KEF LS50 Wireless - Auto Power On

I am currently in the middel of upgrading (and minimising) my set-up, going from a Marantz NR1603 w/ AirPlay + Dali Zensor 1 + PS4 + Apple TV + old Samsung TV to something new. All HDMI inputs currenyly go into the AVR and give the video to the TV and power the speakers.

My new set-up will be more minimal. I’ll get a new (OLED) TV to which will all HDMI devices (PS4, Apple TV) will be connected to and I will move the optical output to the Bluesound Node 2 (which I already have and really like!). Currently I already hooked everything up to my old TV and the NR1603 is only present to power the speakers. So I’m getting there! I will also want to upgrade my NAS to a newer version and run Roon Core on it.

I want to hook the Node 2 to a simple set-up and was thinking about KEFs LS50 Wireless but two things are holding me back:

  • Does it support some kind of Auto Power On when it receives a signal from either optical in or analog in? I understand some devices support this, usually with an extra 12V input (the Node 2 has a trigger out). I’d love the LS50s Wireless to turn automatically whenever I start streaming something with my Node 2.
  • I hear there are many issues with the LS50s Wireless, although people mostly complain when there are issues. I live in Europe so I get a two-year warranty, but still… These issues and defects posts!

Another option is to get the LS50s with another amp that supports Power On on trigger (maybe even the Powernode 2, but I doubt it has enough power and warmth to it?). And I really like the idea that the Wireless version has amps built-in that are made specifically for these speakers.

Thanks!

No they don’t have auto power on. I think the X300A did from memory, which was a nice feature. They have auto off though, which can be adjusted or disabled altogether.

Yeah, I could have guessed. Too bad. I think the passive LS50s are the better way to go for my set-up. Now to find my the best amp for my taste…