I misspoke: this is the only 3-way *bookshelf* in the new Q series. Apologies. Buy from Crutchfield: howl.me/cnkKp1oFm0a Generic Affiliate Links: Amazon: amzn.to/3v6i6ov Audio Advice: www.audioadvice.com/?referral=erins-audio-corner Best Buy: howl.me/ck2IPpcOp1h Crutchfield: shop-links.co/cgZmmT81jmh Parts-Express: parts-express.sjv.io/Y9zoEB Newegg: howl.me/ck2IQg52L5b Samsung: howl.me/ck2IQ5qe16w Target: howl.me/ck2IRDNsIqn Thomann: www.thomann.de/de/index.html?offid=1&affid=2577 Emotiva: shorturl.at/pBEU9 Monoprice: bit.ly/3yAY6NH Arendal Sound: arendalsound.com/store/?refer=hardisj Purchases through these links can earn me a small commission - at no additional cost to you - and help me continue to provide the community with free content and reviews. Doesn't matter if it's a TV from Crutchfield, budget speakers from Audio Advice or a pair of socks from Amazon, just use the link above before you make your purchase. Thank you!
All the Q Series Lineup besides Q1, Q3, Q4 and Q8 are 3-way designs. Not only limited to this. Yes this time KEF did it. They brought down not only the Meta Technology but also their 3-way design to Q Series Lineup.
@@ErinsAudioCorner Cool I though you were not informed about it yet and thought that this specific model being new to the Q Series Lineup was given a special treatment.
Totally agree! They’re just about the only company in HiFi that seems to really make excellent price competitive products from the entry level all the way up to ultra high end. They all have great quality for the price and look good too. I could say the same for Focal as well, but they’re not quite as price competitive and their entry level products tend to slightly under perform.
@@richardbixler Yeah. I find HiFi getting more weird by the day. Expensive is no guarantee of quality. I recently started going to shows again, and have been hearing more than one system sounding plain weird. Though there are still some really serious makers out there. JBL still has it, Kii and Buchardt makes sense among the smaller makers, and I guess there are more.
@@richardbixlerI never found their Q150 or Q350 to be competitive of their price points even with the price drop, it never sounded right and I put it up to the coaxial driver. That was until I heard the LS50 Wireless and I love the sound. Personal preferences though of course
The Q150 and Q350 aren’t the most efficient speakers, and roll off around 80hz. Maybe you listened with an insufficient amp or prefer a less linear response. Objectively speaking, there really are only a handful of speakers that perform as well as the q150 or q350 at their price point. That fits my definition of competitive 🤷♂️
💛💚💛💚💛💚 My daughter's 14. Center of my universe. Top Gear, Rich. Hammond's daughter is kicking ass. I want all our kids to be proud of us, Dads. Best Wishes, Erin.
Thanks for your many informative segments. You do a great job at explaining concepts in a way that's easy to understand. I particularly appreciate your insights into the KEF R3 Meta and Q Concerto Meta as I am considering these speakers for my next purchase. Keep up the good work!
Comparing this with the R3 Meta seems pretty logical. How would you say these compare to the similarly priced LS50 Meta? Those go on sale pretty frequently now.
I had them compared and this I have the same conclusion as Steve Guttenberg has in he's review, LS50 Meta has better mid range/maybe top end as well, Concerto has better low end and much bigger wider sound stage but top end is also very precise and beautiful imo. When considering have in mind that LS 50 in bigger room will need a sub-woofer to ever compete with Concertos, and that it needs more powerful amp to run properly due to driver design But if you have those 2 you will end up with a better end result then just buying Concerto's witch is not a surprise .So LS meta-50 more precise - like monitor sound, Concertos more pleasant sound, I went for Concerto's since since in my room they have more bass then I'll ever need and I already have a near-field monitoring system so they give me another option for sound presentation.
Oooooo. Right weight. Tamed tweeter. Man oh man oh man. Thanks so much for TEACHING the data, per usual. Clearly, they are thirsty speakers, but jeez. I'll have to give them a spin at a local dealer. THANKS for all that you do!!
Begs the question of why other brands don't produce nice 3-ways. I can see a 700$ Concerto Meta whatever dominating home audio, stories being told in 40 years of how some kid (today) discovered Stereophilia/Audiophilia when these speakers blew his brain in is college dorm room, their dad's living room, the gang's hangout garage, etc. $1299 at Crutchfield. I checked. Can't. $700ish, I will beg my wife..........................
I still have the Q100s! 😂 They haven't been hooked up for a while, and they are literally my first decent set of speakers when I got into this hobby. I just never got rid of them.
Thanks again Erin for the awesome review! How would these compare to the LS50 meta? They are on sale right now for $1000 and was wondering if the concerto meta are worth the $400 increase. Thanks for any insight, and happy holidays 😀
Hey thanks! You might find this video helpful. I provide some deep level info in it. Why Do People Hate the KEF LS50? ua-cam.com/video/Nkx0CcR7JFM/v-deo.html
Best reviews on the net. I like that KEF spreads it's resources out across it's budget ranges. It's what I tend to like about JBL. They get to a point where they really can't help but to design a good or better speaker. The challenge must be trying not to step allover their flagship efforts. That kind of FR is pretty awesome for that money, and I tend to be pretty stubborn about what many consider value, these days. This is the kind of speaker to keep one from upgraditus for years with regard to music. I still would like a pair of stereo subs with these, even if only crossed over somewhere around the speaker's F3.
Excellent point and that is where cost saving comes in. KEF grew slowly out of a group of BBC engineers who had deep experience of making monitors for OB relay teams from live concerts all over Britain and most had 'Rogers' as the maker name. At the 'reference' end and where tape and electronics were used in modern music of the '60s to '90s they designed and had made by craftsmen mainly it the county of Kent, speakers of excellence in frequency range and image presence which were not intended for commercial scale sound reproduction. But, from such a wealth of experience it would have been churlish to confine the best to specialist use when some well known companies were selling 'good enough' speakers for domestic use. KEF grew from these roots and developed slowly, always with R&D being primary. Modern materials in the late century led to the meta-materials patents which we all know now. One pays for excellence of components and build quality as well as tons of experience and imagination passed on to the next generation of engineers. KEF never did gimmicks and I hope never will. A good point about JBL because they cannot help sticking (mostly) to the sonic quality dating back to J B Lansing himself.
