Poll of Kef LS50 Wireless owners

My replacement set have just gone kaput! They were made in November 2016.

I am going to be asking my dealer for a refund.

I’m a relatively new owner - about a month now. I’ve done one firmware update using a Mac laptop.

No troubles so far…

Michael

Sorry to hear this James. I hope you can get a full refund (can recommend the Amphion Argon 3S with a Powernode 2 or, if you have a bit more cash, a pair of Amphion mono amps + separate DAC with balanced outputs!).

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Hi Rik, Thanks for your message.
I have actually already seen your thread about the Amphions, and have since been in contact with Anssi (Amphion). I am still weighing up my options, but have been impressed by Anssi’s meticulous nature.

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i know this is a voodoo area, but has anyone invested into ‘power sources’ for this esp if also hooked up to their tv or av etc?
something from ps audio (a reputable company, no less) or other?

my nutbar audiofanatic friend swears by them, esp the $$$ ones.

Kind of off topic a bit don’t you think?

Well, take it from someone who has had IsoTek Sigmas conditioners, Chord mains conditioners, etc. They don’t make any difference. Seriously. Save your money. There are only three rules when it comes to real audiophilia: 1. Room treatment and/or room correction filters (installed as Convolution filters in Roon), 2. Decent equipment chain (speakers, amp, DAC), and 3. interconnects/speaker cables that don’t cost more than £10/m (seriously). Anything more than that and you’re not getting much more for your dosh. Ethernet/USB, etc. connections do not benefit from ‘audiophile-grade’ bullshit. The KEFs are awesome as they take so much of that crap out of the equation. You don’t need any ‘power conditioning’ for it.

Anssi is great. The Amphion’s are the best speaker I’ve ever heard. Deeper, more authentic bass than the KEFs and a smoother top end. But, then again, for nearly £2k for a pair they don’t come cheap. But you can get them for around £1k-1.2k ex-demo.

I have mine (and all my other gear) on APC UPSes (battery backup) with line conditioning and voltage regulation. More from a protection stand point than a sound stand point. We have frequent brown outs and power blinks in the sticks where I live.

Agreed on Amphion and Anssi, I dealt with him when I owned Argons and he was as said, meticulous, thoughtful, informed, helpful, and accessible.

@Rik_Carter I’m glad to hear you’re still jazzed (pun intended) with your new setup!

As far as the question of power conditioning, I kept my Ayre power conditioner and to me, it makes a difference.

I am very tempted, plus they would look great on my Atacama hms2.1 stands. I am still waiting to hear from Sevenoaks regarding my Kefs. Presumably, they will be sent new ones and we can take it from there.

Mine are going back for repair tomorrow. Since boxing day I’ve been getting dropouts with the master speaker for about 5-10 seconds before correcting itself :frowning:

I’ve owned a pair of KEF LS50W since their launch and have not had any issues with them.

I have not attempted any updates to them.

They’re connected to my network via ethernet, to my late-2012 Mac Mini via USB, to my Rega Planet 2000 via optical and to my PS Audio NuWave Phono Converter via analog.

I’ve replaced the ethernet cable that connects the speakers as well as the power cords.

Did this make any different to the sound?

Honestly? No. But it was the length I needed and of higher build quality than the one supplied.

Bought February 2017. Speakers started to make a clicking noise recently whether music is playing or not and regardless of which source I’ve selected.

My KEF LS50W which I bought on 17 Jan 2017 (the first one sold by my dealer) has just failed. There was a loud “crack” followed by a burning smell from the right speaker. It also tripped the power circuit breaker in the house. They are now dead. I believe they have a 2 year warranty as I am in the EU (England). They are going back to my dealer tomorrow for repair. Apart from that, I absolutely love the sound they make :-).

Update I’ve just received them back after repair by KEF after 11 days. My dealer, Unilet, were really helpful. When I arrived they phoned KEF Service Dept to get an RMA and sent them off immediatey. Apparantly the main “board” in the master and slave were both blown. KEF also soak tested them for a few days before return. Let’s hope they will last longer than a year this time round.

Just sent mine back this morning, left speaker distortion. Purchased last July, the manufacture date is 1/17.

Mine, purchased in June 2017, failed in December 2017 - would not power up. Apparently the failure was a power supply board in right speaker - like David B’s it too tripped the circuit breaker (though I didn’t notice a burning smell).

According to the agent here (NZ), the board was sent back to KEF as purportedly this particular failure was ‘unprecedented’. I’m not sure on that, given the experiences here and elsewhere. Awaiting return of repaired units…

Mine were quite infrequently used, but I’m thinking of moving them to the more challenging environment of the lounge - somewhat perversely that may lead to any subsequent fault arising sooner rather than later. We get a 3 year warranty here, but the apparent failure rate does give me pause.

Bought November 2017. Occasional glitches where left speaker not operational. Restart fixes. Having read about firmware update issues I decided not to bother updating. Full volume start-up is a thing I could REALLY do without.

Bought these to install wall-bracket mounted in our new kitchen for wireless and bluetooth connection only. As has been frequently mentioned, input control from the remote is a step-through single button function with indication on top of the speakers. With the speakers mounted eight feet up the side of a Victorian wall I’ve got two options, mount a mirror on top of the right speaker so I can see the input selection (I may need binoculars) or mount the speakers sideways/upside down. If the Kef remote had a button for each input selection there would be no problem. If I’d realised this I wouldn’t have bought them.

Yes, they sound great, but frankly I’m pretty pissed off.