Just got a pair of Quad S2's partly due to your reviews.I have a fairly small room and your reviews indicated that they would be a good solution and they certainly are.The highlight for me so far with my short time with them is the airiness where you can pinpoint exactly where separate instruments are in the soundstage. Anyone looking for great sound in a small room should definitely check them out.

They are both very close. But I like the quad better because they are more balanced and the piano and voice sound more natural too me.

Tx on review! I am owner of Quad s2, and I love them. Great bass reproduction, amazing voice and guitar reproduction. One of best speakers I've heard so far!

Not only the voice but the cymbals also sound more complex with the ribbon tweeter. I wish B&W would adopt this technology for their speakers.

Just got the Quad S1 and could not be happier! All I need now is a sub.

One of the better reviewers of hi end audio.

I own the S2's, great speaker. The ribbon tweeter is amazing.

QUAD for me !! Open & airing with precised sound.

There's very few speakers that can outperform the Metas, IMO, but the Quads do in this comparison

It's a great shoot-out of two quality speakers (although I haven't heard the Meta's yet I lived with the original LS50's for 6 years). I have a personal preference for the Quads by some margin, more natural and easier on the ear, also easier to live with in terms of system matching and positioning.

Quads for sure. More dynamic, & refined sounding. Smooth treble is a winner!

I have the quads paired with a bluesound powernode. They are brilliant speakers with a detailed presentation, great soundstage, brilliant tonality of musical instruments including bass guitar, drums, pianos and guitars. They are not fatiguing at all. I also recently bought the KEF WIRLESS II and these match up to the KEFs in almost all departments but the volume and beat them in tonality and soundstage to my ears. For rock and metal sort of music however my KEF Q series towers and smoother and preferable to me,

Listening on my headphones, I prefer the Quads, the KEF are ‘denser’! But both are good for a bookshelf speaker.

Great explanations ! The ls 50 meta are analytical they produce a rational sound, the Quad s2 are musical they produce an emotional sound.

really nice review, ultimately it will depend on the system but over KZfaq its easily the Quad's for me.

Interesting. It's like this video was made just for me, I have some S2's and was wondering if the LS50 Meta would be a worthy upgrade but it seems they have all the faults that drove me away from speakers of their type - brightness and aggression that sound great in the shop but drives you mad after a week at home. So thanks for saving me some money! If you'd like a quick review of the Quad S2's, I have had mine for two years and listen to them every day and they sounds as good and pleasing as they did when I bought them. No stress, no brightness and the most realistic piano you ever heard (this means everything else is right as far as I'm concerned, pianos are so hard to reproduce). The only thing you have to bear in mind is that the Quads need a few weeks running in. Seriously good little speakers.

I love Kef speakers but the Quads sound more natural

I have S-2s paired with a oldie-but-goodie Quad 909 amp playing through a Belles Aria preamp...it sounds glorious. Non-fatiguing, wide soundstage, locked-in center image, wonderful grip and air....plays much bigger than you'd expect. It's been a while since I've heard the LS50, but I remember it sounding etched and bright to my ears. Again, it's been a while, but the impression stuck. Not feeling that at all with my Quads. In fact, they're the first box speaker I've owned in years (after several OBs and omnis) that I can imagine keeping for a long time. Very happy.

The Quads by far. They are smoother, better balanced, and more natural sounding. The KEFs make me jumpy and anxious even on this KZfaq video.

The best tweeter I've heard is the RAAL ribbon. The Quad is close. I demo'd LS50 Meta's at home and they're great. Very alive sounding. But, a true ribbon is amazing in it's ability to have so much air without being harsh or bright. Some people hear cheap AMT tweeters and think it's a ribbon and it is not. AMT's can be good, but a true ribbon well implemented is a special sound that is hard to beat.

I’m looking forward to a Kef R3 meta shootout with Quad Revela 1. And a shootout between Quad Revela 2 and Kef Ref 3

excellent reviews with description that is right on based on the sample clips. since i use for personal listening mostly during work, i am deciding to go with the quad

great speakers Thanks to you, I got to know them better and bought a pair. I made a few demos on my channel, I highly recommend it. I wish you a day full of music with my love.

The Quads are much more lively, and a very clear winner for me too.

thank you so much for doing what you do... I do get a good sense which one I would buy by listening to your audio clips. They are NOT exact replication, BUT i can get a sense which one I would prefer more. For example, i already have a speaker that sounds like Quad S2 (love it!), and so I would go for KEF Meta, bcoz, both are good in its own ways. Thank you Tharbamar!

