Kef LS50 anyone hear these?

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by STBob, Aug 26, 2014.

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  1. wgb113

    wgb113 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chester County, PA
    Yes, and it seems it's what they were made for. For me they replaced a pair of Dynaudio BM5AmkII near field studio monitors and they pull a disappearing act that the Dyns couldn't quite muster,

    If you have a small room, necessitating a near field set up this speaker MUST be on your shortlist to audition.

    Bill
     
    Lord Summerisle likes this.
  2. Lord Summerisle

    Lord Summerisle Forum Resident

    Thanks for the reply. I'm going to audition a few different set ups today for a system that will be 90% near field. These speakers have piqued my interest along with the KEF X300. I'll be mostly playing hi res files through this. I'm also looking for an amp DAC to pair with them. In looking into Tannoys aswell.
     
  3. wgb113

    wgb113 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chester County, PA
    The only fault I have with them is that they don't go low enough for me on their own. That's the one area the R300 should excel. Integrating dual subs was the solution for me.

    Bill
     
  4. Waynefi

    Waynefi Confused over the confusion ?

    Location:
    Northern Ohio
    Small drivers in the right size room can output quite a bit of base. In my case, my Tetra 305's do produce bass quite good in a 12x15 room, with a 4.5" driver. Here is a quick picture of one of them. The difference with these is that the upper bookshelf looking box, is actually part of the integrated stand which is tuned as part of the speaker with a rear port near the bottom.
    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 10, 2015
    BilboAlaska likes this.
  5. Chris C

    Chris C Music was my first love and it will be my last!

    Location:
    Ohio
    I still want to hear these LS50 peakers, but there is no dealer near me and I don't want to be bothered with buying them online and having to send them back, if they aren't for me. Any forum members in Northeast Ohio have a pair of these, that I could come over and hear them?
     
  6. utahusker

    utahusker Senior Member

    I hope someone can help you with listening to these.

    They were the biggest improvement I've made for my system in a long time. They have a lot better bass than my Lascala's had, even with their 15" woofers.
     
    Chris C likes this.
  7. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    Would someone elaborate on this point? I will have to place my next speakers within just a few inches of a wall (not a corner), and the size of my listening room is similar to the one mentioned here.
     
  8. Metralla

    Metralla Joined Jan 13, 2002

    Location:
    San Jose, CA
    Then rear ported speakers would not be the best choice for you. The back wave from the driver (out of phase) comes out the port and is turned back in phase by the port - there is acoustic output and it's better if there is free space for that output to expand into, rather than immediately being reflected.

    You could look for front ported speakers, or even speakers designed to operate against a wall (using the wall to boost the bass).
     
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  9. thommo

    thommo Senior Member

    Location:
    London, England
    For the same sort of money, you could look into the Spendor S3/5r2 or ATC SCM7 - both great speakers, but neither are ported.
     
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  10. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    It seems that I'll have to cross the LS50's off my list. Regrettable, as the recommendations on this forum and elsewhere had me thinking they'd be my next speakers. By the way, what effect on the sound of the LS50's (or generally, if you prefer) would the immediate reflection of the ported output have?
     
  11. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    Thank you. I'll check them out.
     
  12. everton

    everton Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    You can try putting foam plugs into the ports. It's not ideal. But I once tried it with mine, and the result was not bad at all.
     
  13. Metralla

    Metralla Joined Jan 13, 2002

    Location:
    San Jose, CA
    I honestly don't know the answer to that. I looked up a few references and they seem to say that as long as the port is a distance 2-3 times the diameter of the port away from the back wall, the port will function correctly.

    There is a secondary effect of course - bass output is coming from the port and hitting the back wall and being inverted in phase. So in theory, if the speaker is 1/4 of the wavelength away from the back wall, the reflected output is now out of phase with the main output and tending to cancel it. For 50Hz we are talking about 5 feet or so away from the back wall.
     
