Kef Reference 205/2 or 207/2 ?

[Neuphonix]

Hi all

currently own the Ref 205/2 and am very happy.

My dealer has just put up a set of 207/2 ex-demo. I will be able to cover part of the cost with a trade on the 205/2.

Amp will by my MF-AMS50P so pretty sure it will make more than enough grunt for the 207/2.

Will be going to have a look/listen this weekend, but I doubt that a home demo is going to be an option given the size & weight.

Pros:

More Bass

More of everything really

Cons:

Wrong colour (cherry red, very nice but all my kit is black)

Very big (TBH prob too big for my room)

Can't quite love the "lantern" look of the uniQ perched on top

 

[CnoEvil]

Great speakers, but as you say, may well be too big for your room.....they are very deep from front to back.

If it was me, I'd save up for the Blades, which are a big step up.

 

[Neuphonix]

Are you able to give me your feelings about the difference between the 205 & 207?

Surely you've heard the 207?

 

[CnoEvil]

The problem I have, is that I haven't heard them on the end of my amp....and the amp I heard them on (Linn Akurate i think), didn't do them particular justice.

From what I heard, they just did everything better......the 205/2s reached maybe 85% of the performance (though this might widen with better amplification / source)......I'm not sure I felt they were worth the huge premium.

Go listen and tell me what you think.

 

[Neuphonix]

I should be able to take my 35P in for the demo so while not quite the same as the 50P is should give a reasonably clear indication.

Obviously I'm already confident in the synergy between the two brands.

Have to say I'll be looking for a pretty significant step up to make me go there. 3 x 10" drivers has got to make a big difference over 2 x 8" surely.

As I say the biggest obstacle in my head is the asthetics, colour, footprint & the uniq on top. Shouldn't be the primary consideration, but if they were in black & the uniq was sunk into the body like the 205/2 then we probably wouldn't be having this discussion.

MMmmmmmm. 3 x10" mmmmm 8) :twisted:

Will report back

 

[hifikrazy]

I'll choose 8" drivers over 10" drivers any day, unless you have a very huge room. Larger drivers sound slow to me. The Wilson Audio Sasha 2 which are probably the most impressive sounding speakers I've heard at the price range have two 8" drivers too.

Only thing I'm not so keen on this Kef range of speakers is that they're getting rather long in the tooth, and one thing I hate is to buy something only to have it superseded by a new and better version only a couple of months down the road, unless I'm picking it up at a very heavy discount.

 

[CnoEvil]

My perspective has been changed since I have heard the Blades. Up until then, I would have considered the 207/2s....if I had the room, and if I was able to source some at a good price ie. ex-dem / pre-owned.

Now that I have heard the Blades there is no going back. IMO. The gap is so big, that I would rather save up and locate an ex-dem pair in the future, than settle for less.......but it's all academic, as my hifi fund has been decimated!

 

[CnoEvil]

Are you able to give me your feelings about the difference between the 205 & 207?

For some further insight, here are some quotes from Roy Gregory of Hifi+ :

205/2

"Of course it would be unreasonable to expect the 205 to match the remarkable performance of the 207. The junior model can't match the effortless scale and sheer dynamic range of the flagship. It doesn't conjure the acoustic space with such natural transparency, or deliver images with quite the focus or dimensionality - but it gets close; surprisingly close. Close enough that, if you hadn't heard the bigger speaker, you wouldn't feel the lack."

207/2

"Indeed, the first thing that strikes you about the 207/2, especially given its imposing size and physical bulk, the complexity of its four-way, five-driver format, is its sheer musical coherence. Work at set up (of the speakers and the system driving them) and you’ll hear them simply disappear – which is impressive and not a little spooky."

"More to the point, relative to its price peers, the KEF delivers as much or more detail, and makes much better use of it. Anything that’s more transparent doesn’t go as loud or as deep, nothing I’ve heard that matches its bandwidth and dynamic range is anywhere near as refined or natural. This speaker goes loud gracefully, without congestion or hardening at the top-end (that new tweeter again) but it also does delicacy and the more calming, seductive side of music. The driver count, bold styling and glossy finish are in some ways misleading – because inside the 207/2 lurks a consummate all-rounder."

Blade

" Let’s make no bones about this; the KEF Blade is a serious high-end performer that sits comfortably alongside some of the most respected and successful, high-profile designs out there – big speakers from big names. It matches them for size and overall quality and certainly matches them in terms of its striking appearance and quality of fit and finish. But most importantly, it does it at rather less than half the price!"

"Line the KEF up beside its price competitors and it makes them look pretty silly, on grounds of fit, finish and material content; and that’s before you listen to them."

"So the KEF Blade isn’t a recipe for champagne sound on a beer budget. But it does represent a considerable saving when it comes to getting the sort of sonic and musical results that used to rely on a £50K loudspeaker."