WHF Team and Forum Members - Please help complete my new setup

[LEET1973]

Hi All

First post, but i've been hanging around the forums for a while and a keen reader of the magazine for a long time.

Currently upgrading my home cinema set-up and as you can tell from below, i take a lot of notice of what is published in the magazine and on these forums. The transformation so far is:

TV: Toshiba 32ZD26P CRT to Panasonic 42PZ80 Plasma

PVR: Sky+ to Sky HD

DVD: Pioneer DVD player to PS3

AMP: Pioneer VSX-C100 to ???

5.1 Speakers: Sony Pascal 5.1 to ???

The advice i need is regarding the speakers, as i'm just about set on getting the Yamaha 763 amp.

My viewing room is approximately 21ft by 10ft and i think i've narrowed it down to the Jamo A102 5.1 set up available for arround £220 or the Kef 2005.2 set up which i can get for around £450 ish in black.

Can't audition the Jamo option as its not available locally, so i guess the question is, which option represents the most bang for my bucks given by new set-up to date and are the Kefs worth the extra £200.

Any help much appreciated.

 

[lobby]

Thats a decent size room which could accommodate much more expensive equipment, but i guess youve got a budget like eveyone else. As for the speakers i would say the Kefs are better but £200 more maybe not. Now if you where to consider choosing an Onkyo606 amp instead of the Yamaha, you could get a great deal at Sevenoaks. The deal is the 606 amp and the newer kef 2005.3 for £799 which effectively makes the amp £100 a fantastic deal almost a give away. Check your local store for stock as im not sure all stores will have this deal but mat be able to order it. Forgot to say other deals which may interest you is the Yamaha ax863se and Q acoustics 1010i for £899 and for £300 more an uprade on the 606 and 2005.3 to kef 3005se. Hope this may help you

 

[LEET1973]

Thanks for the heads up on the Sevenoaks offer....i suppose its only £50 more than the older Kef 2005.2/yamaha 763 deal i've been offered.

So far my options are:

Yamaha 763 / Jamo A102 5.1 £550 ish

Yamaha 763 / Kef 2005.2 £740 ish

Onkyo 606 / Kef 2005.3 £799

What i really want to know is: (and more importantly the wife wants to know)

Is it worth spending the extra £250 on the Kef deals?

Will it give me such a significant improvement over the Jamo's to justify it?

Thanks...Lee

 

[Alsone]

Only listening to them back to back will tell but generally, the biggest jumps in sound quality occur in the jump from budget to mid range equipment. TBH, a £200 speaker package has a snowflakes chance in hell of matching a £700 quality package like the Kef 2005.3. The sound difference is likely to be like night and day.

As for Kef 2005.2 vs Kef 2005.3, you only have to look at the WHF reviews to see which is the better buy. The former the .2's, get 4 stars and marks off for over enthusiasm (maybe even harshness). The latter, the .3's get 5 stars and an excellent review albeit not rated as the last word in excitement. However, in my opinion, you'll get more mileage from a well balanced system than one that prone to being over enthusiastic and maybe a difficult listen with some films. A well balanced system will always sound good. An exciting system might sound exciting, but if too exciting can easily give your ears such a battering its become tiresome and have you reaching for the off button.

http://whathifi.com/Review/KEF-KHT20052/

http://whathifi.com/Review/KEF-KHT20053/

Out of the amps, the Yamaha has the edge but the Onkyo is described in the review as slightly on the exciting side and so should suit the 2005.3 package well making up a little for their slightly laid back nature. They are both quality amps.

Personally, out of those deals I'd be buying the Onkyo 606 / Kef 2005.3 deal simply for the speakers and the fact that the sound is probably likely to be more balanced as a result.

Now if you could find the Yamaha packaged with the 2005.3's you'd really be laughing.

 

[LEET1973]

Thanks for the advice from the two forum members above.

I've been in touch with R/S and they will price match the offer from Seven Oaks.

So hopefully at the weekend i will be picking up the Onkyo 606 and Kef 2005.3 for £799.

It seems a cracking deal to finally complete my system.

 

[Anonymous]

As I've said elsewhere, Sevenoaks are doing me the Yammy with the Kef's for the same cash.