Cheers, me too, clear evidence as if it were needed that the room is a massive leveller.
Got a feeling that the cross room setup on my Naim setup might play right into the sweet spot of the Kefs. The Gurus revel in it and sound huge, keeping the scale even at low volumes.
Are you putting them on stands?
I am picking up a pair Tomorrow, along with an ND5XS2. I will give you some first impressions on Sunday probably. I have the Kef stand 2 coming with them too.
Hey Gringo, Yes they’ll be on stands in either of the systems I give them a go on. In the Naim setup it would be some heavyweight Target R2s I’ve had since a pair of ProAc Studio 100s I used to own that they were made for. These have the Guru top plate on them.
In the cabin I have some HiFi Racks speaker stands with the home made copy of the guru top plate.
Speaker cable is Kudos Ks1 in both cases. I have some Townshend Isolda that I can swap in as well if required.
Cool, will be interested in how they sound, good luck!
Looking forward to hearing your first impressions.
I just got the ND5XS2 and Meta’s up and running, so no time at all on either of them, but I am very impressed so far…buy the Meta’s with confidence you are getting a bargain at their price. More to come as I get time on them
Black finish looks really good in your room, I debated with the titanium finish but went with black in the end.
Be interested how they bed in.
Early delivery this morning means the Metas are now getting juiced up and run in, first impressions are excellent, as in they have similar style of presentation to Guru’s at low volume with the sound projected far out from the speakers, not trapped in them like many I’ve auditioned recently.
Hi Adam,
Will this be a Thunder-Dome situation, with one set of speakers left standing, or if you like them will you keep both and swap them round occasionally?
M
Hi, the Guru’s are forever speakers that is for sure, having a pair of mk1’s and mk2’s they won’t be going anywhere, this was originally a purchase to be able to swap in when a little bit extra volume is required than the Guru’s are happy to deal out (mostly its when the blue light flickers, warning of less than ideal playback and makes you (well me) back off.
Many owners have disconnected or covered them up to carry on without the catholic guilt. Truth be told all speakers start to harden up towards their limits and Guru just let you know this.
The reviews are pretty accurate, they are showing enough in first few casual hours whilst working to show some real potential.
One thing that Kef are spot on with is that these are near straight ahead placement, I did just plonk them down on the stands in exactly the same position as the Gurus were and just pull out a little, then did some tuning and properly messed it up, then returning them to original position and it was mainly the toe in.
They certainly carry voices superbly, and those uni-q drivers sound magical with Miles.
I’ll let them continue to break in but suspect a switch in and out.
I did madly consider a Tim de Paravinini approach (him on Ls3/as) of having both pairs of Guru’s sat on top of each other and power one with the power amp and then other on the integrated in a bi-amp arrangement on the Densens in the cabin. I’ll probably still end up giving it a go for a giggle to see what it sounds like.
Tim de P. was an interesting man. If you do try his arrangement please do post your thoughts!
Will do, in the meantime the Metas have got passed the first hurdle, I’ve taken the Guru top plates off the stands and turned them through 90 degrees to have narrowest profile and nearly fits exactly.
Breaking in nicely.
Ok normal service resumed, Kefs now in the cabin to cook for a few days, how the hell do Guru make speakers that just connect emotionally?
Kefs can hit the weights and break in, they are preferring the dimensions and construction of the cabin.
They are revelling in being away from side walls, sounding exquisite on the end of the Cabin system with more room to breathe.
Mine are about four feet away from any walls. For now, mine are firing straight ahead, and today I was amazed at how the sound was truly floating in the air between the speakers when called for. There is definitely a drop off in bass from my big Peak Consult speakers, but that was expected. I am going to let them run in for a few weeks before playing with position or toe in.
Proximity to side walls has definitely been the biggest influence so far, I know its too early to tell for definitive positioning but based on the difference from the listening room and the cabin its pretty conclusive on side wall effect.
Different design ethos, Guru designed to accept the compromises of a typical listening room and work with it, Kef want ideal conditions with less compromise to deliver their best.
Both end up at the same destination, different route.
I’ve straightened out the Kef’s at the moment, once they have run in some more will start optimising the stand position, top plates etc.
My original Ls50’s worked poorly in our living room as they had to be up close to the wall, but work a charm in the basement office where I have them wall/post mounted for near field listening at the desk, and one of the pair, on the middle of the room support post, has lots of room behind it.
Good to hear, after a day of playing to themselves in the cabin they are sounding pretty special.
The only however is that the definitely won’t work in the main listening room on the Naim system, but, they were not bought for that.
These were a punt, but are sounding a very successful one when given the space that their design demands.
With space they sound excellent and potentially giant killing given the value for money.
I’ve had the older LS50, great speakers but need front grill in many households etc… surprised nobody seem to offer something useful for such a popular speaker.
Sure they’d sell like hotcakes