Great Erin what a review! Sice you had Kef available for sending this pair, what about telling them that they might send a Q meta tower instead? I'd love to discover we have a kickass tower speaker in the Q7 at 2-300 bucks more
Aye the Q7s look tempting in comparison. Especially once you factor in the cost of reasonable speaker stands. Plus if you're going to get an amp capable of driving these well there's a good chance it'll be a 200W per channel one so may as well stretch to the 200W speakers.
Came from LS50 Meta to Q Concerto Meta. Out of the box didn't like the Q Concerto at all. Too little mid bass and too little highs (10:30) . Ended up repositioning the damping material in the main cabinet and halving the 3.9 Ohm resistor in the high filter path (+2.5 dB, maybe 2.7 Ohm option instead of 2.0 Ohm if you don't use the grille) Now we're talking! Took some pictures of the inside that are available on my website. Btw. The three drivers are excellent.
Great review! I have been in this hobby for about 45 years. Honestly I have heard many, many speakers but nothing from KEF! These speakers from your perspective look like a fantastic speaker, and there not $5K!. Great review!
I was thinking between R3 and Q Concerto and your review really helped me. I got the Concerto after listening and for my usage - 70% HT and 30% Music this is amazing 😄
@17:30 "where you draw this line is somewhat subjective" There you go again, my opinion this, my opinion that, subjective this, data that. Just kidding. Just trying to head off the trolls. :) :) I love how science allows for interpretation of data while knowing it IS subjective in some way. The data PLUS Erin's EXPRESSION of his interpretation helps me understand what's happening in my listening space with my listening gear very reliably. Good job, Erin. Thanks for providing vicarious joy for us. CHEERS!
It looks like they have around a 9-10db decrease from 100hz to 20000 and smoothly and evenly. Pretty interesting as a “ Target curve” to have in mind for in room response. Nice vid !
Are you testing the full range by any chance? I'd love to know your take on the Q7s as they seem to be the best match for the centre with both being rated up to 200W. And the matching would also go well with a 3 channel 200W amp. Also curious how the centre performs as well as the new on walls as they look ideal for surrounds. They also seem to be advertising the centres as also suitable to use as matching LCRs.
Another great thing about this is that the coaxial tweeter/mid is at the top of the cabinet, helping with reflections off horizontal surfaces below it, even with early floor reflections. And it’s easier to have the tweeter at ear height for most stand. Though I guess with the vertical dispersion that matters less.
Thank you! I will be getting the Q3's because my speakers sit closer to the wall and they will be paired with a sub. I was very curious about these and you answered all my concerns. keep it up!
Here's a question I have. If I were to tell the amplifier's room correction software to send anything below 80hz to subwoofer instead of the speaker, could I leave the speaker closer to the wall? (I'm thinking about 12 inches or so)
I once had KEF Q5s, which were also 3-way and had a about similar driver. They played very well, but sometimes there was too much bass and the characteristic of these speaker drivers was that to hear the high tones and some of the mid tones well, you had to be facing directly towards the speakers.
As always, great review and thanks for the data. By far my favorite reviewer. I will keep my opinion that I just don’t care for Kef speakers though. I demoed the Kef Blade 2 again at a different dealer 2 weeks ago. I find my opinion of them has not changed. The Blade 2’s mids and highs lack detail and the vocals lack presents due to that IMO. Good bass output but I would still highpass it as 60hz to clean up the detail under 60hz not to mention room integration with subs. The sound stage is great and stable but as a whole I feel like it is a good speaker that has a veiled sound, as if a thin blanket was thrown over it. The deal did offer an in home demo but I politely decline as I feel they are a step backwards for my tastes. As always use your own ears. Now before someone says I just don’t like “flat speakers” I also own and currently use speakers that measure just as flat (based on kipple data). So when I see glowing reviews of Kefs lesser speakers I always wonder about the lack of detail.
Thanks for such a through review. I’m a new subscriber and it’s good to have this level of data to compare with your impressions, really impressive and very much appreciated.
Another winner from Kef. Only caveat for me would be low sensitivity combined with low-ish impedance load. So for a budget (albeit upper end budget) speaker it will need a quality amplifier with good current reserves. Looks to be a good 2dB less sensitive than the R3.
A pair of outlaw mono blocks for $700 would make these things scream with little to no effort, and even something like a monolith 2100x stereo power amp for 300$ should be more than adequate. Excellent preamp/DAC options are becoming insanely cheap. The WIIM ultra or balanced AKM chip SMSL products for example.
Curious how close you judge these to the Elac Uni Reference ($1199 pair) and/or Focal Vestia ($1098 pair). No where to go by me to listen to all three. Would love to see some sort of scaling / scoring in the reviews. For example only, if the KEF R3 Meta is "100" points, how would this speaker score? This leads to the question of how much does one appreciate the sound difference for an additional $1000 or so.
I tried them and yes the sound stage is wide and tall and has depth however electric guitars sounded opaque compared to my JBL HDI-1600 s and my Wharferdale Lintons. Basically electric guitars were not as crunchy and dynamic, sounded laid back and opaque. Amp is a Rotel 1592MKII. I'm on the femce with these.
Yes,in room response is more important , any coax speaker that is larger than 5 inches and producing base below 200 Hz, has some compromises, especially when playing at higher levels due to many factors. I’m not saying that other designs Sound bad I’m just saying they have compromises like everything😊
These are the same price as LS50 Metas in here. Usually, can even get LS50s around 200€ cheaper (often on sale). Those are built like a tank and really high quality level. I can't think any reason to pick these if there's already a subwoofer in the system. There are so many quality speakers at this price range.
I think that it's still an extended bass shelf design. It just does not have as much gain at the corner frequency than the other KEF build. A feature of EBS designs is a slow rolloff from the flat area of the response to the corner frequency, in this case it looks like 6dB of rolloff from 100 Hz to 40(?) Hz, which is less than you'd see with a sealed alignment (12dB/octave).
