KEF LS50 Meta Review (Speaker)

[thewas]

but deamn.. do i dislike side-firing woofers, i had some highend ones that were crossed over at <150Hz and i could easily notice some impactfulness lost, switched back to front firing ones and everything was fine..

Can't compare though classic passive design delayed side-firing woofers to the FIR crossover ones of the LS60.

 

[lc155]

I find it a bit strange that the LS50M has clear mounting holes on the bottom, but KEF haven't made any wall mounts for it like the LSX.

 

[envydd]

I have Purifi 1ET400 too. Previous was Ayima 07. Sometimes they seems to be dark but maybe it is room. How do you find minidsp flex vs smsl su9?
Anyway, I think I need room treatment and add subwoower for more lower frequencies. They have decent bass control but I need lower bass.

I love the flex. Su9 is brighter to my ears. Flex is smoother like the akm dacs. Resolution wise - same to my ears. Bass is better on flex. This is before room correction and EQ which the su9 can’t do. Best dac imo for the price.

 

[Streamc]

I` ve heard WII. It differs in sound with R3. But does WII feel different with passive version? There is different FR on highs.

 

[Streamc]

I recently picked up the q950's after my kef ls50 wireless system broke down. Now I'm thinking about returning the q950's and getting the ls50 meta's.
My amplification for the q950 is pretty bad at the moment (30 dollar nobsound amp) but I don't think I'll ever get the detail, mids and soundstage I loved in the ls50's so much even after buying the topping pa5.
The lower regions are way nicer for movies on the q950 but then again, the kc62 subwoofer in combination with the meta's will probably be miles ahead in movie experience.

Are you purchased Metas? How it feels after WII? What amp?

 

[Ernata]

I m decided to update my hi-fi system. I m looking between Kef ls50 meta and q-950. My amp is a Marantz PM7000N I m afraid that this amp is on the weak side for the LS50 and also afraid the LS50 will not fill the room. What do you think.

 

[ClassicalDJ]

I'm using 7 of them in a 7.1 setup

What amplifier(s) are you using? I have a 5.1 LS50 Meta setup and I'm looking for something separate from my AVR.

 

[ClassicalDJ]

Here are the requested 7.1 pics (of 5 of them at least).

View attachment 148029 View attachment 148030

Amplification comes from Denon AVR-4308 (with Audyssey Pro kit). The AVR-4308 seems to be fully capable of driving 7 LS50s - I understand they don't make receivers like that any more. I had initially thought I might need to splash for a multichannel power amp, but the money went on the KEF KF92 subwoofer instead.

I just found your response to my amplification question. I have an AVR-4310 that I have been pleased with (enough that I've pre-amped it from my replacement Marantz SR7013 - just dealing with some low level noise that I suspect the consequence of pre-amping an AVR with the volume control jacked up to 4dB).

 

[Chromatischism]

I m decided to update my hi-fi system. I m looking between Kef ls50 meta and q-950. My amp is a Marantz PM7000N I m afraid that this amp is on the weak side for the LS50 and also afraid the LS50 will not fill the room. What do you think.

I bet it's fine:

60 watts x 2 channels into 8 ohms (20-20,000 Hz) at 0.02% THD

80 watts x 2 channels into 4 ohms

4-ohm capability allows use with a wide range of speakers

 

[KMO]

I just found your response to my amplification question. I have an AVR-4310 that I have been pleased with (enough that I've pre-amped it from my replacement Marantz SR7013 - just dealing with some low level noise that I suspect the consequence of pre-amping an AVR with the volume control jacked up to 4dB).

Good archeology! But I've since upgraded - the front 5 are now being driven from a Apollon 5-channel Purifi 1ET400A-based amp. Back 2 still from the receiver.

A nominal upgrade at least. I wouldn't like to place money on being able to tell the difference in a blind test.

But I'm justifying it to myself as a form of future-proofing against upgrading to one of these rubbish modern receivers which doesn't have AVR-4308-class amplifiers. It's such a pretty little 5-channel box, I couldn't pass it up.

(Also potential future-proofing in the AVR-4308 lasting a bit longer - it was in 5-channel use for over 10 years, which means the only 2 channels now being used are practically zero mileage!)

 

[phoenixdogfan]

What amplifier(s) are you using? I have a 5.1 LS50 Meta setup and I'm looking for something separate from my AVR.

Can't go wrong with a Purifi. I'd recommend the VTV Eigentact version.

