Kef R100 v LS50s v R300

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BigH

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The_Lhc said:
BigH said:
BenLaw said:
So if you went to Rayleigh hifi you could compare kef, focal, neat, rega, ruark and totem then head to istereos and listen to atc!

They don't do KEFs

That's odd, I bought my KEFs from them. That was 13-odd years ago mind and I think they've changed the focus of their main store in Rayleigh over the last few years. It's still a bit of a stretch to say it's a nightmare to demo gear in Essex, I never had a problem when I lived there, certainly easier than Devon!

Yes you are probably right nightmare is a bit over the top, its just a lot of the systems I want to hear are not available around here, for example Creek amps, Epos speakers, AE speakers, Spendor speakers. Even if one is available they then don't have the other item like KEF speakers, then you have the problem of different demo rooms.
 

Etymotic

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BigH said:
GSB said:
Would you be adverse to a drive up the M1 to the Midlands?

Yes I would, don't want to drive anywhere far. Why whats in the Midlands?

BigH.....I cant quite understand your mindset with this upgrade journey you are currently on.

If you are in the market to buy new equipment then you are doing yourself a dis service by not trying out gear that is only 50 miles or an hours drive away.

Especially as its for something that will hopefully give years and years of unalloyed pleasure. If you are not prepared to travel any distance to demo brands that are not available locally then you are limiting yourself to something that may not be the most suited to you and your situation. For the sake of half a day out you may end up with some equipment that will be a compromise and not what you would have picked had you gone somewhere else.

Its not a critisism....Its just that you are greatly limiting your choice.......

There are numerous branches of Sevenoaks in your area, all within a 20 mile radius I would think.......Loughton,Bishops Stortford, Bromley and Witham to name but a few. They always have good brand choice....

If you were prepared to drive the short distance to Islington you would find Bartletts and if you drive up the M1/M69 to the Midlands you would find Frank Harvey in Coventry who has more brands to demo than you could shake a stick at.

Just a thought.
 

Etymotic

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The_Lhc said:
Coventry's a bit more than 50 miles from Essex (I think, never actually been there...).

I know it is..but I am trying to make the point about being prepared to travel for something you really want......dont you agree then?
 

BigH

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Etymotic said:
BigH said:
GSB said:
Would you be adverse to a drive up the M1 to the Midlands?

Yes I would, don't want to drive anywhere far. Why whats in the Midlands?

BigH.....I cant quite understand your mindset with this upgrade journey you are currently on.

If you are in the market to buy new equipment then you are doing yourself a dis service by not trying out gear that is only 50 miles or an hours drive away.

Especially as its for something that will hopefully give years and years of unalloyed pleasure. If you are not prepared to travel any distance to demo brands that are not available locally then you are limiting yourself to something that may not be the most suited to you and your situation. For the sake of half a day out you may end up with some equipment that will be a compromise and not what you would have picked had you gone somewhere else.

Its not a critisism....Its just that you are greatly limiting your choice.......

There are numerous branches of Sevenoaks in your area, all within a 20 mile radius I would think.......Loughton,Bishops Stortford, Bromley and Witham to name but a few. They always have good brand choice....

If you were prepared to drive the short distance to Islington you would find Bartletts and if you drive up the M1/M69 to the Midlands you would find Frank Harvey in Coventry who has more brands to demo than you could shake a stick at.

Just a thought.

I don't really understand your comments, I said Im not prepared to drive to the Midlands to hear some hifi which maybe a complete waste of time, actually I was going to Birmingham for some event but that has been cancelled so no longer going. I said I won't be going to Frinton as 50 miles and the speakers do not suit me, also seems to have no other hifi in stock. I have been to Sevenoaks in Witham and Rayleigh in Chelmsford already and if they have Spendor I may well revisit, although I thought their demo room was poor. The other Creek outlet I can find is in Herts which going to on Saturday but he only has Epos Floorstanders and no Kefs so not sure what speakers I can hear and no website mainly used gear.

What I really want at the moment is to hear Creek 50A with a range of speakers like AE 301s, Kef R100s, Spendor and Epos Epic 2s.
 

Etymotic

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BigH said:
Etymotic said:
BigH said:
GSB said:
Would you be adverse to a drive up the M1 to the Midlands?

Yes I would, don't want to drive anywhere far. Why whats in the Midlands?

BigH.....I cant quite understand your mindset with this upgrade journey you are currently on.

If you are in the market to buy new equipment then you are doing yourself a dis service by not trying out gear that is only 50 miles or an hours drive away.