I bet the woofer has a very low Fs, I bet in the very low 30's. The first impedance peak is higher than the second one and the system is tuned to around 40Hz and the roll off is very slow and gradual (oversized enclosure ) something which normally one would see with a 9-10" bass driver. I like the that KEF uses dedicated low freq transducer to dig these low frequencies ;)
0:51 "it's a 3 way design which is currently the only 3-way in the budget Q series", what about the Q7, Q11, and the Q6 center?? The whole new Q series changed all 2.5 way speakers to 3-way, Concerto is not the only 3-way speakers in the new Q line...
Great review, Erin. I own the Non-Meta LS50. I really love them-the wide, holographic soundstage and clarity. I’m running them with a Parasound amp and McIntosh C39 preamp. My only issue is that the scale can seem a bit small for symphonic music. Do you see the Concerto having a bigger sense of scale?
Looking for a bookshelf speaker that I can actually use on a bookshelf. It seems to me that most of the current designs use a rear facing port. Surprisingly, most of the small speakers I see are planned for use on a speaker stand, this one included.
Exciting! Love that these aren't as bright at the R3 Meta. I have the Elac Navis powered monitor though. An Andrew Jones designed 3-way bookshelf with a warmer profile. So I don't quite know what I'd be gaining over the Navis.
Great review as always. I was wondering why there is no mention/comparison of/with LS50 Meta. They are very close in price and size. As an owner of the LS50 Meta I'm truly curious how they compare.
I see that one difference between this and the R3 meta is that you can bi-amp the R3. What are your thoughts on bi-amping? And the difference that makes in this particular case (I have some older Kef speakers and bi-amping seemed to greatly aid sound clarity)
Curious whether these crossed at 80hz for ht duty would give the same sense of fullness as a small floorstander like the Emit 30 crossed at the same 80hz. I previously tried it with the m126be and the bass just didn't cut it. Putting the floorstander back in was like, ah yes the bass is back.
I just saw/heard these at the local BB along with the center and the towers where I am-b’ed them against the tower R11 and same bookshelf/center.. and I can confirm… these things sounds amazing!!!! The R11 had more volume and a bit more highs but the bass on the new Q line was better! They are truly great!! 🎉
Wish i had a tiny bit of interest in bookshelf speakers. I have been in the market for a new set of floorstanding speakers for two years. Cannot find a great value anywhere.
Oh I missed the release of these and I just ordered a pair of MA Silver 100's. I didn't care for the Q350 though, I thought they were too bright, but I see these have tamed that brightness a little.
What are your thoughts on the Concerto vs the new Q7 meta? As far as I can tell, with the Concerto's on the SQ1 stands, the footprint and Uni-q driver height are about the same, the main difference is the additional bass driver in the Q7.
So, if the design is conceived around getting a flat room response, in a non treated room i suppose, does this mean the response in a correctly treated room will be "fucked up"?🤔
I demoed the R3 meta side by side with the Q concerto a few days ago. In some cases, the R3's are clearly better (the R3 shines when the treble is important, i.e. violin/cello recordings). In those cases the R3 is more refined, and it sounds larger than the concertos which sound "compressed" when directly compared. But in many situations the concertos hold their own, and when playing pop and rock, the concertos sounded a little warmer to me and the R3's actually became a bit tiresome since there's so much stuff happening with the treble/high frequencies. I ended up buying the Concertos since I found them more versatile and *very* close to the R3's performance in most situations. Outside of an A/B comparison I think I'd have a hard time telling them apart in many cases.
I still love my LS50 Metas. Very muscular midrange and midbass. 3D as hell. Intoxicating. I have many speakers, some would suggest my other speakers are "better" but I havent moved these in 2 years. Secret ingredients: Gustard Dac, Orchard Audio GaN amplifiers, Schiit EQ, dual subs. Signal dual mono all the way through.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I know you didn't care for em, so might be setup for me. Strange though as the R3 is the same thing with an added driver. But I digress. It's all good.
Hi Erin, What kind of amplification do you recommend for kef R meta (R3 / R5) and new Q meta (Concerto / Q7) series? Class A, A/B? Class D? Any specific type of class D? Power (at least X)? I understand this can be very subjective, but besides a general recommendation, if you have any specific example in mind, it's always welcome. I'm interested for specifically low level listening (50-60 db) but without (too much) distortion (from the amp) at 80-90 db. This is for a living room setup, not critically listening, just enjoying the sound while also walking around the room.
Thanks for the review. What you think if speakers distance to backwall is about 1 and half foot(max Distance on my living room). And you use foam plugs. Still boomines?. Or can you eq it down.
Hi Erin, excellent review. From THD graphs, I can see that maybe KEF cheaped out a bit on low freq driver. Concentric driver seems very clean and class-leading. Speaking of Harmonic Distortion, maybe it would be cleaner if you remove lines for 4th harmonic and line for THD from the graph. Maybe even remove 2nd harmonic line. Because 3rd, 5th are the relevant ones to look for, maybe even 7th but that one is usually low enough. Odd orders really stand out in sound, while 2nd and 4th are masked by natural harmonics in the instrument and voice sounds.
hi thank you very much for the very complete analysis i have a general comment about an issue for me quite important When revievers mention impressive performace for a speaker of this size If size is really so important, as i believe, anyone who wants serious performance should keep it in mind I have spent years listening to small speakers with limited range and power The 1st time i listen to a full range speaker it was a life changing experience I understood what i was missing In Kef they should really think to a nice sub to use with these The combination would be wonderful i guess
That really looks like a good speaker, Erin. For only $1200 pair, you're getting a 3-way with coaxial mid/tweeter, so that obviates a lot of the concerns about IMD. Harmonic distortion is probably acceptable, particularly for the price. Efficiency is great, it looks good, it has meta technology, and probably a wider polar plot than the R3 Meta. Paired with a subwoofer, about all a more premium speaker like, say, the Sointuva could offer is better distortion performance, especially with the widespread availability of DSP like Dirac. I could see someone putting together a great system with these, Fosi V3 monos, and a miniDSP Flex, for less than $2500. Later they could add something like a pair of SVS SB 1000 Pros, and make the system full range. They're an absolutely terrific bargain. Thanks for a great review.
