Kef Q Range

sneo

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what would you choose & why?

4x Q5 or
2x Q7 & 2x Q3

price is exactly the same
all other equipment the same

I've read on this forum that Q3 are not as good as Q1 but I do NOT want stands, are they really that bad, and is the Q7 really that better than the Q5?
 
Go demo. The different models in the Kef Range sound remarkably different. You need to hear them yourself to decide which speakers midrange sound you like best.
 
Originally posted by Nobber22
Go demo. The different models in the Kef Range sound remarkably different. You need to hear them yourself to decide which speakers midrange sound you like best.

trouble is I did (the whole range) but because this will be my first HC I don't have any experience with "demoing" speakers so all sound good to my untrained ears lol

I hope that you experts who either have them or listened to them can post your comments
 
I just bought a pair of Q7's after listening to the Q5's. Much better control in the lower end imho.
What price were you given for the two sets if you dont mind my asking?
 
Originally posted by sneo
trouble is I did (the whole range)

Yeah, can be a bit daunting/confusing. :D I suggest you try a few other speakers in the Q7 class, then some in the Q5. Look at Dynaudio, Monitor Audio, B&W, Mission. Get a feel for each "family" sound, it's easier to choose between different manufacturers.

Of course info from owners like FazerThou is like gold too.

IMO I get a little frustrated by people who can move straight into mid/high end setups, without first having to buy budget kit and slowly upgrade later. You've little experience (not your fault and you were quick to point this out too! :smashin: ) and tend to buy on reputation rather than what you might like to hear later - witness the success of Bose and B&O. :rolleyes:

Try this sneo: go demo some of the smallest Kef's - the Q1's against their closest competitors (Quad, B&W,Mission, MA,etc) and see if you like the Kef's. If you do, move up to their bigger brothers. If not, you know where can buy instead.
 
Originally posted by FazerThou
I just bought a pair of Q7's after listening to the Q5's. Much better control in the lower end imho.
What price were you given for the two sets if you dont mind my asking?

thanks for that, I'm a bit worried that Q7 will require a bit more power than the Q5 as they are rated 25W higher, but I agree with what you said

price in the UK I assume is something like:
Q3 400GBP
Q5 600GBP
Q7 800GBP
 
Originally posted by Nobber22
Yeah, can be a bit daunting/confusing. :D I suggest you try a few other speakers in the Q7 class, then some in the Q5. Look at Dynaudio, Monitor Audio, B&W, Mission. Get a feel for each "family" sound, it's easier to choose between different manufacturers.

Of course info from owners like FazerThou is like gold too.

IMO I get a little frustrated by people who can move straight into mid/high end setups, without first having to buy budget kit and slowly upgrade later. You've little experience (not your fault and you were quick to point this out too! :smashin: ) and tend to buy on reputation rather than what you might like to hear later - witness the success of Bose and B&O. :rolleyes:

Try this sneo: go demo some of the smallest Kef's - the Q1's against their closest competitors (Quad, B&W,Mission, MA,etc) and see if you like the Kef's. If you do, move up to their bigger brothers. If not, you know where can buy instead.

you are absolutely right

actually I have a dvd player(DD/DTS decoder) hooked up to 5 satellite speakers(70wrms/ch) & sub(150wrms)

I've demoed the Kef Eggs KTH 1005? & while they were leaps ahead (in all areas) to what I have I want something better (not that these were not excellent)

I'm not gonna be upgrading my setup for the next few years so need something better than a satellite setup

I've demoed the B&W 600 Series 2 & 3 all of the range and found them to have more punch and headroom than the Kefs but was more impressed with the sound of the Q1 in stereo mode, it managed to fill the whole room with warm yet detailed sound, although a sub wouldn't go amiss I like my 8" downfiring sub makes the floor move ;) j/k
 
Originally posted by sneo
I've demoed the B&W 600 Series 2 & 3 all of the range and found them to have more punch and headroom than the Kefs but was more impressed with the sound of the Q1 in stereo mode

If you liked the Kef Q1's in stereo, you MUST demo the Quad 11L's! Wonderful sound with lots of punch and power. Just beware of the Quad centre if it will be placed near/on a CRT telly - their shielding appears to be less than perfect. :(
 
I demoed the KEF Q range and B&W 600 about a year ago. I eventually settled with the Kef. I just felt and enjoyed them better.
I listened to the Q1 , Q3 , Q9c , Q8s , Q5 and Q7. IMHO the Q7 is better than the Q5. Given at the stage I didn't have a sub but even if I had I would still have gone with the Q7.

