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Kef R Meta Series Release

jackocleebrown

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That is interesting - so would that design approach make the R8 META less-than-optimal for a ceiling-mounted Atmos down-firing speaker? As exm notes, the marketing materials indicate a broader application for the speaker. Thanks!

The upward firing config is the most difficult to make work. Dolby's target spec does a decent job of throwing a fairly convincing height image above the listening zone. There's a slight compromise with on-wall surround or height usage as a result, but it still works well enough that we support this config. Especially as it's a very practical option for some listening rooms. I just wanted to give everyone a heads up that the Spinorama isn't quite as good as the rest of the loudspeaker range.
 

sweetchaos

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We've seen the spinorama for the previous R8A, so I expect R8 Meta to be better.
CEA2034.jpg
 

Jukebox

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If KEF offered the upgrade it would be possible but they don't because they want you to buy new speakers lol. In all seriousness, it would be a major pain because they would have to sell you the new UniQ driver along with the new crossover and then deal with all of the people who damage their speakers during this process.
Also the uniQ Meta is deeper and will not fit
 

Steve Dallas

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Looks like a BBC dip. I assume the sports presenters caused that at the weekend.
In a speaker with good directivity, predicted in-room response closely matches sound power, and look how flat sound power is, with no BBC dip to speak of.


The Revel F206 is similar in that regard. On-axis is not flat, but sound power is flat. The speaker sounds and measures flat in a typical room as a result.

CEA2034.webp


Estimated%20In-Room%20Response.webp
 

Vacceo

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The upward firing config is the most difficult to make work. Dolby's target spec does a decent job of throwing a fairly convincing height image above the listening zone. There's a slight compromise with on-wall surround or height usage as a result, but it still works well enough that we support this config. Especially as it's a very practical option for some listening rooms. I just wanted to give everyone a heads up that the Spinorama isn't quite as good as the rest of the loudspeaker range.
Out of curiosity and for the sake of learning, I wonder how hard was to design the R8. A speaker that performs well both on reflected sound or direct radiation on a variety of placement options seems to be an engineering nightmare.
 

windwolf447

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Out of curiosity and for the sake of learning, I wonder how hard was to design the R8. A speaker that performs well both on reflected sound or direct radiation on a variety of placement options seems to be an engineering nightmare.
If you are talking about Dolby Atmos module then It is very unlikely one could achieve that flexibility, given how specific the Dolby requirements are and how Atmos module works...
 

Vacceo

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If you are talking about Dolby Atmos module then It is very unlikely one could achieve that flexibility, given how specific the Dolby requirements are and how Atmos module works...
Dr. Oclee-Brown has stated right above that they designed the speaker to be "bouncing" sound yet, they support the use as height or surround speaker.

I guess the engineers who designed it should know about its actual performance and how they did it.
 

windwolf447

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Dr. Oclee-Brown has stated right above that they designed the speaker to be "bouncing" sound yet, they support the use as height or surround speaker.

I guess the engineers who designed it should know about its actual performance and how they did it.
Yup.
 

ryaneagon

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Hi all. A little bit of context before I ask my questions. I’m looking for a speaker system (5.1) matching speakers. I’m coming from over 13 years of using Klipsch RF7s, rc7 center, and similar bookshelf for rears, along with sunfire true signature sub. I listen to 50/50 music and movies, 2 channel and 5.1 music, and live concerts. I had a good relationship with them and their sound. A very lively and very capable of some major decibels, and believe me I took advantage of that…probably too often. ;)
I sold my complete system including the processor amp before moving to a new home. I figured it was time for a change, upgrade, or look for a different sound/experience.
Yesterday I decided to pop into Best Buy. I was surprised, the last time I was there was maybe 10 years ago, then they had very mediocre brands and models, I was very surprised to see KEF, B&W, M&L McIntosh, and high dollar demos including KEF Blades and B&W 804 models.
I went in looking to demo Polk R700 and maybe Klipsch RP8000. But I was also wanted to look at 3-5k speakers and really see if my ear could justify the cost. Well, they didn’t have the polks and the rp8000 wasn’t even in the demo room but on the main floor with a cheesy Klipsch vocal demo describing the RP line. Honestly, the rp8000 looked really cheap, did care for their ascetics and honestly don’t think they would compete sonically to my previous r7s, at least I think, I could most definitely be wrong.

I ended up demoing kef r11 (non meta) B&W 702 S3, older ML motion 50. And a couple of other models from both B&W and KEF. Long story short, I ended up loving the R11s. It’s hard to describe but they just sounded so balanced and natural, compared to the 702. The 702 sounded good, but to me, they didn’t sound balanced, almost like they were 2 different speakers, the tweeter didn’t seem like it blended with the rest of the speakers, maybe it was because of how it’s mounted? Anyway, the sound is very subjective, the salesman preferred the 702s and even seemed surprised I liked the r11s more. Goes to show you that While video reviews are a great resource but in the end, most reviewers are basing them on their preference, I do prefer graphs but also sometimes comparisons.

My questions …finally. They didn’t have the newer meta versions of the r11s, hopefully, in the future, I’ll be able to demo them. I’m wondering if some of you might be able to maybe describe the sonic differences between them. From what I’ve seen online is they are leaps and bounds better, even some saying they can hold their own to the references 5s! which seems crazy to me, based on price differences.
Another question. I know it’s not fair but how would the Polk r700s compare to the r11s or r7s. Yes, I know based on price alone these speakers are not apples to apples. but, are they comparable or something I shouldn’t even look into now that I’ve heard KEF r11s.
lastly, I wasn’t able to demo the kefs in a 5.1 movie atmosphere, but see they have matching centers, bookshelf, and atmos speakers. Curious how they perform in this capacity. Cheers! And thanks to you who made it through this long-winded post.
 