Quads are way more open than the KEFs! Also piano sounds so real in Quads than KEFs.. 🙌

It strikes me that the Quad Z series speakers are rarely reviewed

Thks for the review & sound demo. Quad S2 sounds more detailed & dynamic and I prefer it over the KEFs. Could I suggest using nearfield mics so as to remove the room coloration?

To each their own. KEFs will easy find buyers for their 'flow", spaciousness, fullness - then Quads come up with texture, detail, separation - just listen to drums, they tell everything.

I'm playing these at home through a pair of 1970's Mordaunt Short festival 2 speakers, so I can only hear what my speakers at home can do, just like anyone else listening at home. The funny thing is this, I was reading and I only looked up easch time the Quad speakers were playing 'I'm enjoying this bit I'll look at the screen... (Quads playing again).

Definitely S2 for me. Thanks for the comparison!

I don't quite understand why would people talk about the dome harshness here - The stiffened dome in LS50 / LS50 Meta has a first break-up point over 30k Hz! There are no harshness from them. Meanwhile although the S2 sounds a bit more coloured and pleasing to my ear, there is a little bit of mid range suck out there.

Thank you and good morning from Singapore.. To be frank I personally love the quat

didn't hear them in person but the Quads S2 sound much better to me.

I think i like Meta sound more 👍 It's more lively and musically 😁

I have not heard the Quads but I would pick them because I found the KEFs were slightly grating. I am sure Thabamar is on the money when he suggests coupling it with a warmer sounding amp.

Quads for me. Beautiful room too!

I have owned the original LS50 and the S2. Neither speaker was for me. They just don’t reproduce enough bass in a medium sized room to realistically recreate the intended sound. For me anyway. I would agree with the comments on the merits of each speaker. Great video as always.

Winner - Quad. Cleaner, more musical voice.

great review first clas love the room anmd the music. u just nail it on the head thank u sir

The piano and the electro guitar sounds better on the Quad but interesting enough i found the vocal better to my liking on the Kef. Quads vocals felt a little sucked out by comparision. At least that's how I hear with my focal clear headphones. Thank you for the video @Tharbamar

QUAD spacious and balance and warmer sound

Symbols are like in the room with the S2.

I know it's KZfaq but the Quads hands down for me.

Seems quads are nicer I think before commenting we need to play more and different tracks.

It would be interesting to hear your opinion of the KEF's with a different amplifier. I heard them with a Roger's tube amplifier a couple of weeks ago and they sounded really good. Much bigger sound than one expects. I really like them. Can't wait to hear the new LS50 wireless II.

That was an awesome comparrssion great job ! Thank you

Its interesting.. a lot of folk appear to prefer the Quads and indeed they are very good but there’s so much more fine detail and nuance in the KEF’s. That and for me at least the Quads make her sound like she is suffering from a head cold.. nice though they are they wouldn’t be for me.. I will nail my colours to the mast though and declare I have got the metas currently but am considering moving to Neat Iota Alphas or Explorers.. I currently use the metas with a Rega Elicit R and my only complaint of the KEF’s are they are a hard load to drive and the Elicit is working hard if you want to go LOUD!

These comparisons are great....keep it up. Best reviewer on KZfaq for me 👍

I like the looks of the quad better. They both sound good, it's hard to pick between them.

I own the Quads - the tweeters sound great for the price. Haven't heard the KEFs but I think they're harder to drive than the Quads.

They are both great sounding, but for me the Kef is my choice. Sounds more detailed and layered!

I think the quads sound a little boxy , It’s hard to tell on KZfaq but I believe I can hear the cabinet

I'm so glad I got the S2 and to think I only paid 499€ brand new for them, what a steal.

Great review. Remember that floorstanders take the same space and actually have bass.

Quad S2 any day for me...

I'm only listening to this on (decent) headphones, but why do the Quads sound so good? This is the first time I've heard comparable class speaker where the Metas clearly come out second best. They sound too "sweet", where the Quads have a real "natural" clarity to them. And the Metas seem really "narrow". I can't feel any depth of soundstage when I close my eyes and listen, but with the Quads, I can vividly picture the placement of the instruments.

