If you are still living at home with mom and dad you should move out and save up for a pair of Magicos! Jealousy will not get you far in this hobby.
He's a troll, something he has been accused of by others and has, at least by implication, not denied.
If I prove to you that I'm not a troll, does that automatically validate everything ive said about speakers? If you want to outdo me, name calling will not get you far. You either prove me wrong or stay out of the discussion.
My Meta’s showed up on Thursday. I think they sound excellent. Steve Guttenberg was on point about having open box characteristics. My LS50’s are being powered by a Pass XA25 and a LTA MicroZOTL preamp. The timbre and detail are excellent and the XA25 has no issues driving these speakers. Bass is surprising and they have mated well with my REL Storm. I have the stands on order that mate to the bottom of the speaker. My first selection was Vivaldi 4 seasons and I have never heard it played with that much meat on the bone. Now that I have mentioned Pass Labs, maybe Erik and Kenjit can double team the rest of us in the first ever Audiogon WWE wrestling event. We could name it the “Covid smackdown”. Kenjit admitted to not understanding the new technology, yet decided to comment on it anyway. Gotta love it!
I will be interested to hear the other new Meta owners their observations.
Good to hear you are off to a great start! I did get the stands for the LS50's and I am pleased that I did. I assume you will enjoy yours when they arrive.
I have my current black ls50s on black Dynaudio stands that look similar to the KEF stands in pictures. I ordered Titanium grey ls50 metas. Maybe I will spring for the matching stands later and free up the Dyn stands for use elsewhere. We’ll see..
Yes, they are black. It was a tie between grey and black. The idea of waiting made that decision. I have a Linn LP12 turntable, Hana SL cartridge, Musical Surroundings Nova Phonomena phono pre, along with the XA25 and microZOTL. I really think KEF might have something with this meta technology. It’s as open and spacious as I’ve heard from a small box speaker.
I’ll be waiting to hear your thoughts about the LS50 ll’s. I bought and returned the original’s. No matter what I did something didn’t sound right. Mostly the sound of the tweeters was a bit bright for me. I listened to Steve G. rave about them and it got me wondering again, only this time I might be swayed to the wireless ones with a tube preamp.
Ohm F5 series 3 in much larger adjacent L shaped room via in-wall wire.
The aluminum tweeter in the KEFs seem to have an inherent different signature than various other speakers with soft dome tweeters I have had like Dynaudio Contour with Esotar soft dome tweet and the Ohms still in the next room (which are totally different beasts from most anything else). Detail is very good and fatigue is not an issue. The Dynaudios could sound a bit hot on occasion with some recordings.
In the brief demo of metas I got at the dealer I got the sense the new metas may be another step in the direction of less distortion and associated fatigue much like what I have read. We will see. I will check again this week to see if any news on delivery of the Titanium Grey metas I have on order.
I also have a pair of Vanatoo Transparent 1 Encore Active speakers in a room upstairs. Those use a 1" aluminum dome tweeter and the sound is more like the KEFs than others I know with soft domes.
I should receive my metas tomorrow. Having owned the original LS50’s, I am anxious to hear the improved version. There are things that these small stand mounts did for imaging and vocals in my small room that I miss with my current Spatial M4’s. We shall see.....Crutchfield offers a 60 day return policy- so I just had to try them!
Should i bother listening to these speakers? I could get a demo however keep in mind that i heard the reference 1s and wasnt impressed.
I heard the blades and they were not bad. The blades would be acceptable for background music or for the average non audiophile listener. So if the LS50 Meta arent better than that they are not worth my time.
@kenjit You're absolutely right! I borrowed the blades from a friend a few moths ago, and just as you say they're only good for background music. I tried shaving my 3-day stubble with them and seriously cut my face in several places. Do you think Reference 1s will be better? I'm willing to swap my foam with Audioquest Carbon if it helps.
Just received my new Kef LS50 Meta’s and I must say, I am very impressed! I had the original ls50’s and these are much more articulate as if the kef have moved up to the next level for the same price. They sound beefier, cleaner and wider soundstage. I have only been listening for 1 hour. Don’t know how a piece a plastic on the back of the driver could make so much difference. I am driven the kef’s with a Pass Lab int60. LIke others have mentioned the treble is cleaner but there is no brightness whatsoever. Sam Mclain’s voice sound more organic then before and It was good with the old kefs. Even though the bass seems to be beefier, the meta’s still sound better with a quality fast sub. I use a B&W db3 which is an excellent sub. I’m sorry I am not as good as some of you at describing sound. I hope this helps someone wondering how these speaker sound. Don’t think this is a night and day difference, but you will hear it as compared to the old 50’s.
Just wanted to chime in. I installed the new Metas this evening, and am very impressed. Very happy with the purchase, and they only have a couple hours on them so far. The transparency is startling.
PSA DSD DAC, Audioquest Sky 1 XLR, PSA M700 Monos, Audioquest William Tell Zero, GoldenEar Supersub X
Set my new Metas up this morning and have been listening for about two hours. Detail is definitely improved over the original LS 50’s. I am not experiencing any harshness in the upper frequencies-just a clean accurate, yet full and lush, natural presentation. I am driving the speakers with Steve McCormack’s signature modified DNA .05 amplifier. Whether streaming or through my CD transport-just lovely, enjoyable “MUSIC”. I am also using stereo Rhythmik 12” subs in this set-up. I will experiment in the future without them, but for now sounds very “right “ in my room. KEF has a winner with the Meta. I am always a bit apprehensive when a new product is hyped- but in my opinion the latest LS50 Meta is an example of thoughtful, sensible evolution of a classic design. It is a keeper for me.
