Hardware Review KEF Q Concerto Meta Speaker Review (1 Viewer)

[Sam Posten]

Several months back KEF reached out to HTF see if we would be interested in reviewing some of their bookshelf speakers. I definitely was, and I chose the KEF Concerto Meta’s as the speakers I wanted to listen to. I responded yes and requested the walnut finish which I thought looked both fantastic and unique among speaker styles.

KEF Concerto's History​

There are 3 things that set the Q Concerto Meta’s apart from other similar speakers on the market.
Audio Connection has a great write-up of the legacy.
This speaker honors “the legacy of the original 1969 Concerto, KEF’s first 3-way standmount speaker, the Q Concerto Meta HiFi speaker is a modernized marvel delivering professional-grade high-end audio. Featuring a 3-way design and Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT™)”.

Continue reading...

 

[Sam Posten]

Thanks @andrew for cleaning up the format of this review!

 

[John Dirk]

Awesome review, Sam! Assuming that price is for the pair, it's really not too bad, especially for KEF-level performance.

 

[Bartman]

Similar but less expensive than the R3, Erin has measured both models & they differ mainly in bass alignment. Because of that my personal preference is the R3, YMMV.

 

[Sam Posten]

The R3s are $1200 more. I liked them in store too but they are an entirely different class of product.

Edit maybe I’m thinking the RS3. Not sure

Also I have no idea who Erin is

 

[JohnRice]

Yeah, the R3s are nearly double the price of the Concertos, so it's not a valid comparison. A more valid comparison would be the Wharfedale EVO4.2

 

[John Dirk]

The R3s are $1200 more. I liked them in store too but they are an entirely different class of product.

Edit maybe I’m thinking the RS3. Not sure

Also I have no idea who Erin is

Pretty popular You Tube reviewer who was recently threatened by Tekton Designs [Eric Alexander] for an honest and fairly positive review of one of their speakers.

Erin's Audio Corner

Welcome to my little corner of the internet. This is where you can find objective testing of a wide variety of audio gear with a dash of subjective feedback. The goal here is to help you be a better educated consumer. If you're looking to gain some knowledge and share some laughs, come on...

www.youtube.com

 

[JohnRice]

A rep for Reavon went a little insane and mercilessly harassed and threatened me over the player review I did a while back. So it’s hardly uncommon. I guess I was foolish not to anticipate that. It does explain why most youtube “reviews” are complete bs.

 

[Sam Posten]

OK I have seen that guy a few times, I tend to prefer Hifi Huff and CheapAudioMan. I think if you base your opinions around what one talking voice has to say that's a choice but not one I'd recommend. I Even if that's an HTF voice. =)

People have such different experiences and biases about what factors they value (and none of these are WRONG!) to take one review as gospel seems ill advised. Especially if you haven't heard them yourself.

 

[Bartman]

Yeah, the R3s are nearly double the price of the Concertos, so it's not a valid comparison. A more valid comparison would be the Wharfedale EVO4.2

Evo's have different driver technology, not comparable. Some people may prefer the bass alignment of the Concertos, if so you're all set. If like me you prefer the R3, wait for a sale. Look how much the LS50 Meta has come down in price during sales.

 

[JohnRice]

The point I was trying to make is that if a person is shopping for new speakers, they will generally have a budget in mind and will primarily audition speakers in that price range. Most people don't shop for speakers on a regular basis, so they typically start by listening/choosing between various brands and designs. That is why I mentioned Wharfedale, specifically because their driver design is different from KEF. People can listen to the KEF design vs. Wharfedale, and maybe Klipsch for example, which uses yet another vastly different driver design, and determine which basic design they prefer. Once they've narrowed down to which "sound" they prefer, they might consider the values of moving up in that brand/line. If they audition a speaker from the same brand/line that is double the price of the one they first auditioned, I would fully expect it to be better. Same approach/design at double the price. Seems like a given that it should be objectively better. That brings on a different decision than the original one, whether the higher price is within their budget, or if the improvement is worth the additional cost.