Hi there
Question for anybody who has heard the kudos range.
I am about to choose some new speakers for a new system install in my basement room, which measures 7.6m x 4.6m x 2.4m. I need speakers which work well close-ish to a rear wall, and given kudos seem to work well like that and work well with Naim I am taking the plunge for those (I had a pair of SBLs lined up but unfortunately they went missing en route to me). I am deliberating between the 606, 707 or 808 and struggling to make the decision. I am not able to demo the speakers unfortunately, so I am buying blind.
Any views in whether a) 606 would work in that space, or too small? b) whether the 707 gets close to the 808 performance?
Any knowledgeable guidance would be much appreciated 
Robbo
You need to give your system details……preamp, amp etc……pictures of your music space helps.
What means “close-ish”? In that space (reasonably big, at least by UK standards…), one would hope you have some flexibility with speaker placement.
System is ND555/552/500.
I would like to keep the speakers at a max 30-40 cm from the rear wall, around 50cm from side walls, firing down room long ways.
My 606 work fine in a 4.5 x 4.8m room
I’ve listened to all of the Titans in demos set up by Kudos with Naim amps and sources. I would say that although the others all sounded good, the 808s were in a totally different league, and if your budget will stretch that far you should go for them.
The Titans, like all Kudos speakers, are relatively unfussy about room placement, but I still think it’s a huge leap of faith to buy them blind. At those prices I would certainly expect any dealer to arrange a home demo. In fact, I would question the competence of any dealer who was prepared to take £25k from you just to shift a pair of boxes and bank the cash.
heard them all and owned both 707’s and now 808’s but it will come down to your budget as I would imagine both would work with your room size and kit. The 808’s are actually easier to place then the 707’s but both would work really well. As above the 808’s are incredible speakers and in my system/room they are worth the extra by some margin.
Thanks Andy. Would you say the 606s are too small for that space?
I have heard all three at dealer demos, one of which I was able to compare all three during the same visit.
I feel the 606s are too small for your room but the 707s or 808s would work fine with your system and room. However the 808s are very special and in a different class IMV. But as you are buying blind (or is that deaf?) the 808s are a far bigger financial risk if they turn out to be not to your liking.
Unfortunately it will not be easy to listen to the speakers without traveling a large distance, and certainly not in my own home. Easy placement is a key consideration, which is what narrowed the choice down to Kudos.
I was initially intent on the 606s as then I would have flexibility to use them in another room / system if they don’t work out, but as is our hobby, the 808s are calling (even though I find them pretty unattractive to look at) and I would really like to hear my kit unleash its full potential 
The Kudos Titan range are less fussy than other speakers regarding positioning and proximity to side and rear walls. There have been a few threads on here showing they can be used successfully relatively close to walls, but without a home demo it is a risk as every room will have its own acoustic signature, physics and all that.
The good thing about the basement room is that I am free of constraints when it comes to room treatment - in fact this is the reason that what was the main system is now going in the basement and the 2nd system into the main living space (NDS / 52 / 135s) which is open plan and quite lively acoustically, and not allowing the 500 series to shine as it should
Unfortunately I don’t see any independent reviews out there, which would remove a little of the unknown.
The 808s are the logical choice for your 500 rig, if they are affordable, and they will get the best from it. With such a large space in your basement and the ability to treat it if necessary, you should be fine. As it is a basement, I assume the walls and floor are solid. Is there any way you can take some sound measurements to see if you have any particularly nasty nodes that might need treating? You can use any system and speakers in your basement to do this.
My 606’s Work very well at similar wall distance measurements. Again choice really down to budget although the 606 is very close to the 707 imho in performance terms, indeed I actually preferred it to 707 in a demo. Likely need the 808 to go up a rung.
I don’t think the room size is an issue for the 606’s at all, people would have more of an issue trying to put the larger speakers in a small room rather than the other way around. You will already know all three have the option of going active.
Whichever you choose you are NOT likely to be disappointed though.
I suggest you give Kudos a call and discuss what options might be available here. They are a helpful bunch abd may be able to sort something out that you wouldn’t achieve by cold calling a dealer.
I have 808s at about 22cm from the back wall (552/500/nd555) - firing across a room which is 9m wide and 6m long but with a corner chopped out diagonally from the speakers for the entrance hall / stairwell making an L shape. They sound fab
There does seem to be a fair bit of personal preference in play between the different models - so it seems dangerous to buy any “blind”. I thought the 606s weren’t a patch on the 707s (though that was active with 2x300s - don’t know if that made any difference to their relative quality) which is different from what quite a few people think. Loved the 505s I heard first and I have seen some say they think the 505s are a sweet spot
I enjoyed the 505s too. When I mentioned this to my dealer (who I think is also yours) he mentioned that a huge part of the cost of Titans is the drivers, and that while this might be justified in the 808s for which these drivers were first developed, it makes the other models, especially the 505s, very expensive for what they are. He reckoned I should look at ATCs (19 or 40) for comparable performance at a far lower price.
I demoed 606 vs 707 extensively. The 707s sounded very similar to to the 606 but carried a lot more authority.
I ultimately went with the 606s as I didn’t think the sound quality difference was that great, and the fact that the 606s could be placed closer to the wall.
My room size is very similar to yours, the 606s sit about 6 inches from the front wall.
Interesting - I have heard ATCs several times and have not liked them. Plus don’t like the look of them
The price of the 505s with stands does seem very close to the 606s