CXA60 with KEF LS-50's?

Thats fair enough .. didnt know you already had a pair of Q's! that would have made the answers a bit easier to work out lmao if you'd have said from the start :D do you run the 3050's off of the CXA60or do you use a different amp?

At least with the all Q setup... the sound will be somewhat linear throughout the house

It's a bit of a long story but as you have been good to me I'll tell you the short version :)

I moved house maybe 5 years ago and inherited the old AV salutation for my office/mancave. I.E An old Denon 2805 AV amp and some Celestion 305's in 2.1, this just runs through my PC optical out at my desk.

A few years later I treated myself at Christmas to some refurbs of 3050's and the now infamous CXA 60, I think it was about £500-£600 all in all which was a steal at the time. I also bought a CCA and a nice old mans chair and took the time to measure about the place and set them up properly. This is my "premium" rig where I sit and read when I have the time and really make the most of it.

The issue is that I spend 99% of my time in that room on the PC either working or playing games/guitar on the inferior rig. Hence the idea to buy some cheapish speakers and use them with the CXA's second speaker output when I'm at my desk, never at the same time as the 3050's.

This lead me to nearly buy some of the old stock B&W 607's, then 606's, then inevitably lead to trawling forums for 3 days, tripling the original budget, nearly buying the LS50's before you advised against it and settling on testing the concept 20's - what a ride!
 
It's a bit of a long story but as you have been good to me I'll tell you the short version :)

I moved house maybe 5 years ago and inherited the old AV salutation for my office/mancave. I.E An old Denon 2805 AV amp and some Celestion 305's in 2.1, this just runs through my PC optical out at my desk.

A few years later I treated myself at Christmas to some refurbs of 3050's and the now infamous CXA 60, I think it was about £500-£600 all in all which was a steal at the time. I also bought a CCA and a nice old mans chair and took the time to measure about the place and set them up properly. This is my "premium" rig where I sit and read when I have the time and really make the most of it.

The issue is that I spend 99% of my time in that room on the PC either working or playing games/guitar on the inferior rig. Hence the idea to buy some cheapish speakers and use them with the CXA's second speaker output when I'm at my desk, never at the same time as the 3050's.

This lead me to nearly buy some of the old stock B&W 607's, then 606's, then inevitably lead to trawling forums for 3 days, tripling the original budget, nearly buying the LS50's before you advised against it and settling on testing the concept 20's - what a ride!
You've certainly been through the wringer eh! at least with the Concepts you are keeping the sound of the Q's you know..

In hindsight .... you could have gone with a dedicated active with something like an adams, edifier or klipsch rp-41m and used those as a dedicated active fed from the pc and left the 3050 on the cxa60 :)
 
You've certainly been through the wringer eh! at least with the Concepts you are keeping the sound of the Q's you know..

In hindsight .... you could have gone with a dedicated active with something like an adams, edifier or klipsch rp-41m and used those as a dedicated active fed from the pc and left the 3050 on the cxa60 :)

Yeah I thought of that, I once remember a small war erupting on a forum when someone brought up active vs passive speaker setups. I though buying passive speakers was a good way to utilise the amp that I already had. If it will sound better, who knows. I think there is always something nice about turning on an amp and physically pressing the buttons and turning the knobs though, not quite the same on the BT3 active speakers. The CXA60 is a very pretty/well made amp :)
 
After skimming trough the tread, I agree wholeheartedly that your current amplifier is not up to the task of driving the Kef’s properly, again this depend if you wanna rock the house, otherwise it’s going to work just fine. All the amps mentioned well do the job fine, if you’re going to buy the kefs. That being said I strongly suggest you try the Nad amplifier at home first before you buy, this is because Nad can have serious stability problems. This is my personal opinion, experience, it could be that you have better luck then me. Otherwise they do sound fantastic. Pretty of drive, attack, and lots of power. If you’re going to use your current amp, I would look for speakers around 8ohm, 88db minimum. Good luck😊👍.
 
After skimming trough the tread, I agree wholeheartedly that your current amplifier is not up to the task of driving the Kef’s properly, again this depend if you wanna rock the house, otherwise it’s going to work just fine. All the amps mentioned well do the job fine, if you’re going to buy the kefs. That being said I strongly suggest you try the Nad amplifier at home first before you buy, this is because Nad can have serious stability problems. This is my personal opinion, experience, it could be that you have better luck then me. Otherwise they do sound fantastic. Pretty of drive, attack, and lots of power. If you’re going to use your current amp, I would look for speakers around 8ohm, 88db minimum. Good luck😊👍.

Thanks for the input. I'm sticking with the current plan of the concept 20's at the moment which are literally half the price of the Kefs. They seem like a good "quick win". I really don't think with the near field setup (on desk) the Kefs are going to sound considerably better than the concepts especially at low volumes. If I get the Kefs I'm only going to persuade myself to buy an amp this year and the current climate isn't a good time to find a new things to spend money on. The current amp has been under used as I struggle to find the time to use it (children!) so spending more and more seems a bad idea until I have the basics down.

