KF850 by EAW — Resonant

Equipment photographs · 2

1 / 2 · EAW KF850 cabinets with SB1000 subwoofers at a live event
EAW KF850 cabinets with SB1000 subwoofers at a live event·Kurt Snieckus·CC BY-SA 2.0

Why it mattered

01
EAW describes it as the touring standard, accepted on more riders than any other loudspeaker for over a decade.
02
Its matched trapezoid arrays preceded the KF760 line array.
03
Kennedy's FOH survey describes the 1985 KF-850 as the standard one-box touring rider requirement, produced for more than two decades in several versions, followed in 1989 by the smaller KF600.

Engineering record

Drivers: 15-inch horn-loaded woofer, 10-inch horn-loaded mid, 2-inch compression driver[1][2]
Coverage: 55° × 40°, triamplified[2]

Original pricing

No reliable period price located

2026 equivalent

Not calculated without a reliable original price.

Public price evidence was not sufficient to publish a defensible original figure.

Use in the field

Flown with SB528 subwoofers as a touring main system[1]

Professional reactions

Later recollection · 2023

Forsythe remembered the KF850 as an outgrowth of earlier designs, valuing its coherent timing across the range. He credited it with giving EAW traction in touring and opening the installation market.

Kenton Forsythe, EAW co-founder and loudspeaker designerEarlier interview recalled in a memorial article; designer’s assessment, not a launch review. · Manufacturer representative in trade interview · Paraphrased account[4]ProSoundWeb · In Memoriam: Kenton Forsythe, 1944-2023

Manuals & original documents

Sources

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KF850