bigbike1

bigbike1

Audiophyte
Quite a straight forward question, I think..!

I'm looking to get some KEF speakers for a 4x5m (carpeted) room. I have no source at the moment.
Do I:

1. Get the LS50 Wireless - c£2k
2. LS50 Wireless plus sub (weak bass seems to be their only fault. Sub recommendations welcome) c£2.8k
3. KEF R3 plus Uniti Atom (or something like it) c£3.5k

I suppose the question is, does option 3 offer enough bass and flexibility to justify the extra ££££?

All thoughts and suggestions welcome, even if they're different to my options!
Thanks.
Tom
 
M

Movie2099

Audioholic General
Quite a straight forward question, I think..!

I'm looking to get some KEF speakers for a 4x5m (carpeted) room. I have no source at the moment.
Do I:

1. Get the LS50 Wireless - c£2k
2. LS50 Wireless plus sub (weak bass seems to be their only fault. Sub recommendations welcome) c£2.8k
3. KEF R3 plus Uniti Atom (or something like it) c£3.5k

I suppose the question is, does option 3 offer enough bass and flexibility to justify the extra ££££?

All thoughts and suggestions welcome, even if they're different to my options!
Thanks.
Tom
All good options, but i'm thinking you should just step up and get the R5's or the R7's.
 
bigbike1

bigbike1

Audiophyte
All good options, but i'm thinking you should just step up and get the R5's or the R7's.
Thank you.

So you think R5 (let's say) plus a source rather than the all-in-one option. Is that because the sound will be better or because you prefer separates. Opinion seems quite divided on this!
 
M

Movie2099

Audioholic General
Thank you.

So you think R5 (let's say) plus a source rather than the all-in-one option. Is that because the sound will be better or because you prefer separates. Opinion seems quite divided on this!
KEF's bookshelf speakers are very nice and will produce a very nice sound. If you using for mostly music they will get the job done. If you are using for more movies I personally would get some towers if you can afford it. I mean you don't have to go R5/R7. They have plenty of towers for $1000 and less to choose from. Always get the best that you can afford. Though we all know we always push that budget to the max to get something better. Get some nice towers (if you can) and get a decent AVR if you don't have one or need to upgrade cause it's 20+ years old. Get some solid cables that are in the $20-$30/each range and you'll be good to go. You can always add on after that.
 
John Parks

John Parks

Audioholic Samurai
@bigbike1 As @Movie2099 pointed out, it depends on your listening habits. That being said, I will approach this as a music heavy system (with the ability to watch video/movies) as this is how I am set up.

For a music only system, the LS50W are hard to beat and, because of their integrated amps and DSP, play much lower than the LS50. A good approach would be to get the LS50Ws, run them through their paces and then decide if they are lacking in bass. IF they are, then go for a good sub. I do not know where you are from, but the ££££ leads me to believe somewhere under HM's reign. SVS is available in GB and the EU (I believe) and is highly recommended on this site. Unlike others on AH (who shall not be named) I am a big fan of REL as well.

The only thing I have against the LS50W is that KEFs own apps are not as nice as, say, Naim's but I think they are a Roon endpoint now and that makes things SO much easier. In that regard, you only have to use the KEF app(s) during setup and let Roon take over from there.

Your third option of the R3 and Naim Uniti Atom looks like it would be an excellent one as long as you are good with the Naim's limited power (40wpc) but your room is not super huge. Stepping up to the R5 will not give you that much more bass and is more of a preference between stand mount vs floor standing (I prefer the latter in most cases - I had the R500 and loved it).
 
bigbike1

bigbike1

Audiophyte
@bigbike1 As @Movie2099 pointed out, it depends on your listening habits. That being said, I will approach this as a music heavy system (with the ability to watch video/movies) as this is how I am set up.

For a music only system, the LS50W are hard to beat and, because of their integrated amps and DSP, play much lower than the LS50. A good approach would be to get the LS50Ws, run them through their paces and then decide if they are lacking in bass. IF they are, then go for a good sub. I do not know where you are from, but the ££££ leads me to believe somewhere under HM's reign. SVS is available in GB and the EU (I believe) and is highly recommended on this site. Unlike others on AH (who shall not be named) I am a big fan of REL as well.

The only thing I have against the LS50W is that KEFs own apps are not as nice as, say, Naim's but I think they are a Roon endpoint now and that makes things SO much easier. In that regard, you only have to use the KEF app(s) during setup and let Roon take over from there.

Your third option of the R3 and Naim Uniti Atom looks like it would be an excellent one as long as you are good with the Naim's limited power (40wpc) but your room is not super huge. Stepping up to the R5 will not give you that much more bass and is more of a preference between stand mount vs floor standing (I prefer the latter in most cases - I had the R500 and loved it).
Thanks, some really useful views there. You're correct - UK!

I think it will predominantly music to start with. I have various sonos speakers accrued over a few years to sort the movie part when I'm settled in the new house. Not sure if that's blasphemy on here but will do with kids still haring around!

I like the idea of trying the LS50Ws and then getting a sub if it's required.

I have really very little knowledge of Roon etc so reassuring to hear that they are easily operated from the phone.

All of this against the backdrop of what appears to be audio suicide which is that I won't be able to listen to any of these options first. First world problems perhaps...

Lots to think about - thanks.
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
I really, really like the LS50W and a good sub option. That's all you'd need for a very nice sounding music system. You can't go wrong with SVS either.
 
ryanosaur

ryanosaur

Audioholic Overlord
Don't forget BK Elec and XTZ for subs.

I enjoyed my KEF experience... until I didn't. ;) They are very good sounding speakers, and many people are point source fans. Room set up is important!
Your room is a reasonable size, and depending on how you use them and how loud you like it, it is always worthwhile to audition as many speakers as you can before settling in.

Cheers!
 
bigbike1

bigbike1

Audiophyte
I really, really like the LS50W and a good sub option. That's all you'd need for a very nice sounding music system. You can't go wrong with SVS either.
Thanks. So you'd defer to the SVS before a KEF Sub?
 
bigbike1

bigbike1

Audiophyte
Don't forget BK Elec and XTZ for subs.

I enjoyed my KEF experience... until I didn't. ;) They are very good sounding speakers, and many people are point source fans. Room set up is important!
Your room is a reasonable size, and depending on how you use them and how loud you like it, it is always worthwhile to audition as many speakers as you can before settling in.

Cheers!
The auditioning thing is going to be a real problem. The good news is that with a couple of sonos1s just now, anything will be a step up! Next time around I will have to do it properly - I wonder how long I will be able to wait!
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
I do wonder what bigbike1 did, but hasn't been back to the forum since May 22....
 

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