Hey Erin, you're probably a very busy person. But I've missed where you clarify what the blue line in your measurements means for an 'ideal sound'. It seems to come out at a 1.5db/oct slope from 150 to 15k. Not sure if I'm being dense but clarification appreciated!
Great review! As usual! Thank you for sharing. Based on you assessment and conclusions I was wondering if this is an “ecclectic” speaker, meaning that it can perform well with all genres of music. KEF is marketing the Concerto mostly focusing on rock music from the 60´s and 70’s, just look at the ad and the test playlist they put together (The Beatles, Bowie, Zeppelin, Hendrix, Stones, Allman Brothers, etc.). So, is this a guitar rock speaker? What you mentioned about bass response and soundstage leads me to conclude it would also perform well with jazz and electronica. But isn’t it strange that KEF is only aiming at guitar rock as test music? Congrats on the channel! Best audio advice in UA-cam, by far!
Hi Erin, Great review for a great speaker as well. I just wanted to know if you need to choose between the Concertos and Kali's IN-8 v2s, which one you will you recommend for home cinema setup.
What a horrible choice of me to have gone all-R-series for my home theater two years ago. I could have waited two years, and save myself arguably $5000 for about -10% or even -5% of the performance. I'm sure that in an A/B-test you MIGHT hear some difference, who knows maybe the R-series is still the better series. But you'd never hear this difference after just a few hours of listening with how close these are now. Can someone tell me why anyone would give a flying rats A** about the R-series?
@@gersixtyseven2171 yes, and since then I stand even more behind my comment. I agree with part of what he says. Full disclosure: I really love my speakers. There’s nothing wrong worth them. Hell, maybe they are slightly better, who knows. But should I have waited? HELL YES. With €5k I could have expanded the HT-system with Atmos, better Blu-ray player, room optimization… ANYTHING that’s wildly more useful than slightly improved cabinet and slightly better components (all which I’m sure now roll off the same conveyor belt). My problem lies with the fact that today, the Q isn’t really ‘close’ to the R-line, it’s practically a replacement (judging from Eric’s measurements). Perhaps for everyone else two/three years is a long time, but I find that insanely fast. I feel like paying around €1500k/year more for a pair of speakers with almost no added benefit was the wrong choice. So, as the lady in the video poses the question: ‘is that added 20% improvement worth the added cost?’ Today I say: HELL NO. Save your money, ignore the R/Reference line and just buy an all-out Q-meta HT-system and call it a day. Either you are so rich that you straight-up buy the Blades (aka the epitome of the point-source), or you go for the utter best value, being the Q-line. I now find that everything in between are pointless improvements, especially versus the amount of additional money you have to pay for them.
Make no mistake..as a R3 meta owner the R3 are much better in every way than the new Q meta..In terms of prices i took then on a BF deal for 1199 which is a very good price. Trust me in terms of sound and clarity the R series are much better speakers. Even on paper is like 5or 10% difference when you listen to them the difference is much bigger. I now patiently wait for a R11 meta deal to finish my 5.1 setup.
Very close to what an r3 costs though. Would like a comparison between some older kef models and the new models, because the differences in price seem to be getting smaller with this gen
Hey Erin thabks for the great review. I was wondering if my old pioneer 1222k d3 receiver will be able to power these. It 4 ohm capable and asr said it hit 210w at 4 ohm in their testing with 2 channels, will it be able to hit good listening levels if I'm using 5.1 for movies though? Thabks so much! I'll def be using your affiliate link when I pick these up!
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I misspoke: this is the only 3-way *bookshelf* in the new Q series. Apologies.
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All the Q Series Lineup besides Q1, Q3, Q4 and Q8 are 3-way designs. Not only limited to this. Yes this time KEF did it. They brought down not only the Meta Technology but also their 3-way design to Q Series Lineup.
@@KING_DRANZERI just updated this post. I meant to say bookshelf speakers. 🤦♂️
@@ErinsAudioCorner Cool I though you were not informed about it yet and thought that this specific model being new to the Q Series Lineup was given a special treatment.
I had a hunch. Now it is confirmed.
Thank you for the review, Erin. I think I'll buy these for Christmas.
The people at KEF are really doing their job these days!
Totally agree! They’re just about the only company in HiFi that seems to really make excellent price competitive products from the entry level all the way up to ultra high end. They all have great quality for the price and look good too. I could say the same for Focal as well, but they’re not quite as price competitive and their entry level products tend to slightly under perform.
@@richardbixler Yeah. I find HiFi getting more weird by the day. Expensive is no guarantee of quality. I recently started going to shows again, and have been hearing more than one system sounding plain weird. Though there are still some really serious makers out there. JBL still has it, Kii and Buchardt makes sense among the smaller makers, and I guess there are more.
Looks like I’m pulling the trigger on this one . Now I need to convince my wife we need new speakers.
@@richardbixlerI never found their Q150 or Q350 to be competitive of their price points even with the price drop, it never sounded right and I put it up to the coaxial driver. That was until I heard the LS50 Wireless and I love the sound. Personal preferences though of course
The Q150 and Q350 aren’t the most efficient speakers, and roll off around 80hz. Maybe you listened with an insufficient amp or prefer a less linear response. Objectively speaking, there really are only a handful of speakers that perform as well as the q150 or q350 at their price point. That fits my definition of competitive 🤷♂️
Thank you for your detailed review.
I am glad you did the comparison between the two. Very helpful.
Glad it was helpful!
Not surprised this is so good for the price. It's basically a budget r3 meta.
Look at you my man. Getting so close to 100K subscribers. You look great. Hope all is well with you and your daughter ❤
Thanks man! Good to see you here!
💛💚💛💚💛💚 My daughter's 14. Center of my universe. Top Gear, Rich. Hammond's daughter is kicking ass. I want all our kids to be proud of us, Dads. Best Wishes, Erin.
Nice review, thanks Erin...
