Results 1 to 18 of 18
Thread: LS50 and Mac 2301
-
October 31, 2017, 12:22 PM #1
- Join Date
- Sep 2017
- Posts
- 39
LS50 and Mac 2301
I decided to try out a new combination: I moved the KEF LS50 that were previously sitting in my study bookshelf, and installed them on stands in my reference system paired with my Mcintosh MC2301 Tube monoblock amplifiers. The result? All I can say is WOW...this is a killer combination. The first thing that struck me was the deep and massive sound-stage, along with pinpoint imaging. Beautiful coherence from these speakers. Even though the LS50 are rated at 8 ohms nominal impedance, I decided to use the 4 ohm output taps of the 2301's in the hopes of getting a bit more extension and articulation from the bottom end. Well...using the 4ohm taps did not disappoint! I hate to say this, but this is the truth...in my room, and to my ears, the huge and impressive sound-stage, coherence and imaging, natural sounding dynamics, and even the upper bass region of the LS50 easily beat the WA Yvette's that I had in this space previously. As I'm sure everyone here already knows, these speakers are hands-down one of the best values available today in the audiophile market. I have no doubt KEF could get way with charging way more $ for these speakers. Kudos to KEF for offering such astonishing performance at a reasonable price point.
-
October 31, 2017, 12:26 PM #2
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
Nice
Jock
If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters.
---------
House: Naim ND555/2PS, Naim 552, Naim 500, Studer A80/Doshi V3, Magico M2s, 2 Magico Q-Sub 15s, Lumina IC/SC, Shunyata Everest and Omega PCs.
Workshop: Naim ND555/2 PS, VAC Master Pre, VAC Sig 200iQ, Border Patrol pre/power, Avant Garde Duo Mezzo XD, 2 Magico Q-Sub 15s, Shunyata IC/SC, Shunyata Typhon QR/Triton V3/Sigma PCs.
-
October 31, 2017, 12:40 PM #3
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
That’s great. The LS50 are wonderful little speakers that just need a little juice to open up and shine. I’m glad you tried it. You never know about a combo until you try it. We can’t assume anything in this hobby.
Are those MC1.2KW amps that I spy as well? Oh boy, you got me going crazy on both tubes and solid state.Fleetwood Deville by Oswald Mills Audio, Vienna Acoustics Haydn Jubilee, Wharfedale Linton w/ stands, Klipsch RB-75, Klipsch RP-160M.
Job INTegrated. Luxman L-595aSE
NAD C 658 streamer.
First Watt SIT-3, Job 250 Monos, NuForce STA200, AkitikA GT-102 amp, ASL Wave monos, Dennis Had 45 monos. Absolute Audio Labs PCF 25 amp (improved First Watt F7 super clone)
Topping D90, RME Audio ADI-2 DAC FS, ModWright Ultimate Sony XA-5400ES.
Burmester 948, McIntosh MCLK12, Kimber Kable, Siltech, Cardas, Avanti Audio cables.
-
October 31, 2017, 12:51 PM #4
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
What are the stands you are using for the LS50's?
Sent from my Nexus 5X using TapatalkDigital: LH Labs Source (someday...) + LH Labs Geek Pulse SFi
Analogue: Audio Technica OC9ML/ii + Technics 1200SL + Nikko Beta 40 (phono only)
Wyred 4 Sound STP-SE
First Watt F6
Focal 816VW Special Edition
-
October 31, 2017, 01:22 PM #5
- Join Date
- Oct 2013
- Location
- Sacramento
- Posts
- 1,121
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
Audioguru1,
You need the 3-piece/channel Mcintosh monos to really make the LS50s shine.
You are lucky to have a large area. I bet most LS50s are in an area too small to let them open up and strut their stuff.
-
October 31, 2017, 01:47 PM #6
- Join Date
- Sep 2017
- Posts
- 39
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
Joe - I basically have 2 amp/speaker combo's running in my reference system. Combo A was originally the MC2301's with the WA Yvette (now the KEF LS50 which sound better than the Yvette!!). Combo B are the MC1.2KWs paired with the ML Summit X. I call it "beauty and the beast".
audiophil - the stands are very old and from a company called Cambridge Audio.
-
December 16, 2017, 10:55 AM #7
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
That is great. I know the LS50 were amazing little speakers when I had a pair. Fantastic imaging. I believe the KEF does not disappoint!
