KEF Q150 Speakers: True Hifi Sound on a Budget
Time and again we come back to the KEF Q150 loudspeakers. Are they truly leaders in their class or just a safe pair of hands?
In the sub £300/350EUR price class, there’s some stiff competition in the loudspeaker category. So why do we keep coming back for more from these bookshelf speakers?
KEF are part of the old guard in Hifi, they’ve been around for years and have consistently made excellent quality, fantastic sounding speakers (amongst other products). As a kid, if my mates Dad’s had some KEF speakers in their Hifi setup, they’d be getting a hammering with whatever we were listening to back in 1993 (most likely Nirvana, Soundgarden or Strike’s ‘U Sure Do’).
We’ve seen the Q150’s on sale for around £300/350EUR consistently in the UK and around Europe (prices don’t seem to differ too much worldwide for them).
We carried out our tests with a Denon PMA600NE amplifier and a Denon DCD600NE CD player.
Extremely Versatile.
People talk about versatility in speakers, which is of course a valid concern and a legitimate requirement when choosing a pair — but the Q150’s consistently deliver with every type of music you throw at them (see ‘In the Listening Booth’ below).
Build Quality & Placement.
The KEF Q150’s are solidly built. They look and feel nicely finished, not cheap at all. They come in black or white satin, for those wondering.
They’re not fussy about placement either, you can put them pretty much everywhere. We’ve tried right up against the wall, way out in the middle of the room and actually on bookshelves. They sound great no matter what.
In The Listening Booth.
Listening to Hall & Oates ‘One on One’ the 70’s rhythm section is solid and triumphant, with plenty of bottom end and separation. Voices are nicely reproduced, with the intricacies of the organ’s and guitars easy to distinguish.
Throw The Future Sound of London’s excellent ‘Papua New Guinea’ at the Q150’s and bass is thunderous, mids are clear and trebles sit nicely where they should. We listened to this track on CD and on vinyl too, as part of Trevor Fung’s awesome ‘Havin’ It Classics Volume II’ — and it sounded smoother but just as authoritative as it’s CD counterpart.
Queen’s classic rock anthem ‘Hammer to Fall’ from their 1984 album ‘The Works’, yields no muddiness at all, with everything nicely separated and out in the open.
So, What’s the Verdict?
The KEF Q150’s are leaders in their class AND a safe pair of hands. They’re a great start in building your system, but you might just find yourself sticking with them, especially if you’re a fan of the bookshelf speaker in general. They offer nice stereo separation, clarity and plenty of bass punch and versatility across music genres — what more do you want in a budget hifi speaker?
