soundstage, timing, micro and macro dynamics, detail

adds touch of warmth to the sound, may favour vocal, classical, jazz over hard rock/dance.

I bought a mint pair of Keilidhs on ebay, with the granite base. My expectations were modest and, having bought them, and before they arrived, I questioned whether I'd made the right decision - having been happy with the various speakers I use on different setups. That's the audiophile bug for you.

The speakers were configured for 'aktiv' use. Naively, I connected them up to a regular integrated amp - Pioneer A400 as modded by Tom Evans. I biwired. According to Linn's helpline, I was lucky I didn't blow the tweeters as this configuration is wrong. The sound though showed promise, subject to certain compromises. It was clear/transparent, steady image, and suggested a rich midrange. The bottom end was missing - bit like a small monitor than a floorstander.

Having realised the error of my ways, I had the speakers converted back to passive mode. This made a major difference on the same setup. Mid range was fluid, bass much deeper and more extended. Sweet treble. big soundstage. I was delighted and surprised. Then the next step: I have been concocting an idiosyncratic system in my bedroom for a few years: Nakamichi MB10 feeds a Beresford dac. Musical fidelity Xpre v.3, to 2 trends audio ta10s configured as power amps. I am not a believer in expensive cables, so use hand made silver interconnects in litz formation and silver anniversary biwire cable.

The keilidhs replaced Quad 12L speakers which sounded excellent in the first place, though the 6 watts limit o each power amp, kept the volume from going right up. With the Keilidhs in place, the sound blossomed. Wonderful transparency, bass tight and extended - though limited in absolute terms - mid range was seductive and detailed. The soundstage is about the best I've achieved at home, short of using smaller monitors. To be honest, I'm stunned. I know that my hotch potch of a system will sound obscure and amateurish to many, but I know who good it sounds compared to much more expensive setups. I just didn't reckon on the Keilidhs fitting in so well. They go a lot louder with my amps than the Quads without distortion, so presumably are significantly more sensitive. They will also play at low volumes with fantastic detail. If people find the speakers fall short in passive mode, based on my experience, I would say look to your other components before the Keilidhs. Superb value for money and sound.

Similar Products Used:

Quad 11Ls 12Ls, Monitor Audio R852MD and 703pmc, Acoustic Energy Evo 3, Polk, Triangle Titus ex, etc etc

Smooth with good detailed sound, oh and the base is great they really kick out.

Thats all folks.

NO.

Nice floor standers with good hansome looks and sound.
There very detailed and fast partnerd with my roksan Kandy mk3 intergrated amp.
Also along with my byron soneeter cd player. They have a nice live sound to it and the midrange is smooth as liquid. There is also a nice brightness sound to it, but not a harsh one that gives you the sour look on your face.

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B&W DM602 S2

Mordaunt short advant 908

Kef Q10

Bose 301 ser v- these speakers sound terrable. I am just saying

Truly muscal, a pleasure to listen to with the right equipment.

They do point out the the flaws of lesser recordings and equipment. The musical warmth is not agreeable with harsh or "natural" recordings.

These turned out to be a fine speaker, however they didn't really open-up with any amp I own until I connected them with my Tara Labs RCS 1000 Prime speaker cable. The linns are very unforgiving of inferior equipment. They do have a slight warmth to them which adds to their musicality. Placment does not present a problem, but, do not toe them in.

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KEF C series, Linn keosa, Dahlquist DQ 30i's, Linn Index II

none

none

....I use it for almost 2 years ..... Sound is very good for me , and I do enjoy it ..... And my pre-amp is Linn majik and power-amp is Linn LK140 ..... It makes Keilidh in very good sound ..... but I''m not using linn CD/LP player .... my CD/SACD player is SONY SCD-1 ...... but sound for them are very very good ! And for later upgrade , I want to have a Wakonda ...as a pre-amp ......

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Sonus faber , concertino

Great set of speakers. I play them through a Dennon 3300 and they have a very smooth sound too them. Mid and high range sound excellent. Accoustic instruments are crystal clear. Not to mention, they are a beautiful set of speekers. Everyone who comes over comments on how classy they look. Only drawback is that they don't have much range in the low end. I'd suggest a good sub-woofer to compliment them.

superb with acoustic music

needs good electronics

people that complain over a lack off bass with these speakers have never heard them properly set up, I've heard keilidhs kick sub ass and shake houses so if youre not happy keep fiddling around with position and you will reach bliss.