I'll see how I like the concepts, if I'm blown away/don't like them I may see if I can get some Kef's with a return policy and see if they are worth the upgrade, send teh concepts back. The chances are I will just plug them in, like them and move on with life, re visit the whole situation on a few years when economy graph's don't look quite so depressing! Probably aim for the Ls50 meta's (which may have dropped in price by then) and a new amp, I'll start writing the request for spend with the missus now :)
 
I've got a set of the non meta LS50s coming on Monday and currently use 3020i's on a near field desk position, so not too far away from what you are in the process of deliberating.

Not really sure what I am expecting from the LS50 speakers but having recently upgraded the amp to a discounted Arcam SR-250, the Q Acoustic speakers didn't really get that much better than the previous Onkyo AVR powering them!

Will post back with my findings on how the two sets of speakers compare.
 
I've got a set of the non meta LS50s coming on Monday and currently use 3020i's on a near field desk position, so not too far away from what you are in the process of deliberating.

Not really sure what I am expecting from the LS50 speakers but having recently upgraded the amp to a discounted Arcam SR-250, the Q Acoustic speakers didn't really get that much better than the previous Onkyo AVR powering them!

Will post back with my findings on how the two sets of speakers compare.

Yeah that sounds good mate (ignore the accidental pun!), please let me know how you get on. Interestingly I was reading a fair few posts like night about an amps role at all in changing the sound profile at all, many a person believe it makes negligible difference. Let's leave that comment there though before the topic turns into a war zone!

Let me know how you get on, I'll keep you posted on the concept 20's....

I'm in 2 minds as to if I should wish you luck, the better the LS50's are for you the worse things are for me :) hope you are happy either way though. The Ls50's certainly look gorgeous if nothing else!

Mike
 
DPD have said this morning that the parcel is now coming today, within the next 20 minutes in fact :D

I'll have a play later on and let you know.
 
I’ve owned the Concept 20’s and can reassure you that they are a terrific little speaker and a considerable improvement than the standard 3020/i speakers. However, just remember they are small speakers and can’t generate big bass. If that’s not your preference, they are highly enjoyable.
 
DPD have said this morning that the parcel is now coming today, within the next 20 minutes in fact :D

I'll have a play later on and let you know.

You lucky sod you I have to wait till tomorrow, I'll get my bingo pen ready :)
darko.jpg
 
I’ve owned the Concept 20’s and can reassure you that they are a terrific little speaker and a considerable improvement than the standard 3020/i speakers. However, just remember they are small speakers and can’t generate big bass. If that’s not your preference, they are highly enjoyable.

Thanks that's good to know. Base wise, I'm almost 100% Rock over here with bits of metal/dancy/accoustic stuff - the fact that Dr DRE won't sound his best probably won't ruin my day :)
 
Well, they have been on for about 20 minutes.

Location wise, they are at the far corners (on lower angled up isoacoustic stands) on a desk 1800 x 800mm and I’m sat 300mm from the rear wall and 1800mm from them speakers. Speakers have about 2 metres behind them as the desk is down the middle of the room.

Power requirements wise, I’d initially say the reviews are right as the amp needs a bit more along its volume scale but I can’t quantify it really.

The sound. Well, they are by far the best speakers I’ve owned. Even after 30 minutes, they sound very good. What is immediately obvious is the spread of sound and how many different layers I can now hear. Central image is bang on and I’ve heard 3 or 4 layers of vocals in songs I’ve known for 20 years without ever detecting them.

The 3020i speakers are good but not a patch on these.

I am using a sub though and the LS50s are playing 80Hz up.

Not played with Dirac room correction yet, going to give myself a week to get used to the basic sound first.
 
Well that's bad news for me but I'm really happy that you are happy with them...

Enjoy the high fidelity audio!

I'll see how I get on tomorrow, maybe a home trial would be worth it...
 
Hello!

Got the Concept 20's a few hours ago...

First mistake was the stands, obviously did not read the small print as I only have 1! They are currently sat on the desk at just around waist level...

Initial impressions were quite low to be honest, not bad per say I just certainly was not blown away. Had them on for a few hours and I'm starting to come round. There is no particular I can put my finger on that impresses, I'm not hearing instruments I have never heard before and I don't feel like I'm at a concert - everything does just sound noticeably better, not millions of times better than before - about 20-25%

I was half expecting this, I had exactly the same issues with the 3050's - it took me a while to get into them and notice subtle differences. I think you can get so carried away with What HiFi reviews you expect these things to revolutionise your life and to hear a new level of clarity.