 

[cavedriver]

Just testing these now, hearing them for the first time after barely listening to the original LS50's. One thing I'm really impressed is how well they go loud at high frequencies. Yes, the bass sucks as expected, both in terms of distortion (although it's not as objectional as the distortion in bass in some other systems) and poor bass extension, but the treble range is very impressive. Fills a room and easily enjoyed from 25 feet away in the dining room. Very big sound for a small speaker. Just need to see KEF's solution for a full range sound because I don't think these are going low enough with enough quality to simply cut over to a sub. I would not want to cut over above 80 Hz and if the KEF's are showing too much distortion between 80 and 200 then a third driver solution is needed. Man, though, at $15k for a Reference 3 still only getting down to ~35 Hz so pure two-channel listening still won't be fully satisfying for a 15k investment, and $22k for the Reference 5's - ouch. Plus, 86 dB efficiency for towers means I won't be driving them with my grandfathers Scott tube amp, haha. Right now the LS50's are being happily driven with an Onkyo 805 with its ~130 wpc of old A/B sound.

 

[stren]

You don't have to jump straight to reference to get a third driver - the R3 is frequently on sale below 2K. Maybe you are only counting speakers with meta though?

 

[aarons915]

Just testing these now, hearing them for the first time after barely listening to the original LS50's. One thing I'm really impressed is how well they go loud at high frequencies. Yes, the bass sucks as expected, both in terms of distortion (although it's not as objectional as the distortion in bass in some other systems) and poor bass extension, but the treble range is very impressive. Fills a room and easily enjoyed from 25 feet away in the dining room. Very big sound for a small speaker. Just need to see KEF's solution for a full range sound because I don't think these are going low enough with enough quality to simply cut over to a sub. I would not want to cut over above 80 Hz and if the KEF's are showing too much distortion between 80 and 200 then a third driver solution is needed. Man, though, at $15k for a Reference 3 still only getting down to ~35 Hz so pure two-channel listening still won't be fully satisfying for a 15k investment, and $22k for the Reference 5's - ouch. Plus, 86 dB efficiency for towers means I won't be driving them with my grandfathers Scott tube amp, haha. Right now the LS50's are being happily driven with an Onkyo 805 with its ~130 wpc of old A/B sound.

The 3 way KEFs definitely play louder with lower distortion but crossing the LS50 over around 100Hz 2nd order allows them to play loud enough for most people, 100Hz and under is where their distortion really spikes so offloading that to a sub is very beneficial to the LS50. I still don't get the same feeling that I crank them to any volume like I could with the R3 but they are close.

 

[cavedriver]

You don't have to jump straight to reference to get a third driver - the R3 is frequently on sale below 2K. Maybe you are only counting speakers with meta though?

Yeah, I was looking for Metas. I want to be sure I'm hearing the same mids and highs or it wouldn't be worth it.

 

[Descartes]

Just got a pair of LS50 WII absolutely fantastic so far! I live not to have only speakers no other electronic components and they work flawlessly with Apple Music Airplay 2!

 

[lc155]

The 3 way KEFs definitely play louder with lower distortion but crossing the LS50 over around 100Hz 2nd order allows them to play loud enough for most people, 100Hz and under is where their distortion really spikes so offloading that to a sub is very beneficial to the LS50. I still don't get the same feeling that I crank them to any volume like I could with the R3 but they are close.

When you say 'I still don't get the same feeling that I crank them to any volume like I could with the R3 but they are close', what do you mean exactly? Did you mean to say 'when' instead of 'that'? Or did you mean 'I still don't get the same feeling that I could crank them'?

 

[Chromatischism]

When you say 'I still don't get the same feeling that I crank them to any volume like I could with the R3 but they are close', what do you mean exactly? Did you mean to say 'when' instead of 'that'? Or did you mean 'I still don't get the same feeling that I could crank them'?

Probably the lack of mid and upper bass gives the LS50 a less beefy sound in comparison.

 

[aarons915]

When you say 'I still don't get the same feeling that I crank them to any volume like I could with the R3 but they are close', what do you mean exactly? Did you mean to say 'when' instead of 'that'? Or did you mean 'I still don't get the same feeling that I could crank them'?

I just meant the LS50 + 100Hz crossover doesn't match the loudness and low distortion of the R3 but they come close and are enough SPL for most people. You could go up to 120-150Hz on the crossover if you want the LS50 + Subs to play louder, it all depends on your desired SPL levels.

 

[lc155]

I just meant the LS50 + 100Hz crossover doesn't match the loudness and low distortion of the R3 but they come close and are enough SPL for most people. You could go up to 120-150Hz on the crossover if you want the LS50 + Subs to play louder, it all depends on your desired SPL levels.

Fair enough. When I had the R300 I found the bass a little overpowering, but that was in a smaller UK home, they'd probably do much better in a larger room!