Q Acoustics Concept 50 Floorstanding Speaker Review

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Күн бұрын

The $2,999/pair Q Acoustics Concept 50 floorstanding speaker brings loads of trickle-down technology from it's more expensive sibling - the Concept 500. Anti-vibration feet; a gelcore, layered cabinet structure; and laser interferometry-measurement-based bracing scratch the surface of the technologies in the Concept 50. See what we thought of this potentially high-value speaker from Q Acoustics. We also include measurements of these speakers to see how they correlated with our listening experiences too.
00:00 - Introduction
02:24 - Unboxing
04:43 - Setup
05:45 - First Look
05:55 - Weight and Size
06:43 - Build Quality
09:43 - Minimizing Vibrations
10:53 - Cabinet Construction
11:28 - Measurements
13:25 - Listening Impressions
21:14 - Movies
22:52 - Theo's Take
For the full written review, please visit:
www.audioholics.com/tower-spe...
► Buy the Q Acoustics Concept 50: bit.ly/QAcousticsConcept50
Shop Dreamedia: dreamediaav.com/?ref=3
Perlisten Speakers & Subs:
Perlisten S7t Limited Edition: bit.ly/PerlistenS7tLE
Perlisten S7t: bit.ly/PerlistenS7towers
Perlisten R7t: bit.ly/PerlistenR7t
Perlisten R5t: bit.ly/PerlistenR5t
Perlisten S4b: bit.ly/Perlistens4b
Perlisten R4b: bit.ly/PerlistenR4b
Perlisten D15s: bit.ly/PerlistenD15s
Perlisten R212s: bit.ly/PerlistenR212s
Perlisten R210s: bit.ly/PerlistenR210s
Perlisten In-Ceiling Speakers:
Perlisten S3IC - dreamediaav.com/products/perl...
Perlisten R3IC - dreamediaav.com/products/perl...
Perlisten R2IC - dreamediaav.com/products/perl...
Perlisten In-Wall Speakers:
Perlisten S7i-L/R: dreamediaav.com/collections/i...
Perlisten S7i-C: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Perlisten S5i-L/R: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Perlisten S5i-C: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Perlisten S4i-LCRS: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Perlisten S5i-L/R: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Perlisten S5i-C: dreamediaav.com/collections/p...
Recommended AV Separates
Trinnov Altitude 32: bit.ly/TrinnovAltitude32
Trinnov Altitude 16: bit.ly/TrinnovAltitude16
Trinnov Amplitude 16: bit.ly/TrinnovAmplitude16
Trinnov Amplitude 8: bit.ly/TrinnovAmplitude8
Audio Control Maestro X7S: bit.ly/AudioControlMaestroX7S
Audio Control Savoy G4: bit.ly/AudioControlSavoyG4
Recommended AV Receivers:
Onkyo TX-RZ50 ($1,599): bit.ly/OnkyoTXZ50
Denon AVR-X3800H 9.2CH AV Receiver: bit.ly/DenonX3800h
Marantz Cinema 50: bit.ly/MarantzCinema50
Yamaha RX-A2A: audioadvice.io/3ppWFg9
Sony STR-AZ5000ES: bit.ly/SonySTRAZ5000ES
Sony STR-AZ7000ES: bit.ly/SonySTRAZ7000ES
Anthem MRX1140: bit.ly/AnthemMRX1140
Anthem AVM 90 15.4CH Processor: bit.ly/AnthemAVM90
Recommended Speakers:
SVS Prime 5.1 Speaker / Sub System: audioadvice.io/3JZJOt5
JBL HDI-3800: bit.ly/JBLHDI3800sale
Polk R700 Tower Speakers: audioadvice.io/3C0TK2B
Arendal 1961 Monitor: bit.ly/Arendal1961Monitor
Arendal 1723S Tower Speakers: bit.ly/Arendal1723s
Focal Aria K2 936: bit.ly/3zVAxi5
Focal Kanta No2: bit.ly/Focalkantano2
Sony SSCS5 Speakers:audioadvice.io/3td2O0w
SVS Prime Elevation Surround: audioadvice.io/35aZCdR
MartinLogan Motion XT F100: bit.ly/MartinLoganF100
MartinLogan Motion XT F200: bit.ly/MartinLoganF200
MartinLogan Motion F10: bit.ly/MartinLoganF10
MartinLogan Motion XT B100: bit.ly/MartinLoganB100
Audioholics Recommended Cables:
250ft CL2 12AWG Speaker Cable: amzn.to/2vwS9QH
50ft 10AWG Speaker Cable: amzn.to/3DeMTT5
Locking Banana Plugs: amzn.to/2ZQt15x
9ft 4K HDR HDMI Cables: amzn.to/2WiIXeD
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Пікірлер: 82

@Novilicious 9 ай бұрын

Love Theo’s reviews! Keep this format up. Also really enjoyed Theo’s Perlisten Subs…I like easier to digest info!! ❤

@make725daily1 9 ай бұрын

Your influence radiates positivity! 🌟 -- "The path to success and the journey through failure often overlap.."

