Mofi Sourcepoint 8 vs. KEF R3 Meta

avanti1960: Thanks for the recommendation. Your comments align with what others have said. The KEFs are also quite appealing to my eyes. On the downside, I know from experience that KEF's aluminum drivers are delicate, requiring careful handling and playing. Whereas, the paper drivers of the MoFi are sturdy and don't shy away from higher decibels. Physically, they also bigger than the R3s which is an asset in a medium-large room like mine.

Both speakers are great in their own way.

The KEF meta sound in general is very neutral and detailed.  I’ve heard various and own the ls50s (~1.5K) + powered sub.  Nice distinctive modern looks in general that will appeal to many these days, otherwise simply all business when it comes to measurable performance!

Compare with my Sonus Faber Concerto Domus  (older model, listed in the $4k range or so in its day ~ 20 years ago)  which sound completely different ie I would subjectively say warmer and more "musical", the music just flows nicely, a very special flavor of sound.   Then there is the Italian craftmanship that went into its design......beautiful!

Compare with my Ohm 5000s, much bigger, not completely a fair competition as a result, but very wide dispersion pattern, pseudo-omnidirectional, tonality is somewhere in the middle of the other two but closer to the KEFs, still neutral maybe a touch of warmth, but unique design delivers the lifelike "you are there" type  sound that I always just want to sit and listen to for hours on end.   A new comparable pair from Ohm would cost ~$9k these days.   

@output555 when I mentioned that the KEF weren't exciting enough for me at the time wasn't a remark about the high frequency. At the time I was looking for something with a bit more personal character if that makes sense. The R3 are just a very good all around bookshelf. I've compared them to their cheaper Q Meta line & there is a difference in sound. It's a more refined & mature sound. Objectively there isn't really any faults in the R3 Meta..being a bookshelf. A subwoofer really ties it all together. 

So I didn't find them to be bright or dull. Now the room I listened to them mostly in has sidewalls 8 & 10 feet out. Before selling them I tried them in a bedroom with much closer sidewalls & I could hear an uptick in high frequency energy. Maybe that has something to do with certain people's opinion of them being bright-ish. I did love the fact that you can place them very close to the wall behind them without altering the clarity. I had them maybe 17 inches from back of speaker to wall..a good 30° off axis. Using REW this gave me a nice roll off up top..which is what I prefer. I do not like a bright or overly extended frequency response. 

I think that the R3 is a safe speaker to buy. The objective measurements are extremely good. I wish I would have tried the Mofi but the next bookshelf that crossed my path ended up being a keeper. Regardless of me selling my KEF's they are a good bookshelf. You could do much worse. Good luck. 

@output555 & actually when the wife was wanting me to switch back to bookshelves in the living room I as well was contemplating between the R3 Meta's & the Mofi 8's. I went with the KEF's due to what I perceived would be easier placement. I felt that the 8's would need to be more out into the room. The KEF's were my first coaxial driver design. And there is a difference vs more conventional speakers in my opinion. I found the KEF's to disappear very easily..very large center image. Just overall it was a little different than what I was used to. 

Regarding "high frequency energy" with teh KEFs, be sure to check out the measured dispersion patterns of each model.  Erin’s Audio Corner on youtube provides that info for several models and I have found that very useful to help understand the design and get things set up well.

ALso worth noting that at least with ls50s, kef provides very specific setup directions that takes the speaker’s dispersion into account, so be sure to follow the directions for best results.