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Advice on speaker replacement

Greetings all. Audiophile wannabe here. Champaign taste on champale budget.

Seeking advice on a possible speaker purchase. I know some will say I should be on the walmart advice to the love-lorn but I'm hoping some may lend an sympathetic ear and offer some saje advice. I'm a 75yo male with some hearing compromise. Bass and mid are ok but anything over 10khz  is gone. 

Current (modest) system: Yamaha R-N500 receiver, Technics SL-1200 MK2 with Ortofon 2M red, Sony UBP-X800 M2 Blueray/CD player, KEF Q300 speakers with a HSU VTF 1 sub. The sub is wired and good to 25hz+/- 2db.

Living in the St Louis metro, which has become a Audio store desert, I'm really not able to listen to much outside of Best Buy. There is one high end store but their equipment is out of my price bracket.

Based on many hours of online searching and looking at spending in the $1500-2k range I have picked out several candidates. KEF r3 (on sale for $500 off) or possibly LS 50 Meta. KLH 5, Wharfdale Linton or Klipsh RP 600 MII.

My room is 18dx13wx8high. Hardwood floor and sheetrock walls. Area rug and couch with a few wall hangings. Primarily want to listen to Amazon Ultra hd and occasional LP. My other purchase is probably going to be a blusound node 2i for streaming. Right now I'm stuck with Airplay. Thoughts?

128x128llg98ljk
zlone
446 posts
 

I love the LS50s, but the Yamaha doesn’t have the power to do them justice. I would lean towards something more efficient. Something bigger for your room size might be wise, as the others have stated. 

llg98ljk's avatar
llg98ljk OP
148 posts
 

I kind of think that the KEF r3 is probably the higher end of this group.

Unfortunately, I don't have any reasonable way to compare them. My previous speakers were ADS L810 II that I purchased in 1978. I'm afraid if I vacillate too long, the r3s will be gone. Re: room size. 235 square feet is not all that large. the Yamaha has 80 wpc and is 4ohm stable. Can also push 175 watts into 2ohms dynamic. Obviously not high end gear but works for me for now.

 

jeffreyw's avatar
jeffreyw
243 posts
 

@llg98ljk 

The KEF LS 50 Meta is a beautiful-sounding speaker. The r3 has been updated to a meta version, also. The LS 50 meta is better sounding than many of the older R series. However, now the R series has been updated to the Meta; the playing field might be a little more even. 

arcticdeth's avatar
arcticdeth
1,549 posts
 

new amp, cables, and get a thick rug, or some corner traps for reflections.

 

 power, get more power.

 

receivers, av receivers can't feed the soul

llg98ljk's avatar
llg98ljk OP
148 posts
 

I think I've made a decision. After countless runs through available resources, I messaged KEF with several questions. To my surprise, an actual human being from KEF called me Friday and we had a great discussion about several options, and he relayed his personal experience with several products that he used at home.

I am strongly leaning towards the LS50 Meta wireless system. It is some above my initial budget but looking at it as an end game purchase, I received WAF to proceed. I know some may think it's too small for my room but he assured me that the LS50 series is more than up to the task even if I got the non-powered version and used my Yamaha receiver.

Is my decision swayed by the fact that someone from KEF took the time to call me and have a relatively lengthy conversation with me? You bet I am. That is a refreshing occurrence in this day and age.

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