I replaced the Bel Cantos with the Pass Laboratories XA25 stereo amplifier ($4900) and listened to Robert Palmer's Quintet for A-Clarinet, String Trio, and Piano, composed in 1952 and performed by clarinetist Arthur Bloom, violinist Kees Kooper, violist Paul Doktor, cellist Warren Lash, and pianist Mary Louise Boehm, and produced by Marc Aubort and Joanna Nickrenz (LP, Vox Turnabout TV-S 34508, now available on CD as Albany 153). - Oct 2018. This is a review and detailed measurements of the KEF Q350 Bookshelf/stand-mount speaker. Thank you KEF for a well engineered product that I will enjoy for years to come. The Linn Kann could, the ProAc Tablette certainly could, the Thiel CS3 could because it had deep bass, the Quad 63s might ( depending on Amplifier type ). We are starting by comparing the sound quality of kEF q150 and q350. Discover. A low distortion inductor is settled inside the speaker to reduce all the abrasion sounds, which tend to distort the quality of the sound. It is the biggest driver in size, and is usually shaped like a cone. In 1981 they produced the 3030 receiver which was the first model made in Taiwan, this particular model wasn't very successful, doesn't attract the cash in the used market because it does not have the build quality the Norwegian manufactured ones do. This feature behaves just like any other Bluetooth-enabled d, Not to be confused with Wi-Fi-enabled speakers, wireless speaker set ups do not require a speaker wire or direct lines to other speakers and the AV receiver. Is there an address for sending the driver back for service ? I bought these and a new set of Monoprice speaker stands. This voltage criteriais a measurement of a speakers volume, and it should be expressed as 2.83V RMS at a distance of one metre. Exceptional soundstage. is an intellectual rant about using poor ( but skilled ) Chinese labor force ( usually young female Farm Girls ) kept in Labor Dormitories ( like Foxcom ( who make our Apple Products ) for ultra competitive Costs resulting in the collapse of a Country's Position in Supplying any such Product. In Summary ( from my perspective ), Chinesium Loudspeaker can be made to sound dam good if you play them with Outstanding-Superb-Carefully Selected-Well Made front ends ! Someone please define Chinesium: aside from the fact that many of the best built best sounding audio products I know are both designed and manufactured in China, I must tell you: Throughout the 1980s I lived in a giant factory-loft builting in Brooklyn. You are not 'old school'. Some Gear should've never been Sold. The KEF q150 speaker range comes with an MDF cabinet which is very sleek in look and reduces all the extra vibrations and distortion, and hence provides excellent quality of the sound. motion 35xti. Wasn't thrilled initially, played with the positioning and added an Energy subwoofer I had on hand and that's when they really started to sound good. Additionally, these are not very hard loudspeakers to drive and they can play very loudly without losing any sense of control or focus. It uses the same Driver and framework content as the Q150. It's the Walmart thinkers that have China making the unserviceable Land Fill Filler for us. The KEF Q350, however, while a reasonable product for $749, doesn't stack up against its competitors quite as well. I had the Kef LS50s but they made my ears bleed after like 45 mins so I had to get rid of em. In China. The trade-off with any active loudspeaker is that you are committed to how the final product sounds. The Alpha P5 have a lot of competition below $600, but they manage to win the day with an impressive level of transparency, detail and dynamic punch that works with almost every recording you try. I could feel the pull and push of the players' bows. Released in 2020, the JBL L82 Classic is effectively a smaller, more affordable version of the L100 Classic (which were released in 2018). It is the logical thing to do in the free enterprise system of which the US is purportedly a shining light. On the strength of this review, if I was not already satisfied by my vastly more expensive and bigger speakers I would be going to my local KEF dealer this morning. Probably because it happened such a long time ago. Your argument is odd (and perhaps a little personal). They aren't great speakers because they are designed and built in the US, they are a great speaker that happens to be designed and built in the US and has fans willing to pay the premium for that. LS50 has more resolution, but the slight warm tonality and abundant bass of Q350 (for the size) fit my personal taste better. Has anyone paired them with a denon 600ne? ( I'm pleased that you found a way of revealing this in