@stefanscharer8533 6 ай бұрын

Having Concept 300/90 and 30 in our small living-room Auro 11.2 setup, the suggestions cover my experience. As a 35 years of speaker-diy I think the main factor for me that I am attracted to the sound of the concept series is the enclosure: It sounds so clean, no distortion, smooth highs. And the finish is perfect. I think the review is good. Thanks Audioholics!

@dan-qe1tb 4 ай бұрын

Yes, Lorde's Royals is hard to beat as a test track; the combination of synth beats and female vocals. Adding a sub and tuning it well, will add soundstage and body to even larger tower speakers. You will also be able to deal with room nodes that chew up your bass notes due to having gained flexible placement. I find many folks don't have the patience to get the level, the location, or the crossover point right, and end up saying "It makes the sound worse". Room EQ in particular will help you find cancellation nulls and phase shift and room nodes. The midrange driver's voicing is more noticeable than the tweeter's on my Martin Logans, but not with the glare of the previous aluminum one. It sounds live. I wonder how the dynamics would compare, on the Concept 50s. Klipsch and Zu excel at this, but people often end up saying "It's too lively". You often get the two of those things at the same time.

@ndungminh 6 ай бұрын

Great review, on on the verge of getting these over the newer but lower end 5040. By the way, what app is used to display music information on your tv screen please. Thank you.

@mdrlz 7 ай бұрын

been running these for a year now. along with 30's and a 90. beautiful sound, way bigger than the footprint of the speakers might suggest. in my room I find the bottom end lacking, REL takes care of that. super nice option for people who like neutral speakers. won't be getting rid of mine any time soon.

@TheoNicolakis 7 ай бұрын

Enjoy!!!

@spazzychalk 4 ай бұрын

All cool technical stuff aside, for a dedicated room, how would you compare the sound of these to the Kef Q950? Not that I'm in love with them, it's just the best that I can afford and that my Denon x3800h would drive and that I could actually listen to them before I buying because it was on display in the showroom. How would you compare this to the Bowers & Wilkins 700 Series (the best sound in that showroom)? It's taking a big leap of faith to buy speakers that I haven't listened to first, so i'm really trusting you. Thanks. Great channel.

@jameslarson2277 9 ай бұрын

Very nice review, Theo! Makes me want to give these a closer listen.

@stekelly1980 9 ай бұрын

Excellent review with top notch presentation. ❤

@SwirlingDragonMist 9 ай бұрын

I like the gel core, and the name. Q

@shinjiikari1989 9 ай бұрын

Are they positioned close to the wall, is that a standard for Floor standing speakers

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

They were positioned out into the room and away from the side walls in both setups (and rooms). The black vertical rectangles in the background are my Revel Ultima2 Salon to give you an idea of the positioning. The Concept 50 come with port plugs if you want to place them near or against a room boundary and want to tame any issues caused by the proximity to the boundary (wall).

@-MarkWinston- 9 ай бұрын

Cross examining with Stereophile's measurements, it looks like the Concept 50's treble is shelved down on purpose to make up for a slight lift in the off axis response. This will make a better in room response and from the spatially averaged in room measurement in JA's room, they dont look half as bad. This type of top end in room response reminds me of certain Magico speakers, which also takes a dive from around 5khz in room at 4-6db per octave. Not bad, but not great. I think Karl Heinz Fink knows what he is doin here, to create a speaker that doesnt offend most listeners. Too many people bitchin about sibilance these days. 😂

@bryanjones9952 9 ай бұрын

Could it be that the cymbals don't sound "live" be cause of the treble trail off in the frequency response?

@Audioholics 9 ай бұрын

very likely

@yeah_buddy_1994 3 ай бұрын

hey, can you pls advise here: Polk R700 + R400 vs Q Acoustics Concept 50 + Concept 90 AVR is Anthem MRX 740, no other external amplifier

@Mr.BananaManYT 2 ай бұрын

From what i've heard from other people If you want more bass and better quality bass go with the polk but other than that they are pretty similar. Personally I would go with the q acoustics because I think they are better built and I prefer the look of them compared to the polks.

