KEF ls50 - Highly Recommended

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Jacko said:
More fun than COUNTDOWN ! :clap:

Hi Jacko

Boys and their toys
smiley-tongue-out.gif


All the best

Rick @ Musicraft
 

Frank Harvey

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I'll put you out of your misery :)

Now bear in mind, I'm not saying this is the best combination, but so far this seems to be the cheapest combination that works very, very well. I've heard them with similarly priced amps, and found them a little fuzzy and lacking the precision they're capable of.

I started off with Angus & Julia Stone's Down The Way, and the amp really did the album justice with a huge soundstage and clean, open, pinpoint soundstage. No detail seemed to be lacking, just a wide open window allowing you to enjoy the music. I then switched to the Fight Club soundtrack. Listening to this just reminded me of the first time I heard it on the Blades - a massive eye opener to just how the album really sounds (which is quite different to that produced by most speakers). I flicked through a few tracks, but it just sounded so good, I didn't want to. Because the soundtrack and its pace is constantly changing, I didn't want to skip anything - the system made me just want to sit there and listen to all of it. Bass depth didn't seem to be an issue either. I know how deep the bass can go from listening to it on the Blades, but the little LS50's reproduced anything that was essential to the final product.

With a soundtrack like this, a clean, clear, precise soundstage is needed in order for pin sharp imaging and solid leading edges of instruments and sounds to be enjoyed, and the LS50's oblige. Depth and forward projection is needed to reproduce the numerous sounds that dance around the soundstage. A cabinet that allows the speaker to do its job and nothing else, and add nothing to the proceedings is also needed in order to allow these electronic based sounds to remain convincing. Of course, none of this is possible if the amplifier isn't in control of the speaker,allowing it to do what it is capable of. It didn't put a foot wrong, stayed in control, and always sounded 'right'. It reminded me very much of how my LS50's sound like at home (driven by a Rotel Class D multi-channel power amplifier). It is a new £500 amplifier (which surprised me, as I thought it was £800!) which I think is going to shake things up a little, in the same way the LS50's will. It's a .....
 

Frank Harvey

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CnoEvil said:
FrankHarveyHiFi said:
It's a .....

F-r F--ks S-ke! :wall:

:rofl:

Pioneer A50.

After trying an SCLX82, I told the rep if they could put that amplification into a 2-channel amp and tweak to suit, it'd be an interesting proposition. I didn't think anything would come of it as they had pretty much left 2-channel behind. I'm assuming with the slowing down of the AV market that they've decided they need to get back into hi-fi, and judging by this amplifier, they're launching a serious attack.

Oh, and I forgot to mention - like the N50 streamer, build quality is awesome. For a Class D amplifier, its very heavy.
 

ErwinC

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Thanks for the interesting review. :cheers:

Do you think the A50 will do a better job than my current Cyrus 6XP in combination with the LS50?

Or would adding a Cyrus 8 Power (i can buy one quite cheap) to the 6XP result in a better sound?
 

Frank Harvey

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ErwinC said:
Thanks for the interesting review. :cheers:

Do you think the A50 will do a better job than my current Cyrus 6XP in combination with the LS50?

I would have to try both out a little more extensively to confirm, but at this early stage, I would guess so. The main point I'd like to make is that i just feel the characteristics of the Pioneer seem to suit the LS50 extremely well. But, some people don't get on too well with Class D amplification - although it'd be interesting to demonstrate an amp to someone and not tell them it is Class D until they say they like the sound of it :)
 

ErwinC

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FrankHarveyHiFi said:
But, some people don't get on too well with Class D amplification - although it'd be interesting to demonstrate an amp to someone and not tell them it is Class D until they say they like the sound of it :)

I have no problem with Class D amplification.

Is it correct that the A-50 is 50 Watt at 8 Ohm? This is not clear on the Pioneer website.
 

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