KEF LS50W

Yeah, I now remember we had the bass enhanced for classical music--which sounded good until a large-scale symphony recorded on London/Decca came up. Hard to find one perfect setting for all kinds of music. Played a Vivaldi record this morning, 5 Concerti for Diverse Instruments, and it sounded fantastic. On the Nonesuch label, recorded by Club Français Du Disque, Paris. The solo instruments (guitar, oboe, etc.) sounded really spectacular: intimate, real, and present.

Another thing I'm noticing. As I said, the speakers are too low, maybe 18 inches up, on stands that sit on wooden boxes with records in them. When I'm sitting and the drivers are just below ear level, the imaging isn't so hot. Maybe the sound is bouncing off the hardwood floor? But when I stand, the speakers disappear. Interesting. I'll see what raising them does.

 

Folks, need your input. I’m looking for bookshelf speakers for the wife. She’s using Audioengine A5+ right now.

Are the LS50W suitable for an actual bookcase shelf ? (with only a couple of inches gap to the wall). Or do they need to be placed on stands.

Thx.

 

Yes, this is one of their selling points. They're designed to fit in with normal furniture/décor. They have a button on the back to select when placed close to walls, and you can fine tune the sound using DSP with their Android or iOS app.

 

They all should. I wouldn't change much unless their are alternative future options. The phrase "bookshelf speakers" shouldn't even exist IMHO. A switch on the back can't make things right. It's like owning a racing car and flicking a switch to make it ok for dirt roads.

 

@noway @Gabe Walters — Thank you for the quick response, much appreciate it.

 

Well, after placing the LS50w on plant stands next to the Focal 1008be2 and A/B ing, My wife comes in an I ask her opinion.
The KEF won. I’ve tried to match them with the dsp in the Kef app, and will use REW tomorrow to try to get them closer.
So, for the next week I’ll playing around with them to figure out if I’ll be selling the Primaluna and Focals.

The Kefs are really amazing for the money, now they just need to figure out the app issues.

 

Awesome! And are you having issues with the app? It seems to work without any issues for me

 

Looking into the LS50W for a desktop setup (small room, maybe 8x10). I want the bookshelf to be able to work well in a small space but also be able to scale up when and if I choose to move this to my bedroom which is quite a bit bigger. It's either this at $2,200 or the Buchardt S400 at around $1,900.

 

I should have been clearer on which app, it’s the streaming app. My wireless network is very robust and fast, but I’ve had nothing but latency issues. The Bluesound app blows it away. I’m sure they’ll fix it some time.
Also I’d love it if Kef would add a “pro” interface to the dsp and unlock some more of the processing power, maybe add an interface for a calibrated mic so you can really tune it to the room. The “expert” interface is better, but what does the Desk and Wall sliders do to the frequency and delay?
More setup and testing this week.

 

You might look at the new KEF LSX’s too, if they’re going to be in the less-than-ideal bookshelf situation. Not sure if they have the same DSP compensation as the LS50W’s, but you might save a bunch of money.

 

Hit a bit of a bump tonight. I've been a vintage/RCA-input guy for so long, I never had occasion to learn that optical cable doesn't pass SACD signal.

So I popped in an SACD tonight and got a fat load of silence via the optical input to the LS50W. I'm wondering what my best options are here, since the turntable/Mani is taking up the analog inputs of KEFs. Any thoughts?

 

Maybe this if you can do a bit of diy

 

Thanks! I was actually looking on Amazon at cheapo versions of such boxes last night, but the ones I found were complained about for being noisy etc.

No DIY for me, but this Rolls might work (though I'd prefer something even cheaper):
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001KVSC6...olid=113Y1PQ9GK37F&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

 

Aren't the Buchardts passive?

I have quite a few customer's running the LS50's in both office and bedroom setups. They do well in both.

 

Yep, they are. I do have a couple of amps that would work well including the compact PS Audio Sprout100 so I don't mind it being passive.

 

Actually I’ve been meaning to look into something like this bc I bounce between records, and tape deck, and don’t want to have to unplug and plug rca’s all the time. I notice the Douk audio one as well for only $20 with great reviews. I’ll probably grab that

 

Ended up finding a great deal on a like new pair of LS50W's in white. Going to give this a try in my office. If it isn't to my liking then I will look for a different option. I am looking forward to this experiment

 

From USAM? If so, those were mine before I sold them to the guy who sold them to you. He had them for 1 mo and used my pictures on his ad. Hope you enjoy and they stay with you longer!

 

Looks good. I like the Rolls' option of three inputs and don't need a volume knob. Still, $62 vs. $20? The Douk is tempting.

I've been enjoying the Mani - LS50w combination. Not finding that the Mani is missing mids at all, as some people say. Blasted a mono reissue of Sonny Rollins, Saxophone Colossus last night. Sounded great! Not just the sax--it's a percussion-heavy record (Max Roach), and the cymbals (a difficult sound to render realistically, to my ears) were articulate and shimmery. Maybe I won't go back to my 104/2s and the rest of my vintage setup after all.

 

Yeah! It has to be this one. He said he picked up another pair of speakers that he really wanted so he's letting these go.

 

Can someone please explain the purpose of the Wall Mode setting? Recently got longer RCA cables and now I can place my KEF LS50W’s 3 feet off the wall.

Thanks!

 

Well, the description in the manual is all you’ll get from KEF . I asked support 3 different times in 3 different ways what the Desk and Wall sliders affect, same line as in the manual or online, which is not very detailed to say the least.

You’ll just have to play around with them till you get a sound you like. The use of a measurement mic and REW will help you get it right.

Good luck.
mdr

 

This may be way more basic than you’re looking for, but the purpose of the wall setting is to allow placement of the speakers near a wall. It is advantageous to move them away from a wall, but not every room/setup allows for that.

 

Question—-

Bad car accident this am, pole knocked down. (Driver ok)

The power company turned off power while we had the LS50w playing.

Power restored but now the right speaker over modulates to static when the volume is raised.

The left speaker is fine.

Advise?

Thank you.

 

You could try a reset.
Otherwise email kef or whom ever you got them from.

Bummer