KEF LS60 v Reference 1s


Has anyone compared the sound of KEF LS60 with pre-meta Reference 1s?  My Reference 1s are driven by Ayre gear.

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Showing 4 responses by dbphd

If the missing text was and add a good subwoofer, the Reference 1s are augmented by a pair of Velodyne HGS-15s with acoustic room correction via an SMS-1. I'm now thinking of replacing the LS50 W2 with LS60. Thanks for the advice. The Reference 1s with a rack of Ayre gear is a hard act to follow.

I was in the hospital with the highly contagious RVS, and did some soul searching about what I actually listen to. In the living room it’s the KEF LS50 W2 with a pair of KC62s, and that’s a surprisingly satisfying sound for me. In the room with Ayre gear and KEF Reference 1s, it’s the 85" Sony. Sony has really nailed the audio of their upper end large screens, another surprisingly satisfying sound. I think I’ve decided to sell all the Ayre gear except the disc player and phono pre amp. I’ll sell the KEF Reference 1s, the LS50 Wireless 2 and LS50 Meta, and keep the Velodyne HGS-15s. I’ll buy an LS60 from KEF this month.

It may seem like sacrilege, but it’s facing an honest analysis of my audio usage -- not always an easy thing to do. The wireless KEFs are just too convenient. and sound too good to be ignored. Kal Rubinson’s review of the LS60 in Stereophile was very favorable, and I tend to trust his judgement.

I am keeping a Thorens TD-124 and Technics SL though I rarely spin an LP, so not completely honest with myself.  They're visual icons.  That SME tonearm gets me every time.

I'll be using the pair of KC62s I use with the LS50 W2 when the LS60 replaces the LS50.