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KEF LS50

Don't post often here but thought I would let you all know I stumbled on a pretty amazing performer in this little monitor.

I would say the midrange is on par with my Harbeth 40.1, treble has a tad more leading edge bite than the best soft dome but its a really good top end that never gets nasty. Dynamically they are performing way better than they should. I'm betting they would compete with the new 30.1 sonically, just a guess.

Have them running with 20X price electronics in a small office and they are not outclassed in any way. Made me want to keep throwing my best gear with them they sounded so good.

If you are in the market grab a pair, you will not regret. Saw two pair this morning for sale for around 1K, I can't think of anything in 20 years offering this much performance for 1K. You could build a world class non-full range sound around these.
petland

Showing 11 responses by mapman

mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Nice ! Thanks for pointing these out.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
"Really nice with well miked Sax for example to have both the bite and the body, all originating from essentially a point source which adds its own distinctive realism if that makes sense."

Makes perfect sense!
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
No-regrets,

Have not heard teh KEFs but check the internet. I have read some things that indicate the KEFs are quite competitive in the areas you are interested in, ie favorable comparison to Harbeth and delivering some meat on the bones beyond what the size would indicate. That plus the modern point source design technology and all that can offer makes these very interesting indeed!
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
I have not heard KEFs since the 90's probably. I owned a pair of small KEF monitors once that were completely uninvolving and were returned in short time. I read these newer KEFs are a return to good form though. ANy thoughts from longtime KEF owners regarding these versus other prior KEFs in recent years?
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Hey, that sounded really intriguing paying on my little 8" visio
android tablet! No joke! Definitely got my attention. Cool looking little
devils too!

I read they are only 85db efficient butcan achieve over 100db according to
kef specs. Have not done the math but lots of watts would seem to be in
order, especially for louder music genres. Im guessing high power class
d amps would be a good match?
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Seokosha,

How long have you lad the KEFs?

I'd be curious which of KEF versus Harbeth wins with you in the long term. I suspect they sound more similar than they look? :^)
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Seik,

Thanks for all that. Very informative!

"This is hard to explain, but there is something about the Kefs that make you feel like the coherency between the driver and tweeter is better."

I'd be willing to bet the concentric/point source driver configuration has a lot to do with this, especially near field in a smaller room.

THe low powered tube amp should be interesting. Neither KEF or Harbeth would seem to be inherently tube amp friendly on paper, but you never know. I suspect HArbeths will do better with the tube amp in that small speakers that do more bass seldom if ever do better with low power tube amps, but for certain kinds of music like those you indicate to be your interests, it may work out just fine.

Thanks again and good luck!
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Smaller monitors in general often tend to do best on shorter stands where floor can reinforce bass a tad more than otherwise.

I've heard the KEFs. I would tend towards using shorter stands in all but perhaps the smallest rooms.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
You don't have to buy new stands to try placing the speakers lower and see what that does. Just set them on any readily available household object that offer a sturdy platform. Milk crates or even a stack of books can work well. You can also then try tipping them upwards a bit if desired, by raising the fronts relative to rear. Just place a tightly rolled up dish rag or towel under the front bottom.

Speaker location and orientation relative to listener makes all the difference with box designs that tend to be more directional in nature.

If all sound balanced tonally but fatigue persists, then consider AC power conditioning or a decent power cord upgrade with noise control designed for the digital source as a next step.
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
Larrybou, did you indicate how large your room is?

I found ls50s lacking in a larger room but quite sufficient in a smaller 12X12 sunroom with vaulted ceiling.

If low end authority and extension is the issue, adding a sub or two will address that.

Generally, you need larger speakers with more or larger drivers for larger rooms. Yes, good ones will cost more. It cost more to fill a larger room with quality full range sound. Adding subs also provides flexibility in placement of subs versus main in order to maximize everything together. Larger speakers often need placement closer to walls in order to deliver bass in larger rooms. Close placement to walls usually works against soundstage, imaging and detail, so getting an ideal setup for everything can be a challenge with most any full range speakers versus monitors + sub(s).
mapman's avatar
mapman
21,838 posts
 
I heard them briefly once in my home in a larger and smaller room. I think they do very well for their size in that regard and overall in a room suited to their size. There is only so much a small speaker like that can do alone in a larger room. Adding a sub or two when needed would resolve any issues in larger rooms I would think.

THey do seem to like a lot of power and current though, as do most small speakers with extended bass response. They sounded best in my smaller room off my 500 w/ch BEl Canto amps. Not so good in my larger room of 180 w/ch TAD Hibachi monoblocks. The 180 w/ch would probably have done well in the smaller room (12X12) but did not get to try that combo.
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