Quad for me as well. It seems to have a fuller natural sound. The Kef's are lacking in detail and sound a bit thinner on instruments. It would be interesting to hear the Kef's with gear a bit more warmer or the same gear, dialing in on the bass and treble. I think you really need to own a variety of signature pieces, when attempting to decide on speakers in your setup There are certain speakers that have a build that makes them just a great all around speaker. I cant say this for the Quads, but, they are the winner with this setup.

I own ls 50 , but I prefer quad speakers lots of detail tone coming from below 300 Hz that I never heard b4 more real life , wharfedale speakers they sound the same as the quad that's what my 👂 told me

From what I heard, KEF LS 50 meta seem the drums became the main point, other sounds like is been buried below the drums, if you listen too long it will get tiring because it seem just drums sound all the time, and QUAD S2, is more balancing, especially for human voice, more solid. KEF LS50 very good for dance music, but for musical ... QUAD S2 is better.

To me the KEF sounded slightly forward on some of those vocals/guitar. The drums sounded nice and clean. The quads arguably more relaxed, with seemingly more treble and bass extension. Perhaps a little too much treble. You get more of the attack of the cymbal strike but the KEF seems to have better body to the rest of the cymbal sound.

The quads sound similar to the ATC SCM11s I own, much more clearer than the LS50s. But on the other hand, the LS50s sound fuller-which I prefer. The SCM11s pair well with class D amps and produce more bass IMHO. I would try different amps with the quads for a little bit of more bass. Also, you need lots of power to make the LS50s sound nice, when I drive them using 150wpc amps vs 70wpc amps, the difference is night and day.

i thought the voice sounded much fuller on the quads , KEF little more up front sounding, relax with the QUAD or party with the KEF Hmmm

Great review love your new setup.

i do live sound with coaxial speakers. what i found that you never listen on axes. always 30 to 50 degree off axis. then it becomes sweet to the ear.

Its just me or cymbal sound reversed on both. Quad on the left side and meta on the right side.

quad all the way

S-2 is Same price as Wharfedale - Linton 85th I wonder how they compare to each other’s

I have the Quad Z2's and love them, before that I had a pair of Quad 12L2 which I was also impressed by. I've been considering the Kef LS50's for a second bedroom system, though I'm still undecided.

I have quite a bright amplifier with really great detail and super tight bass control. So, I am after bookshelf speakers which can reign in the harse treble. It appears the Quad may fit the bill.

Kef’s are better with Hegel or Arcam amp. When I play my own recorded music with vocals, they sound just like what I recorded.

wow. all the Quad loves. I immediately thought the KEFs sounded better. more focused. more alive. interesting because I also prefer the EVO 4.2's over the Quads ... hmm maybe I need better headphones

I always get amused by people comments on reviews like this. How many that say hands down S2 is better or vice versa, I really would love to know if they have ever listened to both in their home audio system to be actually able to say one is better than the other. I have never listened to the QUAD S2 myself, so I can’t say it’s better or worst than LS50 Meta. But I do own the LS50 Meta and when played on nice system with pair of dual SVS SB3000 subwoofers to give you the kind of bass no bookshelf speaker can ever give you, is Sublime. I can sit back and close my eyes and here parts of the music that sound like they are on my left or right about a foot or two away, is amazing. To here music that sounds like it’s coming from my rear surround speakers when I’m playing two channel stereo is something I have never experienced before until I got the LS50 Meta. I’m sure the Quad S2 is and awesome speaker, but so is the LS50 Meta, you get imaging like nothing I have ever heard before until now.

I like the Kefs better as I am waiting for them to be delivered and am terribly biased. I would like the Kef stands but at £400 its a piss-take in my book... keep well everyone

The drums are more pronounced with the S2’s, I really like their sound.

quad s2 are clearly more natural sounding but missing bass, bass quality and attack/dynamics.. so i guess i dont like either

S2s are quite special. They produce a 360 degree holographic soundstage that is hard to believe comes out of a £600 set of speakers. Also they like more power than less

i used to sell Hi end Hi-Fi hundreds of years ago back in the 80's - I had some Kef Reference 2 or 3's - the biggest one they did in Rosewood - the Kef 'sound' has changed somewhat - its more towards Acoustic Energy/Gale - Monitor Audio with its involving sound - whereas the Quads have left their dusty old ESL's behind and sound warm and inviting and you don't have to be sat down to enjoy them - however that might get a bit dull and boring after a while - interestingly I noticed Wharfedale - plagued by financial issues and lo rent when I used to sell them - the Active Diamond - truly legendary at the time - saved them and in recent years they have become all grown up in their price range - but can they match the competition sonically I wonder? True story - I had a friend who loved the Gale 301's and paired them with a Musical fidelity 2k amp - he melted the solder in the crossovers in the Gale's to the point where components fell out!!!!

