Q Acoustics Q3030i Standmount Speaker Review & Comments

[password1]

I think one of the main reasons manufacturers make a dedicated centre is to accommodate the space restrictions as most people have space restrictions and need a speaker to fit under or above a TV/ screen.

Some centre speakers are just a stereo speaker turned on its side and the logo rotated.

eg CA Minx 22 centre is the same as the left and right but with the logo rotated 90 degrees. There are other manufacturers who do the same.

 

[CHFels]

Very nice review, thanks Ed.
I did find this passage near the end very puzzling:
"Strip the Q Acoustics of the £5,500 comfort blanket of the Edge A… and to be honest not a great deal changes. With the Rega io and Mojo running as source and amp, some of the effortlessness is chipped away and it doesn’t image as well but the 3030i still largely delivers what it did on the end of the big amp. That it can reflect these improvements is hugely impressive and it is something beyond that which I usually see from products at this price point."

Now, what I would expect a very good and transparent speaker to do is reveal clearly the difference between a £5,500 amp and £400 amp. I would expect it to sound like an entirely different animal, on the end of £5,500 of electronics instead of £400. If not a lot changed when the Edge A was swapped for the Io & Mojo, then either the 3030i is imposing its own signature on the sound of the system and not revealing the upstream differences very well, or the Edge A is a mediocre piece of kit for its price.

I'm not interested in ragging on either the speakers or the Edge A, mind you, I just couldn't understand this part of the review!

CHFels

 

[Ed Selley]

That's a fair question and it hinges a little on the subjective take on what you might expect from a speaker. The 3030i has ultimately been designed to work as well as possible with whatever feed you give it. It is inherently forgiving and- as such- given that both the io and the Edge A can easily deliver the 12 or so watts required for a fairly healthy listening level from a speaker like this in my room, the differences aren't huge. The 3030i can't really reflect the additional weight that the Edge A can deliver because it falls outside its frequency response. It doesn't need the extra power that the Cambridge can deliver and it is sufficiently benign at the top end that the refinement that the Edge has used as both decoder and amp isn't a huge deal breaker either.

Within that though, there's very little perceived colouration when you listen to them so they warrant being seen as fairly transparent. You can take this to be an elitist comment, but I don't know of many sub £1k speakers that genuinely reflect everything that goes into them. It's one of the reasons why the Spendor A1 and Focal Kanta No1 live here; they combine this ability with a fairly benign electrical load that allows them to be used with many different devices.

 

[CHFels]

Thanks for the clarification, Ed!

 

[richiestudman]

If they made a better centre speaker I'd be all over these, love the look of them.

Never had an issue with their centre speakers, in fact, more than that, I think their centre speakers are absolutely brilliant. I "upgraded" from an existing 3090C to a Dali Oberon Vokal - the Q Acoustics blew it out of the water for precision, clarity and depth. Back the Dali went, and I instead went for the 3090Ci - a modest improvement on the C and so much better than the Dali. And at less half the price.

 

[muljao]

Just ordered in white

 

[bobel]

how would these compare to the dali spektor 2?

 

[ChrisGTL]

Just picked up a pair of 3030i in Walnut with stands. Paired with a Topping E30 DAC and NAD 316BEE V2 amp I couldn't be happier!! System cost less than £700 and for the money it is outstanding.

I was worried the 3030i wasn't going to meet my bass expectations but they do so much so I want the bungs (weren't included in my buy).

If anyone has the 3030i and can spare 10 minutes could you give me dimensions of the bungs please? I've contacted Q Acoustics to request a spare set but they never reply so I might aswel just find an alternative - I want them to be as close to OEM as possible.

Cheers.

 

[muljao]

Just picked up a pair of 3030i in Walnut with stands. Paired with a Topping E30 DAC and NAD 316BEE V2 amp I couldn't be happier!! System cost less than £700 and for the money it is outstanding.

I was worried the 3030i wasn't going to meet my bass expectations but they do so much so I want the bungs (weren't included in my buy).

If anyone has the 3030i and can spare 10 minutes could you give me dimensions of the bungs please? I've contacted Q Acoustics to request a spare set but they never reply so I might aswel just find an alternative - I want them to be as close to OEM as possible.

Cheers.

Just cut out 2 bits of sponge a little bigger than the ports and about 50mm deep, job done

 

[ChrisGTL]

Just cut out 2 bits of sponge a little bigger than the ports and about 50mm deep, job done

No thanks

 

[Onlythesound]

@muljao is right. That’s all you need

 

[richiestudman]

No thanks

You bought a pair of speakers that are specifically designed by Q Acoustics to produce a "big, bassy, hard-hitting" sound, then you want to shove foam bungs in the tailpipe bacuse they are bassy?

Don't use bungs. Move them further away from the wall if necessary, but don't use bungs.