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  14. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    Thanks, this information is very helpful. The LS50 ports look to be about 3" in diameter, so the rule of thumb you cite indicates a distance of 6" to 9" from the wall. I would have about 5" at best—not good. And your point regarding the "secondary effect" at lower frequencies also indicates that I need to be looking at another speaker.

    Thanks again!
     
  15. beowulf

    beowulf Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chula Vista, CA
    For something similarly sized yet bottom ported for easier placement you could check out the Omega 3 Desktop. Super easy to drive at 94.5dB @ 8 ohms (very tube friendly). Though I doubt you are going to get the bass out of them as you would with the LS50. Yet these are hand built in the USA, with a choice of veneer, a lot less expensive and made for tight spots where they could be close to a wall or even shoved into a book case, etc.

    They are worth checking out and Omega has there own forum ... as a matter of fact the latest topic is a comparison between the KEF LS50, Omega's Desktop/3i and Audience's The One. Wouldn't hurt to ask some questions there.
     
    thrivingonariff likes this.
  16. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    I'll tell you right now, youre not going to be happy with the bass of the L50s. I had the Kef 103.2 and they are a bass heavy speaker. They are also one of the warmest and smoothest speakers I've ever owned. They are an easy listening speaker with a deep warm signature. I can take one look at the L50 design and see they won't have the same kind of sound signature at all. You're going to go to the showroom and one of two things will happen. You either realize you like the warmth of the 103.2s and pass on the L50s (doubtful if you're longing for a new toy). Or you'll be overwhelmed and tickled by the detail of the L50s. Then you'll get them home and a few days later think, why aren't my old rock records and bad pressings soundings as inviting, and spend the next two years trying to bring the warmth back into your system with upgrades!
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2015
  17. Lord Summerisle

    Lord Summerisle Forum Resident

    I auditioned these last week... .They blew me away.
     
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  18. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    Thank you for your recommendation and the link. I'll check it all out.
     
  19. thrivingonariff

    thrivingonariff Forum Resident

    Location:
    US
    I appreciate your advice, but the thing is, I'm looking for smaller bookshelf speakers. Yeah, I'd rather not lose the bass, but I am limited as to the size (and price: <$2K) of speaker I can choose. Any suggestions for bookshelf models that are about the same size but better than the LS50's in regard to the bass would be appreciated (though I don't want to hijack this LS50 thread).
     
  20. dnuggett

    dnuggett Forum Resident

    Location:
    DFW Texas
    Create a thread with that specific topic then. :righton:
     
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  21. hesson11

    hesson11 Forum Resident

    Just a bit of information: The LS50 instruction manual indicates that, with the provided port plugs installed, a placement as close as 200mm (about 8 inches) to the rear wall is appropriate.
    -Bob
     
  22. Jeffczar

    Jeffczar Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    Have to agree for sure, the bass gets really messy in the small room. Front ported XQ10s sound very similar. I picked up a pair of these for my smallish music room and moved the LS50s into my home theater setup as the fronts with KEF iq60 center and q2ds dipole rears. Makes for a HT setup that's killer for movies and also not giving up anything for either 2ch music or multi channel music. I'm a huge fan of KEF speakers as you can tell. I also have a pair of iq50s and XQ1s in my closet !
     
  23. Jeffczar

    Jeffczar Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    That's been pretty much my experience, with the plugs I go 10-12 inches from the back wall. I wish they would go back to more front porting on some of their lines to be honest. It seems the rear ported designs are much more finicky regarding placement.
     
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  24. Metralla

    Metralla Joined Jan 13, 2002

    Location:
    San Jose, CA
    Plugging the port should alter the bass response - do you notice that?
     
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  25. Jeffczar

    Jeffczar Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    Oh yes absolutely it does help tremendously. For some reason though I still have more annoying bass issues in my room even with the plugs than any of the front ported KEFs I have. To be honest though, the room is just way to small and I think will just have bass issues no matter what, it just isn't big enough but it's all I have now due to some rather unfortunate life changes. Maybe I should unpack my Anthony Gallo A Diva ti spheres. Then I'd be moaning that they don't have enough weight probably !
     
    thrivingonariff likes this.
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