Did a casual audition this evening for about 3 hours.
Details of the setup, listening room and tune set
Chain:
Asus MP --> Schiit Modi-2-Uber --> Marantz PM7001 --> Outlaw M2200 x 2 --> KEF R300
Marantz was in source direct mode (no tone controls) and volume between 9-10 O'clock. Since the speakers were demo units at a showroom, I will give them the benefit of doubt and assume they have been played enough.
Listening room:
- 12' x 12' in an L-shaped living/dining area
- no special room treatment
- 3+1+1 fabric sofas facing the speakers
- AV cum display unit at the back of speakers (pic in post #5 of this thread)
- distance between speakers: approx 7 feet
- distance between speaker plane and listening plane: approx 6-7 feet
- speakers placed on make shift stands (18" plastic stool + 4" plastic foot stool + 4 books); Uni-Q tweeter at approx 38 inches height
- free space in front and sides; some clutter at the back (see above mentioned pic); they were placed in front of where the older speakers were (speakers removed)
- all said, nowhere near to ideal listening area
Tune set (sample picks from):
Blues (Albert King, BB King)
70s/80s/90s Rock (Clapton, JJ Cale, Dire Straits, Tull, Ben Harper)
Hard Rock (Led Zepp, Deep Purple, Metallica, Iron Maiden)
R&B/Pop (Nina Simone, Annie Lennox, Rufus Wainwright, Tori Amos, Adele, Lenny Cohen)
Western Classical (Mozart, Beethoven, Wagner, Joe Hisaishi)
Indian - this needs a serious and dedicated session
My initial aural impressions
- Vocals were strong and clear; near center imaging with tracks containing minimal instrumentation
- Instrument separation is very evident with some degree of layering
- Strings, flute and drum clicks heard distinctly without dismemberment from the music set
- Electric guitars were smooth and clear
- On some acoustic guitar tracks, it was nice to hear the finger movement along strings
- Bass drum and base guitar were controlled and in level with the music set
- Boom observed when I placed the speakers in the cubby hole (these puppies need air around them)
- On many tracks the speakers seemed to disappear
On vocals + string or minimal music KEFs really do shine; they get their act together very well with mids and highs with out causing any discomfort.
On tracks with base, they really need to be in free space; otherwise boom can be heard and it is uncomfortable after 2-3 mins. Have not yet had a chance to play tracks with serious base and variations.
When thrown western classical with lots of dynamic range, they can go from whisper quiet to full ensemble without breaking a sweat.
On hard rock and metal numbers, they do not kick up an unholy ruckus if given air.
Stands are a must for these; I may get away with keeping them in cubby hole for movies. I feel they can go up to 8-9 feet separation in my listening room with proper stands.
All this said, my conclusion after this first session is:
"These gentlemen from Kent are elegant, smooth and classy when they get to play strings, vocals and classical music sets. Much like English royalty. Throw hard rock music at them, and they will not be shy to reveal their true rowdy Anglo-Saxon nature. I would not be surprised if they start behaving like drunk Brits at a football game when asked to play base heavy/electric music and no breathing space"
More later. Maybe with just the Marantz PM7001 and Marantz NR1605.
Cheers,
Raghu
.