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lots

This is an update to the previous postings. I recently had the chance to compare the Keilidhs to some Tannoy 636 Profile plus floorstanders in my system. (cyrus II and psx, quad 67 cd, straightwire waveguide biwire cables) A few years ago I had some Tannoy 637 Profile speakers which I was forced to sell due to a move. I really regretted selling them because I felt that they gave me basically what I like in a speaker. Presence, imaging and good bass. A friend of mine who owns some 636 Tannoys,(the same speaker, but a little smaller) offered to lend me them to compare to the Keilidhs just to put my mind at ease. Well, apparently my memory of the Tannoys was on the rosy side. In every way, the Keilidh smoked the Tannoys, espescially as far as sound stage. That of the Keilidhs was higher and wider,with instruments placed at various depths in the soundstage. There was real space around each instrument and voice with the Keilidhs that didn´t come across at all with the Tannoys. Timbres of individual instruments were also much more discernable and realistic with the Keilidh than the Tannoys.

Anyway, does anybody know if there is a low pass filter on the crossover of the passive keilidh? I notice on the Linn site that the active Keilidh goes down to about 40HZ, while the passive only to about 60HZ

Provide a precise stereo image, fairly transparent. Perfectly balanced, a pleasure at any listening volume. Good bass & superb precise treble. Finish is top rate.

I think they should be a little taller to put the treble nearer to ear level (large canadian sofa!).My wife says the bi-wired Linn cable is UGLY.

After two years of listening both in England and Canada to a huge variety of systems & speakers only a few I could afford stood out. Most sounded only a little better than my old Mordaunt Short/Dual system. What other purchase is so over populated with equipment and opinions? Niam, Castle & Linn products stood out, just to name three. The speakers became my driving force in selection. A glorious looking pair of Castle speakers matched with Niam sounded very 'livable'. At each dealership that carried Linn I heard a pair of Kelidihs with different systems. The first time I heard my test CD track on Kelidihs I sat up in horror, where had that extra guitarist sitting right THERE come from! I heard Danish, British & American speakers; everytime those Kelidihs were so easy to listen to. The combination with Niam CD & amps gave a sound stage that went way back, way too far for my liking and nothing in front. I came to realise that was not a feature of the Kelidihs in a Linn system. I bought the Linn Classic (with tuner) to go with the cherry Kelidihs and some of that 'ugly' Linn bi-wire. My listening room is only 11*17 ft and full of furniture. The speakers are on the long wall 18 inches out 9 feet apart after much fiddling.
The sound stage is precise, fairly open and an absolute pleasure to listen to. The image really improved after the first 2 months, I was more than sceptical when told they had to be run in! The bass is really good, the very bottom is a little muddy sometimes; perhaps I should buy the feet.
One outstanding feature is they are wonderfully balanced and very musical at all volumes. I plan to raise them a few inches somehow they seem too low.
For the money this combination is superb, the Classic is tough to buy, but once you get over that 'little box' barrier (my daughter said "that's IT!")it's one amazing little box.
It only took me 2 years to make up my mind, I hope my comments help save someone some time! I certainly did not have the time to mix and match different components and wires along with the stress of possibly buying the wrong thing: why bother when the Linn people have gone to a great deal of time & trouble to do all that for you! It certainly worked for me.

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Mordaunt Short Festival (stand mount).Dual.Phillips 1 bit.

Good, tight bass, superb treble, coherence, speed.....

They definately need a user mod to see off £1500 to £2000 speakers!

Update to my last entries.

JUST DO THE MODS!!!!!!

Superb....treble will send off most speakers up to £3K.

I cannot wait to get some decent amps....

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B&W P6 + cdm7se, Rega Jura (baby keilidhs), Mission 753, and a few others

Overall Clarity superb, and excels on Guitar music, also one of the best 'finished' speakers on market.

None- except if you are 'bass freak' or play alot of 'low octave' music

I just bought my SECOND pair of Keilidhs' which I am going to use in my Home Theatre set-up. Plan to eventually get Centrik and AV110's for rear.
I have had my original Keilidhs' for 2 years- and only seem to like them better all the time. I play alot of guitar music,70-80's rock, and Blues. These speakers really make listening to music enjoyable - they have exceptional clarity but, are also very smooth. Though some complain about lack of bass- my friends and I think the bass is very tight and controlled.
I think the Keilidhs' are the best speaker available for $3000 CDN or under. I bought my second pair-what more can I say????

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Had compared Ruark,Totem,B&W, and Paradigm models up to $3000 CDN.