McIntosh C49, MC152, MR85, R778 | T+A DAC 8 DSD | KEF LS50 Meta w/S2, KC62 (x2) | Rega RP8, Ania Pro, NEO PSU | Technics SL-1500C | Audio Technica VM750ML | Hexmat Eclipse, Yellow Bird, Molekula, Molekula Mini | Pro-Ject VC-E | Falcon NW PC Server (Roon Core & HQPlayer) | Microsoft Surface Pro 6 (Roon Controller) | Abyss Diana Phi | Schiit Jotunheim 2 | Astell&Kern SE200 | Oppo BDP105
“One of the great challenges in life is knowing enough to think you're right but not enough to know you're wrong”
"You can't use reason to convince anyone out of an argument that they didn't use reason to get into"
― Neil deGrasse Tyson
-
December 17, 2017, 03:27 AM #8
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
LS50 better than Yvette? Although I'm a Magico owner, having heard both LS50 and Yvette numerous times, this definitely is not my impression.
-
December 19, 2017, 11:49 AM #9
- Join Date
- Sep 2017
- Posts
- 39
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
kzhtoo,
Have you been able to a/b them in the same room, back to back, with the same source material, and the same room acoustics? Being an owner of both speakers has allowed me to do extensive listening. Everyone's ears are different. To my ears, the Kef LS50 beat the Yvette with better coherence, imaging (improved depth of the sound-stage and placement of instruments/voices), and more natural sounding vocals...the mid-range just shines with the LS50s.
-
December 19, 2017, 05:19 PM #10
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
I actually owned the LS50s and had custom made stands for them from Sound Anchors. I was running them with a Krell KSA-250 at the time. Yes, they do sound real good. Yes, they sound better with a powerful amp. No, despite what people say they don't have much in the way of a true bottom end, but then how could they? They are cool though and are more suited to smaller rooms.
Micro Seiki SX-8000 air bearing table, SME 312s arm, SME 3012R arn, Dynavector XV-1s cartridge, Lyra Etna SL cartridge, ARC Ref 3 phono stage, Otari MX-55 2 track R2R, Ampex 350 tape repros, Roon Nucleus Plus music server, HiFi Rose 150B DAC, ARC Ref 6, ARC Ref 75 with KT-150s, Parasound JC5 amp , JBL 4345 speakers, Viero Equilibro Level 3 speaker cables, and Definitive Technology Ref subs.
Reviewer for Positive Feedback
-
December 19, 2017, 05:44 PM #11
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
No, I have not. But then again, so are 90+% of people commenting on audio component comparisons on online forums.
This whole thing is a bit puzzling to me. If you prefer LS50 over Yvette for whatever reason, I do not have anything against it. But IMO it's just physically impossible for LS50 to "beat" Yvette in the area of scale, soundstage, bottom-end (which I regard as foundation of music), etc.
-
December 19, 2017, 06:36 PM #12
- Join Date
- Apr 2013
- Location
- Lower Provo River
- Posts
- 208
-
December 19, 2017, 06:51 PM #13
-
December 19, 2017, 06:53 PM #14
- Join Date
- Sep 2017
- Posts
- 39
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
metaphacts, we all have different ears, we all have different room constraints, and we are all free to setup our systems and speaker placement as we best see fit. Due to your affiliation with Wilson, I can understand why you are stressing the importance of the "zone of neutrality" and I do respect your opinion. Yes my pics are telling because they show exactly how I have my system setup. Do a quick google picture search and you will find many rooms (with both Wilson and Kef speaker alike) that are setup far from the ideal "zone of neutrality", because we all have various room constraints and personal preferences.
-
December 19, 2017, 07:21 PM #15
- Join Date
- Apr 2013
- Location
- Lower Provo River
- Posts
- 208
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
The "zones of neutrality" vary by room and are very easy to find in a given room. It is simply a description of the area that defines where the speaker has an opportunity to perform free from the most debilitating room interactions.
Putting the speaker outside that zone and and leaving it sitting on wheels will tell you nothing significant about what Yvettes can or can't do.
-
December 20, 2017, 10:50 AM #16
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
I am honestly not surprised. Everyone's ears and rooms are different of course, but I have heard several people say similar things about the LS50. I know when I had a pair they were a very nice speaker. I found that a little sub helped them quiet a bit. A friend is going to be grabbing my KEF Kube sub to boost his LS50's a little. His room is rather lively so I am thinking it should help him a bit.
