Lifestyle (Kef vs Bose vs Mission NXT)

J

JampoTT

Guest
Just after a little bit of advice really. Complete novice to Home Audio and like anyone else, want to ensure I get value for money and not just sold what the salesman makes most money on!

Want to be able to play loud action DVDs (Swordfish etc) to their full potential, as well as listen to music through this setup. The latter is important, but I'm not going to sit mesmerised by a classical piece, listening out for "faults" in the sound, so I guess a well rounded system that packs a good punch is as important as true quality.....

One of the biggest factors is size. The room is not large, and isn't ideally spaced for audio (at least I thnk not) so I have to steer clear of floorstanders and large boxes, apart from the sub which I can squeeze into a corner or behind the sofa depending on its shape........

I'm looking at the Denon 1802 amp. I reckon I probably want Pro Logic II, else I'd also be considering the Yamaha 620 series. Is there anything else in the similar range I should consider?

And as for speakers.... well this is where it gets fun.

I checked out the Bose Accoustimass at the weekend (in my local Dixons, believe it or not!) and was pretty impressed. Sounded better than the Bose in my car, and I took in a CD (Swordfish soundtrack) which has some pretty meaty bass, and was shocked at how well it seemed to be performing. This was the Accoustimass 15. By the time we got to the Acc6 (probably more like my price range) my ears were not doing their best to tell the difference, but I've a feeling I might be disappointed with the Acc6 in my home. The passive woofer being the problem, as well as the lack of the 2nd set of drivers on the cubes......

So instead of just handing over my credit card, I've decided to browse around and see what else is in my price range.

1) Kef KHT2005
2) Monitor Audio Baby
3) Mission (FS2?)


As I've said, I want something that packs a punch despite its size. OK, so not necessarily "neighbour summoning" but this is a detatched house, so can go relatively loud. Does this rule out the Missions, as they seem a little lightweight.......?

So I guess the questions are - which of these are considered reasonable (considering my requirements) and where is a good place to look online to make a purchase?

(BTW I went to my local Richer Sounds and was totally shocked by the service I got. Hopeless. Without listening to my requirements, I was told to purchase a particular Marrantz amp and set of Eltax speakers - presumably because thats all that was in stock, and when I asked for a demo he gave me a strange look and said it wasn't possible.....)

Will try and get a demo of the Kefs today. There are a couple of Audio shops near me which apparently stock them.......

But any suggestions would be great.
 
JampoTT



I'm in the the same boat as you mate. I've heard the Kef Egg's and Accoustimass 15's ands the Gallo Nucleus at the LIVE 2002 show on Saturday.

To be honest I was surprised at how good the Bose speakers sounded. Up till now I have been told by nearly every dealer that the Kef's can't be beaten. IHO I thought the Bose' were much better. Athough The Gallo's weren't far behind.

Maybe it was to do with the show conditions.....

I'm still confused.....
 
I did do similar research for my living room audio. And after testingnumerous systems on numerous criterions I selected Bose. They still amaze me inits fidelity and crystal clear sound with rich bass. I used Denon amp with Acoustimass15
 

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