Here’s the thing about reviewing a seemingly never-ending stream of audio gear: From time to time, a product will come in that, for one reason or another, feels like a palate cleanser. A reset. A sanity check, if you will. For me, without even having listened to them yet, KEF’s Q3 Meta bookshelf speakers ($799.99/pair, all prices in USD) feel like that.
My last two reviews were of speakers that plotted their own course through the wilderness, relying on distinctive voicing to stand out in a crowded market. As I write this, I haven’t seen the measurements of either, but I can tell you that neither set of data will show anything resembling neutrality in the midrange. But you know what? I adored one of them and had major reservations about the other. But both were sonically diverse in their own distinctive ways.
My plan was to avoid speaker reviews altogether for at least a few months—focus on my meat-and-potatoes integrated amps and digital source devices while reacquainting myself with my beloved old Paradigm towers. But when KEF pitched me on a review of its new Q3 Meta, it felt like a chance to get back to sonic fundamentals.
Frankly, it’s been a long time since I heard a KEF speaker that rubbed me even slightly the wrong way. Because from my perspective, the company’s goals are always sonic neutrality with perhaps a bit of a bass bump, which is exactly what I’m looking for in a speaker and what most people prefer in blind tests. The only question is, how close can KEF’s engineers get, given budget constraints?
And how?
As for the second question, I think the Q3 Meta’s packaging gives you a clue. First, there’s KEF’s distinctive Uni-Q coaxial driver, which has been upgraded with the company’s Metamaterial Absorption Technology. There’s a reason it’s featured so prominently on the package.
KEF also isn’t trying to play games with physics here. There’s no replacement for displacement, as old car junkies will tell you. And this little bookshelf speaker isn’t so little. In fact, it’s an absolute chonk. But that gives it enough volume to make the manufacturer’s claims of bass extension down to 42Hz (-6dB) believable.
Crack the case and the first thing you’re met with is some of the tidiest and best-thought-out speaker packaging I’ve seen since—well, since last month. But that was for a tower speaker, and those are often a struggle to box and unbox. What makes the KEF Q3 Meta’s packaging impressive is its tidiness, not to mention its reliance on expanded polyethylene foam, not the EPS trash you expect at this price and with speakers this size. Kudos to KEF for that.
What’s more, the two speakers are held in place by six individually sculpted EPE caps, making everything not only easier to unpack, but also to repack, should you move house or need to send the speakers in for service for whatever reason.
In this shot, you can also get a peek at how KEF has packaged the accessories box, as well as the pair of port bungs that come with the speakers, should you need to seal them (and the only scenarios I can think of where this might make sense are if you need to place the speakers dead-ass against the wall, or perhaps if you’re crossing them over with a sub and want a gentler roll-off slope on the bottom end, although that last point comes with some assumptions on my part).
Within that accessories box, you’ll find a pair of magnetically affixed speaker grilles, a manual covering the entirety of the new Q Series lineup, and some stick-on rubber tootsies.
And here we have our first good look at the speakers themselves. Frankly, the instant I laid eyes on the things, I stopped my unboxing, stopped writing this blog, and made a beeline for my computer, assuming I’d made a mistake. Surely these things are $800 each, not $800 per pair? Nope. The price is right. But the build quality and design—not to mention the size—indicate a more expensive speaker.
The only indication of value-engineering here is the presence of the cheap binding posts. But you’re only going to see those occasionally, so I think that’s a smart place to save money, despite my own biases and fetishes.
Here we see the Q3 Meta pair side-by-side, one grilled and one in the buff. If KEF had sent me satin-black or satin-white speakers for review, I might feel differently about the grilles, but seeing the walnut finish made up my mind. There’s no way I’m covering these speakers.
I mean, the design of the grille certainly tugs me slightly in the opposite direction, what with its logo that perfectly matches the logo on the undressed speaker. The alignment of the two is consistent with the overall high fit and finish of the Q3 Meta, especially for the price.
But come on. Look at that gorgeous Uni-Q driver. It’s simply eye-catching, and its industrial design (well, its form resulting from its various functions) simultaneously complements and contrasts with the organic loveliness of the walnut baffle.
One last shot, just to give you a sense of scale. I can tell you that the Q3 Meta measures 8.3″W × 12″D, but I think it’s more informative to show you the speaker perched atop one of my Monoprice 42838 speaker stands so you can see just how much real estate the cabinet eats up. Much bigger and it just wouldn’t fit.
Overall, the 32″ stands look like they’re going to be the perfect height for the speakers, at least in my room with my seat. Without spikes on the stands, the center of the Q3 Meta’s Uni-Q driver (in other words, the center of the tweeter) sits 38.5″ off the ground. Given how excellent the vertical dispersion of most KEF speakers I’ve heard tends to be, I’m guessing that’ll work just fine.
But we’ll find out soon, won’t we? Time for me to start digging into my full evaluation. Look for the review soon here on SoundStage! Access.
. . . Dennis Burger
dennisb@soundstagenetwork.com
