KEF LS50 or Wharfedale Reva 2 -- which would you buy?
I agree with dolsey about Sonus Faber Venere. In my opinion they are in the same sound family as B&W (and also cone materials) but in my listening test Venere did not suffer the cupped hand coloration. I guess they are using higher order crossover and they do cross at 2.5 kHz. They also have less aggressive twitter. I remember I particularly enjoyed large orchestral works on them. They have fantastic design and look gorgeous. |
Thanks @dolsey and @sharbatgula -- these speakers are beautiful. I read up on some of the reviews and people seems to be big fans. They’re running about $1,100 or so now for a new pair of black/white 2.0s. Really beautiful speakers. I do like the front port as well. I’ve got a relatively small apartment so I appreciate that flexibility. I was able to hear the KEF R300s and R3s this weekend. I was a big fan of both. Personally I would be drawn to the R300s over the R3 because of the price difference (can’t justify the extra $700 for the cost of the R3s.) There is no where anywhere really to hear the Veneres. I would be looking at the 2.0s - so if anyone else wants to weight in on this it’s appreciated. Thanks again for all of your guys thoughts. You’re all really helpful, and I am thankful for that. |
I have had the LS50 ‘s for over 6 years and originally drove them with a small tube amp and preamp. They did not have any bass so I bought a sub and sound improved and I enjoyed them. I recently upgrad d to a Krell 150 after reading many threads on the need for better power. I no longer use the sub and the speakers are sounding great. i have Wharfedale 210’s hooked to my computer and another small tube amp, for $200 speakers they are good. The 210’s are easy to power in a smaller room. With all that said I’m looking to upgrade speakers, if I stayed of this website I could save money. |
Wharfedale is just an appliance these days. Same with Klipsch. I’d get the LS50’s. I agree with the following comments from Paul McGowan: Commodity brands It is truly rare that a brand name can survive an ownership change: Marantz, JBL, Infinity, Harman Kardon, Wharfdale, Klipsch, Krell were all iconic brands when owned by their founders. Today they are but commodities. The wholesale name transfer doesn’t automatically pound a nail in the brand’s coffin. Mark Levinson’s brand got (arguably) better after Mark sold to Sandy Berlin and Mike Kay, but it is rare. We place a lot of value on these names and companies are willing to pay a lot of money to possess them though it’s always been a bit of a mystery to me what the new owner’s expectations are. Success without breaking a sweat, perhaps? Some brands take a reverse course. Instead of representing a lifetime of work they represent an idea instead. The ice cream brand Häagen-Dazs is a good example. It is a made up name that over the years has become associated with rich tasting expensive ice cream and to that goal succeeds well. In high-end audio, though, brand names are more often than not representations of personal work that have or have not withstood the test of time. The dustbin of come-and-gone names is full, yet those remaining have either morphed into something different than their founder’s intent—Klipsch and JBL are great examples—or fade into obscurity over time. I cringe when someone writes to me excited about a purchasing decision based on the former reputation of a brand only to later question how it got there when they don’t get what they had hoped for. It’s best to take a close look at what’s attached to any brand before jumping into the deep end. After all, the old saying what’s in a name? might be more valid than you know. |
