KEF Cresta 2 vs Monitor Audio BX-2, which one better in sound quality?

Hi-Fi Corner
1

Hello,

I’m planning to buy a bookshelf loudspeaker for daily use, I don’t need high specification speakers.
I was faced with 2 choices, namely:

  1. KEF Cresta 2
  2. Monitor Audio Bronze BX-2 ( Monitor Audio BX-2)

My habit of listening to music is jazz music, from the 2 options above, which one is better in terms of sound quality, soundstage, dynamics, vocal quality and bass?

thanks

2

Oh boy! Those are 2 very different speakers. Best advice, if you can listen to both and decide.

1 Like
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I listened to 2 different sellers, so it’s a bit difficult to distinguish the characters, can you help distinguish between them and suggest the character of each speaker’s sound?

4

I have not heard either i am afraid. I have owned and loved speaker’s from both manufacturers.

So my comments should be considered anecdotal at best.

The kef sound is better balanced smoother in the highs and a very pleasant listen. I have always felt Kef do a good job with vocals. The speakers i had used the excellent UniQ drivers, unlike the cresta’s. But the cresta’s are a classic, i remember wanting a pair when i was at uni in the 90s!

MA are what some would call hifi shop speakers! When you first hear them they sound incredibly detailed. Very fast and you don’t miss a thing. Possibly on the brighter side compared to Kef. Some complain about listening fatigue, and general advice seems to be to pair with a laid back amp like Arcam. On the Bronze range i am not super impressed i feel they have purposely made them sound a bit closed in and ‘small’ to encourage you to buy the next range up. Certainly the Silvers are a much better sounding speaker. Of all the speakers i have owned a pair of MA silver 6 floor standers stayed the longest so far!

5

I finally chose Monitor Audio BX-2, I first compared it with Monitor Audio Bronze 2, the quality of Bronze 2 seems to be lower compared to Monitor Audio BX-2. What I also noticed was that the Bronze 2’s cone circumference was easier to remove (the glue wasn’t good enough) than the BX-2. While the BX-2 has better adhesive quality. The weight of the BX-2 is also heavier than the Bronze 2, I see the BX-2 feels more rigid

When compared to KEF Cresta 2, I see Cresta 2 is too old, I’m worried about the quality of the driver material

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