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pjn

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Hi all. A little bit of context before I ask my questions. I’m looking for a speaker system (5.1) matching speakers. I’m coming from over 13 years of using Klipsch RF7s, rc7 center, and similar bookshelf for rears, along with sunfire true signature sub. I listen 50/50 music and movies, 2 channel and 5.1 music, along with live concerts. I had a .......
My questions …finally. They didn’t have the newer meta versions of the r11s, hopefully in the future I’ll be able to demo them. I’m wondering if some of you might be able to maybe describe the sonic differences between them. From what I’ve seen online is they are leaps and bounds better, even some saying they can hold their own to the references 5s! which seem crazy to me, basing on price differences.
Another question. I know it’s not fair but how would the Polk r700s compare to the r11s or r7s. Yes, I know based on price alone these speakers are not apples to apples. but, are they comparable or something I shouldn’t even look into now that I’ve heard KEF r11s.
lastly, I wasn’t able to demo the kefs in a 5.1 movie atmosphere, but see they have matching centers, bookshelf and atmos speakers. Curious how they perform in this capacit. Cheers! And thanks to you who made it through this long winded post.
I recently jumped from Kef 104/2 speakers to R7 meta - very pleased indeed. I can't say whether the older R7 -> R7 meta (or R11 -> R11 meta for a larger room) would be worth the extra $. I was comparing the LS50 metas as fronts (with a sub) and am glad I finally went for the R7 and relegated the LS50s to surrounds.
The R7 metas are certainly better than the 104s (fully refurbished) or the LS50 for imaging and much better than the LS50s for distortion.
 

ryaneagon

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I recently jumped from Kef 104/2 speakers to R7 meta - very pleased indeed. I can't say whether the older R7 -> R7 meta (or R11 -> R11 meta for a larger room) would be worth the extra $. I was comparing the LS50 metas as fronts (with a sub) and am glad I finally went for the R7 and relegated the LS50s to surrounds.
The R7 metas are certainly better than the 104s (fully refurbished) or the LS50 for imaging and much better than the LS50s for distortion.
Thanks for your insight.
 
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jackocleebrown

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Out of curiosity and for the sake of learning, I wonder how hard was to design the R8. A speaker that performs well both on reflected sound or direct radiation on a variety of placement options seems to be an engineering nightmare.
In this regard we got a bit lucky. Dolby has a directivity spec for Atmos speakers that defines how much sound should go towards the ceiling compared to directly at the listener. We can hit this spec with Uni-Q without any special shadowing on the baffle around the driver and as a consequence it still sounds good for other uses too.
 

Vacceo

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In this regard we got a bit lucky. Dolby has a directivity spec for Atmos speakers that defines how much sound should go towards the ceiling compared to directly at the listener. We can hit this spec with Uni-Q without any special shadowing on the baffle around the driver and as a consequence it still sounds good for other uses too.
Thank you for your answer, first of all! I know being the "father of the baby" makes you biased, but your words confirm that the R8 as height speakers will definetly be an improvement over my current, repurposed IQ1's angled down up on a shelf.
 

windwolf447

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Thank you for your answer, first of all! I know being the "father of the baby" makes you biased, but your words confirm that the R8 as height speakers will definetly be an improvement over my current, repurposed IQ1's angled down up on a shelf.
I see what you are trying to do now. Yes, it would work for that. I was being a bit conservative. What would be even better is that, If there is an EQ section in your system, you might consider applying a few filters to balance out that Atoms target response shape a bit once the review measurement data is out. So they will sound more neutral when being used as height/surround speakers.
 

ryaneagon

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I recently jumped from Kef 104/2 speakers to R7 meta - very pleased indeed. I can't say whether the older R7 -> R7 meta (or R11 -> R11 meta for a larger room) would be worth the extra $. I was comparing the LS50 metas as fronts (with a sub) and am glad I finally went for the R7 and relegated the LS50s to surrounds.
The R7 metas are certainly better than the 104s (fully refurbished) or the LS50 for imaging and much better than the LS50s for distortion.
I really want to compare the Polk R700 Reserve to the R7-R11. I know they don't compare in price or looks, but I have 'heard' the Polk hit way above their price class. I have listened to comparisons of the r300s, LS50, and lots of other bookshelves, against the Polk R200, and I got to say I really do enjoy the sound and imaging of the Polk, makes me wonder how the floor-standing models would compare. Cheers! Sure would save a chunk of $ I could put towards upgrading the other components in my system.
 

exm

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I see what you are trying to do now. Yes, it would work for that. I was being a bit conservative. What would be even better is that, If there is an EQ section in your system, you might consider applying a few filters to balance out that Atoms target response shape a bit once the review measurement data is out. So they will sound more neutral when being used as height/surround speakers.

Amir should receive my R8 Metas tomorrow, with test results somewhere next month. I'm curious about the results, and if there are any filters that can make them sound better.

I have a total of 3 pair (1 pair is on his way to Amir) replacing my Q50a speakers. I really do feel that these speakers sound better. For some reason, they sound more "open" but this is after a quick listening test - might be placebo also.
 

Descartes

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Amir should receive my R8 Metas tomorrow, with test results somewhere next month. I'm curious about the results, and if there are any filters that can make them sound better.

I have a total of 3 pair (1 pair is on his way to Amir) replacing my Q50a speakers. I really do feel that these speakers sound better. For some reason, they sound more "open" but this is after a quick listening test - might be placebo also.
Looking forward to seeing Amir’s review, looking to buy a couple of pairs to use as on wall speakers for ATMOS
 
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