Overall happy with the purchase, about £300 once I have 2 stands, not much cash for a good upgrade. I would be a bit miffed if I had the Ls50's and they sounded like this tbh for the reasons above, I would want life changing for over half a grand! For £300 I think I've made a good move. I'll get the stands and see where I am.

Cheers for the help everyone!

Mike
 
Thanks very much for the detailed feedback.

The volume thing won't be an issue, my other half nearly has a breakdown every time the volume knob is turned half an inch to the right, medium volume will be fine - as will the airflow to the amp.

Can you confirm your use of language please, you say:

" The CXA60 will run the LS50 ok at low to mid volume.. "

Do you mean:

They will sound Great, until you start to push the volume past half way.

or

They will never really sound great (just okay) - and don't turn them up past half way.

My predicament is, there are million speakers from £400-£600. These LS50's have a great rep. I don't want to spend extra money on something that won't work with my kit, but at the same time - it would be nice to have some premium speakers if I ever decide to upgrade my amp, the extra £100-£200 would probably be worth it.

Why is nothing ever easy!?

Thanks Again
I have the cxa60 ,it has a pre out so you could get a power amp in the future to run the Kef ls50
 
Hi Mike,
Just wanted to show you how I use a Cambridge Audio CX-A60 and Concept 20's. I do have a small M.J. Acoustic's sub to assist with the bass pedals. The sound (to me) is stunning.
Gregory
 

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Thanks
But would the sound equal that of a LS50W at around the same combined price?
I was watching a John Darko youtube comparision of the LS50, LS50 Meta and LS50 Wireless where he said matching an amp to give the same sound quality for LS50 as LS50W was expensive and there was little suitable. But for LS50 Meta much easier to pick suitable amps and even a NAD C316 (£299) used with the meta could match the sound of the LS50W.

So NAD C368 + LS50 = £1350 vs LS50 Meta + NAD C316 = £1300 vs LS50W £1200 (obviously also include any of the cheaper amps you mentioned, cheapest comparision would be £1050 vs £1200).
I've seen a pair of LS50 Wireless (first series) selling for £1200 at Peter Tyson. Ignore the fact that they've been superceded and that's fantastic value for a complete system of that quality, one that's garnered rave reviews worldwide over the past 4 years or so and won WHAT HIFI's Product of the Year in 2018.
 
I've seen a pair of LS50 Wireless (first series) selling for £1200 at Peter Tyson. Ignore the fact that they've been superceded and that's fantastic value for a complete system of that quality, one that's garnered rave reviews worldwide over the past 4 years or so and won WHAT HIFI's Product of the Year in 2018.
I bought them there over 3 weeks ago using Amazon Pay and net price was £1150 after the cashback £50 amazon gift voucher. Checking just now Tyson are out of stock (it's no longer listed).

The replacement Mk II model is a step backwards imo as the USB input has been dropped in favour of HDMI e-arc. For my requirement completely useless as I'm driving them from my PC using USB out and Musicbee player.
 
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As an alternative to the kef ls50, anyone consider the kplisch rp600m?
They seem easier to drive them the kef? Link below
Darko review
 
Much easier to drive than the LS 50. I’m sure the average 5 watt tube amplifier, could drive the Klipsch without sweating!
 
As an alternative to the kef ls50, anyone consider the kplisch rp600m?
They seem easier to drive them the kef? Link below
Darko review
Yes, Klipsch do have very high sensitivity. I don’t remember what the specs the speakers mentioned have, but some Klipsch speakers have sensitive as high as 110 dB! So in practice you probably only need 5-10 watts that reaches 120 dB! But KEF vs Klipsch is very different (which you probably know). If you like to play really loud, then Klipsh is a good choice. I think Klipsch is very forward in the sound. KEF is more hifi.
 
Yes, Klipsch do have very high sensitivity. I don’t remember what the specs the speakers mentioned have, but some Klipsch speakers have sensitive as high as 110 dB! So in practice you probably only need 5-10 watts that reaches 120 dB! But KEF vs Klipsch is very different (which you probably know). If you like to play really loud, then Klipsh is a good choice. I think Klipsch is very forward in the sound. KEF is more hifi.
This is my dilemma, I will be getting back in to 2 channel hifi soon. I have earmarked the purchase of rega brio amp and kef ls50 mk1speakers or the kplisch rp600m....both speakers are currently touching distance on price at moment...conundrum I guess. What do people think will sound with the amp? Any one any experience?
 
This is my dilemma, I will be getting back in to 2 channel hifi soon. I have earmarked the purchase of rega brio amp and kef ls50 mk1speakers or the kplisch rp600m....both speakers are currently touching distance on price at moment...conundrum I guess. What do people think will sound with the amp? Any one any experience?
Sound is subjective. If you like the forward, punchy sound of the Klipsch, or the more refined sound of the Kef’s, is something only you can decide.
 

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