I admit to being KEF biased, however I have talked to several people who have all been amazed at the little LS 50's ...McIntosh C49, MC152, MR85, R778 | T+A DAC 8 DSD | KEF LS50 Meta w/S2, KC62 (x2) | Rega RP8, Ania Pro, NEO PSU | Technics SL-1500C | Audio Technica VM750ML | Hexmat Eclipse, Yellow Bird, Molekula, Molekula Mini | Pro-Ject VC-E | Falcon NW PC Server (Roon Core & HQPlayer) | Microsoft Surface Pro 6 (Roon Controller) | Abyss Diana Phi | Schiit Jotunheim 2 | Astell&Kern SE200 | Oppo BDP105
“One of the great challenges in life is knowing enough to think you're right but not enough to know you're wrong”
"You can't use reason to convince anyone out of an argument that they didn't use reason to get into"
― Neil deGrasse Tyson
-
December 20, 2017, 12:27 PM #17
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
Not everything is about people having different ears.
-
December 23, 2017, 05:18 AM #18
- Join Date
- Apr 2013
- Location
- Lower Provo River
- Posts
- 208
Re: LS50 and Mac 2301
"Different ears" are the harbor of those not willing to properly set up (or learn set up, or have someone competent set up) a system.
Once properly set up, pick whatever you like. You decide. Tell us what you think. Pay your money and take your choice.
Improper set up has nothing to do with ears. It's just nonsense. Any conclusions based on improper set up are misleading at best.
The room doesn't lie. Abuse positioning at your own risk.
As always, ymmv.
AudioShark - The Best High End Audio Discussion forum.
AudioShark forum is a leading forum site for High End Audio Discussion, Stereo System Discussion, Home Theater System Discussion, Best Home Stereo System Discussion, Home Theater Installation Discussion etc.
The AudioShark forum was created for sharing the passion of high-end Audio. We have Audiophiles from all over the world participating and sharing their knowledge. From novice to experts, you will find a friendly environment for discussing about High End Audio, Stereo System, Home Theater System, Home Stereo System, Home Theater Installation, Amplifiers, Speakers, Subwoofers, Integrated System, Acoustic treatments & Digital Room Corrections and many more.
At AudioShark, we also have incorporated an exciting Marketplace where members can peruse terrific buys on used gear, as well as meet dealers and discuss the purchase of new gear.
We are as crazy about this hobby as you are! So come on in and join us! Audioshark.org the Friendliest Audio Forum!
Industry Participation Disclosure : The owner and administrator of Audioshark is the owner of Suncoast Audio LLC in Sarasota Florida. Suncoast Audio has a full brick and mortar presence in Sarasota with several great show rooms with many world class brands. More information can be found at http://www.suncoastaudio.com
Audioshark is a community of like minded individuals. Audioshark welcomes participation from all manufacturers and owners of all brands and products. It is our belief that online forums provide a community of like minded audiophiles and music lovers to encourage the growth of this wonderful hobby.
Sincerely,
The Audioshark.org Team
AudioShark forum is a leading forum site for High End Audio Discussion, Stereo System Discussion, Home Theater System Discussion, Best Home Stereo System Discussion, Home Theater Installation Discussion etc.
The AudioShark forum was created for sharing the passion of high-end Audio. We have Audiophiles from all over the world participating and sharing their knowledge. From novice to experts, you will find a friendly environment for discussing about High End Audio, Stereo System, Home Theater System, Home Stereo System, Home Theater Installation, Amplifiers, Speakers, Subwoofers, Integrated System, Acoustic treatments & Digital Room Corrections and many more.
At AudioShark, we also have incorporated an exciting Marketplace where members can peruse terrific buys on used gear, as well as meet dealers and discuss the purchase of new gear.
We are as crazy about this hobby as you are! So come on in and join us! Audioshark.org the Friendliest Audio Forum!
Industry Participation Disclosure : The owner and administrator of Audioshark is the owner of Suncoast Audio LLC in Sarasota Florida. Suncoast Audio has a full brick and mortar presence in Sarasota with several great show rooms with many world class brands. More information can be found at http://www.suncoastaudio.com
Audioshark is a community of like minded individuals. Audioshark welcomes participation from all manufacturers and owners of all brands and products. It is our belief that online forums provide a community of like minded audiophiles and music lovers to encourage the growth of this wonderful hobby.
Sincerely,
The Audioshark.org Team
Has anyone successfully connected their 866 to an android phone or Apple device? I find Boulder's instructions totally useless and a huge waste of time. I am not trying to control music. I just want...
Boulder 866 app