You own my dream speakers. However, I own 3 separate pairs of KEF Speakers, ie; the KEF Reference 205/2’s, KEF Reference 201/2’s and a 3.1 KEF system for my family room TV setup. I think you can tell that I’m a KEF speaker fan.
The 205/2’s I bought in 2008 and I tell you for an 18 year old pair of speakers they are still going strong, ditto for my other KEF’s as well.
I make frequent stops at my (almost) local high-end audio shop in Berkeley, CA (Music Lovers) to check-in on what’s new and to test the array of setups they have in their 3 show/listening rooms and although I’m impressed with some the new gear and speaker systems with their sound quality, I’m not impressed by the sticker-shock prices of the new gear. And I say that having spent a pretty penny on my current system. I’m not a chaser of the, “Good, Better and Best” audio decease!
My 205/2 are well matched for my system and I would challenge their sound quality with some of the new stuff out there. I’ve also paired the 205/2’s with a pair of REL Reference S/812’s, and late last night I was in “Listening Nirvana!” (you can see my system in “My Systems”)
I have Bi & Tri-wired my 205/2’s at different times with 3 different systems driving them with no difficulty at all. However I find that single wiring using the jumpers works best for me, it’s also less expensive. Although our KEF’s can be used all three ways, single, bi and tri-wiring, I think you can achieve the affects of bi & tri-wiring by using the adjustment caps to fine tune the speakers. Do make sure to tighten securely the speaker terminal knobs and recheck after positioning your speakers. It has been my experience that they tend to loosen easily when fine tuning positioning. Of course, the first major factor is adequate power supply to the speakers for each operation.
Your Dartzeel has enough power for your KEF’s though they recommend 250wpc or more as ideal. I currently run 2-mono-blocked McIntosh MC275’s for my 205/2’s at 150wpc and it’s plenty to drive them. You having “The Big Brother” may want more power to drive them but do you NEED more? Your ears should make that decision for you, not specs.
Happy listening!
