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KEF R3 OR BOWER & WILKINS S706 s2 ???

K20voigt

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Hello guys I need some help here , I'm setting up a Home theater / listening room but I have 0 experience with audio so i hope some ppl give me some insight on which one of these speaker will work
better for me ., this would be a big purchase and i don't want to spend money on somethi8ng that it may not work or make a poor selection.

Planning to do a 5.1.4 system matching only LCR (surround will be same brand but smaller speaker/quality )
Room size 14Lx11.5Wx12H

I'm planning to buy this separately and at discount price from BB ., originally I was planning to do BMR Philharmonic on LCR but the amount of money i can save buying from best buy is just a no brainer i have my eyes on KEF R3 OR BOWER & WILKINS S706 S2 with their respective center also i need say that if ill go with b&w i can save up around 500 or 600dl....which is crazy since the difference in msrp price is just 200dl ...
 
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itz_all_about_the_music

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Zero experience means? You've auditioned both of these speakers in the same room with same material/source? Warning: you're about to get deluged with suggestions. Good luck.
 

HarmonicTHD

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Don’t even have to think twice. KEF R3.

But form your own opinion.

See here


Although there are no measurements for the 706. There is this

 
OP
K

K20voigt

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experience means i never owned a pair of ''high quality'' speaker before, im not an audiophile but i do appreciate good quality and clear sound.. KEF 4 B&W 0 LOL
I'm starting to see why bb give such a huge discount on the b&w and not the kef...
 

HarmonicTHD

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experience means i never owned a pair of ''high quality'' speaker before, im not an audiophile but i do appreciate good quality and clear sound.. KEF 4 B&W 0 LOL
I'm starting to see why bb give such a huge discount on the b&w and not the kef...
To give you some perspective if you like.

In very simple terms. There have been blind listening studies, which say that the majority of people like speakers with a flat (on axis - directly pointing at you) frequency response and a smooth directivity (sound being radiated sideways - off axis).

According to these criteria the KEF R3 are very well engineered. This is proven by the state of the art measurements (see link in my first post), which are objective and not influenced by subjective preferences nor any commercial interest.

The rest only you can decide by putting these speakers in your room and decide if you like it. Only you know, what you like. The preferences of other people are irrelevant to you. (You might like Pepsi others Coke).

Now your room will have a huge influence (room modes, comb filtering) on what you hear. Here a RoomEQ system eg which comes along with your AVR (eg Denon, Audyssey or others), will improve bass.

Again, depending on your room and personal preference. If you find the highs to high or to low, you can EQ it also with your AVR (preference curve). And as the KEFs exhibit a quite smooth directivity (see measurements), they will react “nicely” to EQ.
 

dfuller

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KEF for sure. B&W are generally a bit scooped and zingy, KEF are well balanced.
 

cavedriver

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I haven't heard the KEF's but the upper end of the 700 series and the lower end of the 800 range from B&W have been disappointing in my experience. I emphasize, though, you have to hear for yourself as others have pointed out. I would suggest that, as others have hinted, if you reject the B&W's, then at least add in something else to A/B with the KEF's. You may find how much better the third speaker is compared to either of the first two.
 
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K20voigt

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Buying to test is not an option since someone is buying it for me and i don't want to bother exchanging products and Unfortunately the magnolia i have nearby doesn't have the kef r3 on display , ...but is very obvious that everyone like the kef speakers so the rest is up to me and my wallet.... lol

thank you all for your inputs
 

HarmonicTHD

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Buying to test is not an option since someone is buying it for me and i don't want to bother exchanging products and Unfortunately the magnolia i have nearby doesn't have the kef r3 on display , ...but is very obvious that everyone like the kef speakers so the rest is up to me and my wallet.... lol

thank you all for your inputs
Here is Erin with a YouTube.

Erin and Amir (host to this site) are world wide the only two people who own state of the art measurement equipment (ca 100k USD) and make their measurements available to the public.

You can’t get any more objective reviews anywhere else on the net.

 

Steve Dallas

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KEF R3 hands down. This is coming from someone who owned B&W 800 series speakers for 20 years: one pair of 804 towers and one pair of 805 bookshelves. Just buy the KEFs. Be sure to carefully press the shadow flare ring in all the way. Seriously, just buy the KEFs.

 

Mtbf

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Very explicit opinions here. The Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 Anniversary Edition can’t be compared to the 706 S2. If have a family member who has the B&W 702 S2’s in a well-treated really big living room, and I must say they sound really good every time I’m over there, having enjoyed very long joint listening sessions with them, playing a broad range of music, and knowing the FR and directivity discussions here.
Having had an extensive listening session recently together with a friend who is looking for something new, I was reminded again how difficult it is to choose the optimum speaker in a given price range. What if you don’t prefer the better measuring speaker over the lesser measuring one, are you going to buy the better measuring one anyway, despite your personal preference, and are you willing to keep saying to yourself: “but this one measured better”?
I think the only right answer is: go and listen for yourself, preferably in your own home, and really take your time before making the final decision.
 

kokakolia

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Darn! I can't decide for you. This goes down to personal preference. Some people find KEF boring. Other people find B&W too bright.
 

Steve Dallas

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Very explicit opinions here. The Bowers & Wilkins 607 S2 Anniversary Edition can’t be compared to the 706 S2. If have a family member who has the B&W 702 S2’s in a well-treated really big living room, and I must say they sound really good every time I’m over there, having enjoyed very long joint listening sessions with them, playing a broad range of music, and knowing the FR and directivity discussions here.
Having had an extensive listening session recently together with a friend who is looking for something new, I was reminded again how difficult it is to choose the optimum speaker in a given price range. What if you don’t prefer the better measuring speaker over the lesser measuring one, are you going to buy the better measuring one anyway, despite your personal preference, and are you willing to keep saying to yourself: “but this one measured better”?
I think the only right answer is: go and listen for yourself, preferably in your own home, and really take your time before making the final decision.

That comparison is more valid than you might realize. Some time after the year 2000, B&W shifted from making accurate speakers to building speakers with a signature sound. That signature sound features a 'Batman' frequency response curve. This is the listening window for the 705 S2, courtesy of Soundstage! Network:
fr_listeningwindow.png


All B&W speakers I have been exposed to since I bought mine sound like that chart looks: sucked out lower mids, sucked out upper mids, and highly elevated treble. B&W speakers also exhibit significant directivity errors.

Instead of blabbering about diamond dust and other gimmics, KEF strives for flat FR and even directivity, and they publish the results of their research in white papers. Their speakers sound far better to me, so they get my money and my recommendation.
 

iulianm

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I have a pair of 603 S2 Anniversary Edition (towers) and I'm fairly happy with them.
Measured from my listening position with UMIK-1 and a SVS subwoofer after I fiddled with speaker placement.
bw.png

I have them ~1.5feet (0.5m) from the wall (measured from the back of the speaker).
IMG_5051 (1).jpeg
 

Vacceo

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Kef. They have a long history of being easy to adjust and integrate. They will also play well anything you through at them: music of different genres, films, videogames, talk radio...
 
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