I love the comment about having the different set of speakers for different type of music.. don't think I've ever seen anybody suggest that on any of the reviews.. great job because I'm considering the kef speakers myself
I ended up buying these as I wasn't happy with my purchase of the Klipsch RP-600m. That speaker, sadly has some issues, namely a big hole in the midrange response. While I had known of KEF and was turned on about their concentric drivers, I had noticed that the popular LS line just seemed way overpriced. Then I had noticed the Q-line and the Q-350 stood out for me. While still expensive at the $719 price I seen them listed on Amazon, I was told (before watching this review) that they do go on sale from time to time. Over the summer, this happened and I managed to snatch them up for $500! When I got them, at first I was a bit disappointed because the high end sounded very dull. I had to ramp the treble control up all the way to get it to equal the high end output of the Klipsch with the treble on '0'. Now, I know they do talk about speaker break in periods, but I figured that was more for a woofer, and not applied to tweeters. Also, I was initially doing side by side comparisons with having one channel the RP-600m on it and the other the Q-350. At first it seemed as if the RP-600m's had a brighter high end, but of course, I didn't get a good idea of imaging this way. So, I hooked up the other Q-350 and that was when the magic happened. The soundstage and imaging was WOW! FAR better than the RP-600m. At first the bass response was better on the Klipsch, but over time I had noticed that some songs the bass response on the Q-350's got even deeper. So to quote the low end cut off figure on the Q-350's to be 63hz is VERY generous because the Klipsch (supposedly) goes down to 45hz. Over time I had even brought the treble control down to a more reasonable +2 to +3 instead of ramming it up all the way. Now, I absolutely love them! Recently I had managed to find some test data on the Q-350 in comparison to the LS-50 (meta), what shocked me was that, the LS-50meta is only marginally flatter at best. To say that it is a 30% better is really stretching it. It is more like 7%-10%. Keep in mind now too, the Q-350 has a 6.5" woofer as opposed to the 5.25" woofer of the LS-50meta. The latter which is around a $1500 speaker and it begs me to ask the question as to why this speaker costs 3 times more. Yes, it has a cast frame speaker as opposed to a stamped frame, Yes the box bracing is a bit better, but is it worth 3x more? To me, that is a resounding, "NO!" In the past KEF was always known to have a great sounding speaker for a moderate cost, but lately, I have seen some of their speakers starting to shoot to the stratosphere with one model costing $10k. That's ridiculous. I don't even spend that for a WHOLE system, let alone one component. This has me wondering if KEF is starting to head down the road of becoming a "troll" company like so many high end companies have done over the years. The asking price of the LS-50 (metas) is definitely not worth it, especially (as mentioned) you need a subwoofer. For the near field listening I do, the Q-350s are fine on their own. Overall, I had been reading very good things about the Q-line in general and there are many that even prefer them over the LS line. With KEFs asking price on that line, is there any reason why. In a nutshell, I HIGHLY recommend the KEF-Q350s and for those looking for something smaller, the Q-150's come in at a nice price level too. However, I have not personally heard those as I went right for the Q-350s.
@@Potato_Fi Thank you. Ohh, I just got the Q-350s, so I am no longer in the market for speakers. I am actually looking into a headphone amplifier right now. The Xduoo TS-26 or TS-22 is catching my attention.
Hi! I enjoyed the comparison with the LS 50 Meta and the bronze because these are other speakers that might attract buyers.
Very attractive, and the speakers look nice too. 🙂
I love the comment about having the different set of speakers for different type of music.. don't think I've ever seen anybody suggest that on any of the reviews.. great job because I'm considering the kef speakers myself
I ended up buying these as I wasn't happy with my purchase of the Klipsch RP-600m. That speaker, sadly has some issues, namely a big hole in the midrange response. While I had known of KEF and was turned on about their concentric drivers, I had noticed that the popular LS line just seemed way overpriced. Then I had noticed the Q-line and the Q-350 stood out for me. While still expensive at the $719 price I seen them listed on Amazon, I was told (before watching this review) that they do go on sale from time to time.
Over the summer, this happened and I managed to snatch them up for $500! When I got them, at first I was a bit disappointed because the high end sounded very dull. I had to ramp the treble control up all the way to get it to equal the high end output of the Klipsch with the treble on '0'. Now, I know they do talk about speaker break in periods, but I figured that was more for a woofer, and not applied to tweeters. Also, I was initially doing side by side comparisons with having one channel the RP-600m on it and the other the Q-350. At first it seemed as if the RP-600m's had a brighter high end, but of course, I didn't get a good idea of imaging this way. So, I hooked up the other Q-350 and that was when the magic happened. The soundstage and imaging was WOW! FAR better than the RP-600m.
At first the bass response was better on the Klipsch, but over time I had noticed that some songs the bass response on the Q-350's got even deeper. So to quote the low end cut off figure on the Q-350's to be 63hz is VERY generous because the Klipsch (supposedly) goes down to 45hz.
Over time I had even brought the treble control down to a more reasonable +2 to +3 instead of ramming it up all the way. Now, I absolutely love them!
Recently I had managed to find some test data on the Q-350 in comparison to the LS-50 (meta), what shocked me was that, the LS-50meta is only marginally flatter at best. To say that it is a 30% better is really stretching it. It is more like 7%-10%. Keep in mind now too, the Q-350 has a 6.5" woofer as opposed to the 5.25" woofer of the LS-50meta. The latter which is around a $1500 speaker and it begs me to ask the question as to why this speaker costs 3 times more. Yes, it has a cast frame speaker as opposed to a stamped frame, Yes the box bracing is a bit better, but is it worth 3x more? To me, that is a resounding, "NO!"
In the past KEF was always known to have a great sounding speaker for a moderate cost, but lately, I have seen some of their speakers starting to shoot to the stratosphere with one model costing $10k. That's ridiculous. I don't even spend that for a WHOLE system, let alone one component. This has me wondering if KEF is starting to head down the road of becoming a "troll" company like so many high end companies have done over the years.
The asking price of the LS-50 (metas) is definitely not worth it, especially (as mentioned) you need a subwoofer. For the near field listening I do, the Q-350s are fine on their own.
Overall, I had been reading very good things about the Q-line in general and there are many that even prefer them over the LS line. With KEFs asking price on that line, is there any reason why.
In a nutshell, I HIGHLY recommend the KEF-Q350s and for those looking for something smaller, the Q-150's come in at a nice price level too. However, I have not personally heard those as I went right for the Q-350s.
I really appreciate the feedback and your point of view. There is a recently released Q3 Meta for $800.
@@Potato_Fi Thank you. Ohh, I just got the Q-350s, so I am no longer in the market for speakers. I am actually looking into a headphone amplifier right now. The Xduoo TS-26 or TS-22 is catching my attention.
Thanks for the review.