KEF LS60 Wireless Just Announced

[Emlin]

They are good too!
Keith

But no better?

 

[Purité Audio]

I wouldn’t say that, the Mantas are exceptional, I will write something when I have had more time with them and had the opportunity to compare.
Just been busy with Bacch.
Keith

 

[AM88]

I have compared the LS50 with sub to the 60’s and the 50’s are excellent with perhaps just a slight preference for the 60’s, I was really thinking of comparing the yes to really full range loudspeakers Kii/8C where they might just need a bit of bass extension , depending upon your musical tastes.
Keith

Is that the LS50 metas or LS50W?

 

[pablolie]

Is that the LS50 metas or LS50W?

the drivers are the exact same so it is just a matter of amp preference (but it better be a decent one to do them justice).

 

[AM88]

the drivers are the exact same so it is just a matter of amp preference (but it better be a decent one to do them justice).

Apart from the added wireless capability wouldn’t the active crossover mean at least better distortion figures in theory and hopefully other audible benefits.

 

[pablolie]

Apart from the added wireless capability wouldn’t the active crossover mean at least better distortion figures in theory and hopefully other audible benefits.

Others may have stronger opinions than me. I think a great dedicated amp is probably just as good as anything KEF encloses in that tight space, but they sound awesome as they are.

 

[AudioJester]

Others may have stronger opinions than me. I think a great dedicated amp is probably just as good as anything KEF encloses in that tight space, but they sound awesome as they are.

If you had a choice i would pick the LS50Wii over LS50meta. Better bass extension and distortion measurements. Can go louder and dont need to cross subs as high.
After that active vs passive is more a personal choice, sometimes coloured by old audiophile hangups

 

[pablolie]

If you had a choice i would pick the LS50Wii over LS50meta. Better bass extension and distortion measurements. Can go louder and dont need to cross subs as high.
After that active vs passive is more a personal choice, sometimes coloured by old audiophile hangups

I really can't say. The drivers are the exact same so I doubt they have different audible merits. It really depends merely on what is more convenient to you. They are all extremely capable and their flexibility offers a lot of customization to your needs.

If I started from scratch right now, I'd pick the active LS50Wv2, but that's just me.

 

[AudioJester]

I really can't say. The drivers are the exact same so I doubt they have different audible merits. It really depends merely on what is more convenient to you. They are all extremely capable and their flexibility offers a lot of customization to your needs.

If I started from scratch right now, I'd pick the active LS50Wv2, but that's just me.

The advantage is having the amps directly coupled to the drivers without passive crossover components inbetween. Then DSP allows optimal bass extension tuning. There definitely is audible merits despite same drivers.
I vaguely remember devialet amps had some config for certain speakers to improve bass extension - I guess a similar dsp concept?

To me the comparison would be LS60 versus LS50Wii + 2x kc62. LS50meta is not quite in the game.

 

[pablolie]

The advantage is having the amps directly coupled to the drivers without passive crossover components. Then DSP allows optimal bass extension tuning.
I vaguely remember devialet amps had some config for certain speakers to improve bass extension - I guess a similar concept?

To me the comparison would be LS60 versus LS50Wii + 2x kc62. LS50meta is not quite in the game.

It is the exact same speaker. Many amps allow for cutover frequencies to achieve the exact same synergy between speakers, sub and room acoustics. But it sounds like you already have a preference and it is most definitely not a choice that will disappoint.

 

[Doodski]

The advantage is having the amps directly coupled to the drivers without passive crossover components inbetween.

That kind of purist thinking got me 2 fried KEF factory matched tweeters. Direct coupling is a gamble no matter whom it may be. I lay'd out the ESD procedures for a corporation and it took me till lunch to copy and paste a Google search into something digestible and fast as it was req'd immediately. It entailed all aspects of ESD procedure and the why with discharge rates and such. I forgot most of it but it prevails everywhere and is insidious and nasty. I think a active speaker manufacturer that is able to DC couple, dissipate this energy and save drivers is for sure the real deal but I don't see it happening. It's just too high of a voltage.

 

[Danaxus]

The path I personally decided to follow (and feel free to comment on how wise/dumb the decision was), was to start with the LS60's. Later I will add an SVS 4000 series (still torn between ported or sealed, but leaning towards ported as my room will be well-treated), and down the road, a 2nd sub can be added if I feel I need it. At the point I think I'd be quite deep into diminishing returns territory, that I don't think I could do much better without 10-20x the cash to burn on room treatments and better gear. My reasoning is that it doesn't matter how good your speakers are, or how low they reach - unless they are as massive as a proper big sub, just as heavy, and as controlled - you'll always miss something. I get the feeling that the science and engineering needed to design good mid-high speakers is very different to the know-how required to build a good sub - so why not buy separates?

