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Rule, Britannia!, Britannia rule the (sound)waves!

DanielT

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That seems to be the case with Hifi in any case. Or let's say that there is very good Hifi coming from England. Two of my favorite brands when it comes to speakers are English :



Feel free to add what you want regarding Hifi from England. Your experiences.

I am thinking of going on a holiday trip to London in the future. Any tips on fun places to visit regarding sound and Hifi? It can be anything. A nice Hifi shop, some audio or radio museeum, or something else.:)

Little criticism. You Englishmen and your solutions. A while ago unscrewed the base from one of my vintage Kef Cadenza speakers (I checked the crossover filter). Accidentally lost the screws.I bought new screws but see it did not work. English threads. Now all that remains is to fix the threaded pin (if it is called that in English, see picture)
images (1).jpeg



or drill new holes. Yes, I know what you Englishmen say about it: It is not us who must adapt, it is you. :)
 

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DanielT

DanielT

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China rules? But I guess the United States is still king. In any case, it was OT. Back to England.:)

Many manufacturers put the production in China. But what about headquarters regarding Kef and Wharfedale? Where is it? Where is their RnD located?Curious, I do not know.:)
 
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Phorize

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I’m English and no nationalist by any stretch, but like people from many nations I do root for my own team (in a friendly way)-and like to buy British when I can. However, I also happily buy audio gear made in many nations, I love the U.S cottage industry around objective speaker designs for example which has blurred the lines between pro manufacturers and diy communities, the engineering excellence coming out of Europe such as purifi, and the innovation coming out of China too. All of that said, I would buy a pair of speakers from a Chinese brand 10 times over before I bought a Kef R3 that is made in China, but marketed with the Union Jack all over it. If kef wanted to sell me the r3 they should have either increased the price to enable it to be built ‘at home’, or refrained from cheapening my national identity in their marketing. These are obviously not objective points and just to be clear, they do not conceal any rose tinted thinking regarding national history or nationhood in general. Onecould say I need to accept globalisation-I can’t expect kef to go bust chasing nostalgia and they sell more speakers abroad than in the U.K. anyway. I may arrive at that view overtime, but it’s going to be a Philharmonic BMR that replaces my living room stand mounts when the time comes and not the r3, simply because as well as being an excellent speaker, it is authentic in a way that the kef is not. Hopefully this falls short of being a political post-peace to all audio manufacturers across the globe:)
 

SaltyCDogg

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Please direct all enquires to https://www.ministryofsound.com/

The club boasts a 64-speaker, 22-channel sound-system with a ring of six bespoke Martin Audio ground stacks positioned around the dancefloor of The Box.

Personally I wouldn't bother trekking around too many HiFi shops, there's better ways to spend your time with all the museums and markets etc. Check out the Spitalfields market area and Brick lane and Borough Market if you're into food.

Go to some gigs and see some live music, somewhere like Koko has a good range of things on in a cool venue with a good sound system.
 
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DanielT

DanielT

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I’m English and no nationalist by any stretch, but like people from many nations I do root for my own team (in a friendly way)-and like to buy British when I can. However, I also happily buy audio gear made in many nations, I love the U.S cottage industry around objective speaker designs for example which has blurred the lines between pro manufacturers and diy communities, the engineering excellence coming out of Europe such as purifi, and the innovation coming out of China too. All of that said, I would buy a pair of speakers from a Chinese brand 10 times over before I bought a Kef R3 that is made in China, but marketed with the Union Jack all over it. If kef wanted to sell me the r3 they should have either increased the price to enable it to be built ‘at home’, or refrained from cheapening my national identity in their marketing. These are obviously not objective points and just to be clear, they do not conceal any rose tinted thinking regarding national history or nationhood in general. Onecould say I need to accept globalisation-I can’t expect kef to go bust chasing nostalgia and they sell more speakers abroad than in the U.K. anyway. I may arrive at that view overtime, but it’s going to be a Philharmonic BMR that replaces my living room stand mounts when the time comes and not the r3, simply because as well as being an excellent speaker, it is authentic in a way that the kef is not. Hopefully this falls short of being a political post-peace to all audio manufacturers across the globe:)
I can be, or I'm probably angophilic, in your place.:)

What you describe regarding China also applies to other electronics, in other western countries as well.

I am also not fixated on my Hifi coming from any particular country. As long as it is of good quality and that it gives a lot for the money. I am most curious about the status in general when it comes to HiFi in England. Development, brands and so on. I am also interested in Hifi history so anyone is welcome to tell me more about it.

There is an ongoing discussion about the quality of HiFi from China. That there is really affordable good performing Hifi from China is quite clear (Topping for example). What will happen in the future with export-import China-West is one of the biggest international political issues. Technology, environment, political system and so on. Maybe best to return to our little Hifi world, so there will be no loud political discussions.:)

But here the production of Kef seems to take place in England. Kefs premium segment. Okay, the video is two years old. There may have been changes since then.


Edit saw in another thread now regarding that video:

Yes but that quality control starts and ends with The Reference and Blades, anything else that is produced in China is just standard… and sometimes not even “fine”…

 
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Leporello

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It is also good to keep in mind that the darkest periods of audio charlatanism (i.e. Flat Earthism in the 80s) were initiated in the U.K hifi culture.
 

