When we get announcements from Rega about new kit, we tend to expect them to be about a record deck; but the British turntable specialist has a surprise new launch: a pair of premium Aya floorstanders.
Born after more than ten years' worth of research and development, these new Rega Aya speakers join the brand's existing Kyte standmounters (used in the five-star Rega System One) in a sparse but rather unusual-looking speaker range.
The most unusual thing about the new Rega Aya speakers isn't the shape of the cabinets – which have been "developed alongside a UK-based company best known for bespoke concrete furniture and installations".
It's the material used to make the cabinets themselves. Citing rising costs of the more traditional MDF cabinets with real wood veneers used by many speaker brands, Rega has turned to using a material called GRC – glass reinforced cement – for its new Aya speakers.
While we have come across speakers made out of concrete and concrete composites (such as the Master & Dynamic MA770), the use of cement is still fairly unusual in mainstream hi-fi speakers. The material should lead to a stiff and rigid enclosure, which is ideal for speakers, but it comes with quite the weight warning.
Rega claims the glass fibres in the material help to reduce the total weight of the speakers (14.1kg each) while still retaining – and even "increasing" – structural integrity. To Rega, this method was the way of creating the "perfect loudspeaker enclosure that enhances performance whilst offering exceptional value for money."
The existing Kyte standmounters were also made of a non-wood phenolic resin material (and similarly designed and moulded in-house in the UK), so this non-traditional step for Aya isn't, for Rega at least, too unusual.
The Aya floorstanders are a 2.5-way configuration with a "band pass" enclosure design and a front vent, and use Rega's own ZRR tweeter, 5-inch (12.7cm) MX-125 bass/mid driver, and a 7-inch (17.8cm) RR7.8 bass driver. The speakers have a claimed sensitivity of 89.5db into 6 ohms and overall each speaker measures 87.1 x 25.8 x 21.5cm (hwd).
The new Rega Aya speakers are available now for £1499 / $2295 / AU$3499 and in a single steel grey finish only. As part of Rega's sustainability initiative, the Aya floorstanders don't come with grilles, but they are available as an optional extra, for £80 per pair.
MORE:
Read our Rega System One review
Five-star turntable gets greener and cheaper: meet Rega's Green Grade eco-friendly Planar 1
Our guide to the best floorstanding speakers across all budgets