some sort of painless way, I think that JA keeps a stethoscope handy for revealing these types of issues ). There will always be a market for bookshelf speakers. Also, the tweeter is placed right in the middle of the speakers driver unit. premium . I just did a bit of a Search on the LS50 to discover that KEF originally intended the Design to be a more modern replacement for the LS3/5a. Gray Well-known member. The vibration I felt, especially toward the bottom front of each side, was not subtle. These are the best bookshelf speakers for your home audio setup, in a variety of price ranges. Moreover, it has an exquisite bass which is more than enough for a small room. Its rated to go down to 63Hz but seems to go lower than that. Although you can choose your type of amplifier can be considered as a customization feature. Decent mid/high detail but bass is overwhelming, very undefined and sloppy, Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2022. The Q150 are the smallest and most affordable speakers in KEF's Q series. and they're cheap! Even Foxconn has stated it could move some production overseas. We can say that KEF q150 is the upgraded version of q100 bookshelf speakers. I wonder who got them next. The Polk Audio L100 is available in two finishes: brown walnut or black ash. The Q350 doesn't have the same constrained layer damping as the LS50. From the bits I did gather, there seemed to be a general consensus that the Q150 had cleaner treble, but the Q350 sounded bigger, warmer, had better mids, and more bass. KEF also gave them a more refined cabinet, a new rear recessed port, and a new cone neck decoupler and motor system. Description This number describes the electrical resistance provided by the speaker to the power signal sent by your amplifier. My personal gear went up for adoption and are long gone, I should've put them into "proper" storage. $799.00 sale $599.00 Add to Cart They integrated their new proprietary Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT), which KEF claims have the ability to "absorb 99% of the unwanted sound radiating from the rear of the driver." No doubt, there are more expensive speakers available in this range, but KEF q150 stands out from all these with these stunning features. Rather than refund $ to my credit card, Amazon put the funds in a gift card account where it sat for 10 days or so. components, and hallmark Paradigm sound quality. They deliver unrivaled levels of coherency, clarity and presence in a stand-mounted design that can compete with significantly more expensive loudspeakers. According to Dipin Sehdev of KEF America, the stamped basket "is equal in rigidity to the cast one" because "We designed the chassis using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to increase its strength. In Stock Order by 2pm: Ships Today. When the speakers arrived they looked fine but the tweeter on one speaker was blown. Reviewing loudspeakers is plagued with uncertainty. And these are already pretty pricey for my budget. Additionally, they have gorgeous-yet-bespoke design and are available in a number of different wood finishes including black ash, cherry mahogany, light oak and walnut. Typically, these speakers require a wirele, Speaker wire is the connection used between speakers, amplifiers and receivers. It is a 2-way bookshelf speaker, which comes along with a rear port as well. Q Acoustics is a British audio company that makes some of the best affordable speakers, and its 3020i are the best bet for most people. (Note: the L200 are effectively bigger, better-sounding and more expensive versions of the L100.). The embedding of the tweeter at this particular position ensures dynamic and more precise sound delivery. The BasX A-100 Stereo Flex Amplifier, SMSL Q5 Pro, or Dayton Audio DTA2.1BT are all viable options. The Q350's resonance radiating chassis panels is a old trick from the cheap reciever speaker days. Highly sensitive speakers require less power from the amplifier to play the music at high volumes. Buying a piece of Gear is like a Marriage Commitment, a Love Affair, a Relationship. It certainly did no harm to the reproduction of this glorious organ recording. Before buying these KEFs, I like many others obsessionally belabored the choice. I'm sorry. I also noticed a bit of "talk" from the cabinet, but only rarely did I detect any cabinet resonances in the fundamental range of human speechapproximately 200750Hzwhile listening to music. Dali Oberon 1 (280 euro) Triangle Borea BR03 (300 euro) KEF Q150 (360 euro) They would be used for nearfield listening now (desk usage), but hoping to use them in a medium-sized room at some point in the future. Many reading this are probably in the same predicament they find themselves in when the Q150 and Q350 frequently go on sale for $300 and $500 respectively. Now that we know about each speaker and their specifications, let us compare the two based on a few factors listed below: A speakers drivers are its brains. In comparison to other bookshelf speakers, the Q150 is suitable for laptop tables. Now comes the price that you should consider before you finally decide to invest in any of the variants. But as we have already mentioned that it is a passive speaker, the customization shouldnt be expected anyways. Would you like to receive updates from KEF and be notified when this product becomes available? Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2022. This tends to deliver super powerful sound with broader coverage. 2. You apparently do not read the newspapers to notice the hollowing out of Chinese manufacturing is beginning. The Q150 also have a nominal impedance of 8 ohms, making them fairly easy to drive for most amplifiers. Well, the increment in prices is only due to the larger size of the driver. They didnt realize the R5 speakers werent playing until I pointed it out. I would never have known KEF was For-Sale or how much it Sold for. Common points from expert reviews summarized. Kef Q350 customer reviews Trust me and ignore any negative reviews for this speaker. The significant difference is that q100 has a front port, whereas KEF q350 has a backport. Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them. I bought these and a new set of Monoprice speaker stands. Three minutes in I was staring blankly, eyes closed, swaying slowly in my seat, astounded by how much larger and more serious every note had become. Hence, you might need to purchase them separately. Both Kef Q350 and Triangle Borea BR03 receive customer reviews that average out above that median threshold. . Is Stereophile writing to their readership ? The Q350 is an excellent sounding speaker on its own. If you're willing to take the jump from the sub-$500 price range to the sub-$1,000 price range, these bookshelf speakers are about as good as you can get. The bass is usually louder if and whenthe lowest frequency is lower. I added a SVS SB 2000-Pro sub and it literally calms my soul when I listen to them. These differences in degrees of directness and exposure made me excited to be reviewing a British loudspeaker that could accomplish such things while costing only $649.99/pair. The Q350 has a similar, 6.5" Uni-Q array with an aluminum midrange-bass cone, a 1" aluminum dome tweeter, and a stamped-steel basket, in a 14.5-liter, 16.75-lb, generic-looking MDF box. Also, the orientation doesnt matter. Why? Control the speaker with buttons on the device. As a result, this tends to provide a more ideal and pure sound source for extracting and rendering her notes sounds. Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for KEF Speaker Grille Q350 Magnetic Grille (Each) . Plus Sanyo, B-Tech, Teac, Techcraft, LG, StudioTech, Bell'O & more. Setup Similar to KEF q150, this variant also lacks all of the control features. Maybe the reviewer took a Subway Train to NJ and had a nice look-round the KEF USA Parts & Service Centre. Driven by Rogue Audio's Sphinx hybrid integrated amplifier (tubes, class-D, $1299), the Q350's sound had stout bones, especially through the bottom octaves. HR acquits himself by hinting of the up-coming Harbeth reporting, so we hafta forgive and forget. . The Triangle Borea BR03 is a great Bookshelf Speaker for its $379 asking price. Budget premium sound quality and look gorgeous. Now, just to point out the obvious, the LS50 + KEF Performance Speaker Stand come to about $1700 (bring your own sand) while the Q350 + Tontrager stands add up to over $2000. However bass is very undefined and sloppy (not tight, not controlled). KEF Q350 vs Elac DBR62 vs Wharfedale 225 vs Triangle BR03 Q350 = 215 DBR62 = 250 225 = 250 BR03 = 220 Currently I own the Q350 and quite like them, but as the other ones are all front ported I'm looking into them. I've lusted after the LS50s even though I've never heard them! For more sophisticated listeners, or for those who truly want the best sound reproduction, a midrange driver is crucial. Is there a wonderful story to tell? Audio, Albedo, Antal Audio, Triangle, Electrocompaniet, Wireworld, Gramophone Dreams #70: Sutherland Engineering SUTZ & Lounge Audio Copla headamps, Dynavector DV-20X2 & XX-2 MKII phono cartridges, Aretai, Convergent Audio, Aurender, ViaBlue, PAD Hifi, TAD speakers and electronics, Synergistic, Jocavi. You and Art Dudley are terrific reviewers! Buy Triangle Borea BR03 Hi-Fi Bookshelf Speakers Pair for Home Theater Systems and Music, 100 W Power