Mart68

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It is also good to keep in mind that the darkest periods of audio charlatanism (i.e. Flat Earthism in the 80s) were initiated in the U.K hifi culture.
Luckily most of us in the UK were skint in the 1980s and couldn't afford that stuff so we bought Japanese (or Taiwanese) instead.
 
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DanielT

DanielT

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Luckil

Luckily most of us in the UK were skint in the 1980s and couldn't afford that stuff so we bought Japanese (or Taiwanese) instead.
No, then I was a teenager and could not afford ... hardly anything at all. :)

But then it is important to be careful about for vintage English hi-fi from the 80's then? But as you say it is probably mostly from Japan(or Taiwanese). I did a quick check now. In the used market, a Swedish auction site, current amplifiers. Took the first 20 that are now being auctioned off there, made in the 80's . The usual: Pioneer, Yamaha, NAD, Denon, Technics. Could not see any English made amplifier.

With that said there is all a lot of hocus pocus, mumbo jumbo in new hifi. Luckily ASR exists. Objective tests that reveal performance.:)
 
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Soniclife

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Interesting, any specific brands, or was it a general trend in the 80's? Any special key player regarding this audio charlatanism?
A reference mainly to Linn and Naim, there were a lot of smaller companies also in the same mould. Some good products, and some not so good, the main issue is the philosophy they espoused, and the dealer practices they insisted on, I'm sure @DSJR could write volumes on it, but would prefer not to. It's largely been replaced by the cult of foo that is many times worse for hifi.
 

Soniclife

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I’m English and no nationalist by any stretch, but like people from many nations I do root for my own team (in a friendly way)-and like to buy British when I can. However, I also happily buy audio gear made in many nations, I love the U.S cottage industry around objective speaker designs for example which has blurred the lines between pro manufacturers and diy communities, the engineering excellence coming out of Europe such as purifi, and the innovation coming out of China too. All of that said, I would buy a pair of speakers from a Chinese brand 10 times over before I bought a Kef R3 that is made in China, but marketed with the Union Jack all over it. If kef wanted to sell me the r3 they should have either increased the price to enable it to be built ‘at home’, or refrained from cheapening my national identity in their marketing. These are obviously not objective points and just to be clear, they do not conceal any rose tinted thinking regarding national history or nationhood in general. Onecould say I need to accept globalisation-I can’t expect kef to go bust chasing nostalgia and they sell more speakers abroad than in the U.K. anyway. I may arrive at that view overtime, but it’s going to be a Philharmonic BMR that replaces my living room stand mounts when the time comes and not the r3, simply because as well as being an excellent speaker, it is authentic in a way that the kef is not. Hopefully this falls short of being a political post-peace to all audio manufacturers across the globe:)
I have similar feelings about things not being authentically advertised as being made somewhere specific, but I'm largely past it as it's advertising, so by definition not related to the truth, lots of the other advertising blurb is even more misleading. Almost nothing is actually made in a single country, parts come from all over the place, and in speakers the cabinets are likely grown somewhere else, best buy the best product, not the story behind the product.
 
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DanielT

DanielT

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A reference mainly to Linn and Naim, there were a lot of smaller companies also in the same mould. Some good products, and some not so good, the main issue is the philosophy they espoused, and the dealer practices they insisted on, I'm sure @DSJR could write volumes on it, but would prefer not to. It's largely been replaced by the cult of foo that is many times worse for hifi.
Linn fans I have encountered them in other forums. Some are almost, hm fanatical, so to speak. Strange, way?

Linn and Naim appear on the used vintage market from time to time, in Sweden. I have as a hobby to buy and sell vintage(nothing I make money on. It goes plus or minus 0) , mainly to test in my secondary system and because it is fun but then it is more recognized (for its time) good (not so much effect though) amplifier, NAD 3020, Harman Kardon HK 330C for example.:) However, I have not tested Linn and Naim. They are quite expensive in the vintage market.

Cyrus amplifiers are still popular on used maknad in Sweden. If they are good? I do not know.

But good English hifi then? We have barely mentioned that in this thread.
Some tips? :)
 
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raindance

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When I lived in the UK I used to go to a number of live concerts around Manchester / Liverpool area and was usually impressed with the well mixed and equalized sound compared to concerts here in the USA where the mids are scooped and the bass is massively boosted. So there's definitely some skill over there regarding how things should sound.
 
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DanielT

DanielT

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It's a perfectly cromulent word.

I have a Linn LK100 power amp, although not in use. Did have a Linn pre-amp too but I sold it. They were my sole concessions to UK Flat Earth.
It is just fine. Thus, I have improved my English vocabulary.:)

I am currently participating in this course:

 

Phorize

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I have similar feelings about things not being authentically advertised as being made somewhere specific, but I'm largely past it as it's advertising, so by definition not related to the truth, lots of the other advertising blurb is even more misleading. Almost nothing is actually made in a single country, parts come from all over the place, and in speakers the cabinets are likely grown somewhere else, best buy the best product, not the story behind the product.
That’s far too rational. Dammit, I can’t find anything to argue about. ,
 
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