Looks like KEF is succeeding at stepping up their competitive game.👍
Thanks for your many informative segments. You do a great job at explaining concepts in a way that's easy to understand. I particularly appreciate your insights into the KEF R3 Meta and Q Concerto Meta as I am considering these speakers for my next purchase. Keep up the good work!
Thank you very much!
Thanks a ton, Erin! Was waiting for you review before pulling the trigger on R3M vs Concerto!
And what did you end up deciding? R3M it is?
@@mistadobalina3495 yeah, definitely going R3M
@@mistadobalina3495 yes, I did go with R3M this black friday. The extended bass shelf is pretty much a necessity with my placement.
Comparing this with the R3 Meta seems pretty logical. How would you say these compare to the similarly priced LS50 Meta? Those go on sale pretty frequently now.
I’m wondering the same
I had them compared and this I have the same conclusion as Steve Guttenberg has in he's review, LS50 Meta has better mid range/maybe top end as well, Concerto has better low end and much bigger wider sound stage but top end is also very precise and beautiful imo. When considering have in mind that LS 50 in bigger room will need a sub-woofer to ever compete with Concertos, and that it needs more powerful amp to run properly due to driver design But if you have those 2 you will end up with a better end result then just buying Concerto's witch is not a surprise .So LS meta-50 more precise - like monitor sound, Concertos more pleasant sound, I went for Concerto's since since in my room they have more bass then I'll ever need and I already have a near-field monitoring system so they give me another option for sound presentation.
@@boogiexx Would Concerto meta AND RSL Speedwoofer 12S sound like an overkill combo?
@@JoelHernandez-tz3vk not at all. Though Rel t7x. Then a step up at low volumes only, KC62 is slightly better. More musical.
Oooooo. Right weight. Tamed tweeter. Man oh man oh man. Thanks so much for TEACHING the data, per usual. Clearly, they are thirsty speakers, but jeez. I'll have to give them a spin at a local dealer. THANKS for all that you do!!
These are right up your alley!
@@ErinsAudioCorner Thanks so much. Gotta get through 2nd round of surgery, then recoup for 6 months to a year, THEN I'm good to go. Party down!
Begs the question of why other brands don't produce nice 3-ways. I can see a 700$ Concerto Meta whatever dominating home audio, stories being told in 40 years of how some kid (today) discovered Stereophilia/Audiophilia when these speakers blew his brain in is college dorm room, their dad's living room, the gang's hangout garage, etc. $1299 at Crutchfield. I checked. Can't. $700ish, I will beg my wife..........................
You call them thirsty, but it seems that this is the norm rather than the exception.
These look like a good upgrade for my Q150s down the line. Thanks for the review!
Thinking the same thing!
You bet!
Don’t put that evil on me, I’m just getting comfy with my Q150s…
I still have the Q100s! 😂 They haven't been hooked up for a while, and they are literally my first decent set of speakers when I got into this hobby. I just never got rid of them.
Thanks again Erin for the awesome review! How would these compare to the LS50 meta? They are on sale right now for $1000 and was wondering if the concerto meta are worth the $400 increase. Thanks for any insight, and happy holidays 😀
Hey thanks! You might find this video helpful. I provide some deep level info in it.
Why Do People Hate the KEF LS50?
ua-cam.com/video/Nkx0CcR7JFM/v-deo.html
Erin makes the best speaker reviews !!!
Best reviews on the net.
I like that KEF spreads it's resources out across it's budget ranges. It's what I tend to like about JBL. They get to a point where they really can't help but to design a good or better speaker. The challenge must be trying not to step allover their flagship efforts. That kind of FR is pretty awesome for that money, and I tend to be pretty stubborn about what many consider value, these days. This is the kind of speaker to keep one from upgraditus for years with regard to music. I still would like a pair of stereo subs with these, even if only crossed over somewhere around the speaker's F3.
Excellent point and that is where cost saving comes in. KEF grew slowly out of a group of BBC engineers who had deep experience of making monitors for OB relay teams from live concerts all over Britain and most had 'Rogers' as the maker name.
At the 'reference' end and where tape and electronics were used in modern music of the '60s to '90s they designed and had made by craftsmen mainly it the county of Kent, speakers of excellence in frequency range and image presence which were not intended for commercial scale sound reproduction.
But, from such a wealth of experience it would have been churlish to confine the best to specialist use when some well known companies were selling 'good enough' speakers for domestic use.
KEF grew from these roots and developed slowly, always with R&D being primary.
Modern materials in the late century led to the meta-materials patents which we all know now.
One pays for excellence of components and build quality as well as tons of experience and imagination passed on to the next generation of engineers. KEF never did gimmicks and I hope never will.
A good point about JBL because they cannot help sticking (mostly) to the sonic quality dating back to J B Lansing himself.
CANT WAIT for you to review the q11 meta
Impressive performance, certainly one of the top 1000€ picks in a year or so.
Great Erin what a review! Sice you had Kef available for sending this pair, what about telling them that they might send a Q meta tower instead? I'd love to discover we have a kickass tower speaker in the Q7 at 2-300 bucks more
I’ve asked. Hoping it’ll happen!
@@ErinsAudioCorner Oooo, that would be great!
Aye the Q7s look tempting in comparison. Especially once you factor in the cost of reasonable speaker stands. Plus if you're going to get an amp capable of driving these well there's a good chance it'll be a 200W per channel one so may as well stretch to the 200W speakers.
Came from LS50 Meta to Q Concerto Meta. Out of the box didn't like the Q Concerto at all. Too little mid bass and too little highs (10:30) . Ended up repositioning the damping material in the main cabinet and halving the 3.9 Ohm resistor in the high filter path (+2.5 dB, maybe 2.7 Ohm option instead of 2.0 Ohm if you don't use the grille) Now we're talking! Took some pictures of the inside that are available on my website. Btw. The three drivers are excellent.
Thank you Erin! I think i will try them out comparing them to my elac dbr 62. The vertical dispersion is what could make a difference.
I know it's just a simple rectangular box with fake wood veneer, but it looks pretty good to me.
Another top notch video! I think testing the RSL CG3M and CG23M speakers if possible would be an amazing addition to your speaker testing lineup.
I wonder how they compare to the LS50 at only $400 cheaper. Also very curious about the new Q towers.