@Prometheus1979 7 ай бұрын

This speaker is a more neutral sounding speaker. It’s a non fatiguing listen to hours speaker. It’s not going to wow you with screechy highs like most do only listening to them for a hour or so then you turning the system off. These speakers are worth every penny.

@TheoNicolakis 7 ай бұрын

Thanks for your observation on the speaker's sound. Hopefully the listening impressions, measurements, and my note to pay attention to the highs will help folks determine if this is the kind of speaker that would fit their needs and tastes.

@netster Ай бұрын

5:20 beautiful

@guyboisvert66 7 ай бұрын

I don't know if what we see in the video is the actual crossover inside but if it's the case, they'd better build a better crossover before bothering with "vibration"... Air core inductors are not arranged with 90 degrees anti-interference fashion, i see a cheap metal core inductor and it seems they use cheap electrolytic capacitors too... Really not impressive at all for a speaker of this price...

@gaurd3 9 ай бұрын

There’s a real low baseline on Royals. “Satisfying” might be a stretch.

@mikelautermilch8939 9 ай бұрын

fun fact: if you take a drink every time he says "now," you'll pass out before the end of the video

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

Yea, sorry about that 😁

@Audioholics 9 ай бұрын

That sounds like a fun game to play. I'll do it tonight with Rye. 😎

@mikelautermilch8939 9 ай бұрын

@@TheoNicolakis Lol. I'm just razzin you a little. It was a solid review.

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

⁠@@mikelautermilch8939all good. I take it in good stride and good fun. 🥂

@bryanjones9952 9 ай бұрын

😂😂

@johnminassian4887 9 ай бұрын

Gene and Theo, I love all you guys at Audioholics. But I have noticed a shift over the years in how you present reviews. It feels more like an infomercial compared to the days when Gene would lambast cable manufacturers for peddling pseudo-scientific theories regarding their superior cable construction. Part of the issue is that many more manufacturers are measuring their products and adjusting accordingly. Many serious products sound good today, and it makes it difficult to differentiate. For the consumer it can be very confusing. Listening to this review I started to wonder how these speakers compare to the Arendal 1723 S Towers as they are the same price. Every once in a while a respected manufacturer releases a product that has serious flaws...the Klipsch RP-600M comes to mind. They fixed it in the RP-600M II, but how did that first version get out the door?

@Audioholics 9 ай бұрын

Theo shows design issues via measurements with this speaker but also discussses how they translate to listening results. It's up to you to decide if this is the right product for you. I still take down bullshit cable science when it comes up. Be careful of reviewers that rely solely on measured performance in speakers or amplifiers to make absolute determinations in quality. I'm happy our channel continues to be successful to offer more diversity of content and opinions. It's boring to just have a channel that spits measurements out as reviews, IMO.

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

Thanks for the feedback and your insights. What aspects resonate with you best? On the editorial site the reviews have always talked about product features, build quality, unboxing, listening impressions, and measurements. This segment mirrors those elements. As you pointed out there are lots of good products out there and hopefully a review can give you a sense to as to whether or not a product is worth your time and attention and ultimately consideration for purchase within a particular use case. Comparisons are tricky, comparing these speakers to my Revel Ultima2 Salon or RBH SVTR would be futile since the vast majority of the audience would have never auditioned either speaker. Your insights welcome.

@johnminassian4887 9 ай бұрын

@@TheoNicolakisThanks Theo....I know it's difficult. I think you included the things that are most important: feature, function, build quality, measurements. Listening impressions are subject to personal preference. I tend to discount someone else's impression. You have to listen to it in your room. I agree that comparing speakers that no one has heard is fairly useless. I am a bit bothered by products that go through the normal supply channel. The distributor and dealer markups often double the price of the product. I like what I'm hearing about Perlisten, for example. But then I look at the price of the R7t and think about those markups. I can afford it, but I'm not going to buy it. I wish Dan had decided to sell direct.

