Buchardt Audio Mk2 Upgrade Kit

This idea fits particularly well with the philosophy behind Buchardt's active speakers. From the beginning, models such as A500 and A700 were designed around downloadable Mastertunings, allowing their behavior to be changed through DSP rather than being permanently defined at the factory. Buchardt has even described the goal as creating speakers that could continue to improve after release. Until now, however, those changes were primarily software-based. Mk2 takes the same concept into hardware and effectively separates the long-lived acoustic platform from electronics that can evolve much more rapidly.

The biggest change is a completely new Class D amplifier architecture developed around technology from Dutch specialist Axign. Instead of using separate digital-to-analog conversion before amplification, the new platform maintains a digital signal path directly into the amplifier control stage. Buchardt says this simplifies the architecture, improves efficiency and reduces distortion while also producing considerably less heat. Each speaker receives four 250 W RMS amplifier channels, giving it a total rated amplification capacity of 1000 W, together with a larger and more powerful supply designed to provide greater current reserves and stability during demanding passages. Axign's own amplifier technology uses digital control loops with post-filter feedback - an approach developed specifically to combine the efficiency of Class D operation with high damping factor, low distortion and tight control of the connected loudspeaker.

DSP receives an equally substantial overhaul. Mk2 operates at 96 kHz/32-bit, with 64-bit double-precision calculations used when designing Mastertunings, and moves many functions that previously depended on external hardware directly into the speakers. Room correction can now be performed using an iPhone or Buchardt's optional Zen microphone, while users can create their own parametric EQ filters, adjust ISO 226:2003-based Low Level Enhancement, apply high-pass filtering and modify delay, standby and wake-up behavior. Room correction can also be enabled or disabled independently for each input.

Managing Mastertunings becomes considerably easier as well. Instead of connecting the speakers over USB every time a different profile is required, tunings can now be loaded and changed over the air through the Buchardt app. The speakers gain their own Bluetooth Low Energy interface specifically for configuration and control - it is not used for music streaming. USB loading remains available, but wireless management should make experimentation far less cumbersome, particularly because the greater DSP flexibility means users can now modify considerably more parameters themselves rather than relying solely on complete factory-created profiles.

Connectivity has also been expanded. Mk2 adds coaxial digital input and output, with a 6 m coaxial link cable supplied to create a fully wired digital connection between the two speakers. WiSA HT remains available for systems using a compatible wireless transmitter, while the analog XLR input now feeds a high-performance ESS analog-to-digital converter before entering the digital processing chain. This means owners can still choose between conventional analog operation, a wired digital setup or Buchardt's established WiSA approach rather than being pushed into one particular ecosystem.

Owners of the earlier A500, A500SE and A700 receive an additional hardware improvement. Their upgrade kits include Buchardt's newer RFA19 tweeter, bringing them closer to later designs such as Anniversary 10 and A700 Limited Edition, which already use that unit and therefore do not require a replacement. Buchardt says the combination of the new tweeter, revised electronics and updated Mastertunings improves resolution and soundstage precision while reducing distortion, particularly in the treble and midrange. The increased amplifier output and stronger supply are expected to make the largest difference at high playback levels and during strong dynamic peaks, where the company claims the Mk2 platform has substantially more headroom and sounds less compressed. Anniversary 10 already uses RFA19 as one of its defining components, so owners of that model receive the electronics portion of the upgrade without an unnecessary driver replacement.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the whole project is that it does not require the speakers to be shipped back to Denmark. Buchardt designed its active models so that the rear electronics assemblies could be serviced and replaced, and Mk2 turns that construction into a genuine upgrade path. The modules are intended for installation by owners using ordinary hand tools, with detailed instructions supplied and video guides being prepared. One kit covers a complete pair of speakers. Buchardt does warn that once the new components have been installed, they cannot be returned for a refund, but every Mk2 kit receives a new two-year warranty.

There is something refreshingly sensible about the concept. Active loudspeakers have obvious engineering advantages - amplifiers, crossover filters and drivers can be developed as one system, and DSP allows far more control than a conventional passive crossover. Buchardt itself emphasizes this flexibility in its current active range. The uncomfortable side of the equation has always been longevity. A good passive speaker can stay in a system for twenty years while amplifiers, DACs and streamers come and go around it. By making the electronics of its active models replaceable, Buchardt is trying to give owners something much closer to that same upgrade cycle without giving up the benefits of an integrated active architecture.

The Mk2 Upgrade Kit is available for A500, A500SE, A700, A700 Limited Edition and Anniversary 10, with shipping scheduled to begin in October 2026. Pricing ranges from €1250 to €1500, depending on the speaker model and therefore the contents of the kit. Buchardt's current store lists the full Mk2 upgrade package at €1500. Info and pictures by Buchardt Audio.