selwyn.d

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
paid £350 for these speakers in good condition about 3 years ago. they sounded ok. i listen to music at fairly low volumes, by design this means that the woofer is probably not even working. anyway i set about doing some major mods, i reasoned that i will be the last owner and they were quite cheap for me to buy. firstly i completely stripped them. i plastered and put broken tiles inside the bass enclosure. refitted the bass unit-not forgetting to turn it 120 degrees a job that should be done annually. then i hard wired it using dnm cable through one high quality inductor to the amp. i also lined the enclosure with some lambswool loft insulation. i also fitted some new castors, the new ones are larger and have rubber tyres which help isolate the speaker. i then moved onto the upper enclosure, this i completely stripped. i also lined it with lambswool, i refitted the mid range unit, this was also hard wired with dnm cable and a small high quality inductor and cap fitted. the midrange drive units fitted are lets say quite forward, so i had to attenuate them about 5db. i got rid of the tweeters- they are nasty harsh things. i purchased a pair of huge ribbon tweeters. these are held onto the front of the enclosures using several elastic bands and the enclosure is sealed with a large piece of polystyrene which also acts to isolate the tweeters. the tweeter neede just 1 cap in line , then it was hardwired again using dnm cable to the mid range speaker. so the speakers are bi-wired. the top enclosure then sits on a sheet of sorbothane. the result is great, detail never before heard, and a soundstage and tight deep bass to die for, this is no doubt helped cos i drive them with an old krell ksa50.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Hello,
i just bought a pair of these great Kef 105-2.
How do you remove the OTT protection ?
Unsoldering the wires linked to the board is enough ?
Would a Quad 606 amplifier be a good choice ?
Thanks,
Laurent.

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
This speakers has numerous plus points but needs careful partnering and plenty of TLC to bring it up to speed. First of all: 1) replace the crossovers - preferably with all new polyprops and inductors, hardwired onto a new board 2) replace all internal wiring with some decent silver coated OFC 3) remove the OTT protection circuitry from the head unit This renovations bring massive improvements in high frequency detail, reductions in colouration, bass control, vocal presence etc. etc. But...there are still caveats to this speaker: It is still very much 'laid back'. aka the soundstage is not pushed forward vocally as is often the case in loudspeakers - if this the sound you're after (i know the feeling!) i would suggest some very opposite electronics - mainly Naim! - to compliment it. The second problem is the huge 12" bass driver! It takes a some controlling - not that you couldn't run it off 30 watt Arcam integrated, but god, can you tell the difference in power and control when you change to a decent pre power! The Kef 105.2 is probably technically very 'correct', but it's neutrality means than it needs proper partnering and I would suggest it may lead to you changing your amps and cd player.

Strengths:
Massive soundstage, impact, bass. Nice vocals. Sounds like a nightclub in your front room (if you have nice neighbours!). Very easy to modify. Very nice to look at. Hold their value very well.

Weaknesses:
Laid back. Need sympathetic electronics -preferably with great bass control and a forward character.

Similar Products Used:
There are no similar electronics - these speakers are unique. If you want Cerwin Vegas with hifi characteristics these are the ones! But they're not perfect (what is!). But...they are the nearest i've

Price Paid:  $2000.00 from HK

Summary:
My 105 is a new old stock from UK. and I bought it as new. This is one of the best in the price range even though it is the 80s speaker. I am using 300B single end amplifer(8W) to push these speakers. 3D sound and nature tone of this british speakers are great!

Strengths:
Mid and tweet

Weaknesses:
need space!

Similar Products Used:
KEFs

Summary:
This is a review not for the 105/2 but for the legendary kef 105. These speakers are great. Details are amazingly accurate and the trancient and the dynamic response will blow you away! Another thing I love about these speakers is the bass. There is nothing like it. Deep, precise and profound bass! These speakers can go down to 20hz easily with even having to install a Kube EQ!

The only problem iswhen your listening to a speaker that can go down that low and that clean, you have to place it and listen to it in a large room or you,ll feel a bit drowzy and wanting to puke.

Placed in alrge room, sounds awesome!!! When listening to symphonies its like having the entire orchestra playing in front of you.

Strengths:
trancient and dynamic response, transparent highs and mids, deep crawling bass!!!

Weaknesses:
none...

Similar Products Used:
Kefs...