Bang & Olufsen’s New Limited-Edition Speakers Will Set You Back Nearly Half a Million Dollars

Bang & Olufsen is celebrating its 100th birthday with, well, a bang.

The audio giant just unveiled five bonkers iterations of its Beolab 90 standing speaker to celebrate its anniversary, each akin to a curvaceous work of art with a powerhouse sound system built within. All that beauty and musical prowess come at a price, though: A pair of the limited-edition speakers costs a cool US$450,000.

Kicking off the quintet of luxury speakers is an aluminium number called Titan. At its core lies a 143-pound cabinet that has been sandblasted using crushed volcanic rock particles, while the surrounding aluminium is either polished or matte that curves around subwoofers and other parts of the speaker’s exterior. The Zenith edition, meanwhile, adds some jewellery-esqe sophistication to that aluminium look, thanks to 289 spheres that play with texture and shimmering mother-of-pearl inlays.

For the Beolab 90 Monarch, Bang & Olufsen looked to Danish furniture for inspiration, using rosewood lamella to mimic movement across the front of the cabinet. This iteration is also a play on texture, one that is focused on nature-inspired designs. For a more classic look, you can opt for the Phantom, which draws on the motorsport world for its sleek, black look. (It would pair well with a Rolls-Royce of the same name.)  Here, semi-transparent black PVD mesh creates a holographic effect, giving you a glimpse of the speaker’s inner workings, while carbon-fibre accents can be found across hand-finished panels and shoulder plates.

On the opposite side of the spectrum is the last of the bunch, the bold, bright Mirage. This speaker shows off a dazzling array of purple, blue, and pink hues in an iridescent glow, along with a waved texture that pays homage to sound rippling across a room; and the design has been hand-polished by artisans to boot. If the smooth sound it emits isn’t enough to capture your attention, those vibrant colours certainly will.

Of course, each edition is home to all the audio tech we know and love from the Beolab 90. That includes 18 bespoke drivers, active room compensation (which adapts the speakers’ sound to your space), beam width control (to control the sound dispersion, whether you’re watching a movie or need a more precise listening experience), and 14 channels of amplifiers.

The entire line-up of the Beolab 90 Centennial Editions is available now—though you’d better act fast, since only 10 of each iteration will be up for grabs worldwide.

This story was originally published on Robb Report USA.