The Polk Audio L100 is available in two finishes: brown walnut or black ash. Now, one and two years later, respectively, I'm enjoying both Schiits more than ever. But the reviews have told me a lot of characteristics that appeal to me, mainly the soft dome tweeter as opposed to metal (metal kills my ears and gives me fatigue) and that separation and vocals are strong, which is what im searching for. Music that was recorded in stereo needs to be listened to in that format unless we are content with listening to single loudspeakers again that attempt to simulate stereo or even surround sound with multiple drivers packed into an enclosure the size of a coffee can. Trust me and ignore any negative reviews for this speaker. I prefer loudspeakers with well-controlled directivity, which is the main reason I admire KEF's Uni-Q concentric drivers. I'll figure around $5,000 US ! They pair a 25mm silk dome tweeter with a 16cm midrange/bass paper driver that together has an expansive sound that rivals much more expensive options. 2-way bookshelf. OK looks, but very boxy cheap cabinet with sharp edges and corners. There is no doubt even the most rapacious would prefer not to. From the bits I did gather, there seemed to be a general consensus that the Q150 had cleaner treble, but the Q350 sounded bigger, warmer, had better mids, and more bass. Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them. The woofer is the driver that is responsible for low frequency sounds and bass - crucial for well-rounded, booming sound. I ordered these speakers as an open box in like new condition checked by Amazon. A general rule of thumb is a bigger woofer means louder, more powerful bass. Also, please comment on how stand and speaker are to be joined (the speakers have no fasteners of any kind, and the fine LS50 lacquer can easily be damaged if using Blutac, for instance). View: https://youtu.be/Hz9PyawLrrQ. I will of course note that most of the companies you praise are foreign, and some manufacturer their products in China. This is a review and detailed measurements of the KEF Q350 Bookshelf/stand-mount speaker. The BRC1 works well with the BR03. You will only use this t, For the environmentally conscious, choosing an ENERGY STAR Certified speaker may be important to you. Decent mid/high detail and surprising amount of bass. Personally, I would be very happy if KEF would offer a stand that's specific to the LS50 including wire connections on the stand -- at the floor level instead of at waist-level on the speaker which is seriously ugly regardless of cable used. Turntable and Speaker Combos That Make Vinyl Easy, The Best Furniture for Your Home Audio System. Pairing with a subwoofer and having most of the bass go to the subwoofer cleans the sound signature up a little bit but the overall sound quality lacked detail and definition. That being said, it is true that some Chinese manufacturing facilities have produced counterfeit goods. Bigger drivers produce greaterbass in general. The only real upgrade is that B&W upgraded the crossover in the speakers as everything else remained the same. If space is limited the Q350 will not limit your musical enjoyment, a Uni-Q driver and clever port design let it open up the sound. and they're cheap! You and Art Dudley are terrific reviewers! I hope someone asks Andrew Jones. Aco, Measured in decibels, or dB, sensitivity measures a speakers ability to convert power to volume. Theres also speculation that the Q150 is inherently superior because it uses the same size driver and similar size enclosure as the LS50. Released in 2020, the JBL L82 Classic is effectively a smaller, more affordable version of the L100 Classic (which were released in 2018). I'd prefer it if they were more open about the closeness of components such as the Q350 to much more expensive 'references' but such is life. As can be seen in the chart above, median best-selling speakers receives a consumer score of 9.1 (great). Triangle BR03; Save Share. Coming to the receiver, you still wont find much versatility in the control options here. The Q150 is available in a matte black and white vinyl design. Or, is the Q series mostly aimed at those Big Screen 4K TV Buyers at Costco? I just did a bit of a Search on the LS50 to discover that KEF originally intended the Design to be a more modern replacement for the LS3/5a. Now comes the price that you should consider before you finally decide to invest in any of the variants. The KEF q150 is scarce. Their task is surely not to act as an entry drug to the (IMHO) aurally bizzare cult of the LS 35a, but rather to find good products and tell us about them. And at $550 if they're as good as they're hyped up to be, then it's a steal. Low Stock : Order Soon Order by 2pm: Ships Today. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. When space seems to be at a shortage, the Q Series bookshelf speakers shine. Common points from expert reviews summarized. But they dump product and destroy native industries like my little Nesco Products in Two Rivers Wisc.., they copied the product ( mistakes and all ) then way undersold our Nesco at all the Walmart Stores. The specific effect is followed by the tangerine wave effect method. I replaced the Bel Cantos with the Pass Laboratories XA25 stereo amplifier ($4900) and listened to Robert Palmer's Quintet for A-Clarinet, String Trio, and Piano, composed in 1952 and performed by clarinetist Arthur Bloom, violinist Kees Kooper, violist Paul Doktor, cellist Warren Lash, and pianist Mary Louise Boehm, and produced by Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz (LP, Vox Turnabout TV-S 34508, now available on CD as Albany 153). Also, the