Currently I'm running 2x Q7 (FLR), 1x Q9c , 2x Q8s (Yamaha FE), 3x Q1 each on a shelf (Rear). I also did not want stands. So I ran cabling under the floor. This might not be an option for you. If you have a false ceiling you could also try something similar.
The sub is a servo-15 and it all runs off the Yamaha AZ2.

The only thing with the Q series is the center. I'm currently looking to upgrade to the XQ2c. I understand from KEF that it will match with the Q series. I find the Q9c somewhat lacking. If the volume is high and the bass is pumping and there is loads of action on the screen the dialgoue doesn't always come out too clearly.

I see since my purchase they have included some new products. Depending on your amp you might want to look also at the Q2ds for your sidewalls.

Still overall I'm very happy with sound I get.
 
@Nobber22

I downloaded the spec sheet for the Q11L out of curiosity & the first thing I noticed was that it was nearly identical to the one I downloaded a long time ago from wharfedale (general layout/images)

http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/lseriesbroch.pdf

http://www.wharfedale.co.uk/evo.pdf

are they the say company or something?

@Nunoc

that was good reading and great help, thanks

this is a review I found on the Kef site it consists of 2x Q7, 2x Q2ds (as you suggested), 1x Q9c & 1x PSW2500

they are tested against the 7 other makes packages (incl. B&W DB 603 S3) and come on top, a good read I might add;)

http://www.kef.com/reviews/pdfs/whathifif_aug03_Q7.pdf
 
Originally posted by sneo
Nobber22

are they the say company or something?


No. Quad and Wharfedale are different firms. Be careful getting mixed up in the manufacturers specs and .pdf files. Listen to the speakers and the differences become apparent. Cabinet shapes, crossovers, inner damping materials, etc ,etc all affect the sound.

The Evo30's are incidently a very highly regarded set of speakers and well worth a demo too. Look very nice too :smashin:
 
Dont know how to tell you this but I paid £600 for an ex demo pair of Q7's so its worth shopping around. Why not go for the Q2ds at the rear...I assume thats why you want 4. I've seen those advertised for 300 somewhere
 
Another vote for the Q7's here. Excellent sound and control and they never seem to get stressed out by home cinema or DVD Audio. I was told they need a powerful amp to get the best out of them.

Nunoc I was going to replace my centre withe the XQ centre but after lots of chat with dealers I stuck with the Q centre. Don't forget the finish will not be an exact match as the XQ's have real wood veneer, the Q's are not (but still very very good IMHO)

Cheers

Dave
 
No. Quad and Wharfedale are different firms

Don't want to sound picky but Quad and Wharfedale are actually owned by the same parent company (International Audio Group). The speakers are made in the same factory in China. BTW the KEF's are also made in China.

As for the range, I demo'd the Q5's with Q9c and Q1's to the rear with a RelQ150Mk2. Found that in the listening room their was quite a bit of boom, this was sorted out by bunging up the rear ports. Didn't listen to the Q7's as they are too big for where I have to put them.

The biggest test for me when I was listening to this setup was SACD as this makes the speakers show their true colours. I was very impressed with the Q1's, and have opted for the Q5/Q9c combo as a first step to getting all Q'd up.

I am also impressed as to how the Q range look, the curved cabinet gets the thumbs up from the wife, and the apple finish is very good (even though it's plastic).

I would be tempted to say, if you have the space, go for the Q7 and Q1 combo.
 
@Dave777
one more vote for the Q7, a lot of you seem to like them

@EasyTiger
thanks for clearing that up for me, it was doing my head in as the specs sheets were defo designed by the same department/company

I too was impressed by the Q1 but I'd rather take the worse sounding Q3 just because I don't like the look of stands=book shelf speakers(personal preference)
 
My speakers are as follows: Q5 fronts, Q9c, Q1 surrounds, Q8s x 2 for center rears, and a Rel Q150e sub. These all fell into my price range sounded great to me when I listened to a demo. Also very wife friendly in the lounge. Running them off a Denon AVR3802 and I am still impressed with the sound. I have not heard the Q7 but having read the reviews they should be better.
Go for them!
 
I think speakers really are a matter of taste.

I recently purchased a pair of Q5's and moved the Q35's i have to the rear and run these with a Q95c and rel Q200. The Q35's and Q95c are the older versions of Q3's and Q9c.