Hi Erin, any thoughts on how they compare to the LS50 Meta?
Great review! I have been in this hobby for about 45 years. Honestly I have heard many, many speakers but nothing from KEF! These speakers from your perspective look like a fantastic speaker, and there not $5K!. Great review!
Thanks for the video, what would you pick between the LS50 and the Concertos? ,thanks once again
I was thinking between R3 and Q Concerto and your review really helped me. I got the Concerto after listening and for my usage - 70% HT and 30% Music this is amazing 😄
Great video. Thanks!
@17:30 "where you draw this line is somewhat subjective" There you go again, my opinion this, my opinion that, subjective this, data that. Just kidding. Just trying to head off the trolls. :) :) I love how science allows for interpretation of data while knowing it IS subjective in some way. The data PLUS Erin's EXPRESSION of his interpretation helps me understand what's happening in my listening space with my listening gear very reliably. Good job, Erin. Thanks for providing vicarious joy for us. CHEERS!
It looks like they have around a 9-10db decrease from 100hz to 20000 and smoothly and evenly.
Pretty interesting as a “ Target curve” to have in mind for in room response.
Nice vid !
Are you testing the full range by any chance? I'd love to know your take on the Q7s as they seem to be the best match for the centre with both being rated up to 200W. And the matching would also go well with a 3 channel 200W amp.
Also curious how the centre performs as well as the new on walls as they look ideal for surrounds. They also seem to be advertising the centres as also suitable to use as matching LCRs.
Another great thing about this is that the coaxial tweeter/mid is at the top of the cabinet, helping with reflections off horizontal surfaces below it, even with early floor reflections. And it’s easier to have the tweeter at ear height for most stand. Though I guess with the vertical dispersion that matters less.
Can you compare these to the Monitor Audio Silver 100 7G and B&W 606 S3?
Man this speaker pushes the budget performance value to a new level.
$2000 AUD
I wouldn't say budget. Seems like good value though. Affordable maybe.
@@dudemanismadcool my condolences :0( so sorry. but Aussies have great audio companies, too, right?
If it was 999
@@JoseFerreira-zb7wh budget of course is relative term but it still pushs the price to performance value ratio forward.
Thank you! I will be getting the Q3's because my speakers sit closer to the wall and they will be paired with a sub. I was very curious about these and you answered all my concerns. keep it up!
@@lucasbeven4941 is the distance to the wall a big deal for this one?
Here's a question I have. If I were to tell the amplifier's room correction software to send anything below 80hz to subwoofer instead of the speaker, could I leave the speaker closer to the wall? (I'm thinking about 12 inches or so)
I once had KEF Q5s, which were also 3-way and had a about similar driver. They played very well, but sometimes there was too much bass and the characteristic of these speaker drivers was that to hear the high tones and some of the mid tones well, you had to be facing directly towards the speakers.
As always, great review and thanks for the data. By far my favorite reviewer.
I will keep my opinion that I just don’t care for Kef speakers though. I demoed the Kef Blade 2 again at a different dealer 2 weeks ago. I find my opinion of them has not changed.
The Blade 2’s mids and highs lack detail and the vocals lack presents due to that IMO. Good bass output but I would still highpass it as 60hz to clean up the detail under 60hz not to mention room integration with subs.
The sound stage is great and stable but as a whole I feel like it is a good speaker that has a veiled sound, as if a thin blanket was thrown over it. The deal did offer an in home demo but I politely decline as I feel they are a step backwards for my tastes.
As always use your own ears. Now before someone says I just don’t like “flat speakers” I also own and currently use speakers that measure just as flat (based on kipple data).
So when I see glowing reviews of Kefs lesser speakers I always wonder about the lack of detail.
Thanks Erin. What a temptation, though I don't need any more speakers of course!
Thanks for such a through review. I’m a new subscriber and it’s good to have this level of data to compare with your impressions, really impressive and very much appreciated.
GREAT, fantastic Thanx-X Erin
You're so welcome!
Since this is a 3way at that price point, I think a direct comparison with the wharfedale evo 4.2 is needed.. thx
You can't better the evos for vfm they are half the price of these and i dont think the kefs are twice as good
Another winner from Kef. Only caveat for me would be low sensitivity combined with low-ish impedance load. So for a budget (albeit upper end budget) speaker it will need a quality amplifier with good current reserves. Looks to be a good 2dB less sensitive than the R3.
A pair of outlaw mono blocks for $700 would make these things scream with little to no effort, and even something like a monolith 2100x stereo power amp for 300$ should be more than adequate. Excellent preamp/DAC options are becoming insanely cheap. The WIIM ultra or balanced AKM chip SMSL products for example.
How do these compare to the kali in8?
What amp did you test the Concertos with? Would a Marantz PM6007 or Audiolab 6000a pushing 60-75w at 4 ohm be “enough”?
I wonder how these would compare to the q11 meta’s.
Curious how close you judge these to the Elac Uni Reference ($1199 pair) and/or Focal Vestia ($1098 pair). No where to go by me to listen to all three. Would love to see some sort of scaling / scoring in the reviews. For example only, if the KEF R3 Meta is "100" points, how would this speaker score? This leads to the question of how much does one appreciate the sound difference for an additional $1000 or so.
I know the old discontinued vocals sounded great and it's just a two way and looks great.
Would be interesting to know how it compares to Monitor Audio Silver 100
Do you think these speakers would work well for atmos? I have all kef r meta bed layer speakers and don’t want to do in ceiling.
Thanks Erin!
Erin, I appreciate your honesty….keep it up.👍
On my way to buy a comb!
Edit: Amazon won't even let me add it to my cart. It just redirects me to a page of head wax?
I tried them and yes the sound stage is wide and tall and has depth however electric guitars sounded opaque compared to my JBL HDI-1600 s and my Wharferdale Lintons. Basically electric guitars were not as crunchy and dynamic, sounded laid back and opaque. Amp is a Rotel 1592MKII. I'm on the femce with these.
How does this compare to the wharfedale linton?
