It's time for an upgrade (after well over a decade)

Kotatsu Neko

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I'm still using my trusty KEF 5001.2 setup, which is a £1500 5.1 package which I bought a long time back. I forget exactly how long, certainly well over a decade ago. They've been fine but it's probably time to move up the ladder.

I'm rather space constrained, especially for the rears. The sofa is against the wall and there are doors on either sides. The 5001s are tiny so they just squeeze in. No problems at the front at least.

My current thinking is to stick with KEF. For the fronts I'm considering the Q550 with Q50A Atmos upfirers. (I really don't fancy cutting the ceiling up). Centre would be a Q250C. The rears are the tricky part as I have so little space. I could maybe wall mount something above the sofa, but when I was browsing KEF's site I came across the T101. They're very flat wall mounters. Oh and the sub would be a Kube 8b.

So middle of the range components, although the price is still well north of £2500.

The rears are the big risk I guess, but as I say, I just don't have the space for much else.

Does anyone have any of this kit?
 
If you are certain you want floorstanders over the Q150/350 which would also do great with basic 60cm stands then by all means, it`s just bit hard to swallow that price jump which could be used elsewhere. However lot of people want the floorstanders for aestetic purposes which is absolutely fine of course.

What about side walls and how far apart are they from main listening position, room plan or pictures of room would be nice to see. T101 can`t be angled as they will be installed flush against wall. How good they work then if placed good amount further apart as you shouldn`t have surround speakers too narrow on rear wall. Personally i would look from ebay/gumtree HTS3001 / E301 Kef Eggs available if wife accepts those as wall mounted. The feet should turn as wall bracket. Especially if you have side walls to mount them.



Kef Kube 8b offers poor value at 499£. There is no requirement to match speakers and sub from same brand so please look better options from companies that specialize in woofers.

SVS SB1000 Pro offers best bang for buck in compact size for about 500£ mark IF the AVForums member discount still is valid because SVS are raising prices any day now. So you need to call example below forum advertiser tomorrow asap and ask do you still get -10% member discount from this one. It´s most compact subwoofer in the market with 12" driver and performance that would put the Kef Kube 8b in to shame!



There is other options too if you require different finish to suit room decor more, however we would need to know how much you have space at the front wall for sub? Width is likely the deciding factor with depth rather than height so give me some dimensions in those spots where you have space for sub. Front corners furthest from any openings, front wall 1/4 or 1/3 locations often good spots, but each room is different..

PS. I hope you looking to buy Denon X3700H / Marantz SR6015 if possible..
 
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I've sketched up a crude plan of my living room. As you can see, space is tight!

Do you think the Eggs would sound better than the T101s? I've never heard super flat speakers before, so I have no idea how good they are.

As for the sub, it's food for thought. I'm in a detached house but of course like most modern houses the walls are super thin, and the gap between my house and my neighbour's house is wafer thin.
 

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I've sketched up a crude plan of my living room. As you can see, space is tight!

Do you think the Eggs would sound better than the T101s? I've never heard super flat speakers before, so I have no idea how good they are.

As for the sub, it's food for thought. I'm in a detached house but of course like most modern houses the walls are super thin, and the gap between my house and my neighbour's house is wafer thin.

I believe the T301s are better than the Eggs, not sure about the smaller. If you need very slim speakers then T101 is the way to go to keep wife happy. As you sit so close to surround speakers you should get the tweeter at least good bit higher also and you would mount them so that they are spread out good amount too but not directly in corners. I would assume 20-30cm from side walls as minium.

@trevdigital uses 4x T101 as surrounds with Kef Q system. Seems happy. " I was worried that the T101’s would be a bit weak for surrounds but they hold their own and create a richer than expected rear surround stage."

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You don`t really need to worry about the sub being too loud as you are in full control how loud it plays. It can make such big difference how your system sounds when it blends with the rest and "disappears". Definitely go with larger model in that space to get bit more weight and depth. And of course better build quality / support / service / warranty (SVS). 8" overpriced sub for 20sqm detached house would be very questionable move. I have lived in apartments with subwoofers and never really had issues when using common sense. I can`t believe the walls would be such thin that you would run in to problems at moderately loud levels. If you know your neighbour it`s very easy to test out with him and then you can ask him to come watch movie with few beers. After that there won´t be problems..

You seem to have good amount space for the subwoofer so if you want different finish consider the UK made BK Electronics (internet direct business model). BK has built woofers since 1992, made cabinets to REL also and has been forum favourite about 15years or more. I will list few models below, scroll the links down and click the small pictures to see them larger. You can see more models at up. All of these would be upgrade to that Kef Kube 8b. The first listed would be my pick as you likely aren´t in to large boxes and also AVForums editors pick. The difference to 2nd link is the bottom passive driver (P12-PR) which gives bit more deep bass and this model is 2nd best for movies in mind from BK`s offerings.




 
Thanks, that's all great to know. I'll have a look at those other subs. The one I'm currently using sounds pretty good to my ears, but I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to speakers.

I'll be buying a new amp too to feed these things. I'm currently using an old, pretty cheap Pioneer. I actually had a Marantz 6015 but I returned it due to the HDMI 2.1 issue and also because it was absolutely hopeless with HDMI control and switching inputs. I'm thinking of going for a Yamaha RX-A4A, if the HDMI 2.1 stuff is genuinely working.
 

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