Kef 3005SE Vs B&W MT-25

[MadDog*1]

Hey!

Looking into buying home cinema speakers. Thinking of Kef 3005se or B&W MT-25... any ideas on which is the best road to go down? Thanks!!

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Welcome.........

Can i ask what the rest of your system is?????

What is it used for? movies only?

 

[Clare Newsome]

Indeed - key questions, as the two systems each have their own strengths.

 

[Pistol Pete1]

But, to be honest, your probably going to be better at answering the OP's question, Clare....

Especially as I've not heard the B&W speakers......

 

[Clare Newsome]

I can't answer the question until I know more about what the speakers are for.

It'd be easy to just say 'B&Ws' as they are our Product of the Year in that category. Yes, they're damn fine all-rounders (hence the Award), but in some situations the five-star KEFs may suit a set-up better.

There's rarely a simple 'buy that' answer - and that's before the OP has auditioned

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Yes, I meant after the OP had answered my questions.....

I think some people get a bit apprehensive about going for a demo....I know I used to.

I put it down to being 'worried' about pressure salesmen, or being obligated to buy something, which I have not found in the hifi/av shops I have demo'd in...

(Creative Audio, SMC, Hifix)

Find a good shop and go enjoy listening to the two different speaker systems, MadDog.....

 

[moosey]

Hi

I had the same shortlist last year, and managed to demo them at a local SSAV. I think you'll be impressed by either but I chose the Kefs for three main reasons;

- i found the dedicated Kef centre speaker gave more authority to dialogue

- the B&W sub didn't feel as integrated or make the same impact

- the Kefs were significantly cheaper; I appreciate that may have been a 'special offer' but i think the difference was almost a couple of hundred quid.

I know several people with the B&W, and they are all very happy with their choice, so I might suspect that the set up of the mt25 in the shop was not 100%.

However I am still perfectly happy with my choice. I use them a lot for music; using the marantz6004 and sonos. They might not be top range HiFi speakers but sound very enjoyable.

Go and demo; you can't make a 'bad choice' from those two but you might prefer the tone of one of them.

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Spot on, moosey.....

 

[MadDog*1]

Hey, thanks!

I'm buying into the whole seperates game for the first time.

I was thinking of pairing either the Kefs or B&W speakers up with the Yamaha RX-V1067.

I currenyly have a 46 inch Sony Bravia KDL 40W4500 with Sony Bluray player BDP - S350.

Primarily i would be using the speakers for movies and on occasion music. I also enjoy gaming, XBox 360.

The vast amount of use will be for movies.

Cheers!

 

[Anonymous]

Though one this, because I do believe the KEF centre speaker handles the dialogue better than the M1, but I love the look of the M1's, I've owned both packages by the way.

The M1's with ASW610, rather than the 608 would probably be my choice, but I beileve the 610 is hard to get hold of.

I would suggest you have a listen to both and make your mind up which sounds best, good choice in AVR it's fantastic BTW, the new KEF T range might be worth looking into if your budget allows too.

 

[MadDog*1]

Cheers Mark, I'll have to dig behind the couch in hope of finding an extra few quid, would love the T series!

 

[Anonymous]

I'm going to audition the T series along with the Apex tomorrow so I will let you know my thoughts too..

 

[Clare Newsome]

We've got a major First Test of the KEF T series speaker package in our next (March) issue - being posted out to subscribers 4th Feb; in shops by Feb 10th.

 

[Anonymous]

Clare Newsome:
We've got a major First Test of the KEF T series speaker package in our next (March) issue - being posted out to subscribers 4th Feb; in shops by Feb 10th.

Can you gives us any idea (without giving too much away) how these fair, my wife did not like my RX1/C setup, she does not like the R250HD I have currently and is not over keen on the Apex. The T series would be a solution she could live with, if I can!

I will have these or the Apex early next week hopefully.

 

[Clare Newsome]

I'm afraid I can't give you any clues!

Have a good listen and see what you think.

One point to consider - your Yamaha, while excellent, would be better paired to the KEF 3005SE/KEF T Series/B&W MT-25 price/spec level; the Apex package truly thrives on the end of even more power.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks clare, it was worth a try, and I fully appreciate your comments on the 1067, however, I was trying to future proof myself with the Apex. this would also allow me to keep the RXFX at the rear, as I think if I went with the T series I would need to change the rears also (Do you agree?), it's just a shame they don't do the T series in White.