Are the KEF Reference Meta series up for replacement?

[capslock]

I just noticed a well-respected German dealer offering the Reference 1 Meta with stands at 31% below suggested retail. These are not B-stock, ex-demo or overstock, but new orders with a lead time of 7 - 10 days, so dealer is getting them only on customer orders. They have an audio fair sales special (I have no idea what fair), but other KEF products in that special are more in the 7 - 20% range. I have not seen a similar price drop on the Reference series elsewhere.

 

[Matias]

They were announced and released in July 2022, so 3 years by now. The previous Reference was released in 2014 from what Grok tells me. So if the 8 years cycle remains, Reference Meta should be refreshed only by 2030.

 

[capslock]

You are right, and it would make sense to refresh the flagship product only in longer intervals.

 

[jonfitch]

Some companies don't refresh for much longer. Revel hasn't updated Ultima2 since 2007. What's funny is KEF's old Reference line, the 200/2 series, won co-speaker of the year along with the Revel Salon 2 at Stereophile in the 2000s. KEF has since refreshed their lineup twice, Revel still hasn't done it even once. I would love if Kef would go back to curved cabinets to reduce diffraction, but likely they limited it to Blade series due to the severe inflation we've had since the early 2000s. Otherwise the Reference series would be a lot more expense.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

Revel hasn't updated Ultima2 since 2007.

Possibly because they have stopped making them.

 

[Ssss]

Some companies don't refresh for much longer. Revel hasn't updated Ultima2 since 2007. What's funny is KEF's old Reference line, the 200/2 series, won co-speaker of the year along with the Revel Salon 2 at Stereophile in the 2000s. KEF has since refreshed their lineup twice, Revel still hasn't done it even once. I would love if Kef would go back to curved cabinets to reduce diffraction, but likely they limited it to Blade series due to the severe inflation we've had since the early 2000s. Otherwise the Reference series would be a lot more expense.

I loved the curved cabinets of my gloss black 203.2’s, I’m sure the current reference line sound significantly better but i also want something visually gratifying, I appreciate speakers are for listening to but the rectangular boxes just don’t appeal to me.