Question Unhappy with KEF R300s

SteveH72

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Hello all. I’ve been running R300s with a Rega Brio and I’m not happy. There are many good qualities but the bass is unruly and overblown. Believe me I’ve tried every tweak with positioning, bungs etc. but the sound is just not to my liking; I’ve never been a bass head.
I got them to fill a 5x4m room but hanker for a more delicate, airy sound.
Any suggestions for alternatives? Thanks
 

muljao

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I think I'd audition q acoustics concept 40s in a room that size. They should sound more delicate, but I haven't heard q acoustics with rega so it's only my knowledge of them with other brands
 
Hello all. I’ve been running R300s with a Rega Brio and I’m not happy. There are many good qualities but the bass is unruly and overblown. Believe me I’ve tried every tweak with positioning, bungs etc. but the sound is just not to my liking; I’ve never been a bass head.
I got them to fill a 5x4m room but hanker for a more delicate, airy sound.
Any suggestions for alternatives? Thanks

Would it be rude to recommend Regas own speakers? They are designed to work with their sibling amps, regardless of reviews etc etc. They shouldn't be dismissed IMO. I've not personally heard them, but if you can get a demo...

I know you are reluctant to change amplifiers but...

A few summers ago I was invited to a person's house in my village. He had the R300 using a Yamaha AS 500, and it sounded fine... that was until I plugged my amp into the R300s. It elevated the sound three-fold in terms of grip, improving the soundscape and sounded crisper.

So I'm thinking of perhaps a Rega Elex-R, which will grip the speakers much better and with the extra wattage have more overall control.
 

SteveH72

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Feb 25, 2020
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Would it be rude to recommend Regas own speakers? They are designed to work with their sibling amps, regardless of reviews etc etc. They shouldn't be dismissed IMO. I've not personally heard them, but if you can get a demo...

I know you are reluctant to change amplifiers but...

A few summers ago I was invited to a person's house in my village. He had the R300 using a Yamaha AS 500, and it sounded fine... that was until I plugged my amp into the R300s. It elevated the sound three-fold in terms of grip, improving the soundscape and sounded crisper.

So I'm thinking of perhaps a Rega Elex-R, which will grip the speakers much better and with the extra wattage have more overall control.
Not at all. Sounds like a very sensible suggestion. I‘ve never hear any Rega speakers but I’m a fan of their products in general. Good call.
 
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Hello all. I’ve been running R300s with a Rega Brio and I’m not happy. There are many good qualities but the bass is unruly and overblown. Believe me I’ve tried every tweak with positioning, bungs etc. but the sound is just not to my liking; I’ve never been a bass head.
I got them to fill a 5x4m room but hanker for a more delicate, airy sound.
Any suggestions for alternatives? Thanks

If don't like overblown bass id try and hunt down some sealed designs. To me, it sounds like the room has a bass boost probably in the 40-50hz range as that's normally where the strong audible stuff sits. I pretty much had the same problem. I'd stay away from anything with a port especially a rear port (they seem to excite them room more).

So maybe a pair of ATC's smc7's might worth an audition.
 
If don't like overblown bass id try and hunt down some sealed designs. To me, it sounds like the room has a bass boost probably in the 40-50hz range as that's normally where the strong audible stuff sits. I pretty much had the same problem. I'd stay away from anything with a port especially a rear port (they seem to excite them room more).

So maybe a pair of ATC's smc7's might worth an audition.
ATC are probably not the best example. The Brio is only 50 watts per channel into 8 ohms. The OP will probably hear a different imbalance.
 
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ATC are probably not the best example. The Brio is only 50 watts per channel into 8 ohms. The OP will probably hear a different imbalance.


I'm not a fan of ATC my self but pretty sure the little brio can handle them though, as long as your not expecting monstrous volumes. I'd still have them on the sealed speaker audition list never know till you listen.

Either way, a sealed enclosure of some sort will work wonders by the sound of it
 

12oner

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Would it be rude to recommend Regas own speakers? They are designed to work with their sibling amps, regardless of reviews etc etc. They shouldn't be dismissed IMO. I've not personally heard them, but if you can get a demo...

I know you are reluctant to change amplifiers but...

A few summers ago I was invited to a person's house in my village. He had the R300 using a Yamaha AS 500, and it sounded fine... that was until I plugged my amp into the R300s. It elevated the sound three-fold in terms of grip, improving the soundscape and sounded crisper.

So I'm thinking of perhaps a Rega Elex-R, which will grip the speakers much better and with the extra wattage have more overall control.
I'm of this thinking, I had the R300's for a while and they definitely benefit from a more powerful amp to control that bass. Like advised above the whole performance jumped up a notch.

Can i ask what source you're using?

Thanks
 

RoA

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If Kef LS50's are out of reach I can recommend the Quad S2.

Beautifully built and sound lovely. I used them in my previous system with Hegel amplification. They should not cause bass issues other than if the room is problematic. Superb tweeters and transparent mids. I don't really understand why they sell them at that price personally.
 
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SteveH72

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Thanks for the replied, everybody. Point noted about a more powerful amp controlling bass, but I’m not talking about flabby, indistinguishable bass notes; I’m talking about boomy, floor wobbling bass that over powers everything. They are big speakers, especially for standmounts, and this and the way they are interacting with my room is causing the problem. I’ve pulled them out, toed them in, toed them out, bunged them, half bunged them, every combination of the above you can imagine and still no improvement. Sources are a Rega turntable and a Rotel CD player.
I don‘t wish to change the amplifier at the moment. I’ve heard it with other speakers and rate it highly. It also has an excellent phono stage.
Many interesting suggestions above which I will read up on. I see sense in a sealed box design as this will allow me to place them closer to a wall, away from curious little hands.
 

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