The Jordan Marlow sports a distinctly BBC-inspired cabinet design combined with the company's own Jordan Eikona single, wideband drive unit.

We are informed that the wood-veneered 330x200x180mm cabinet is made from high-quality, heavily-damped 9 mm Baltic birch ply, as seen on many a loudspeaker staying faithful to Aunty Beeb's monitor heritage.

However, what makes the Marlow, named after the Buckinghamshire town where the company was initially founded in 1982, different is that behind the acoustically transparent grille sits a Jordan Eikona. The Eikona apparently boasts an advanced, alloy cone drive unit that covers most of the musical spectrum and was designed by audio legend Ted Jordan. It is said to produce a more natural sound than the conventional approach of separate woofers and tweeters.

The resulting package is quoted as covering a 44Hz-18kHz (+/- 6 B) frequency range with a 86 dB/watt sensitivity. The recommended amplification ranges from 10-70 Watts with maximum power handling stated as 100 W peak.

EJ Jordan managing director Colin Shelbourn told StereoNET:

The BBC cabinet technique is neither cheap nor easy but has clearly audible benefits. It's closer to creating a musical instrument than manufacturing a loudspeaker, requiring a lot of skill; every component is critical to the final sound. We also wanted the Marlow to have as small a carbon footprint as possible, and we've managed to source almost everything within the UK or Europe.

Furthermore, the development process of the Jordan Marlow has led to two versions being made available.

The standard Marlow features Kimber TC wiring and Swiss-made, silver-plated 4 mm sockets. Whereas the higher-spec Marlow CE (above) uses exclusive, pure-copper binding posts and matching internal cables from renowned UK amplifier designer Tom Evans.

Naturally, both versions are supplied as matched pairs with individual serial numbers.

The standard Marlow costs £1,960 (ex VAT), and the Marlow CE costs £2,280 (ex VAT). Both are finished in real walnut veneer, with rosewood a £160 option. Matching stands are available, and both loudspeakers and stands can be ordered direct from EJ Jordan Ltd.

Visit EJ Jordan for more information