Choosing my first setup

[oldmatee]

Hey folks, after some reading I have two rough ideas for a setup and would love some input from you knowledgeable people.

background:
Went into the store and auditioned the kef ls50 w ii, and ls60 and was blown away by both, with a preference for the ls60. However, I would like whatever I buy to be the endgame system, and thus longevity of the system is a key concern. As such I don't think kef active speakers are the way to go.

The room is a shared living/kitchen and roughly 50m^2 (540ft^2). Most listening will take place around 3m (10ft) from the speakers (it would be nice for music to sound good while around the house but not a dealbreaker). Music preferences are jazz, classical, 60s/70s rock. Main priority is music, but good tv/movie sound would be great.

The Systems:
(all prices are in AUD, $1AUD = $0.64USD)

System 1:

kef ls50 meta	2500
buckeye hypex nc502mp	1200
svs SB-1000 pro	1200
miniDSP (plus mic and Dirac)	1400
wiim pro	220
total	6520

System 2:

march aufio sointuva	6500
buckeye hypex nc502mp	1200
wiim pro	220
total	7920

Questions:

1. Is the extra $1400 on the sointuva system going to be "worth it" from a sound perspective (aesthetically, the march audio cabinets are gorgeous)? Down the line (raises and bonuses willing) a sub could be added to system 2.
2. How much benefit is likely going to be gained from room correction via the MiniDSP Flex? replacing the flex with a 2x4HD to manage sub crossover would decrease the system 1 spend by about $1000AUD. I am not super keen on the faff involved in room correction, but will absolutely do for enough improved sound.
3. Is the svs SB-1000 pro a reasonable choice? The kef kc62 is about 2x the price.
4. Any general feedback you have on these options.

 

[Ropeburn]

Hell, with that kind of money available, I'd go all in on speakers. By far the most important part (suitability for room placement assumed). I'd say listen to a lot more speakers before you decide to spend that kind of money. It's a room big enough to profit from big speakers, especially when you want to fill the house with sound. If you like these LS50 very much, look at their bigger models for a start. Anything else is an afterthought really.

 

[kemmler3D]

If you like the LS60 but you want to go passive you might want to seriously consider the higher end floor standers from KEF like R7 meta.

I think your system 1 is reasonable but the WiiM Pro already has room correction, (not as robust but usable) so you can potentially use that instead of the mini DSP. Use the extra $$ on another sub and you're really cooking with gas.

 

[srrxr71]

You’re caught between a rock and a hard place. Yes active KEFs sound amazing and you correctly identified their biggest weakness. The electronics.

It’s a problem especially if you want to keep it running long term. The software is a bit finicky. However KEF service in USA at least is amazing. They replaced mine with a newer model (LS50 with LS50-2). However by the time I got them I got my Genelec 8341 so they have never been unboxed.

It’s just a difficult decision because DSP actives are just so much technically superior but reliability is a real issue. In 2025 personally I wouldn’t consider passive to be state of the art or end game.

Even shipping back the LS50 was such a headache I can’t imagine trying to ship back an LS60. Then we also have to hope that KEF Australia offers the same service that KEF USA does.

Because you used the term “endgame” I would argue that 2-way coaxials are far from that even with a sub the reason being IMD. Maybe it’s in my head but watching the waveguide excursion didn’t make me feel anything “endgame” it’s a compromise that is too much for me. Adding a sub might help it but it will still move visibly even trying to reproduce 100Hz. That’s why I had to move to coaxial 3-ways.

The LS50w breaking pushed me earlier than anticipated to make that move and if you feel like having to buy something else then it’s not close to end game.

I was without for a few months with a back and forth and while a set of HomePods became my system for that time it’s something best worth avoiding.

I realize this is the most roundabout way to tell someone to get Genelecs and it’s sort of sad it’s come to this. If you listen from further distances you can also try something like the Focal 6 trios as well or Neumann.

For things to sound good around the house frankly HomePods or Sonos is the ticket. A 2 channel monitoring system will not handle that task at all.