Handling, High Efficiency (Walnut) at Amazon. If you're a true music lover and you have a bigger room to set up your system (these get loud), the B&W 606 are fantastic compact speakers. For a bit of background, I'm a hobbyist audio and mastering engineer with about 20 years of studio experience. Basically, if you thought KEF's previous speakers sounded good the new LS50 Collection takes that sound to the next level. I kept moving them to determine which combination of wall-to-speaker distance and port plugging worked best. Turntable and Speaker Combos That Make Vinyl Easy, The Best Furniture for Your Home Audio System. The Q350s front port has been relocated to the rear. You should also ask yourself why these companies have shifted manufacuring to China, or Indonesia, or Mexico? What Triangle has done with the Borea range is ensure that it is very definitely less marmite than some previous offerings from the company. The midrange sounds clean with a warm tonal balance that makes them ideal for a lot of solid-state and tube amplifiers. In this post, we have included a detailed comparison between KEF Q150 Vs. KEF Q350. Sometimes, this capability comes with the caveat, Speakers with Wi-Fi connectivity connect directly to your home Wi-Fi network to stream audio from your devicessmartphone, tablet, laptop, etc. Moreover, using a stand that is quite tall, probably in the range of 18 to 24 inches will enhance the experience tool. A common analogy used f, More and more, musicians and streaming services are offering high-resolution audio playback for music files. Or, is the Q series mostly aimed at those Big Screen 4K TV Buyers at Costco? Oh, that's right, no smartphones are made in any of those countries. Having said all the above I do have to admit that the United States has had Post WW11 lack of competition because everyone else had to rebuild. The position of a speaker has a significant impact on the sound quality. People who love to enjoy their music at higher bass can attach a subwoofer to it. Compared to the other drivers, midranges cover sounds, not surprisingly, in the middle of high/treble and low/bass tones. In simple words, we can say that KEF q150 has a very wide soundstage and sounds fantastic even at low volume with neutral sound. Triangle BR03 - liked them, but when comparing side by side with KEF, Triangles sounded more fatiguing. Tweeters produce the highest frequencies in sound, typically anything above 2,000 Hz. If that is your interest, you can buy some very good components directly out of China from sellers like ShenzhenAudio.com and others should you choose to do so. Triangle Borea BR03Amazon product link: https://amzn.to/3onVXk4KEF Q150Amazon product link: https://amzn.to/3F8Zt7CIn case you didn't know, I'm a compact boo. Apparently my outfit is buying wiring harnesses from these people and they are said to mostly keep their noses out of the Loudspeaker operations. We stayed "live", now earning JDPower Awards for the first time for any US manufacturer of Transportation Products. Behoove is the Duty or Responsibility to do something, I'm cautioning people about the concealed affects & effects from handing your/our cherished designs to Nation/States working to destroy our Foundational Industries. ", While the motor systems of the LS50's and Q350's drivers are the same, the Q350's specified sensitivity is slightly higher: 87dB/2.83V vs the LS50's 85dB/2.83V. When space seems to be at a shortage, the Q Series bookshelf speakers shine. Triangle Borea BR03 are a popular option in the middle of the speakers price range. The slightly scary-looking Tensegrity tripod stand utilizes cutting-edge acoustic isolation and plays a significant role in the sound of the Concept 300 image solidity and soundstage depth are first-rate. At one point in my critical listening, I got up and put my hands on the sides of the Q350s' cabinets. The sound was thicker than it should be, but instruments and voices appeared more tangibly in the room than with the Rogue Sphinx. answer: My old pals at Stereophile and hope to have the Industry's leading Poetically respected Philosopher crawl into bed with ( and spend some quality time with ) our lovely little Q loudspeaker, thank you ! When the speakers arrived they looked fine but the tweeter on one speaker was blown. This causes the driver t, Power handling, or peak power, is the highest wattage a speaker can accept from an amplifier before it burns out or becomes damaged. I found the actual review rather florid, but as a current or prior owner of all the speakers referenced including KS50sabd Q300 it's about what I would expect. These cones come in three types: tweeters, midranges (sometimes called mids), and