LS60's scratched a big itch for me - they were at the upper limit of my budget (around €4k), they reach low enough so I'm not hearing directional sound from the sub, so I'm not looking around confused at where the sound is suddenly coming from (in theory!), and it's a fair assumption that KEF, as usual with their post-meta speakers, will have nailed the mids and highs. They're a platform I can build upon by hooking them up to a home theatre receiver, adding subs, surrounds, etc - over time.

The house and listening room will be ready by the end of the year. I'll post REW results here once I'm set up, and again when I add the sub (if there are good Black Friday deals, possibly this year). Let the objective facts and results show if I wasted a ton of time or money, or whether my reasoning has paid dividends.

 

[NYfan2]

I asked a KEF representative if there is an option for PEQ to address roommodes, (both representatives present went: Whoah, then you need to know what you are doing ) their advise is to use Roon and use the PEQ in Roon. I can agree for that when you are streaming music but I guess that won't work when using the HDMI input for television sound. That's one of the drawbacks of many active speakers I guess.

 

[Purité Audio]

Unless the active speakers have built in PEQ there are an ever increasing number.
Keith

 

[AudioJester]

Do you mean using LS60 alone with a TV?
The simple solution would be an avr with audyssey/dirac/ypao etc, or a minidsp/dirac unit (cant remember if they now have hdmi input, but if just 2 channel can maybe use optical?)

 

[pablolie]

Do you mean using LS60 alone with a TV?
The simple solution would be an avr with audyssey/dirac/ypao etc, or a minidsp/dirac unit (cant remember if they now have hdmi input, but if just 2 channel can maybe use optical?)

To me the only issue with the LS60 or any speaker that I plonk down over $5k for is...

(1) I want them in red (sue me, I have that preference these days, and the Blades look spectacular in red :-D)
(2) The fact I mistrust KEF to keep supporting all the embedded features for many years, so you may be wasting $$ on stuff that stops working after 4 years or so
(3) The possibility that in 4 years they come up with some silly MetaV2 made out of an even material that supposedly completely obsoletes the previous version and renders the originals "unlistenable" according to the 0.5dB police... :-D

I have nearly pulled the trigger on red Blades (first gen, used) twice, but got outbid. And right now I am planning to move, so I have bigger fish to fry.

 

[NYfan2]

Do you mean using LS60 alone with a TV?
The simple solution would be an avr with audyssey/dirac/ypao etc, or a minidsp/dirac unit (cant remember if they now have hdmi input, but if just 2 channel can maybe use optical?)

That's what I have now, a Denon AVR with audyssey, but the LS60 have HDMI-ARC in so that would make the AVR obsolete, unless you keep the AVR and go analog in to the LS60 which for me feels like having a towtruck for my new car . Then it's better to go for AVR, passive LS50meta and 2 subs, guess that will sound better then the LS60 without room correction (just speculating because I never heard this setup).

 

[AudioJester]

That's what I have now, a Denon AVR with audyssey, but the LS60 have HDMI-ARC in so that would make the AVR obsolete, unless you keep the AVR and go analog in to the LS60 which for me feels like having a towtruck for my new car . Then it's better to go for AVR, passive LS50meta and 2 subs, guess that will sound better then the LS60 without room correction (just speculating because I never heard this setup).

Yeah, I feel you are right. Amir advocates that room correction / DSP below the room transition point makes the biggest difference.
If you have a denon avr could you use the second hdmi out to your speakers rather than preouts? Not sure that makes much of a difference though.
By the way you have a "endgame" set up there with Denon/Audyssey and LS60! Can always and easily add any sub at any point.

 

[Soniclife]

I asked a KEF representative if there is an option for PEQ to address roommodes, (both representatives present went: Whoah, then you need to know what you are doing

This seems to be a common opinion amongst manufacturers big enough to have a marketing department, that their users are idiots not to be trusted, it's really annoying.

 

[samysound]

This seems to be a common opinion amongst manufacturers big enough to have a marketing department, that their users are idiots not to be trusted, it's really annoying.

ugh yeah. ideally they would just incorporate a room correction algorithm. Dirac or SONOS type thing that uses your cellphone mic. in mind not really any all in one streaming solution without that if you have to use an AVR or minidsp, etc. box