I am in the market for a pair of speakers. Had narrowed it down to Monitor (Silver S10) vs Aperion Powered towers (I havent heard them) vs axioms
Then I came across a pair of KEF Q5 which sounded awesome. Compared side by side with the monitor S10 I liked the KEFs more. Also, they were almost 800 bucks cheaper.
Am looking for any input on the Q5s. Will be using it for music only (at this point). Listen to a lot of rock and like bass. Would a subwoofer be a good addition?
Any views on receivers. I read about Denon 2805 or 3805. But Marantz and NAD seems to have quite a following.
I too have Kef Q5 (you may also check my posting in the same section). I have connected these to Denon 1802 receives (80W continuous power per channel). It sounds good but not as impressive as it sounded in the demo room. It seems Q5 sounds good only with good receivers (or amps). You will need nothing less than 2805 or similar receivers. If you are using it only for stereo music then Denon PMA 1500 or an equivalent NAD may be a good choice. Also make sure you have a decent DVD (or CD player).
As for the sound quality in general, Q5 sound is nearly neutral. The clarity is very good and the vocals are enjoyable. Base is tight. Could have been deeper for the size of the speaker (with a better amp probabily I may get it). Q5 in general is a good speaker, well behaved (not a screaming type) and you will enjoy the smooth sound. If you need extra deep base you may go far Q7 or buy a subwoofer.
Receivers: also look into Harman Kardon 435 and 635 from jandr.com and also from Harman Direct on eBay if you want to save even more. Hard to go wrong with HK, Denon, NAD, and Marantz---so I'd let price be the main deciding factor.
Subwoofer: read up on SVS and Hsu subs, as Internet-direct sub specialists they are almost universally held in high regard, you can expect a $500 sub from either manufacturer to easily crush most $1000 subs from speaker makers sold through local retailers.
A sub is always a good addition no matter what type of music you listen to, even seemingly low-bass genres like classical. Why? It allows you to have your smaller (=less expensive) front speakers do what they are designed to do best, namely provide mids and highs, while the low frequencies get sent to the sub which being self-powered also takes a huge load off of your receiver/amp.
ah yes, Paul is back at it again! I was wondering why you've been so quiet lately... : )
Today you've finally come around to see the wisdom of the Internet-direct subwoofer---who knows, in time you may also come to see the wisdom of smaller (notice I didn't say SATELLITE) front speakers when used with a quality subwoofer.
I wont be replacing my fronts anytime soon. Movies are sounding way too awesome as it stands right now to bother with buying something else. Until something either blows or goes bad, they wont be going anywhere.