 

[ChrisGTL]

You bought a pair of speakers that are specifically designed by Q Acoustics to produce a "big, bassy, hard-hitting" sound, then you want to shove foam bungs in the tailpipe bacuse they are bassy?

Don't use bungs. Move them further away from the wall if necessary, but don't use bungs

Jeez. Educate yourself please.

 

[richiestudman]

Jeez. Educate yourself please.

That may have been an idea before you bought bass-heavy speakers that you find too bassy!

 

[ChrisGTL]

If you think these speakers aren't going to be bassy with the port bungs in then your sadly mistaken. It's about bass response. Why do you think subwoofers have bungs? Dear me! Another know it all member now on the block list

 

[password1]

QA design their 3000i range speakers with the option to use the port bungs so that the speaker acts like a sealed design.

Experimenting with and without the bungs and varying the distance from the wall where possible is recommended.

 

[richiestudman]

If you think these speakers aren't going to be bassy with the port bungs in then your sadly mistaken. It's about bass response. Why do you think subwoofers have bungs? Dear me! Another know it all member now on the block list

What an arrogant and daft reply. OP said the speakers were too bassy and wanted to use bungs, to quote: "I was worried the 3030i wasn't going to meet my bass expectations but they do so much so I want the bungs" then denies that he wanted the bungs to reduce bass. Jeez.

 

[Onlythesound]

What an arrogant and daft reply. OP said the speakers were too bassy and wanted to use bungs, to quote: "I was worried the 3030i wasn't going to meet my bass expectations but they do so much so I want the bungs" then denies that he wanted the bungs to reduce bass. Jeez.

I was going to say something but you beat me to it . Whatever happened to the spirit of mutual interest and supportive advice/opinions ?

 

[richiestudman]

I was going to say something but you beat me to it . Whatever happened to the spirit of mutual interest and supportive advice/opinions ?

Having read a few of his other dismissive replies and reactions, I think the Spirit of Mutual Interest may be busy this Christmas Eve. God bless us, every one.

 

[ChrisGTL]

QA design their 3000i range speakers with the option to use the port bungs so that the speaker acts like a sealed design.

Experimenting with and without the bungs and varying the distance from the wall where possible is recommended.

Careful! You might upset some folks around here talking about speaker bungs in a speaker that is designed with bungs in mind. So easy to offend modern day snowflakes without even trying.

As a more intelligent and useful post - these speakers are quite simply amazing for the price! Super happy with them and with the bungs in I can put some good power through them and not experience the 'flapping' woofer noise. Horses for courses of course, depends on my listening volume and genre of music. Bought some 55mm generic bungs from an auction site for £5 and they do they job nicely. I just need to email QA now and ask what the hell they are thinking adding a port that can be bunged to their products - complete n00bs!

 

[richiestudman]

Careful! You might upset some folks around here talking about speaker bungs in a speaker that is designed with bungs in mind. So easy to offend modern day snowflakes without even trying.

As a more intelligent and useful post - these speakers are quite simply amazing for the price! Super happy with them and with the bungs in I can put some good power through them and not experience the 'flapping' woofer noise. Horses for courses of course, depends on my listening volume and genre of music. Bought some 55mm generic bungs from an auction site for £5 and they do they job nicely. I just need to email QA now and ask what the hell they are thinking adding a port that can be bunged to their products - complete n00bs!

For someone who blocked me, he's clearly still trying to win points in an argument about which I couldn't care less. In ChrisGTL's case I can think of better uses (and openings) for the bungs, to be honest.

 

[Danbeaman1991]

Rear bungs or not I am buzzing to try these out as just purchased.. £229 seems a steal, now putting the 3020i to the near to replace the standard 3010s

 

[FootHealer]

Rear bungs or not I am buzzing to try these out as just purchased.. £229 seems a steal, now putting the 3020i to the near to replace the standard 3010s

I agree. I ordered a pair on Friday and am waiting for them to be delivered. Am eager to try them. As for bungs, I guess you can block up any ported speaker with a bung (or a sock or whatever), and this may have drawbacks and advantages while making it easier to place the speaker in certain tricky spots. I agree that buying a bass heavy speaker and then trying to reduce the bass is perhaps not as sensible (in theory) as buying a smaller speaker in the same range, but we live in an imperfect and often unpredictable world, so being flexible and open to change, rather than rigid and dogmatic, is always best in my opinion, both in large and small matters, speakers being in the latter group. Some people may prefer bungs. I don't. And that's okay. Each to their own

 

[Onlythesound]

@FootHealer I find a pair of used running socks particularly effective. They lend a certain erm…aroma to the bass!

 

[FootHealer]

@FootHealer I find a pair of used running socks particularly effective. They lend a certain erm…aroma to the bass!

Haha Yes, some people may like adding more aroma to the bass, but I personally prefer brand new socks which provide a cleaner sound. I also use the smallest size possible, and always a sports brand, to get the tightest, most energetic bass possible.