KEF Blade -- how good are they?

I heard them at a show in a large room—didn’t do a thing for me but I’m not often impressed by systems I hear under show conditions.

I listened to some raidho’s at axpona, the D1.1 and D5.1, I loved the 1.1 and couldn’t get out of the d5.1 room fast enough. I really believe speakers need to be the right size for the room to make a fair assessment. Wilson speakers generally sound great at shows because for 1 thing they show their speakers in appropriately sized rooms and actually know how to place them. 

The Blade is the best sounding speaker I’ve ever heard in a real world setting(my room, my gear) and there’s been some impressive contenders.

I liked what I heard from the Blades on two different occasions -
-blown away by their sound stage and sheer power over the room.
-did not care for their overall tone which was an odd mixture of warmth and coolness.  lots of midbass warmth yet at the expense of transparency.  upper midrange had a cool metallic after taste.  
-take care in amplifier partnering.  something like pass labs might work.  

Yes, I agree. The po had them connected to tubes and the balance was warmer tho’ the hegel is a pretty good partner and with carpeted floors, acoustic tiles over Sheetrock and plenty of distance from the sidewalls these do well however there are some recordings that I would consider your description of the upper midrange spot on. 

@steve59 Have you ever tried the Blades very close to the front wall? Like a few inches away.