@deetch sounds similar to the sample I heard at the dealer.
MEtas will not be first time I went with upgraded/refined versions of an older design. I started with original V1 Ohm Walsh in 1982, and upgraded to V3 ~ 2008, around the time I started here on Agon, after dallying in other affairs for a number of years before coming back.
Missed V2 and have not taken plunge to current V4 yet. Been very happy with what I have there but may still happen at some point in the future TBD.
After an extended listen session the the Meta’s I am very impressed. I have not been this excited about the sound of a speaker since I had Krell bi-amped NHT 3.3’s, The Meta is a true upgrade from the LS50’s. They have the sound of speakers, I can’t afford. The sound is just so natural and smooth. Very good recordings are so surreal. The detail is incredible. I hear instruments that before I only heard using my Koss 950 headphones. Anyway I will be interested to hear what other think of the LS50 Meta
I’ve been looking for a thread like this for a while. I ordered the Metas in royal blue two weeks ago and am itching to hear these things. I’ve had the original passive ones for five years and jumped at the upgrade. I figure I’ve spent at least half as much to get incremental improvements that I can only describe as very subtle, so if the improvements are even close to what reviewers are describing, that’s probably worth it for me.
My last tweak was putting the LS50s on IsoAcoustics Apertas, and I found that these tightened things up just a bit on the lower end quite nicely.
I got my Metas a couple of days ago and will post more lengthy impressions after I have some time on them. At first, they sounded a little closed in and the lower midrange/upper bass was somewhat muffled (not uncommon with new speakers before break in). Last night they started to sound more open, with a nice depth to the soundstage (but not much width). The top end is very clear without any harshness, even on first listen. I had the original LS50s a couple of years ago, and just going by memory the Meta is a definite improvement.
After some break-in time, buying the KEF stands, these little Meta’s sound damn good for $1500.00 speakers. I have a recently purchased a REL Storm lll and it is tying the bass in well. A friend told me that it would work well, placed in the corner, and he was right! I think everyone that has these speakers on order will be happy after a little break-in time.
Is the Wireless 2 out yet? Really interested in those especially if the improvements carried over from the non powered. Should be able to pick up some v1s for a song soon.
For LS50 owners upgrading to Metas, what are you doing with the originals? Trade in? Selling? If so, where and for how much? I want to upgrade but would feel better about it if I recoup some expense by selling the old ones. Not seeing many on Audiogon, eBay, etc? I got $500 offer for trade in. Feel like I can do better. Just curious. Excited to hear the Metas for myself.
I have a pair of black edition on eBay now. I’m up to 600 now. I think 700 is the going price. I’ve only had My ls50 6 months and paid 900 new. If I clear 700 I’m good. The metas sound so much better, the joy of listening is worth the lost.
Most likely I will sell my current ls50s here on audiogon unless I decide to keep them and maybe shed something else in a different room. I will be more likely to keep them if the sub is not needed with the metas. Going used prices appear to be as much as $850 a pair currently which is almost as much as they cost when I bought them new. TMR has a pair up on their website for $850 currently.
I sold my Titanium Grey pair on eBay about two weeks ago for $699 + $50 shipping. I opted against an auction and just listed it for the fixed price. Part of me wishes I padded the price a bit more, because it got snapped up in less than 12 hours. Mine were in extremely good condition with only the slightest scratch on the bottom that could only be seen in the light at certain angles.
Crutchfield.com shows the blue and the white ones available 10/30. The titanium sold out already, As you know, these speakers are really hot right now.
I ve heard the LS 50 before ,my friend use Mark Levinson amp 100 w, audio research preamp, thetha dac and transport. They were able to handle all types of music we play on them, including classical, the room is very small.The better the gear you connect the better sound they give you, very capable speakers.
waiting for the next phase of this discussion. Two things a) Mapman finally gets his Metas and tells us what he hears compared to the original LS50sb) others have had their's for 2-3 weeks - is it still wowing you as much as early days? I have the originals - actually the Blacks that I am running with a pair of Rel subs in nearfield in a small room off a Hegel amp and they sound as good as my small room has sounded. This is a bad hobby though as you are always thinking about could it sound better. For me this includes could I buy other speakers - Focals, Dynaudios, Raidhos that would sound even better as a nearfield monitor with subs. Anyone done this?
All to pass the time while we wait for more thoughts on the new Metas!
I’ve had Dynaudio Contour 1.3 mkII in the same 12x12 room as the ls50s. Different sound. Dynaudio was a tad warm and could lean towards a tad bright in some cases. Bass was more extended. I didn’t use a sub with them. I do use sub with ls50s. Ls50s are a different sound in most every regard. Definitely more detailed and different imaging. Probably also more coherent. I liked the Dyns a lot but do not miss them with ls50 + sub combo. Without a sub, it’s more of a tossup depending.
It's great to read that the new LS50 meta speakers are making owners really happy! I've heard the original at a local dealer quite a while back - really nice, not completely my cup of tea. But I'd like to hear the metas. Not gonna happen any time soon unfortunately, given current circumstances.
As an update, I ended up returning my LS50 Metas at the end of the 30-day trial period. It turned out that they really needed to be played a bit louder than I usually listen, which is fairly moderate volume levels (max SPL 78 db or so). They sounded a bit dark and lacking bass at that volume. When I turned them up to max SPLs in the mid 80s and beyond, they sounded much fuller and more engaging. My room is approx. 12x15 ft., and I sit about 7 ft from the speakers. They are great speakers, but they just didn't quite work for my particular case.
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