Yes,in room response is more important , any coax speaker that is larger than 5 inches and producing base below 200 Hz, has some compromises, especially when playing at higher levels due to many factors. I’m not saying that other designs Sound bad I’m just saying they have compromises like everything😊
VS Cabasse Murano boolshelf Loudspeaker?
These are the same price as LS50 Metas in here. Usually, can even get LS50s around 200€ cheaper (often on sale). Those are built like a tank and really high quality level. I can't think any reason to pick these if there's already a subwoofer in the system. There are so many quality speakers at this price range.
the LS50 are more linear on axis
I think that it's still an extended bass shelf design. It just does not have as much gain at the corner frequency than the other KEF build. A feature of EBS designs is a slow rolloff from the flat area of the response to the corner frequency, in this case it looks like 6dB of rolloff from 100 Hz to 40(?) Hz, which is less than you'd see with a sealed alignment (12dB/octave).
Slightly, but not as apparent as one found in the R3 Meta.
I bet the woofer has a very low Fs, I bet in the very low 30's. The first impedance peak is higher than the second one and the system is tuned to around 40Hz and the roll off is very slow and gradual (oversized enclosure ) something which normally one would see with a 9-10" bass driver. I like the that KEF uses dedicated low freq transducer to dig these low frequencies ;)
0:51 "it's a 3 way design which is currently the only 3-way in the budget Q series", what about the Q7, Q11, and the Q6 center??
The whole new Q series changed all 2.5 way speakers to 3-way, Concerto is not the only 3-way speakers in the new Q line...
Sorry. I meant 3-way bookshelf.
Great review, Erin. I own the Non-Meta LS50. I really love them-the wide, holographic soundstage and clarity. I’m running them with a Parasound amp and McIntosh C39 preamp. My only issue is that the scale can seem a bit small for symphonic music. Do you see the Concerto having a bigger sense of scale?
Looking for a bookshelf speaker that I can actually use on a bookshelf. It seems to me that most of the current designs use a rear facing port. Surprisingly, most of the small speakers I see are planned for use on a speaker stand, this one included.
Hey Erin! Which one would you prefer - Ascend Acoustics Sierra LX/1 V2 or Kef Concerto Meta?
Exciting! Love that these aren't as bright at the R3 Meta.
I have the Elac Navis powered monitor though. An Andrew Jones designed 3-way bookshelf with a warmer profile. So I don't quite know what I'd be gaining over the Navis.
Great review as always.
I was wondering why there is no mention/comparison of/with LS50 Meta. They are very close in price and size.
As an owner of the LS50 Meta I'm truly curious how they compare.
1:33 I think it’s usual to measure the distance from the rear wall from the front of the speaker to the wall, not the rear of the speaker!
It looks fantastic.
I see that one difference between this and the R3 meta is that you can bi-amp the R3. What are your thoughts on bi-amping? And the difference that makes in this particular case (I have some older Kef speakers and bi-amping seemed to greatly aid sound clarity)
Curious whether these crossed at 80hz for ht duty would give the same sense of fullness as a small floorstander like the Emit 30 crossed at the same 80hz. I previously tried it with the m126be and the bass just didn't cut it. Putting the floorstander back in was like, ah yes the bass is back.
I just saw/heard these at the local BB along with the center and the towers where I am-b’ed them against the tower R11 and same bookshelf/center.. and I can confirm… these things sounds amazing!!!! The R11 had more volume and a bit more highs but the bass on the new Q line was better! They are truly great!! 🎉
thank you for beautiful review.. review tempting to buy this one... do i expect from this speaker for warm smooth sound like linton or evo ? thanks
Wish i had a tiny bit of interest in bookshelf speakers. I have been in the market for a new set of floorstanding speakers for two years. Cannot find a great value anywhere.
This dude is the best speaker reviewer I’ve ever seen.
Oh I missed the release of these and I just ordered a pair of MA Silver 100's. I didn't care for the Q350 though, I thought they were too bright, but I see these have tamed that brightness a little.
What are your thoughts on the Concerto vs the new Q7 meta? As far as I can tell, with the Concerto's on the SQ1 stands, the footprint and Uni-q driver height are about the same, the main difference is the additional bass driver in the Q7.
Wow these look amazing. Any plans to review the Q6 center channel? KEF says that they designed these to be used in an LCR duty.
Thank you for the review! Is this speaker comparable to Wharfedale Linton? Would KEF Concerto be a better buy at this time?
So, if the design is conceived around getting a flat room response, in a non treated room i suppose, does this mean the response in a correctly treated room will be "fucked up"?🤔
I demoed the R3 meta side by side with the Q concerto a few days ago. In some cases, the R3's are clearly better (the R3 shines when the treble is important, i.e. violin/cello recordings). In those cases the R3 is more refined, and it sounds larger than the concertos which sound "compressed" when directly compared. But in many situations the concertos hold their own, and when playing pop and rock, the concertos sounded a little warmer to me and the R3's actually became a bit tiresome since there's so much stuff happening with the treble/high frequencies. I ended up buying the Concertos since I found them more versatile and *very* close to the R3's performance in most situations. Outside of an A/B comparison I think I'd have a hard time telling them apart in many cases.
How about Q1 or Q3 META?
Great overview / review. Bought a pair as a result. Love Them! Thanks. ; )
Glad I could help!
I still love my LS50 Metas. Very muscular midrange and midbass. 3D as hell. Intoxicating. I have many speakers, some would suggest my other speakers are "better" but I havent moved these in 2 years. Secret ingredients: Gustard Dac, Orchard Audio GaN amplifiers, Schiit EQ, dual subs. Signal dual mono all the way through.
They're great sounding speakers.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I know you didn't care for em, so might be setup for me. Strange though as the R3 is the same thing with an added driver. But I digress. It's all good.
Hi Erin,
What kind of amplification do you recommend for kef R meta (R3 / R5) and new Q meta (Concerto / Q7) series?
Class A, A/B? Class D? Any specific type of class D? Power (at least X)?
I understand this can be very subjective, but besides a general recommendation, if you have any specific example in mind, it's always welcome.
I'm interested for specifically low level listening (50-60 db) but without (too much) distortion (from the amp) at 80-90 db. This is for a living room setup, not critically listening, just enjoying the sound while also walking around the room.
