But what if, say, 2 x 250 beats 350 or 500? Thats a big factor in the value proposition.
I don’t think the word ‘expensive’ is particularly helpful here. For 99% of the population a Mu-So is very expensive. And even here you have systems ranging from a few thousand to a few hundred thousand, and beyond…
I also heard it at the Cultured Audio demo earlier this year. My recollection was that it performed very well. I believe that there was another demo with another dealer a bit later. Main release was IIRC at the Munich show.
Sadly my Naim Qb will not drive Kudos speakers in active mode. 
. No it is not time for an upgrade.
If using 250DR / NC250 or above, then imho a SC DR is really desirable in the mix, so higher price!
‘beat’, well one box less with Kudos, but likely an alternate, as against one better than the other, ahead always of listening back to back.
edit
Enjoying my system over the weekend, couldn’t initially figure out why it was sounding so good.
Then I remembered that you Ian, had invited pics of burndys. With Snaxo burndy and 552 burndy out, the new position, which were sort of cable dressed ok when restored, but not candidates for any “Naim awards”, clearly have achieved an extra buzz!
Earlier in the summer, stacks two to four of Fraim had been rebuilt from base up. NAC and ND on stack 1 with medium height, with LP12 on top, NAT01 on base level with Superline, had remained untouched - too involved to move LP12 unnecessarily!
Thanks anyway for requesting photos, sound uplift a good result. (Don’t think it was the evening liquid?)
As active owner over a longish period, I think “beats” is a tricky term.
Passive with one bigger amp v multiple amps active is different - some will enjoy active, others less so.
Answer is extremely personal.
If disadvantage of active with extra boxes, Fraim, extra cable dressing, extra space, not just shelves et al can be accommodated, then active can be very rewarding. It simply perhaps isn’t for everyone.
Leaving aside the question of need (does anybody actually need any hifi device?), active driving of multi-way speakers is inherently better than passive. Yes of course quality of the crossovers, before or after power amp, makes a difference, but coupling a power amp’s output direct to a speaker voice coil is better than inserting a crossover between the two, if only because the direct drive ensuring better grip and control. But of course the quality of the amp comes into it, and you need more amps for active.
SNAXO + SC = about £6000 (in Dec’21).
So… that’s getting close to the Kudos box… 
I think we may have sussed Kudos’s pricing logik…
Then of course we have one amp being replaced by two or three amps of the same type. Passive to active. I did it with 250’s and SBL’s many years ago and loved the switch. Fast forward to this year I have gone from one 500 to 3 x 500 and enjoy a similar level of upgrade to 552 to S1 (with T808’s). The fact that I use Kudos speakers and heard that Roy George had been involved in design at the conceptual stages meant that I wanted to hear what the Sigao does or rather what it doesn’t do as it’s raison d’etre is to reduce unwanted noise. Critiquing the sound of something without hearing is purely conjecture so I wait but with some hopeful anticipation.
Any news on the hold up………thought my dealer would have had a demo day by now.
I rang Kudos this morning. Delayed due to a small supply chain issue. Very frustrating for them as much as anyone. Hopefully sorted and ready for shipping in around three weeks.
Great update
Not that this is relevant at all, but was next to the kudos unit in Willington today. Not sure if this is where they are made or just stored, but it was quite small.
And about 30% more efficient give or take 10%.
I’m yet to be 100% convinced that a passive external pre amplification crossover can outperform the very best active ones, but I can see how it gets you 80% there for less money. I think it seems like a superb and cost effective way of achieving it.
I also think having the crossover provided by the speaker manufacturer counts for a helluva lot. One thing many passive speakers have over third party active is that the latter relies heavily on trusting the quality of the crossover and how it was adjusted, which may not present the speakers how the manufacturer intended at all. Passive crossovers generally mean that manufacturers know that what customers have in the field is fairly consistent behaviour. A Kudos designed external crossover means they can control a little bit more of how their speakers are presented. I think that counts for a lot.
Whether you can still call this implementation “active” is another question. But perhaps not one to get overly hung up on.
Not sure that just because there is no mains lead that the Kudos Sigao is passive. I seem to recall that there was mention of specialist active components inside the box and that they required only minute amounts of power to operate. The power being derived from the small line signal input. I’ll let others with more knowledge than I comment on the accuracy of my recollection. Happy to be told I’m way off beam.
They might also wish to comment on whether the implementation can be classed as “active” or not.
That is the very definition of a passive crossover. Zero bias current. All signal derived. Which is also how a passive crossover works in a loudspeaker. There may be some Kudos marketing at play here to steer people away from the (unwarranted) stigma of “passive” terminology.
I do really think that the distinction with true active versus passive is a distraction though. This is fairly novel and unique. If others are doing anything similar they are few and far between if any. I’m mainly excited to see whether this is one of those rare cases where one manufacturers successful implementation of something unusual becomes a lasting model others will follow for decades to come or not. Like Arcam with the first domestic split of CD transport and DAC.
It’s the potential of the idea more than the single SIGAO DRIVE product itself that has me interested.
I’ve always felt that any crossover is, in an ideal world, designed by the speaker manufacturer rather than the amplifier manufacturer.
Many thanks for the additional explanation.
Where I was misunderstanding is that I understood passive to be r, l, c type components only. I believe that the Sigao also has a number of unique ic type components included that have additional functionality over and above that functionally possible with r, l, and c components eg filters.
Edit - Just thinking should probably include diodes as a passive component as well. Rectification function now included?
Delayed now until December sadly
Probably the new year before customers can get their hands on one.
Indeed 
. I’m going to move to the Exposure so that I can burn in and utilise my new RCA terminated cables.
Dang 