KEF Q150 Bookshelf Speakers - Pair (Walnut)

Many reading this are probably in the same predicament they find themselves in when the Q150 and Q350 frequently go on sale for $300 and $500 respectively. I too found myself on that see-saw of trying to decide which to buy and if the Q350 was worth the extra $200. I scoured the internet for any comparisons or comments and found very little worthwhile info. From the bits I did gather, there seemed to be a general consensus that the Q150 had cleaner treble, but the Q350 sounded bigger, warmer, had better mids, and more bass. That unless on a budget, one should just spring for the Q350. There’s also speculation that the Q150 is inherently superior because it uses the same size driver and similar size enclosure as the LS50. So, which is it?Let me touch on build and dimensions real quick for those unfamiliar. While I personally find the black iteration of both of these among the most beautiful bookshelf speakers out there, the build leaves something to be desired. While the binding posts might be the cheapest I’ve encountered and the cabinet is pretty hollow, I tend to quickly forgive these factors as long as it sounds good. The matte black vinyl looks great and I’m THRILLED it's not the black ash abomination that finds its way onto so many speakers. The edges are very sharp and clean; a great contrast to the round, centered drivers. There are no grills included, but I would have never used them. Plus, the ones you can buy look cheap and don’t cover the entire face of the speaker. Why KEF didn’t even bother making a grill cutout for the logo of an upcharge grill is beyond me.I’m a huge fan of KEF and their coaxial drivers, and the LS50 still remains my favorite speaker (with subwoofer assistance). I also previously owned the Q150 a few years ago and preferred it in direct comparison to the CCB-8, UB5, and Denton. The Q350 is new for me and I was hoping it would build on what I remembered from the superb Q150. Sadly, it doesn’t. To cut to the chase regarding the value proposition, if the prices were reversed with the Q150 at $500 and Q350 at $300, I’d still purchase the Q150 over the Q350. Unlike the bigger driver and higher price would lead you to believe, the Q350 is not everything the Q150 does but better, nor is it a Q150 with more bass and a bigger sound. It’s a complete side step at best, and in my honest opinion, a flat-out downgrade.I pulled my trusty Studio 570s off mains duty and listened to the Q350 for a few days. While there is always something special to be said about the imaging coaxial drivers provide, these just always sounded way too mellow, too laid-back, and almost muddy. They lack dynamics and never really seem to emerge from their slumber until I seriously crank the volume. At quiet to normal levels, forget it. All the times I was completely uninvolved with the music, I’d instead be constantly urging them to give me MORE. Bring forth the vocals! Bring out the details! Bring up the sparkle! They are indeed very warm, overly so. Almost like KEF experimenting with a Sennheiser or Wharfedale sound. They remind me of the UB5. No glaring faults, but just blah (I still remember liking the UB5 more). The urge to connect a power station and put a trillion watts into them so they can WAKE UP! Vocals definitely suffered because of this. While soft and gentle, they’re simply too muffled. Not so good for quiet, night time, or dialogue-heavy listening. Putting the 570s back in place and BAM, the veil vaporized and the injection of clarity and accompanied shock was like a splash of cold water.I hastily ordered the Q150 after becoming increasingly unhappy with the Q350 and the fact it was no match for the 570s. Hoping I’d at least be able to keep one of the KEFs (almost just for their appearance and coaxial drivers alone), I set the Q150s in the same location, on the same stands, in the same room. 6ft apart with my listening position also 6ft away. To my relief, they were exactly as I remembered them. They had the sparkle the Q350 was completely missing. Vocals, especially female, finally came alive. Everything sounded more realistic and believable. Fine details and imaging seemed more carefully crafted and didn’t get lost in the added midbass and laid-back nature like they did on the Q350. Most surprising was that the bass and extension were comparable, but cleaner and more defined on the Q150. The Q350 has more midbass and smoothness, but of what did it no favors. The soundstage and imaging between the two also sounded pretty indistinguishable and I’d likely fail a blind test. Had I not known of their prices, there is no question I would have thought the Q150 was the more expensive speaker as it has a cleaner, clearer, more balanced sound.But, it's clear to me that the Q150 and Q350 were cut from the same cloth regarding different aspects aside from their sound profiling. For one, the Q150 is also still difficult to drive and definitely sounds better when turned up. Although, they do not suffer from low power or low level listening as much as the Q350 due to their more forward nature and better treble. Both also require a tempered expectation when it comes to bass. If pushed hard, the bass will start to fall apart and become flabby. If you’re a basshead and like party volumes, I shouldn’t be the one mentioning you need floorstanders and/or a subwoofer. Lastly, I found it interesting that while my ear is actually 4-5 inches higher than tweeter level when they’re on my 28” stands, putting 4 inch yoga blocks underneath them to mimic a 32” stand (and become within an inch of ear level) revealed that they didn’t sound quite as good, becoming thinner and brighter. Goes without saying for any speaker, but definitely experiment with speaker height, width apart, toe-in, and distance from surrounding walls.Ultimately, the Q150 was the clear winner here in both value and sound. Many will buy them simply for the fact they’re $200 cheaper… and that’s the real final nail in the Q350s coffin. With that $200 savings, one could purchase a nice pair of speaker stands and still have cash left over. Not to mention, the Q150 is easier to maneuver, place, and experiment with due to their size and weight reduction. They’d work brilliantly on a desk and I anticipate the smaller driver would sound better nearfield. The Q350 is big enough that placement options other than dedicated stands would be limited. Everything said, I highly recommend the Q150 and think it would fit the bill for most people and in most cases over the Q350. But at the end of the day, it's all about the music… right? And that $200 you just saved.

