“The LS5/9 monitors’ bass was already in some ways reminiscent of the Apogee Duetta Signature bass but now, I really am getting actual flashbacks to their voluptuous and fulsome bass. For a cabinet loudspeaker, that truly is something special.”

HiFi Advice, November 2019  <learn more>

“The Graham Audio LS5/9 is an unusual and impressive speaker. It does a startlingly good job of transcending its small size to present large-scale music convincingly. It has a balance very close to neutral and surprising dynamic capacity. And its emphasis on the 50 to 100Hz region (just before its final roll-off) does a good job of providing a full sound, in spite of the near absence of the bottom octaves. Its imaging is simply correct, and its basic sound very much like actual music, with suitable sources.
The BBC had use for a smaller speaker that had dynamic power, a full sound, and an essentially neutral balance. Within the small deviations from absolutely smooth and flat response noted above, these goals are attained here. It may be that you have a need for a small speaker; if so, the Graham Audio LS5/9 is surely an item of extraordinary interest. Few other speakers of its size offer anything like a comparable musical truth. Comes to that, rather few of any size do. As Spencer Hughes once said (according to legend), “Big speakers have big problems.” This little box sounds to me more like music than many a monster high-priced floorstander.”

The Absolute Sound (USA), February 2017  <learn more>

“The Grahams offer fantastic sound and stellar soundstaging. The longstanding BBC-inspired heritage of an opulent midrange has certainly continued through the new LS5/9. ”

Tone Audio, March 2016  <learn more>

“It is sobering to realize just how right the BBC engineers had designed their speakers thirty years ago. Reborn and
refined here with the expert guidance of Derek Hughes, MAGAZINE SON & IMAGE 171 33 TEST Graham Audio’s LS5/9 resets the bar for two-way speakers.  Where many monitor speakers assail you with a flood of details, the LS5/9 takes a more serene approach where music is presented naturally, less insistently, inviting listening and not forcing it on the listener. The acoustic imaging of these speakers is of reference quality as they create a wide and deep sonic landscape in which instru- mental timbre is expressed unspoilt. No nuance of the musical performance escapes the LS5/9s, and in home theatre mode, they can cast serious doubt on the relevance of a centre speaker.”

Son & Image Magazine, October 2015  <learn more>

“The best one word description of the LS5/9 is “coherence”, a word that my internet friend Wojtek Pacula (editor of Highfidelity.pl, a bilingual internet based review site) first used to describe the speaker in his review. What does it mean? To me, through the Graham, every bit of music seems connected to the whole, but with all the bits laid out. So when I listen to the CD of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 John Barbirolli with New Philharmonia – EMI with the famous Adagietto (a love letter by Mahler to his wife Alma), the main melody is the focus, but the interaction between the strings/harp plucks is well captured. Or when I listen to Paul Desmond’s Cool Imagination –Bluebird, the alto jumps into your face. Or King Curtis’ bluesy Soul Meeting -Prestige, the bass and rhythm bounce along so beautifully – the tone of the tenor and Nat Adderly’s trumpet striking.

The Grahams have a greater amount of clarity. My better-half described it as Harbeths with greater clarity. Listen to Ella Fitzgerald The Songbook – Verve and see how the voice is spotlighted with all the emotions conveyed beautifully. How every word is intelligible! Or hear the great G.N.Balasubramnaian singing “DhikkutheriyadaKattil” – Saregama, and see if you don’t cup your hand to your forehead like a Bharatnatyam dancer.”

Hi-Fi Today (India), October 2015  <learn more>

“The real heart of this monitor, though, is the broad midrange, which offers superior resolution of fine detail, highlighting subtleties within the mix. Naturally-recorded sounds such as piano and strings sound correct, and voices are reproduced convincingly. The LS5/9s are particularly good at revealing micro-dynamics – the slight changes in level that occur within a particular performance. Best of all, the midrange integrates with both the top and bottom end seamlessly.
Having worked with original LS5/9s in the past, it’s clear that Graham Audio has got its new revision absolutely right.”

MusicTech, December 2014  <learn more>

“I would describe the LS5/9 as a true monitor, one that tells you a lot of inside information about the recording and its circumstances, but not in an overly analytical way, at least not most of the time. There have been moments I longed for a little more warmth and involvement, but most of the time I forgot to listen to the speakers and simply enjoyed music and music only. The midrange is exceptionally neutral and open, the treble is soft and will appeal to any listener that disapproves of the hard, often metal domes in modern systems. The low end is restricted by the internal volume of the box and the cone area of the LS5/9 woofer, but has a liquid power that I would like to hear in a lot more speakers. Bass is well defined, just enough for a living room, perfect for a small room and present when it needs to be. This is not a loudspeaker for the masses because it is unflattering of bad recordings, their limitations are almost emphasised. It is made in the traditional way that loudspeakers were once designed, revealing how little has actually changed over the last 30 years and showing what kind of standards the BBC achieved in those days. The fact that Graham Audio licenses the original name LS5/9 from the BBC may be important to some, but even if you are not interested in the heritage this is a delightful loudspeake.”

The Ear (UK), October 2014  <learn more>

“I was no longer listening to speakers. I was listening to the musicians, or the singers, or the spoken voice, just as the BBC sound engineers, myself included, would have needed to hear. Forget all those fancy boxes or new technologies. It was all right, back in 1983, and it’s still all right now.”

Hi-Fi Pig, October 2014  <learn more>

“The tonal balance is spot on while individual musicians are clearly definable in the mix. In other words it’s doing just what a studio monitor should by letting you hear the sound without imposing too much of its own character.”

Hi-Fi World, September 2014  <learn more>

“Its timbre is always naturally warm and has no harmonic texture of its own; it simply projects the correct timbre of the musical instruments, which is quite rare for a loudspeaker”

Hxos, September 2014  <learn more>

“The sound is unforced and this is very much at odds with the current vogue for music thrown at the listener. But it’s not laid back, it’s just right sounding. The further you investigate the way music sounds through this speaker, you quickly realise that it sounds like music. That isn’t as oxymoronic as it first appears. This isn’t steely sound, it’s just sound, it isn’t dark toned or toppy or coloured or anything else, it’s just sounding like the music itself.”

Hi-Fi Plus, Issue 107  <learn more>

“Vocal reproduction is a huge strength for the Grahams. Cover songs like Johnny Cash’s rendition of “Hurt” or Storm Large’s version of “Where Is My Mind” represent an experiential treat. …Those who enjoy the subtleties of classical, jazz, and vocal music among other types of music, are likely to love the reproduction the Grahams provide. It’s a musically-balanced speaker that makes it easy – maybe too easy – to find oneself locked to a listening seat eager to hear “just one more” favorite album.”

Tone Audio (USA)  <learn more>