Tensegrity stands don't come with the speakers and add a significant ($999) price bump. It certainly did no harm to the reproduction of this glorious organ recording. I would never have known KEF was For-Sale or how much it Sold for. Excellent speakers, but be weary of less-than-ideal placement, Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2017. The BasX A-100 Stereo Flex Amplifier, SMSL Q5 Pro, or Dayton Audio DTA2.1BT are all viable options. The frequency range is wide, too, as you're getting lows in the 50Hz range and highs up near 50kHz. It explains why none of the Car Groups have KEF sound systems in their Cars. Theft of intellectual property should indeed be stamped out, but has nothing to do with a company like KEF (or any of the other high end audio outfits) choosing to have their designs built in China. The primary components of a bookshelf speaker are drivers, which are the cones that actually create the sound. Triangle Borea BR03 (300 euro) KEF Q150 (360 euro) They would be used for nearfield listening now (desk usage), but hoping to use them in a medium-sized room at some point in the future. We can say that KEF q150 is the upgraded version of q100 bookshelf speakers. Hence, it turns out an excellent way for saving power along with excellent sound delivery. The Q350's Uni-Q driver includes a damped loading tube for its tweeter, which, Sehdev says, "gives a gentler termination at the back of the tweeterimproving response at the bottom and reducing harshness. They didnt realize the R5 speakers werent playing until I pointed it out. It comes with a rear port. Before investing, it becomes crucial to check out the various variants of a particular brand to get the perfect knowledge about which s better than the other and worth the money. Triangles talented standmounters take the fight to the established class leaders. Buy Triangle Borea BR03 Hi-Fi Bookshelf Speakers Pair for Home Theater Systems and Music, 100 W Power Handling, High Efficiency (Walnut) at Amazon. The 3/5a was our balance scale. All of these speakers are highly regarded. Actually, it is very surprising to me that the evaluations have not been made using KEF's own dedicated stand as a starting point. These speakers are truly remarkable for their size and price. And I also hear they have a 'different' and 'unique' sound that's very appealing and fun to listen to. Adding the stands made a huge improvement. I still miss all the Superb Gear that I once owned : Pro-Ac Tablets, Magnapan MG2s, Conrad-Johnson MV45a, Audible Illusions Modulus 2a, Bruce Brisson Cabling MH750s, Meridian M2s & M3s ( both in Rosewood ), both of my original Linn LP12s and a few other pieces of wonderful gear I had to part with as I left the Audio Industry for the Travel Work of a Major Corporation. The L100 speakers have a finely tuned 1-inch pinnacle tweeter and a proprietary 5.25-inch Turbine Cone midrange/bass driver, the combination of which results in an ultra-detailed sound. Higher sen, Given as a range in Hertz (Hz), the frequency response is a measurement of the range of sound a speaker can produce. #1. You are not 'old school'. This feature behaves just like any other Bluetooth-enabled d, Not to be confused with Wi-Fi-enabled speakers, wireless speaker set ups do not require a speaker wire or direct lines to other speakers and the AV receiver. It's a complex thing that our next generations will be working, struggling, anguishing with. Hence, you might need to purchase them separately. I've tried: Klipsch RP-600M - didn't like them at all Triangle BR03 - liked them, but when comparing side by side with KEF, Triangles sounded more After going through a few speakers with my Yamaha amp, KEF delivers the most dynamic and enjoyable sound. What you are searching for and your budget will determine the answer. Might someone translate "Tony in Michigan"'s comments into plain ol' English for me? Insert . Triangle Borea BR03 2-Way Bookshelf Speaker (Pair) LIGHT OAK. The fantastic speakers are perfect for any small room, hall, or living space. All the talk of the Q350's cabinet vibration is a little disconcerting, you'll get none of that from the Paradigms, as they use the more expensive matrix cabinet construction. Inner construction has been modified to eliminate internal resonances and increase audio quality. After this bad experience, Ive been ordering from Crutchfiield which has 60 day returns and actually checks its gear. Kef Q350 customer reviews I added a SVS SB 2000-Pro sub and it literally calms my soul when I listen to them. They also have been integrated with the same bracing technology Point to Point (P2P) that's in the company's $6,500 Concept 500 loudspeakers, which helps them be better at eliminating miscellaneous vibrations. Additionally, these are not very hard loudspeakers to drive and they can play very loudly without losing any sense of control or focus. They deliver unrivaled levels of coherency, clarity and presence in a stand-mounted design that can compete with significantly more expensive loudspeakers. Feb 5, 2020 . At one point in my critical listening, I got up and put my hands on the sides of the Q350s' cabinets. Whereas KEF q350 has a large woofer, stronger bass, and sounds complete. Europeans seem to be less accepting of Chinese product dumpers. In speakers, frequency response is a critical component. This is how the drivers can incorporate and change the audio even though you are seated next to the speakers. The Paradigm DCS-208IW3, the perfect blend of performance and practicality. What's the Best Ultra-Portable Bluetooth Speaker? I'm thinking that this reviewer is say'n the Qs are competent competitors