KEF LS-50 and Reference Line

audionirvana

audionirvana

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Just curious if anyone has heard these yet? I read all the reviews on the LS-50 and frankly didn't think much of it until I heard them in a local Hi-Fi shop... I am huge Dynaudio fan and my reference system consist of some Confidence speakers and some decent equipment in my HT room. But after hearing the KEF LS-50 I fell in love with the liquid cool sounding midrange and clarity of this monitor. They are similar in one respect as my Magnepan 1.7s as the better equipment you put on them the better they sound. Currently have these in my office system and after a few months with them I am still amazed on how good they sound. Just curious if anyone else has had a similar response to these, and if they have heard the new Reference line?
 
LS-50s are A-MAZE-ZING (for the price); but I actually liked the R-300s even more. Bargain of the century right now!

I would love, love, love to hear Ref; if for no other reason...I have to see, if they're really "5 times" (or $6000) better than the LS-50s.
 
What up CD! I am sure you know who this is! ;) The only thing I didn't like about the KEF Reference 1 is they should have other finishes available, when your forking out that much cash for the monitor they should sound good first and also look good. They look ok, but kind of cheap looking in the REF line. I like your new tag "PASS" I wish they would use the big meters like they use to with Threshold gear.
 
audionirvana said:
What up CD! I am sure you know who this is! ;) The only thing I didn't like about the KEF Reference 1 is they should have other finishes available, when your forking out that much cash for the monitor they should sound good first and also look good. They look ok, but kind of cheap looking in the REF line. I like your new tag "PASS" I wish they would use the big meters like they use to with Threshold gear.
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The new Reference line provides three finish options. I'd say that most brands don't have this many options. Now, I can see that people may not find one of these three suitable, but three choices certainly isn't bad at all, IMHO.
 
My review is here KEF LS50 loudspeakers if you want to read it. The LS50 are fun speakers to listen to. As I have said before, their sins are sins of omission. What they can't do, they don't. What they can do is remarkable given their cost and size. There is a coherency and purity there that is quite addictive once heard.
 
CPP said:
Mate LS-50 with a sub and you have a winner.
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Chris-I agree with you and would go far as to say subs are mandatory unless you are one of those people who claims not to like the bottom two octaves of bass or you are just going to put them on top of a desk.
 
mep said:
My review is here KEF LS50 loudspeakers if you want to read it. The LS50 are fun speakers to listen to. As I have said before, their sins are sins of omission. What they can't do, they don't. What they can do is remarkable given their cost and size. There is a coherency and purity there that is quite addictive once heard.
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Nice review! The LS-50 has plenty of them, I find that they also need good ample power to sound their best, similar to Magnepans. Meaning the better electronics the better they sound, example used them with a Rega Brio Int. Amp, very nice sound but when I put a much beefier amp on them they even sounded better. I don't use a Sub with mine, but I have mine in a office setup and from time to time I will bring them over to my HT room and listen to them their on a pair of stands I have.


Everest Audio: Thank you!
I finally found finish options on KEF web site as far as the finishes go for their REF Line. Hi-Fi Speakers - THE REFERENCE - Finishes - KEF United States.
I am a huge Dynaudio fan and they allow you a ton of different finishes especially in their higher end lines as well, good to see.
 
Winson - do you recall which specific model of the new KEF Reference speakers you heard in Zurich? TIA for sharing any additional details of your audition!
 
I would have to look it up…maybe I have a brochure from the show?

Here is a picture or 4 that I sent to the audio traveler site:
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Nice pics with some Arcam gear, do the References have grills? I thought they did. ;)
 
The speakers pictured would be the Reference 3, which are the smaller of the two floorstanding models (3 & 5.) The Reference 1 is the only stand mounted model in the new Reference series.
 
I've had both the Kef LS50 and Evolution Acoustics MicroOnes A/B and the EA ' were much more refined and more details in bass.
I much preffered the EAs.
 
I ran my LS50s with a Krell KRC-HR preamp and a Krell KSA-250 power amp. The KSA-250 is legendary for the amount of power it can generate and contrary to some other Krell designed amps that came in later series, the KSA-250 is a damn fine sounding SS amplifier. If you have speakers that are capable of any sort of bass, the KSA-250 along with the KRC-HR will bring it out and make it shine and flap your pant legs at the same time.

Some people have credited the LS50s with some sort of almost magical bass qualities for a speaker of their size. Trust me, I was getting everything they were capable of with the gear I was using and the custom Sound Anchor stands I had made for them. I can assure you that no laws of physics were broken with the design of the LS50s. Tiny woofers still can't produce bass all the way down through the bottom two octaves and there isn't much "slamming" of bass going on. What the LS50s do they do real well. What they don't do is make fools of themselves by trying to do things they can't. That's why I refer to their 'sins' as sins of omission.
 
mep said:
I ran my LS50s with a Krell KRC-HR preamp and a Krell KSA-250 power amp. The KSA-250 is legendary for the amount of power it can generate and contrary to some other Krell designed amps that came in later series, the KSA-250 is a damn fine sounding SS amplifier. If you have speakers that are capable of any sort of bass, the KSA-250 along with the KRC-HR will bring it out and make it shine and flap your pant legs at the same time.

Some people have credited the LS50s with some sort of almost magical bass qualities for a speaker of their size. Trust me, I was getting everything they were capable of with the gear I was using and the custom Sound Anchor stands I had made for them. I can assure you that no laws of physics were broken with the design of the LS50s. Tiny woofers still can't produce bass all the way down through the bottom two octaves and there isn't much "slamming" of bass going on. What the LS50s do they do real well. What they don't do is make fools of themselves by trying to do things they can't. That's why I refer to their 'sins' as sins of omission.
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Yeah, I have to agree; I never thought their strength was prodigious bass for the size. In fact, perhaps just the opposite; rather than try to wring-out bass that isn't there...the focus is where it should be with this speaker. FWIW a) I had my best results with the LS-50...not with modestly powered SS, like the Rega Brio-R; but with a 10wpc 6V6 based IA. B) I thought the R-300 did have better bass...while still retaining 95% of the LS-50s, uni-Q strengths.

Naim101 said:
I've had both the Kef LS50 and Evolution Acoustics MicroOnes A/B and the EA ' were much more refined and more details in bass.
I much preffered the EAs.
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Is that a fair fight...$$$ wise?
 
Bass is measurable to a degree and the KEF is good to 47hz. This is hardly prodigious bass but for a standmount with a 5 inch woofer it sure beats the likes of the LS-3/5a which starts its disappearing at 70hz. The KEF can also play fairly loud at the 47hz so it's pretty good. I tried it with several SS amplifiers and I found them thin and lean and for the most part unlistenable.

In a small room (which is what they are designed for and by small I mean 12 X 12 X 8 and smaller (a bedroom) they won't be asked to fill a large space. But let's be real - this is a small standmount speaker and laws of physics are in play. And it's also about the quality of bass. My Audio Note AX Two extends down below the LS-3/5a and probably hits 55hz but it is more tuneful and the overall image height is bigger (it fills the room bigger) but it's less punchy. Middle to 2/3 seating instead of first 5 rows kind of thing.

Try some big tube amps on the KEF - amps without frequency limiteres and preferably not amplifiers using Torroid transformers.

Get my big Bertha amp on those KEFs
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