I am new to this hobby and forum. I've got a lot of guidance on what to buy from my big brother who previously studied in the UK(that explains the KEF). I got alot of these components from ebay, and some from Audiogon. Love the system so much that I threw away my tv.
I recently bi-amped my system, the sound has improved alot and I don't think it was placebo effect. I am looking for a decent pair of speaker cables that are bi-ampable(4 banana plugs each end). Most of bi-wired cables I saw out there were just 2 banana plugs at one end and 4 at the other. If you could advice me which speaker cables I should have, please let me know.
update: I built a 2nd stereo system for my study desk consist of: - sennheiser hd280 headphones - some chinese brand headphone amp - my awesome diy cd player: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8iku2bk7yw
nope, i didn't audition the kef before I bought them. I just like how they look. I admit they were horrible sound-wise. this is because kef put cheap stuff in the speakers (except for the woofer, tweeter and mid, stuff like capacitors, wires and insulators are poor quality). I modded the crossover by swapping the cheap capacitors supplied by kef to Auricaps. the insulator were changed into Acousta-Stuf. and the cheap wires were swapped to proper speaker cables. the results were stunning. tighter bass, airy and sweet mids and accurate high freq from tweeter. I think modding speakers like i did is a must for sub-$500 speakers
Just curious, did you audition any other speakers before settling on the KEFs? I had a horrible demo of some KEFs at an Ultimate Electronics many years ago which kind of turned me against them, but I know that wasn't a fair trial.
to Jayb77, I ended up using anti-cables. those cables really do improved the imaging alot. It was like there was wall between me and the system being lifted after changing to anti-cables
sorry to reply soo late. embarrassed here. The kef's are excellent in the sound-stage and bass response department. I modded mine by changing the caps to auricaps and replaced the stuffings with a acousta-fills. there was noticable improvement in imaging. overall, I'm very happy with them, especially after the mods. hope this helps
How do you like your KEF's? I am looking for a more full range speaker and have been interesed in what they have to offer. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Wy dont you just buy two of the same cable? One cable with spaded ends and one with bannana ends and connect it that way! Ive done that in the past and even used both cable in tandem on a single binding post like the MIT speaker wires terminate. The MIT cables are the cables that gave me this idea so I cant take any credit for this but I hope It helps you out a little. Happy listening!
I have received my Calabrine bi ampable cables. They look so nice, and professional like. HOWEVER, there is big hum when I hooked them up. I tried couple of things to eliminate the hum. I tried to disconnect my pre amp from speakers, and just let the power amp connected to the speakers, the hum is gone. I have no clue to eliminate the hum from my bi amp system. Since each wire in the cable system are uncorrelated, the hum should not be dependent on the preamp connectivity. Please tell me what to do.
Thank you for the kind inputs. Those cables from calabrine look so nice! and they are around my budget. I wonder if they sound nice too. Anybody own their cables? Are they comparable to audioquest, say, type 4? I am interested in buying these particularly: Quadio Ultra Bi-Wire Pair Speaker Cables
dont know about your price range, but Calabrine makes good cables that offer a true bi-amping option. i believe you can specify the length and type of connectors, either banana plugs or spades
and i know this doesnt matter, but they are very slick looking as well :-)
