Spendor SP3/1

Documentation on the original Spendor SP3/1 is scattered, and the model name itself is inconsistent across sources — it appears as SP3/1, SP-3/1 (Japanese market), and later as the substantially revised SP3/1R2 (2009). What follows covers the original compact two-way monitor, with the variants noted where the record distinguishes them.

The SP3/1 was a compact bookshelf monitor, described in period marketing as condensing Spendor's broadcast-monitor know-how into a small cabinet. It used a 16 cm cone woofer that shared design lineage with the midrange unit of the larger SP-100, fitted with a specially treated polypropylene cone and 25 mm voice coil, paired with a custom version of the Scanspeak D2010 soft-dome tweeter. The cabinet was conventional MDF in cherry veneer, ported (bass-reflex), and bi-wire capable. Known specs for the original/Japanese-market version: frequency response 65 Hz–20 kHz ±3 dB, impedance 8 ohms, crossover at 4 kHz, sensitivity 85 dB/W/m, max input 70W, dimensions 220 × 400 × 280 mm, weight 9.5 kg.

The SP3/1 also appeared as a component in Sansui's "Aelf" system configurations in Japan — paired with the A-α7 amplifier and CD-α7 player in one bundle, and with the A-α9 and CD-α9 in another priced at ¥240,000 total (the speakers accounting for ¥112,000 of that). The Japanese-market SP-3/1 was listed around ¥56,000 per unit circa 1996.

Listening impressions from Russian forum users are consistent in character: the SP3/1 plays "surprisingly evenly," with unexpectedly substantial bass for an entry-level bookshelf speaker — though bass structure isn't reference-grade, and detail resolution falls short of the very best. Vocals are rendered with good saturation and body. One listener compared the sound to a photograph with beautiful bokeh: pleasing and comfortable, but not the sharpest tool for critical detail work. In direct comparison to Harbeth — Spendor's frequently cited rival — the SP3/1 was described as more reserved, lacking some of the ambience Harbeth delivers. It handled rock music with dignity, losing control only on certain tracks. The later SP3/1R2 revision (2009, £1,695) addressed the original's limitations with a 22mm widesurround tweeter, a new 18cm Spendor bass-mid driver, revised crossover, and re-aligned low-frequency response. Hi-Fi Choice noted the R2's classic 1970s styling distinguished it from the pack.

Known specs (original SP3/1 / SP-3/1)

Type: 2-way bookshelf monitor, bass-reflex
Woofer: 16 cm cone (polypropylene, 25 mm voice coil; lineage from SP-100 midrange)
Tweeter: 1.9 cm Scanspeak D2010 soft dome (special version)
Frequency response: 65 Hz – 20 kHz ±3 dB
Impedance: 8 ohms
Crossover: 4 kHz
Sensitivity: 85 dB/W/m
Max input: 70W
Dimensions: 220 × 400 × 280 mm
Weight: 9.5 kg
Bi-wire capable

Production years for the original SP3/1 are not firmly documented — a 1995 pair appears in one review, and the SP3/1P variant is dated circa 1996. The relationship between the SP3/1, SP3/1P, and SP3/1R2 is not fully clarified in the available record.