There are times when the LS50 guitar sounds a little unreal and even painful there at the end. Is that the experience in real life?

Quad S2 sounds better. Listening from Yamaha A-S1200 + Quad Z2. :)

Quads for the win!!!

CREEK EVOLUTION 100A and QUAD S2 the best marriage

If I can't put up with any kind of brightness yet I have a arcam amp wouldn't it make sense to go with the quad S2 especially if I got a pair of stereo Rels to help with the low end ? Opinions most appreciated

Hi Tharbamar! I've been watching religiously your review and sound demo videos for a long time now (with the majority of them in the 'old' room). I hate to tell you but this new room sounds soooo...lifeless! Not sure if it's the room layout, or just the location of your recording equipment in it. Either way, unfortunately there is NO COMPARISON bet. the two rooms. Take for example Grace Mahya and the way she sounds on the Quads. The soundstage and her voice sound just amazing in the 'old' room, and yet indifferent in the new room. Same goes for the LS50s, they sound just as boring and lifeless! With all the echoing going on in the 'old' room, it sounded pretty good actually, in retrospect. Are the microphones too far from the speakers now?

Quad S2 is the best! Kef is always for Rock n Roll!

Thank you very much, Regardless at the video 'Klipsch RP600M & B&W 706 S2 Sound Demo' the explanations are really missing.

I find both quite bright. The KEFs are really impressive, open sounding, forward. The Quads are as bright as the Ls50s, but I perceive their sound a little resonant, but nothing too damaging to the overall presentation. But the brightness is too much for me, on both cases. With some EQing, both speakers would satisfy my taste. Without some high shelving cut, though, not anymore.

The BEST, Quad, for me.

Another great review! Which would you recommend for near field like a PC gaming and music setup? I have an SVS SB2000 subwoofer, Topping D90 dac and Avantone CLA200 a/b studio amplifier, too. Seems like the LS50 might work better in my case.

I Just bought s2's used for about 400$ cant wait to hear them :)

Clear Quad The bass note are more refined

Clear winner is Quad S2. Waiting for LS50 wireless 2 review.

What about Kef LS50 Meta vs Quad Z2?

The S2 sounds less bright in your demo, nicer to my ears. I have actually the Z2, so might be used and prefer the SQ of Quad. I am currently using the Musical Fidelity M5si (with Node 2i, Tidal Hifi and Topping E30). Before I tried the XTZ Edge and Schiit Saga+ and Node 2i. Recently tried the NAD C298 with Node 2i and Topping E30 (in preamp setting). M5si and E30 is an improvement over XTZ and Saga+. The NAD C298 was very detailed, tight base, but I sent it back cause it kept shutting down after 4 hours playing while the music was still playing. So I will continue testing the C298 as soon as I get a replacement unit. Might want to try an tube pre amp (Musical Paradise MP701 MK2) with the NAD C298. What type/brand amplifier would you recommend?

Where did you buy your component/TV stand? Look great and been looking for one just like it. Awesome video as usual

Quad.

Kef's have less sound separation. I prefer that sound. A little crisper.

Quads are more open in this combo.. But there is something artificial whit quads sound... I can not tell what but it feels not 100%corecct... But a crazy audiofil like me never get satisfied almost.. Its better to enjoy music instead of chasing details.. The best is to compare these speakers in your own home and electronic.. Thanks for the the session🙏

Bonjour and merci for those reviews about Quad S2 ! i was about to get the LS50 Meta's but after all i heard in ur reviews and read in the comments, i think the Quad's are definitely more for me. "for long term buy" & "not tiring for long sessions" those speak to me ! but i have a question : has anybody experienced a match with Cambridge Audio CXA-81 ? i read here that they don't match much with "warm" amps like Marantz 8006 and i heard that Cambridge is kinda opposite sound compare to Marantz, but still not neutral. So i'm really wondering as this CXA81 matches almost all i need plus sentimental value (my 1st real amplifier was a Cambridge audio A1, in 1996 and i loved it). Mr Tharbamar, i'm going to post this on the 3 or 4 videos related to the Quads. I really do hope u will not consider this as spam. !f so i apologize in advance and please delete them. THANX A LOT for all ur work

Quads all the way