Thanks for the review. What you think if speakers distance to backwall is about 1 and half foot(max Distance on my living room). And you use foam plugs. Still boomines?. Or can you eq it down.
Very interesting thanks!
This one ... Or the Paradigm Founder 70LCR? would be an interesting comparison.
Hi Erin, excellent review. From THD graphs, I can see that maybe KEF cheaped out a bit on low freq driver. Concentric driver seems very clean and class-leading.
Speaking of Harmonic Distortion, maybe it would be cleaner if you remove lines for 4th harmonic and line for THD from the graph. Maybe even remove 2nd harmonic line. Because 3rd, 5th are the relevant ones to look for, maybe even 7th but that one is usually low enough. Odd orders really stand out in sound, while 2nd and 4th are masked by natural harmonics in the instrument and voice sounds.
hi thank you very much for the very complete analysis
i have a general comment about an issue for me quite important
When revievers mention impressive performace for a speaker of this size
If size is really so important, as i believe, anyone who wants serious performance should keep it in mind
I have spent years listening to small speakers with limited range and power
The 1st time i listen to a full range speaker it was a life changing experience I understood what i was missing
In Kef they should really think to a nice sub to use with these The combination would be wonderful i guess
That really looks like a good speaker, Erin. For only $1200 pair, you're getting a 3-way with coaxial mid/tweeter, so that obviates a lot of the concerns about IMD. Harmonic distortion is probably acceptable, particularly for the price. Efficiency is great, it looks good, it has meta technology, and probably a wider polar plot than the R3 Meta. Paired with a subwoofer, about all a more premium speaker like, say, the Sointuva could offer is better distortion performance, especially with the widespread availability of DSP like Dirac. I could see someone putting together a great system with these, Fosi V3 monos, and a miniDSP Flex, for less than $2500. Later they could add something like a pair of SVS SB 1000 Pros, and make the system full range.
They're an absolutely terrific bargain. Thanks for a great review.
Have you tried the paradigm Founder's 40 b... Thanks
Hey Erin, you're probably a very busy person. But I've missed where you clarify what the blue line in your measurements means for an 'ideal sound'. It seems to come out at a 1.5db/oct slope from 150 to 15k. Not sure if I'm being dense but clarification appreciated!
Great review! As usual! Thank you for sharing. Based on you assessment and conclusions I was wondering if this is an “ecclectic” speaker, meaning that it can perform well with all genres of music. KEF is marketing the Concerto mostly focusing on rock music from the 60´s and 70’s, just look at the ad and the test playlist they put together (The Beatles, Bowie, Zeppelin, Hendrix, Stones, Allman Brothers, etc.). So, is this a guitar rock speaker? What you mentioned about bass response and soundstage leads me to conclude it would also perform well with jazz and electronica. But isn’t it strange that KEF is only aiming at guitar rock as test music? Congrats on the channel! Best audio advice in UA-cam, by far!
Another advantage for the R3 is less compression and higher sensitivity
Hi Erin,
Great review for a great speaker as well. I just wanted to know if you need to choose between the Concertos and Kali's IN-8 v2s, which one you will you recommend for home cinema setup.
What a horrible choice of me to have gone all-R-series for my home theater two years ago. I could have waited two years, and save myself arguably $5000 for about -10% or even -5% of the performance. I'm sure that in an A/B-test you MIGHT hear some difference, who knows maybe the R-series is still the better series. But you'd never hear this difference after just a few hours of listening with how close these are now.
Can someone tell me why anyone would give a flying rats A** about the R-series?
Andrew adressed this comment already.
@@gersixtyseven2171 yes, and since then I stand even more behind my comment. I agree with part of what he says. Full disclosure: I really love my speakers. There’s nothing wrong worth them. Hell, maybe they are slightly better, who knows. But should I have waited? HELL YES. With €5k I could have expanded the HT-system with Atmos, better Blu-ray player, room optimization… ANYTHING that’s wildly more useful than slightly improved cabinet and slightly better components (all which I’m sure now roll off the same conveyor belt).
My problem lies with the fact that today, the Q isn’t really ‘close’ to the R-line, it’s practically a replacement (judging from Eric’s measurements). Perhaps for everyone else two/three years is a long time, but I find that insanely fast. I feel like paying around €1500k/year more for a pair of speakers with almost no added benefit was the wrong choice. So, as the lady in the video poses the question: ‘is that added 20% improvement worth the added cost?’ Today I say: HELL NO. Save your money, ignore the R/Reference line and just buy an all-out Q-meta HT-system and call it a day.
Either you are so rich that you straight-up buy the Blades (aka the epitome of the point-source), or you go for the utter best value, being the Q-line. I now find that everything in between are pointless improvements, especially versus the amount of additional money you have to pay for them.
Make no mistake..as a R3 meta owner the R3 are much better in every way than the new Q meta..In terms of prices i took then on a BF deal for 1199 which is a very good price. Trust me in terms of sound and clarity the R series are much better speakers. Even on paper is like 5or 10% difference when you listen to them the difference is much bigger. I now patiently wait for a R11 meta deal to finish my 5.1 setup.
Nice video, Which model sounds better between this KEF or the 3 way Elac Uni-Fi 2.0 UB52? thank you
Hi Erin, love these reviews! Any plans on reviewing Cabasse Murano speakers or even the active Rialto to compare to these and the mofi sp 8?
Very close to what an r3 costs though. Would like a comparison between some older kef models and the new models, because the differences in price seem to be getting smaller with this gen
If they sold these individually, one could use one for a center channel too. Maybe just buy 2 pairs and keep a spare!
Wish you could review the PMC Prodigy 1 bookshelf speakers!
Hey Erin thabks for the great review. I was wondering if my old pioneer 1222k d3 receiver will be able to power these. It 4 ohm capable and asr said it hit 210w at 4 ohm in their testing with 2 channels, will it be able to hit good listening levels if I'm using 5.1 for movies though? Thabks so much! I'll def be using your affiliate link when I pick these up!
Great review. Thanks for sharing. It looks very good in walnut.
Great video! Been thinking about these speakers. Any bookshelf you'd recommend for placement near walls?