KEF Owner's Thread

[Tom Davis]

I bought the LS50 after I auditioned the Blades (the big ones). With my sealed sub on, eyes closed, the LS50 could sound like Blades.

I'm in the Chicago area and there are dealers around here yet but not nearly so many as back in the 70's and 80's. As far as KEF dealers I just haven't searched for them. I'm not unhappy with my vintage loudspeakers by any means. As for the LS50's I have read much about them and seen the youtube videos so I am aware of their reputation. I have little doubt that they sound really exceptional for a very small cube and if I had the cash I might be willing to further explore them. They certainly would take up less space in my listening room. Perhaps if/when I can escape this current residence. HAHA

 

[KenM10759]

There's no real harm in getting out to hear them. No one is going to force you to produce the cash. A little pressure perhaps, though you remain in control. At least you'll know.

Though you may swear to "I'll never give these up", they do have some value and maybe after you hear LS50's working the wheels might start turning about going small but powerful.

 

[Tom Davis]

There's no real harm in getting out to hear them. No one is going to force you to produce the cash. A little pressure perhaps, though you remain in control. At least you'll know.

Though you may swear to "I'll never give these up", they do have some value and maybe after you hear LS50's working the wheels might start turning about going small but powerful.

Never say never, right? HAHA

The thing is, at least for me... I've more or less just become satisfied with what I have after years and years of burning money as fast as I could earn it. It took a while to learn that. I won't be preaching to the choir about what others do with their cash by any means... I stay away from that. We've all heard or read about those with deep pockets spending big loads on cables and the like and there is always going to be some joker who has to go off on a tangent. Not me. I'd love to hear systems that surpass what I own and I'd be envious, I'm sure. It wouldn't help my budget though. Those with more dough can just afford to purchase nicer toys.

I wouldn't rule anything out by any means as the kid in me sometimes gets a bit excited and unpredictable. My wife wouldn't mind there not being big honkin' speakers in the living room!

As for the Uni-Q driver, I had a pair of KEF C40 that featured what I believe was the first series of that driver. And I recall hearing the Reference line from the 90's that featured the Uni-Q as well. I nearly bought a pair of Reference Model 3's back in the day that featured a gorgeous Burl Wood but didn't. My personal favorite has always been the 107 but I'll try to locate a dealer in the area that carries the KEF line and go have a listen.

 

[PENG]

Never say never, right? HAHA

The thing is, at least for me... I've more or less just become satisfied with what I have after years and years of burning money as fast as I could earn it. It took a while to learn that. I won't be preaching to the choir about what others do with their cash by any means... I stay away from that. We've all heard or read about those with deep pockets spending big loads on cables and the like and there is always going to be some joker who has to go off on a tangent. Not me. I'd love to hear systems that surpass what I own and I'd be envious, I'm sure. It wouldn't help my budget though. Those with more dough can just afford to purchase nicer toys.

I wouldn't rule anything out by any means as the kid in me sometimes gets a bit excited and unpredictable. My wife wouldn't mind there not being big honkin' speakers in the living room!

As for the Uni-Q driver, I had a pair of KEF C40 that featured what I believe was the first series of that driver. And I recall hearing the Reference line from the 90's that featured the Uni-Q as well. I nearly bought a pair of Reference Model 3's back in the day that featured a gorgeous Burl Wood but didn't. My personal favorite has always been the 107 but I'll try to locate a dealer in the area that carries the KEF line and go have a listen.

I don't think I have heard the 107 but I found the 104.X, 105.X weak in bass, compared to the R series. The funny thing is, on paper the R series are not that great in bass response either, but in room they can be impressive.

 

[Tom Davis]

The 107's are considered by many as the holy grail of KEF Loudspeakers. I would happily plunk down the cash for a used pair if they were locally available on the used market but their asking price is often pretty pricey, $2000+ in fact. And then there is the ferro fluid issue with the tweeters, and I can handle that part. I don't know your age but I am 55 years old and I know that my ears aren't so golden anymore. I also know that the 107 is way too much for my current living room, as are what I own. My current speaker setup cost a pretty penny back in the day and I can't justify the expense. I have a soon to be 18 year old who will be going to college in the fall so I have to prioritize a bit.

Enjoy your new LS50's. I'll try to have a listen.

 

[Verdinut]

Hi KEF Speaker Owners,

Should you have a model of KEF speakers, or of any other brand, which was produced several years ago, and for which electrolytic capacitors were used in the passive crossovers? Actually, several manufacturers did that to reduce the production costs.

You would get an improvement just by having those caps replaced with polypropylene condensers. With time, electrolytic capacitors lose their original value and this, of course, affect the performance by changing filter frequencies and response curves.

I did proceed with such replacement on a pair of KEF floor standing speakers a couple of years ago for a friend of mine. There was an enormous difference. The sound was definitely more detailed and you would believe that they were entirely different speakers.

If you cannot do the capacitor substitution by yourself, it is worth getting the work done by a technician who knows how crossovers are build and preferably has access to the crossover schematics.

If some of you ever get the electrolytic capacitors replaced in their passive crossovers, please let me know your impressions about the improvements.

 

[Art Vandelay]

I don't think I have heard the 107 but I found the 104.X, 105.X weak in bass, compared to the R series. The funny thing is, on paper the R series are not that great in bass response either, but in room they can be impressive.

The 105.2 was the last of Kef's sealed box designs, and in my experience the in-room bass can be very impressive. OTOH, the 104/2 used a coupled cavity band pass design that traded bandwidth for efficiency and distortion. Kef did release an EQ box to compensate which probably helped but the main problem with the 104/2 was the upper-mid stridency, which detracted from an otherwise very fine speaker. I owned a pair for a time but in the end I couldn't tolerate the coloration, so I traded them for a pair of B&W 802fs.

