of the Butterfly system in a nutshell, it is a remarkably easy sounding, soft-toned sound with a robust undertone in which the rendering is lovely and rich, beautifully open and sufficiently sharp in character. The well-integrated low frequencies ensure a clear and firmly carried foun-dation layer, fortunately without over-overtly drawing attention to its own presence. Regarding tone, howev-er, I would sooner characterize the low frequencies as supple and breathing as opposed to very dry and su-per tight. The pièce de résistance is the striking resem-blance with the larger Kharma types! How they even-tually managed to do so is a mystery to me, but many features of the current Kharma sound can be found in even these tiny loudspeakers! Especially the often very informative character combined with a slightly warm tone and an apparent, almost distant and soft high of the last generation so typical for Kharma are strikingly recognisable. However, there are obviously limitations, because even the Kharma engineers cannot perform miracles. The system can be turned up loud enough to give a small party in a medium-sized living room. But when the volume boundaries are explored and even sur-passed, this system distinctly and suddenly overflows and some degree of distortion can be heard. Although the rendering is lovely and spacious and the stereo im-age projects clearly from the speakers, the real scale, resolution and authority of a great large floor stand can-not quite be achieved. Is that a bad thing? No, to me it is not, because Kharma has had to take certain decisions for this Butterfly system. Apart from that, I have never before heard such a small system that is this good and performs so seamlessly. And all of that combined with the gorgeous choice of materials, luxurious and mod-ern look, beautiful and original design and the option to

place it in almost every living space! What more can modern man want if wonderful music is to be enjoyed in a living space that should not be dom-inated by huge loudspeakers?

ConclusionHas Kharma succeeded in achieving its ambitious goal to market an original lifestyle loudspeaker concept that in-corporates the well-known Kharma sound quality? As far as I am concerned they certainly have done so – and by far as well. I have spent many an hour listening to the Butterfly system, both con-centrated and while it played in the background and for me and the visiting listeners the system regularly proved to be quite a surprise. No, if you have your mind set on a Kharma type from the El-egance, or even more valu-able Exquisite lines, this is not a substitute. The Butterfly system somewhat lacks the refinement and the ultimate freedom of compression and distortion in the loud dynamic peaks. But if you have always dreamt of owning a Kharma, but have never had the free space or money to do so, your dream can become a reality. In other words, a total con-cept that has been remarkably beautiful finished, sounds like no other small system and has the flexibility to perform well in a variety of spaces. When, lastly, you still think the price is quite steep, you have to remember that this system does not require investing in a power amplifier/ampli-fiers and the correspond-ing cables (anymore) but you will indeed have a true Kharma with the quality that comes with it in your home!