Para mi gusto, son por lejos la mejor opción en el rango de precio, tienen un sonido muy definido y preciso, me sorprendieron los bajos que tiene en relación al tamaño, están muy cerca de no necesitar un subwoofer según el estilo musical.Un bajo que nunca había sentido en términos de calidad, muy limpio, presente y contundente todo en su lugar.Yo vengo de parlantes de calidad mucho más baja en comparación, pero fue difícil la elección.Si alguien tiene las mismas dudas que yo acá lo aclaro:Los agudos son muy presentes, pero en su nivel, ni lejos de ser parlantes con agudos “tapados”Se siente mucho su espacialidad si están bien ubicadosY revelan mucho detalle en canciones donde exista ese detalle.

I got my Q150's for a bit less than $300. They were listed by Amazon as Used with damaged box and possibly some cosmetic damage. Fortunately, the box didn't look at all damaged and there was no cosmetic damage to either speaker. It was definitely a previously opened box, though.At anywhere near it's normal $350 asking price, this speaker is a steal. I say this because the price can shoot up to $600 at any time, just as it did earlier this year. And at $600 there may be some legitimate alternatives.These speakers have a non-fatiguing, but detailed sound. They image well and sound much larger than their size would indicate. The low end puts on a pretty good show, but gets really boomy at higher volumes. That element was so annoying that I used them with the provided foam plugs in the ports from about the first 20 seconds onward.Not only do the port plugs eliminate most of the bass boom, but they also help with tightening up the midrange, which suffers greatly when the little 5-1/4 inch driver is asked to go far lower than it should.As I plan on using just the drivers from these speakers in order to build a 3-way full range speaker system, I won't be asking these drivers to do more than they can. But, if you want to get the best sound possible from these you will need a sub. And I'm not just saying that for these, but for any small driver bookshelf speaker. Without a sub and some kind of pre-amp or integrated amp that has a high pass filter for the sub, any 5 inch driver will distort and smear the midrange while it's trying to play low frequencies.NOTE: That comment about a high pass filter is ultra important if you are using any small bookie for a dedicated audiophile stereo system. Most users end up having a combination music/home theater system. High pass filters aren't a big deal in home theater applications, but in dedicated 2 channel music systems they are an absolute must. Without the high pass filter, you are sending every ounce of low frequency energy to the main speakers, which doesn't relieve any of the distortion problems caused by a small driver being asked to produce low frequencies. So, read your manual, if you're integrated amp/receiver doesn't specifically have a setting for the high pass filter function, it only has the low pass filter, which is a waste since most powered subs have their own low pass filters anyway!So, to summarize, these speakers are definitely better than the $291 I spent. They are audiophile grade at lower volumes and even better with a correctly paired sub. I tried these speakers with three different receivers, in one small room and one large room. They did great with all those situations and I could easily hear the differences in the upstream equipment chain. And, I think they look just fine for their price too!