2. amps-preamps
  3. 188610-187065

Help me pair the KEF R11 Metas...?

I’ll start by admitting that I am a fan of @therecoveringaudiophile aka. Andrew Robinson.

Some may consider him a pseudo-audiophile. While that may be true on an absolute technical side, his eloquent delivery, production quality and rapport with his producer-wife Kristi, make him my favorite source of audiophile information.

In any case, he knows more than me, so I trusted his review of the "TOP 5" floor-standing KEF R11 Meta speakers.

I picked them up NEW at 45% OFF from an audio dealer in Miami I did a favor for. Stealing them for $3,800 a pair...in white.

The plan was to connect them to my existing Cambridge Audio Azur 840a Class XD, 4ohm, 200wpc integrated I’ve had and loved for over 10 years connected to a pair of Definitive Technology Mythos STS towers. This specific combination sounded amazing using Bluetooth or vinyl.

I assumed the KEFs would be a major upgrade.

The KEF R11 Metas and the CA Azur 840a simply did not pair well, for reasons I still cannot explain. The sound was flat and low and I would have to push the amp to 90% volume to get the KEFs to sing, but then the amp would either short out or show a clipping error.

I checked all the connections, settings, and even reached out to KEF for help, which they gladly offered, but nothing seemed to help or explain any of this.

Out of frustration, I pulled a Technics SU-G91 Class A, 8ohm, 125wpc integrated from 1992 out of my closet, just to try something different.

I replaced the cables as well, switching from custom audiophile speaker cables, to simple OF bare copper. I then connected a new Cambridge Audio MXN10 DAC/Streamer as a Tidal source, instead of using Bluetooth, and let it rip...

OMG....night and day better.

Finally the KEFs seemed to be living up to their reputation. Brilliant sound, clean, smooth, a real pleasure to listen to...at normal volumes.

But...that left me with a question.

As an amateur "audiophile", I’m struggling with all the endless reviews online vs what I’m hearing at home with this setup.

With a desire to maximize the $6,000 KEFs potential, should I be looking to replace the $300 "vintage" Technics SU-G91 Class A integrated amplifier with something else?

Can this strange pairing between the new KEFs and the old Technics really be this good?

 

KEF R11 Meta

128x128weenisupeenis
soix
9,530 posts
 

I replaced the cables as well, switching from custom audiophile speaker cables, to simple OF bare copper. I then connected a new Cambridge Audio MXN10 DAC/Streamer as a Tidal source, instead of using Bluetooth, and let it rip...OMG....night and day better.

First, sorry about your unfortunate A’gon handle — did you lose a bet or something? Second, your methods and/or communication skills are sorely lacking. From what you said you not only switched the amp but also the streamer/DAC, cables, and from Bluesound to Tidal at the same time. Why would you do that??? Did you at least put the Cambridge 840a back in the system with everything else the same and compare again? As explained this makes no sense to me and I’m not gonna waste my time trying to figure out what’s going on here. Good luck in whatever.

zlone
679 posts
 

Nice buy on the speakers. While the specs on the Technics are decent power-wise, a bit more might make the KEFS happy. However as a simple first step, you might try a separate preamp and bypass the one in your integrated using Main In. I think the quality of your sound might improve significantly. A low cost experiment would be a Schiit Kara. I have KEFS and love the sound, they have responded well to every upgrade I have made. 

jeffseight's avatar
jeffseight
574 posts
 

Never buy a speaker without hearing it first.

Is it returnable?

weenisupeenis's avatar
weenisupeenis OP
3 posts
 

@soix I admit changing the amp, cables and source was too many variables to compare, but you missed my final question:

With a desire to maximize the $6,000 KEFs potential, should I be looking to replace the $300 "vintage" Technics SU-G91 Class A integrated amplifier with something else?

Can this strange pairing between the new KEFs and the old Technics really be this good?

mapman's avatar
mapman
22,288 posts
 

We’re it me, I think my Hypex powered Cambridge Evo 150 I use with ls50 metas and powered sub would do nicely with the r11 metas. Or I might look at a minidsp+Hypex separates combo from Deer Creek Audio as a possible step up to not just drive them well but to also be able to apply DSP for Room correction, which is a major game changer. I do that currently with the Evo using Roon’s DSP.

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