Stereophile 2014 Recommended Components

[mpw]

wow.. the primare and kef LS50 will be an interesting combo.

the I30 is quite a powerful amp.

would like to listen someday.. whenever..

Please do post pics if possible and if not OT to this thread.

whats your source like ?

regarding the electronics - its quite understandable - what the reviewers mean - the stated sensitivity if the LS50 is 85dB only so it would need quite a powerful amp to drive it. The primare I30 at 100 watts at 8 ohm is on the outer limits of the KEF recommended amp rating of 25-100 W and i think that would explain this.

An amp approaching 100W at 8 ohm would be required to get the best out of the KEF LS50.

Ofcourse quality power.. and not just power..

One of the reasons i want to listen to this speaker in a normal home environment is that at the dealers.. the room is very treated and with other speakers being there.. one might not have got the chance to appreciate the LS50 for what it is.

anyways.. YMMV..

mpw

 

[nishikant]

My primary source is Marantz CD6004. Sometimes listen to some flacs via a cheap FIIO E10 dac. I am planning to upgrade to Arcam DAC. I was lucky to get used Primare I30 for 52000/-. Will sell my Polk Audio RTI 7 and NAD C356BEE to fund my upgrade. Wll post pics soon.

 

[arj]

You could make the same statement about a lot of excellent speakers - put ordinary amplification in front of them and they sound just as ordinary as the amplifier powering them. If someone wants to spend US$1k each on source and amplification, they are not going to get much out of these speakers - they are just too sensitive of partnering equipment for the price they sell at. Ironically, that is one crib that wouldnt be there if Kef decided to sell them at US$3k or more

+1 to that. It is definitely not a great idea to carry an opinion of a speaker based on 1 audition with one amp. as has been discussed before what is far more important than a speaker and an amp individually is how they play together ( ie Synergy) and that can be more or less than the "Sum of parts"

And if i remember the reviews right they do say it is demanding of partnering equipment


Anyway I really want hear this speaker once. The Single Full Range driver is very interesting it is rated to be very transparent and also is a point source hence should have great coherency. only issue is it is low sensitivity that means a Good 50-100w amp and better the amp better the sound

 

[vijwilso]

When you have people like my friend, who is using Emotiva XPA-1 Monoblocks to get the LS50's to do what they say they do, then that should put things in perspective.

As for my experience with the LS50's, I heard them @ PROFX, paired with a Denon PMA1500 amp & also with a peachtree audio decco65. End result of above combo's
was that the LS50's sounded rather very ordinary & I just felt why the big fuss being made over these speakers? For lesser outlay, I'd rather go with another pair of speakers, which arn't fussy over amplification & beat the LS50's hollow/black & blue :lol:

But anyway, we are here to discuss stereophile's recommendations, of which the LS50's belong to Gives me a good perspective of Stereophile as well

That is true , When i listen to LS50 in ProFx paried with Denon Amp ( dont remember the model ) and CD player , it was below average . I don't think proFx would be able to sell if they demo with this partnering kid . Later I paired it with Exposure amp and AudioGD DAC , it was lot better , but i expect something like this .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwnjKWWfg_w

Even in youtube , it sounds great !!!

 

[Hiten]

The Single Full Range driver is very interesting

Bro,
LS50 is a coaxial driver design.
Regards

 

[jerin]

You could make the same statement about a lot of excellent speakers - put ordinary amplification in front of them and they sound just as ordinary as the amplifier powering them. If someone wants to spend US$1k each on source and amplification, they are not going to get much out of these speakers - they are just too sensitive of partnering equipment for the price they sell at. Ironically, that is one crib that wouldnt be there if Kef decided to sell them at US$3k or more

+1000000 for this

That is the reason i don't rely on the reviews by the off-the-shelf , know-it-all , half-baked reviewers hyeah::lol:

 

[arj]

Bro,
LS50 is a coaxial driver design.
Regards

Thanks hiten , I stand corrected . I thought It was a single driver

 

[Kushanava]

I heard the LS50 extensively yesterday for 2 hrs.
My source was my own Marantz Cd 48 and sugden a21 se (35 W Class A).