My room is approx 13ft x 11ft and I power them with a Marantz SR7300.

I've really noticed the improved clarity of matching the drive units (previously had the Q35's as fronts and Coda 8's as rears).

I'm impressed but I like bass and the system provides a lot for a room this size. If I had gone for Q7's I think the neighbours would be even more upset and the cat would have had a nervous breakdown.

I've used many combinations of speakers over the years and whilst I'm no expert the Kefs are really good especially in stereo

You really need to dem them but room accoustics make a huge difference so if you can try at home on an exchange basis even better.

s.
 
Well another thumbs up for the Q's, i chose the 5's and Q9C so i would have a perfect match and am so happy with the result. I have toyed with a sub but in all honisty i really don't need it. They also sound great with sacd and dvd-a


cheers
 
Just demoed the Q7's over the weekend on an arcam p7 and av300 - dont recall the DVD player, but another arcam.

I took the 3 hour drive to buy these (discounted ex demo ~£530). Saw them and they look imposing, mean, serious and great! Heard them and was let down... I went in with high expectations and was ready to walk out with the Q7's before hearing them...

I agree these speakers prob do have to be driven by a powerful amp. The problem becomes an almost painful bass. Its overpowering in music. With AV was breathtaking (OK there was a B&W flagship sub too:)). The Incredibles sounded incredible. The THX intro brought a big grin to my face. Fantastic start.

But I think the usage of the LF's in music which requires much more control and sustaied usage is where the Q7 overpowers itself. It was almost hurting physically to listen to. Not because of volume. Even on low gain the sound was too bassey. Shame. I now see why these are sold generally as an AV package and what a package!

Musically great clarity and energised, just let down by the bass, but in a big way for me. Maybe too much available power hurts the Q7's?

AV rating: 10/10
Musical rating: 4/10

Still on the hunt for the perfect floorstanders...

B.


FazerThou said:
I just bought a pair of Q7's after listening to the Q5's. Much better control in the lower end imho.
What price were you given for the two sets if you dont mind my asking?
 
@sneo
I would buy 2xq7 and 2xq1, and then mount the 2xq1 on the wall with btech b77... well, I'd do that, because that's what I did :D My setup is: fronts 2xq7, central q9c, surrounds 2xq2ds and surround back 2xq1 (this is a currently 7.0 setup).

The q3 seems not supported any more by kef. It isn't on site, and my retailer didn't got them on catalog. q7 has more bass than q5 and that's it basically. But bass is expensive.

Prices here are a little cheaper than those pounds based. The full above setup went into 2000eur, about 1350gbp. Two q7 for 950eur if I recall (650gbp).

@nunoc
Nice post. Agree with you regarding the q9c. There is the q10c which has two more woofers to drive lower freqs, which should free the uni-q for the mids (voice), but unfortunely they don't match the rest of family's uni-q.

@dave777
The XQ are the next step. They use real wood and current generation drives (titanium tweeters, aluminium domes, perhaps kevlar cones?). Probably kef is waiting a bit until drop this new drivers into a new restyled series, with the aesthetics of the q-series.

@easytiger
You bet. My wife was convinced also by the looks. That's, IMHO, the better case for q-series: the looks. Also, these round cabinets improve sound propagation. That's why even with those cheap plastics and lack of weigth (kefs-q are lighter than most equiparable speakers) the overall sound is very nice.

As for the "made in china", I've read reviews bashing on the build quality, but have to tell that all the speakers I have, came flawless and, as far as I can tell, are robust construction. The speakers covers, however, are in fact fragile and of poor quality.

@banman
Fantastic review. I do not agree with your classification -- a little less on movies and a little more on music (9/10, 6/10 lets say) -- but you should have much more expertise than I, for sure.

In general the kefs q-series sound good and certainly look good. However they should be no match for current new wave speakers (canton vento, klipsch, axiom, kef xq) as they are build with better materials, although they are much less expensive than those.
 
hey tujax,

dont give me any credit for experience :) i'm an old newbie to this stuff. But I know my ears. Had a look at the specs of some floorstanders and the Q7 have a very high sensitivity @91dB and they are quoted right down to 35Hz.

Now the Quad 22L's at the same price point - that was very interesting indeed...

All the best,
B.
 
Update: Spoke to Kef about the Q7s I heard. Couple of things. The room was about 12'x12' - too small apparently. Also shold have tried the bungs that the Q7;s come with esp in a small room. I've no experience with this - does it work well?

Dealer should have suggested this really...

B.
 

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