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

@@johnminassian4887 thanks for the feedback and glad to hear we’re hitting those key points. Music moves us and we’ve become accustomed to using that as the proverbial Rosetta Stone to translate the experience. When I can, I try and audition review equipment in two different rooms with different equipment. Then comes the task of translating that experience into words. It’s similar to having a dish in a restaurant and talking about that with family or friends as to what the taste was like. Hopefully any review lets the reader know, I’d probably enjoy it, I probably won’t, or it might be a good fit for my use case because of ABC. I can only tell you if I think the proverbial “restaurant” is worth a visit. Whether one likes the dish or not is a matter of taste. And that, as you allude, requires a first-hand listen. 👍

@lights80088 9 ай бұрын

It seems like every minute, some company is coming out with a "new" and "better" product.

@Audioholics 9 ай бұрын

True 😆

@Masterslessons 9 ай бұрын

*Gelcores we are getting serious here. Impressive.

@vintageflanker7096 9 ай бұрын

This is a shame, indeed. One of the most trusted objectivist magazine, supposed to be based on science & data/measurements, now publishing this kind of informercials? What the heck, Gene ?!

@Tidbitkid 9 ай бұрын

They have older videos for Energy Veritas in very similar style video and those speakers are pretty awesome considering it was made in China and not like the previous Veritas series because it was alot like their Concierge series. Just because it's a paid spot doesn't mean the speakers are any good. The website might have more measurements in the review that's more similar to the article form they are known for.

@CarlosGomez-THX_1138 9 ай бұрын

This think this is just his style of presentation.

@Tidbitkid 9 ай бұрын

@@CarlosGomez-THX_1138 It might be but feels like a paid spot as it ticks alot of the boxes for a full review that would be paid for/hosted on a site for the speaker company to use.

@junior-OG 9 ай бұрын

you VintageFlanker from asr ?

@vintageflanker7096 9 ай бұрын

@@junior-OG I am...

@bunjidogg 2 ай бұрын

Are you gonna buy em? I'm not gonna buy em if you're not gonna buy em.

@mugen2002 9 ай бұрын

2:56 Made In China.

@gregkramer5588 9 ай бұрын

Good eye. Of course that does not make them bad just a data point for the buyer.

@CarlosGomez-THX_1138 9 ай бұрын

Just don’t buy dog food from china . Speakers are okay

@Masterslessons 9 ай бұрын

@@gregkramer5588look for grammatical errors

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

Yes indeed. It’s very difficult to escape overseas manufacturing or part sourcing at this price point for many manufacturers.

@hhectorlector 9 ай бұрын

…..and?

@danemoreno88 9 ай бұрын

Not even close lmfrao way better speakers at 3000 or below than these

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

Exactly to your point notice the “?” On the graphic and I never say they ARE the best speakers under $3K 😊 Others seem to claim that. I find the top end performance underwhelming. I’d prefer more detail in the midrange, etc. There are some things the speaker does well and other things it falls short on.

@danemoreno88 9 ай бұрын

@@TheoNicolakisthey are way overpriced is what my main point I’m trying to point out these should be no more than 1500 a pair imo

@TheoNicolakis 9 ай бұрын

@@danemoreno88absolutely get where you’re coming from. The value proposition will always be in the eye of the beholder and wallet size 😂 In my opinion these are very much lifestyle speakers in their target audience.

@gregkramer5588 9 ай бұрын

Seems like a snake oil speaker to me. Fancy cabinet, BS science with that crossover mounting, gel core, and average measurements.

@Prometheus1979 9 ай бұрын

Every person that has reviewed these speakers has nothing but good things to say about them.

@gregkramer5588 9 ай бұрын

They may be fine but they have attributes that a are a big turn off for me at that price.@@Prometheus1979

@givemethejob3293 8 ай бұрын

Go and listen rather than pre judge with your very evident bias.

@givemethejob3293 3 ай бұрын

A very fancy cabinet that is inert and brilliant. Mounting of the crossover to reduce resonant effects. Gel core just works and the speakers vanish sonically. Great speakers not tiring to listen to for hours. Yes I would like to hear the Polk R700's. I have listened to the Q acoustics concept series and they are very impressive.

@humanitech 3 ай бұрын

Hmmm...And you strangely sound like an ignorant idiot judging without listening... but hey that's life !

@Sniper0 8 ай бұрын

Polk r700 is way better than this and much cheaper and measures better! and best of all its fullrange!

@valerivasilev1278 7 күн бұрын

@@Sniper0 Yes, twice as big and ugly! For me it's the r700! Concept 50 are for people with refined taste, not for bass freaks! I listened to both with my Naim Uniti Nova amp and guess which ones I bought..? In my country they are exactly the same price and the High End feel is definitely Q's!