My personal Kef favourite is also the 107/2, which I regret not buying when I had the opportunity in the mid 90's. Even today they can hold their own against some of the very best.

 

[mad_rx2]

Hey guys,

New to the forum, Not new to Audio and the love of it.


I recently acquired 8 x of Kef's Ci3-80QT speakers.

Is anyone here running them?

The question is, Install or sell?

Reason being, lots of labour needed to install them (Ground floor of multi-floor house)

Always been a firm believer of floor standing speakers.

 

[KenM10759]

Very specialized application speaker. I'd sell them off to someone looking for a custom installed system and use the money for something more appropriate for your needs.

Those are a motorized speaker that swigs from flush to about 40º down. They have a tiny 15mm tweeter in a 75mm midrange and a pair of 75mm "LF" drivers that could hardly be called woofers, I believe they only augment an array of larger speakers.

 

[mad_rx2]

OK mate thanks, Yeh I think I will sell them then.

I'll throw them up on the classifieds tonight if anyone is interested. What would a fair price to sell them be? They are about 6 months old. Spotless conditio. Is 50 percent of original price realistic/fair?

 

[tyhjaarpa]

OK mate thanks, Yeh I think I will sell them then.

I'll throw them up on the classifieds tonight if anyone is interested. What would a fair price to sell them be? They are about 6 months old. Spotless conditio. Is 50 percent of original price realistic/fair?

Don't know how much market there is for those speakers, so it might take some time to sell them. But if they have transferable warranty then half price would be fair, some would ask even more than that.

 

[Desmoface]

Hello everyone,

My Q300's should be arriving shortly and I'm trying to decide on amplification. What do you all think?

Option 1. Keep it simple and get this:https://www.crutchfield.com/p_022AS7...701-Black.html or possibly this: http://www.accessories4less.com/make...c-black/1.html

Option 2. More expensive and probably the better option as this setup would give me the option to set a high pass for the main speakers if I add a sub, which I would like the option to be able to do. This: http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo...umber=1PAC2100 + this: http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo...ber=2PAC2125V2

Option 2 is about $400 more but on paper is much better. The downside? The only way it is cost effective is to go with refurbished equipment, which concerns me a bit. That said, it all carries the new factory warranty which is compelling.

I've been agonizing about this all weekend - what do you all think?

Thanks in advance for any thoughts/advice.

Steve

 

[Desmoface]

Woohoo! I received my new Parasound gear today...I was a bit tentative as it's b-stock but I'm happy to report that it looks and plays like new - shout out to Tim at Audio Advisor.

I also received my new Kef q300 speakers to go along with the audio gear..they also look and sound fantastic. The only problem is I ordered white and received black, LOL. I actually wanted black originally but the Wife wanted white...you know who wins those contests, LOL. Anyway, I guess I got what I wanted in the end because I don't want to deal with returning them. Wife seems to be taking it well, LOL.

Steve

 

[Desmoface]

Not a bad way to spend a Saturday Afternoon; breaking in a new set of speakers:



Steve

 

[KenM10759]

You could break them in pretty permanently with that Parasound setup!

Congrats...you will count yourself among the last to get new Q300's. They're just about gone now.

 

[Desmoface]

Hi Ken,

The Parasound gear works awesome with the Q300's; Glad I got them while I could - they sound great with some Sam Adams.

Steve

You could break them in pretty permanently with that Parasound setup!

Congrats...you will count yourself among the last to get new Q300's. They're just about gone now.

 

[KenM10759]

Nice choice of beer, Steve! Being a New Englander their beers are pretty popular here and the Sam Adams Summer Ale is one of my favs for the refreshment needed after a long hot ride on the motorbike.

 

[Electone]

I have owned KEF speakers since the late 80s. My foray into British speakers started with a pair of Mission 707s which were traded in on a pair of KEF C55 (1st generation Uni-Q). I then traded the C55s for the flagship C95s which I kept for almost 20 years. I ended up selling those and going seriously vintage with a mint pair of 1973 Yamaha NS690 mkI which I recently recapped. The Yamahas are very monitor-like, built like tanks, but ultimately not my cup of tea. In the meantime, I managed to find another mint pair of C55s and Mission 707s (which required new foam surrounds). For my home theater, I use a pair of Q300s and a Reference Model 100 center. Finally, just this past week, I decided to pick up a pair of Q900s for my main audio system.

 

[KenM10759]

Congrats on the Q900's, not many left. You caught the deals at the tail end. Which finish did you get?

My dealer had stocked up while the Q series was cheap, and has sold most of them now. Just a few pairs of various style/sizes remaining at the sale prices and they won't be ordering any more for stock once they've sold out. It's expected there will be a new series announced any time now.

 

[Electone]

Congrats on the Q900's, not many left. You caught the deals at the tail end. Which finish did you get?

My dealer had stocked up while the Q series was cheap, and has sold most of them now. Just a few pairs of various style/sizes remaining at the sale prices and they won't be ordering any more for stock once they've sold out. It's expected there will be a new series announced any time now.

I had no choice in finish - black was all that was left. I'm actually pretty pleased with the finish - it has texture whereas my Q300s in cherry do not. I've had them running for a little while now and I'm very impressed with the bass performance. Kick drums really kick - something my C95s never did. One thing I have noticed is that the cabinet really vibrates - there has been a lot of discussion about the apparent lack of internal bracing, but it's not translating into distortion, so perhaps that's just the way they were designed. It will be interesting to see what KEF has lined up next to replace the current Q series.