Beovox P50 (Panel) Passive Loudspeakers

The Beovox P50 was the first of a new range of pressure chamber loudspeakers. It was based upon the Uni-Phase design and was the first model in the Bang & Olufsen range to feature this technology. They would be later followed by the Uni-Phase range Beovox P30 and P45 loudspeakers in the early 1980s but were introduced at this time to function as rear loudspeakers with the quadraphonic Beomaster 6000 system. In a smaller room it would have been impractical to have used four relatively large-sized floor speakers for the four-channeled receiver, so the panel speaker P50 was introduced as a practical way of overcoming that obstacle.

The ‘P’ denoted ‘panel’ and the number which followed was descriptive of the speakers’ power handling capabilites.

This panel speaker then, was manufactured specifically for mounting on a wall. At 65cm tall it looked relatively large from the front although its depth was only 9cm. Further, Bang & Olufsen designed them in such a way to give the impression that they were even slimmer. The design of this particular speaker is mentionable in that it was the first time that Jacob Jensen drafted them with a slight angle at their top. Hanging in either a horizontal or vertical position (although, because of its slight angled front it looked better in a vertical position), easy mounting was made possible.

Inside were three drivers: two 125mm woofers together with a 25mm tweeter. Despite its relative slimness, bass reproduction of the loudspeaker was good. Connection was made by cable to its rear-mounted DIN socket.

The two bass units were 8-ohm units from Peerless, marked 820809, and the tweeter was a SEAS H086, 25mm, 4 ohm, the same type as used in the Beovox M70. The phase-link unit was also from SEAS, the 10F-M (thanks to Manfred for these details).

The range of ‘P’ loudspeakers were useful and very flexible in their application. When they were removed from the market there was a gap of a few years’ until production of panelled loudspeakers began once more with Beovox 3000and Beovox 5000 although the Beovox P50 was reintroduced as the Beovox P45 some years later.

Beovox P50 (Panel) Passive Loudspeakers technical specifications

Type: 6305 (to Sept 1975) Continuous load: 45 W 
Music load:75 W 
Impedance: 4 - 8 ohms 
Frequency response +4 -8 dB 45 - 20,000 Hz 
Sensitivity 4.2 W 
Net volume:15 litre 
Gross volume:25 litre 
Woofer: 2 x 12.5cm 
Phase link unit: 9cm 
Tweeter: 2.5cm 
Dimensions W x H x D: 35 x 65 x 14cm 
Weight 8 kg