Even with a 35 W class A the bass seemed to be a little out of control (may be due to break in , not sure) ..The cost of ownership would indeed be quite high as it demands high current amps and clean wattage.Even the sales man , after listening to my sugden admitted that the denon didn't do justice to the speakers. Pro-fx will be stocking Electrocompaniet amps going forward. Hoping, it to have better synergy.

Sugden was able to expose the quality of speaker through holographic (yes this may sound to be hollow because of the see-through nature of presentation and no additional weight on the frequencies) imaging and an ever present mid-range.However ,it never sounded cold or without emotion.I have never heard a harbeth , but the speaker that came close to this kind of midrange with the Sugden is the Spendor s3/5r2. I admit that , I didn't spend so much time with the spendors as I did with the KEF.But good or bad , to my ears ,spendor had a totally different presentation ,and were more smooth sounding.Kefs had more energy and personally ,more fun to listen to, also more involving.It is that kind of a speaker that will ask you to listen to it once more and demand for attention rather than being played on the background.LS50 will not hide a bad recording and may even make you stop listening to your old digitized recordings.These speakers do not hold back sound , so if you are pairing them with a cold amp , it might be hot on the highs.

When I started my audio journey (i am still learning) , the Epos M12i , gave me this kind of excitement and still today I visit SKS to hear those speakers even after owning Dynaudio x12 ( which is a 5 star rated speaker). After 2 years , and after listening to a dozen more speakers the LS50 has given me that same kind of excitement yesterday.I don't expect every one to like it as much as I do , but the truth is that, there are speakers for each individual in this market and you have to keep hunting for it...

 

[gobble]

Bought KEF LS50 six months back for 1 lakh. I was using it with NAD C356BEE. While it was huge improvement over my Polk Audio RTi 7, I thought they could sound better. Changed my NAD with Primare I30. Now they sound amazing.

Whats the diff between nad sound and primare?

G0bble

 

[denom]

You could make the same statement about a lot of excellent speakers - put ordinary amplification in front of them and they sound just as ordinary as the amplifier powering them. If someone wants to spend US$1k each on source and amplification, they are not going to get much out of these speakers - they are just too sensitive of partnering equipment for the price they sell at. Ironically, that is one crib that wouldnt be there if Kef decided to sell them at US$3k or more

Fussy speakers is what they are. End of the day, I did not get carried away as most of the reviewers were/are :indifferent14:

Bought KEF LS50 six months back for 1 lakh. I was using it with NAD C356BEE. While it was huge improvement over my Polk Audio RTi 7, I thought they could sound better. Changed my NAD with Primare I30. Now they sound amazing.

Can I please come over for a listen, if its ok by you??? If yes, then pls PM your address, Thanks!

 

[vijwilso]

I heard the LS50 extensively yesterday for 2 hrs.
My source was my own Marantz Cd 48 and sugden a21 se (35 W Class A).

Sugden was able to expose the quality of speaker through holographic (yes this may sound to be hollow because of the see-through nature of presentation and no additional weight on the frequencies

My observation is pretty much the same as you stated here. Yep ... The hollowness is what I did not like in this' but that is just personal taste. Spendor s3/5r2 , compared to this has got a denser, richer mid presentation, but this is more exciting. May be a better matching gear will change the leaner nature of mid

 

[mpw]

When I started my audio journey (i am still learning) , the Epos M12i , gave me this kind of excitement and still today I visit SKS to hear those speakers even after owning Dynaudio x12 ( which is a 5 star rated speaker).

========================================================

half in jest... makes you wonder why the Epos M12i never made it to the stereophile list of components.

at a last known MRP of INR 48K - here was something that could conjure up magic. ( Ofcourse partner it well.. just like the diligence shown in discussion about partnering equipment for the LS50 ).

was it poor marketing ?

Cannot be poor sound for sure..

mpw
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[arj]

========================================================



half in jest... makes you wonder why the Epos M12i never made it to the stereophile list of components.



at a last known MRP of INR 48K - here was something that could conjure up magic. ( Ofcourse partner it well.. just like the diligence shown in discussion about partnering equipment for the LS50 ).



was it poor marketing ?