Especially as its for something that will hopefully give years and years of unalloyed pleasure. If you are not prepared to travel any distance to demo brands that are not available locally then you are limiting yourself to something that may not be the most suited to you and your situation. For the sake of half a day out you may end up with some equipment that will be a compromise and not what you would have picked had you gone somewhere else.

Its not a critisism....Its just that you are greatly limiting your choice.......

There are numerous branches of Sevenoaks in your area, all within a 20 mile radius I would think.......Loughton,Bishops Stortford, Bromley and Witham to name but a few. They always have good brand choice....

If you were prepared to drive the short distance to Islington you would find Bartletts and if you drive up the M1/M69 to the Midlands you would find Frank Harvey in Coventry who has more brands to demo than you could shake a stick at.

Just a thought.

I don't really understand your comments, I said Im not prepared to drive to the Midlands to hear some hifi which maybe a complete waste of time, actually I was going to Birmingham for some event but that has been cancelled so no longer going. I said I won't be going to Frinton as 50 miles and the speakers do not suit me, also seems to have no other hifi in stock. I have been to Sevenoaks in Witham and Rayleigh in Chelmsford already and if they have Spendor I may well revisit, although I thought their demo room was poor. The other Creek outlet I can find is in Herts which going to on Saturday but he only has Epos Floorstanders and no Kefs so not sure what speakers I can hear and no website mainly used gear.

What I really want at the moment is to hear Creek 50A with a range of speakers like AE 301s, Kef R100s, Spendor and Epos Epic 2s.

BigH...as I said its not a critisism......I was just making the point that I would be prepared to travel fairly long distances to demo equipment that wasnt in my immediate area. Only because it is a major purchase and something you will have to live with every day...and knowing your real passion for music as I do I would have thought that you would have wanted to give yourself the biggest choice possible. Perhaps its just me then who would be prepared to do that? I would see it as all part of the adventure!.... Ho Hum......
 

BigH

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Yes a few years ago I would have done but things are different for me now. I think the only place near me to hear what I want is in London, there are no Creek/Epos dealers in Essex or Kent, there maybe one near Ipswich I will have to check, not all dealers stock the whole range.

Does anyone know if Superhi in Camden has a proper audition room?
 

Etymotic

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BigH said:
Yes a few years ago I would have done but things are different for me now. I think the only place near me to hear what I want is in London, there are no Creek/Epos dealers in Essex or Kent, there maybe one near Ipswich I will have to check, not all dealers stock the whole range.

Does anyone know if Superhi in Camden has a proper audition room?

Fair enough mate......Whatever suits you..thats the main thing. As far as I know ,the Camden Town branch of SuperFi has couches for demoing in the main shop but not a dedicated listening room...although I may be wrong as its years since I was in there.
 

BigH

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Etymotic said:
BigH said:
Yes a few years ago I would have done but things are different for me now. I think the only place near me to hear what I want is in London, there are no Creek/Epos dealers in Essex or Kent, there maybe one near Ipswich I will have to check, not all dealers stock the whole range.

Does anyone know if Superhi in Camden has a proper audition room?

Fair enough mate......Whatever suits you..thats the main thing. As far as I know ,the Camden Town branch of SuperFi has couches for demoing in the main shop but not a dedicated listening room...although I may be wrong as its years since I was in there.

OK thanks, I'll see how this Creek/Epos demo goes on Saturday.
 

BigH

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I have just come across a few comments that say the Dynaudio Excite X12 are good at low volumes, does anyone agree?

So at the moment I have Epos Epic 2s, Spendor S3/5R2 , Kef R100, Totem Dreamcatcher/Rainmakers and Dyn X12.

Any others or any views on the above.

[/b]
 

BigH

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Update on Totems it seems Rayleigh Hifi only stock a couple of Floorstanders.

Dynaudio seems hard to find also, none of dealers near me seem to stock them.
 

matt49

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BigH said:
I have just come across a few comments that say the Dynaudio Excite X12 are good at low volumes, does anyone agree?

yes

if you can make it as far as Bartletts, you could demo them. You could even try the Focus 110As while you're there ...
 

BigH

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matt49 said:
BigH said:
I have just come across a few comments that say the Dynaudio Excite X12 are good at low volumes, does anyone agree?

yes

if you can make it as far as Bartletts, you could demo them. You could even try the Focus 110As while you're there ...

Yes looks like Barletts is the place to go. The only shop in Essex that did Dynaudio no longer does or does not do the X12s anyway.
 

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