against ( and along side of ) the often touted Chinese Pioneers and Elac B5 & B6 & F6 of Andrew Jones, even among the "Loved" by Queen & Country, British Loudspeakers with their beautiful "real wood textures". For us consumers, Chinesium is coming down to a personal choice unless our national trade leaders work out a Trade Agreement over all things Manufacturing wise. and.. it explains an entry level $500 LS50 re-branded as Q series. "KEF can hold its head up high: the Q350s are a cut above the rest. * Measurement per unit, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. - Oct 2018. Each speaker features a unique Uni-Q driver which consists of a centered tweeter-and-woofer combo instead of two separately mounted drivers, resulting in a more direct and accurate sound that's similar to ones found in KEF's more expensive lines. I had to play around with positioning a lot to get the Kef to sound best. Additionally, they have gorgeous-yet-bespoke design and are available in a number of different wood finishes including black ash, cherry mahogany, light oak and walnut. I considered all the current bookshelf speakers that are being talked about in the current year. Mercedes Teamed Up with Apple to Add Spatial Audio, How to Turn Your Home Stereo Into a Sonos System, 5 Ways to Make Your Speakers Last a Lifetime, The Best Bookshelf Speakers for Your Home Hi-Fi System. Oh, that's right, no smartphones are made in any of those countries. Rather than refund $ to my credit card, Amazon put the funds in a gift card account where it sat for 10 days or so. I kept moving them to determine which combination of wall-to-speaker distance and port plugging worked best. China has been our Global Industrial leader since the time of Christ, ( with the exception of the last 150 years ), they are no strangers to super high quality. KEF Q150 vs KEF Q350 B&W 606 vs Klipsch RP-600M B&W 606 vs B&W 706 S2 Klipsch R-51M vs Klipsch R-41M Most Popular Passive Floor-standing Comparisons DALI Oberon 7 vs DALI Oberon 5 Klipsch RP-8000F vs Klipsch R-820F Klipsch R-620F vs Klipsch R-820F B&W 603 vs Wharfedale EVO4.4 Klipsch RP-8000F vs B&W 603 Klipsch RP-8000F vs Klipsch RP-8000F II Triangle BR03 - liked them, but when comparing side by side with KEF, Triangles sounded more fatiguing. This comes with the exclusive arrangement of drivers which deliver pure sound. I used the powerful Bel Cantos to hear how well these little speakers could reproduce the sound of a big organ recorded in a giant cathedral. Canadians shop for TVs, home audio, AV furniture, housewares & home electronics. JBL was slightly better on guitar, shocked that both of us noticed that. Seriously. Budget premium sound quality and look gorgeous. These items were sold in major retail stores across America. Each speaker has the same tweeter found in the L100 Classic and a smaller 8-inch woofer, but the pair still delivers the accurate, dynamic and powerful sound you'd expect from a legendary speaker. Someone please define Chinesium: aside from the fact that many of the best built best sounding audio products I know are both designed and manufactured in China, I must tell you: Throughout the 1980s I lived in a giant factory-loft builting in Brooklyn. (For our picks of the best active speakers, check out our guide.). The Best Active Speakers of 2022 The Best Portable Bluetooth Speakers for Summer The Best Waterproof Bluetooth Speakers The Best Outdoor Speakers for Your Backyard and Summer Parties. The SONY CSS5 at $78-$128 per pair outperforms this $499-$599 speaker easily in definition, detail and instrument separation. It's too dam bad that we have to have our Cherished Local Brands plastered all over cheaper asian products !, KEF is doing exactly what Cooke avoided: diluting the Brand, our Brand if we own KEF stuff and our children's Brand if they hope to work in the Audio marketplace. Nuff said, done here. Just wonderin'. I hear the Bro3s are warm and easy to listen to yet detailed at the same time. There are many other advanced features within this price range of the KEF features. There are people on the Internet whose job is to review products. After going through a few speakers with my Yamaha amp, KEF delivers the most dynamic and enjoyable sound. Mistahhhhhhhh Space., You're Not Suggesting Block or unblock port if using with subwoofers? In the end, I slightly preferred the Q350s 6' apart, toed in just a little, 33" from the wall behind them to their front baffles, and with their ports partially plugged. Active loudspeakers are a better option for listeners who dont want the added expense of multiple components and an equipment rack filled with cables. Product of the year? I don't feel inferior, I don't feel you are inferior, I don't feel the Asians are Superior, we all are brilliantly capable. KEF always seemed to have some sort of "entry" level loudspeaker, a price driven speaker like the beautiful CODA of the early 1980s. Maybe the reviewer took a Subway Train to NJ and had a nice look-round the KEF USA Parts & Service Centre. Generally speaking, the size of the tweeter is not as important as the shape. I have not read all the comments fully, but Tony's statement has a grain of truth. I'm not yielding to marketplace pressures. They're still based around the company's proprietary Uni-Q driver, which housed a 1-inch tweeter inside a 5.25-inch woofer resulting in excellent and accurate sound, but KEF refined them in a number of key ways. I could sense the thicknesses of the wood of the stringed instruments. As a Corporation I have to move my Labor Supply "OffShore" to take advantage of lower labor costs, my personal Contract and Bonuses are contingent on it.