Cannot be poor sound for sure..



mpw

=======================================================

Mpw, they put up stuff only that they review. In the past the Sugden a21a was in the list and so was the schick arm... These also do not really market too much
The Epos though is pretty well reviewed in the British media

 

[Kushanava]

My observation is pretty much the same as you stated here. Yep ... The hollowness is what I did not like in this' but that is just personal taste. Spendor s3/5r2 , compared to this has got a denser, richer mid presentation, but this is more exciting. May be a better matching gear will change the leaner nature of mid

Yep!! Its a different sounding speaker for sure and the difference is what some may like and others maynt.You may even run away after the first song as it will expose your front end flaws ruthlessly.but I will urge you to sit and listen even if u didn't like the first byte.Icecream tastes good only when it melts in ur mouth..before that u can only feel the ice..so give the sound a chance to settle down in ur mind and it will grow on you.

On a diff note..this is the first time ever my wife insisted on a home demo and wanted to buy a speaker! !This tells me that the speakers can also attract a non audiophile due to the emotional connect..I had to literally make her understand that the speakers needed a more powerful amp than a sugden to be driven in a bigger room!!

 

[vijwilso]

Yep!! Its a different sounding speaker for sure and the difference is what some may like and others maynt.You may even run away after the first song as it will expose your front end flaws ruthlessly.but I will urge you to sit and listen even if u didn't like the first byte.Icecream tastes good only when it melts in ur mouth..before that u can only feel the ice..so give the sound a chance to settle down in ur mind and it will grow on you.

On a diff note..this is the first time ever my wife insisted on a home demo and wanted to buy a speaker! !This tells me that the speakers can also attract a non audiophile due to the emotional connect..I had to literally make her understand that the speakers needed a more powerful amp than a sugden to be driven in a bigger room!!

Yes , i agree , Some speakers grow on you. It can not be judged in couple of hours audition . I spent around three hours in Audition . Overall i liked it , except for the mids . Home audition would have been different . I will try this time, if possible .

Another mistake during the audition was that there was much more flashy Cabasse in the demo which i listened side-by-side . That is strickly a no-no.

If possible , can you try with the NAD M2 Digital amplifier . Seems to pair really great .

 

[gobble]

Sugden was able to expose the quality of speaker through holographic (yes this may sound to be hollow because of the see-through nature of presentation and no additional weight on the frequencies) imaging and an ever present mid-range.H

Bro
I feel the hollowness or lack of solidity has to do with lack of sufficient focus using most digital sources and less than stellar cables. With most mid priced digital gear, the system appears to provide focus and imaging that a listener tends to rave about because these attributes have appeared in the system in a manner that is pleasing and helpful to quality reproduction, yet it is almost always never enough. I strongly suspect if you try playing the the same recordings from an LP and an analog TT the hollowness will be replaced by a more solid sound.

G0bble

 

[jai1611]

Fussy speakers is what they are.

OT. Top notch speakers are almost always fussy about setup. Think of the best setups you've heard at people's homes and the amount of care those people have taken to get the system right - whether partnering equipment, positioning, room, cables, power or source material.

 

[arj]

agree with jai above, the reason many speakers are "Non Fuss" and forgiving, by nature means they are compromised in some way (not that is bad, but must be aware). sound waves do not compromise hence the more resolving/True the setup the more difficult it is to get it all properly aligned and hence all the more difficult to infer anything from in the first listen where the partnering information is all Alien.

If you do hear a well setup system in ANY room and love it and just change the speaker to another one as is, the first setup will usually sound better as it is been optimized for that. That is a trick many dealers do use in their setups to try and push a speaker they favor at least in Singapore where there is a more evolved dealer setup.
The above can also be true for Source equipment as a superior source could cause more bass resolution and chances of a Boom which may not have been their before and this can even colour the mids
Amps are a different matter as , as said above, the synergy with the speaker is more important the am itself and hence some auditions of good speakers not working with lower compatibility amps

 

[nishikant]

Whats the diff between nad sound and primare?

G0bble

With NAD the bass was overpowering at higher volumes, while with Primare I can listen to much higher level without LS50 losing its composure. Even at low volumes the mid range is very well defined with Primare.

 

[Thad E Ginathom]

... I had to literally make her understand that the speakers needed a more powerful amp than a sugden to be driven in a bigger room!!

I could be waay wrong (Rajiv?) but I think I heard the KEF's connected up to Rajiv's vintage Quad amp. I don't suppose there were very many watts there.

Anyway, in another thread, Capt Rajesh points out that I mis-remembered what we did last week ...and the meet was a whole year ago.