woofe, The type of enclosure, or cabinet, plays a key role in determining the focus of your sound. ELAC DBR62 - liked these too, but similar to Trangles, when comparing side by side with KEF, Elacs were more fatiguing. True audio, Tweeters produce the highest frequencies in sound, typically anything above 2,000 Hz. The midrange is superb and the bass response from such a small two-way pair of loudspeakers is resoundingly taut and agile even with electronica and hip-hop and driven with entry-level integrated amplifiers. Well done KEF! I will mostly be using them to listen to classical music and watch films at my computer which is in front of a wall. The attacks of piano notes felt surprisingly natural. There is a single horizontal brace in the middle of the cabinet. Buy from. It is your task as a reader to accept their expertise or not, and to apply your own filters such as country of manufacture. The Q350 has a new cabinet, new colours, and a 6.5 Uni-Q driver array that has been upgraded.The Q350 features an improved Uni-Q driver array that smooths out treble frequencies, as well as reinterpreted crossovers for smoother, more precise bass. We need Solid Asian Trade Agreements & Asian respect for Intellectual Property, not more fake ROLEX watches or sonic equivalents of our excellent loudspeaker designs. The Paradigm DCS-208IW3, the perfect blend of performance and practicality. ps. The data presented is for information purposes only. They're still based around the company's proprietary Uni-Q driver, which housed a 1-inch tweeter inside a 5.25-inch woofer resulting in excellent and accurate sound, but KEF refined them in a number of key ways. On 4 Mar 2023 (17 hours ago) we went through 92 Speakers expert endorsements . The Q 350 is a remarkably well engineered speaker at a very good price. Some are even made with more unique materials like wood. The solutions you propose are basically the government intervening to support uncompetitive industries. The frequency response of these two speakersdiffers. . This is usually known as socialism. In this, the main motive of the wave effect is to reduce the microscopic compression. Everywhere I place them and every amp I connect them to makes a pair of speakers sound different. NEW 2023 : SECRET New Hi-Fi & Home Theater In-wall speaker LCR7. Absolutely a great buy when they're on sale, a decent buy at the $750 list price. I do buy valuable products made by skilled artisans and workmen, products like PS Audio, Sennheiser, Festool, Brisson Interfaces, Electrocompaniet, Thiel Audio, Meridian, Linn Products. Below are their opinions. Curious to see this month's entire Bookshelf Speakers ranking? When reviewing different bookshelf speakers, you will often see a measurement in the product name, starting as low as 4 and ranging to 6 or more. Fairly obviously Stereophile's audience is those who already know Stereophile. Affectionately, we called our obese landlord "Jaba The Hut" -- he had a huge factory (just below me) that employed illeagle alien workers for $2.50/hr making FAKE Disney and Mattel toys. What, get outa here, a chinese outfit owns KEF. * Measurement per unit, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. That unless on a budget, one should just spring for the Q350. This website displays data from third party public sources. As a Corporation I have to move my Labor Supply "OffShore" to take advantage of lower labor costs, my personal Contract and Bonuses are contingent on it. The sound is FULL bodied, clear, and I have cranked it up well beyond 90 DB without ANY distortion. Combining elegance and technology, it is a continuation of TRIANGLE's investment in favor of a target of pleasure and emotion. I also want to pair them with a Subwoofer, preferably SVS SB1000 if I can get for a good price. Please consider creating a new thread. These speakers are truly remarkable for their size and price. Why have they gone overseas? Voices, instruments, and recorded atmosphere not only felt more expansive; everything seemed more exposed, more sacred, more directly communicative, possibly even more darkly transparent. These Kefs blow all the speakers in this price range clear out of the water. martin logan 35xti. Apart from the Driver and design, both speakers also share the same crossover frequency of 2.5Hz, the same technology of the Uni-Q array/CFD port, and a nominal impedance of 8ohms. I considered all the current bookshelf speakers that are being talked about in the current year. However, the driver size and other technical requirements are different. Active loudspeakers also require at least one of the loudspeakers to be plugged into the wall, limiting how you set the speaker up in your space.