Revel Salon 2 vrs Kef 207/2

Vav, I demoed the 207/2s again yesterday and they are a VERY good speaker for $14K. I auditioned them back-to-back with the 205/2s, and it's not even worth the comparison. I was surprised how bright and harsh the 205/2 sounded, and the bass was really lacking. Both the 205/2 and the 203/2 have been very disappointing to me, with similar distortion in the highs once you crank up the juice. The mids were also thin on both speakers.

The 207/2, on the other hand, was balanced throughout, and was not harsh on the highs, though slightly metallic. Bass extension was also impressive. The speaker reminded me a lot of the B&W 800 series, actually. I would say the 207/2 approaches the 802D, though for my taste I like the B&W better, and falls somewhat short of coming close to the 800D, though in design it probably resembles the 800D more than the 802D. But being the same price basically as the 802D, they are both great and it could be just a matter of taste. I would love to get those two speakers in the same room, however, to really have a proper shoot-out.

After having heard the 205/2, I would say the 207/2 is a quantum leap from that speaker, and it's surprising to me that there could be such a huge jump in quality in the same line between respective models. I think KEF should have created a 206 model to fill in the gap as there is SUCH a difference between the 205/2 and the 207/2.

I'm going into the Wilson dealer tomorrow and will listen to the Sashas again. Will be interesting to see if I still like them that much more than the 207/2s now that I will have heard them with only a couple of days in-between. It's never a fair comparison being in different rooms, driven by different gear, and the days apart spacing, but the timing will be closer than when I initially compared them last time.

I think in terms of value, though, the 207/2 is definitely a better buy than the Sasha, with it being roughly half the price, and there is no way the Sasha is twice as good as the 207/2. Then again, at this level, diminishing returns is a given.

And yes, to the others, 207/2 can be had for $14K. It's only $20K if you get the high gloss options instead of the standard finishes. To me, that makes the 207/2 a $14K speaker. The dealer did try to tell me the gloss improved the sound (because of "lessened vibrations" and "reduced harmonic distortion" due to the "hard finish"), but I have a hard time believing that. The model I heard was in high-gloss, but he didn't have a standard finish model for me to compare to (probably wisely), so to me, that's an unsubstantiated claim.

Overall, the 207/2 performed well in my audition, and for $14K, I think it's a good buy and you could definitely do a lot worse.

Sorry to change up people, but please do yourself a favor and also try out the new Utopia 3's, especailly the Scala.

Since you asked for other recs:
I recently heard the Rockport Ankaa, which at 25-27k is priced right there with Sasha. WOW! I have listened to lots of speakers recently and this has basically blown everything else away. I need to listen to Sasha soon to make a comparison, but would highly recommend the Ankaa.

I listened to both (among several), and bought the Salon 2s. The 107/2s are *very* nice though. We all listen differently, in that different people focus on different aspects of the music, so preferences are natural. For speakers of this ilk source material, venue and placement are so critical; it took me a week of "inching around" the Salon 2s until the sound was right. I was actually concerned I had made the wrong choice until I found exactly the right placement.

The most unusual alternative I heard, only in a private home, was the Linkwitz Orion+. I was shocked (shocked!) :) at how competitive it was.

I have not heard the Salon 2 but in January of this year we bought a pair of 207.2 (with a 10% dealer discount : thank you Michael) and have been delighted with them in every way. This is the first pair of speakers I have had that I no longer think about. Every recording sounds at least acceptable and usually wonderfully natural and true, I surmise, to the producers and performers intentions. The mid range and treble are smoothly transparent and never harsh or edgy. The bass is always there and overwhelming when the recording demands it.
I had a chance to buy a pair of Sophias at the same time. They were second hand but immaculate and were brought to my attention by Martin Colloms. They would have worked out cheaper than the KEFs by about £K2. Unfortunately their finish was typical Wilson automobile in a Mercedes silver. We couldn't reconcile ourselves to something so out of character with our room although I suppose they looked like giant versions of our MF amps !

We took a lot of advice before deciding. Martin Colloms said the Sophias were his favourites at that price which is quite a recommendation. John Atkinson recommended the KEFs over the Wilsons and of course Stereophile had already made them speaker of the year.

Our helpful dealer (Lyric Hi-Fi Belfast) arranged a home trial and we listened exhaustively post Christmas. There was no doubt they were keepers. We had tried a number of speakers at home including Quads and Tannoy Canterbury's but these were so listenable with all material and at all volumes. They had some of the natural transparency of the Quads but with a much better overall balance. Bass was all there but never booming. It is a cliche but they totally disappeared leaving a natural sound stage with depth and width.

After so many trials and disappointments it was like coming home. We ordered a pair and during the wait for the matt walnut finish we wanted Lyric left the trial pair with us.

Now nine months on we know we have made the right choice and would recommend them to anyone. I still wish I could have heard the Sophias but that was not to be. Its difficult to imagine how they could be better.

Of course I haven't heard the Revels either but that would be almost impossible to arrange and again I dont know how I'd expect them to be better than the KEFs.

Apart from the Stereophile review the KEFs seem under-reviewed which is surprising although there is one due in Hi Fi News I think. A review in 'What HiFi' didnt like them but what do they know?

If you are in the market at this price I would say you must try them.

I am using MF KW Preamp and Amp single amped through Transparent cable with CD/SACD from Marantz SA7ST with Van den Hul First and Second interconnects.