KEF Reference 101 - I Stand Corrected.

Bostown

Low End Audio Enthusiast!
Subscriber
Dear Kef 101,

I've been critical of your rising value on the used market and of your constant comparison to your kin the LS3/5a ( Rogers, Spendor etc) in the past. Not because I didn't believe you sounded great. Lets face it, Kef has a history of producing some legendary speakers. Perhaps I was jaded by the increasing prices or the mixed bag of commentary floating around, saying that you're only a kin to the highly collectable BBC models due to the drivers you share in common, or that you somehow lacked in one area or another. "Too flat" not enough of this, cabinet that.. blah blah blah... I should know enough to not allow that chatter to affect my otherwise open viewpoint on sound being a personal choice that no amount of opinion can or should affect.

So just like my open apology to the Cambridge Soundworks Ambiance OAK, you too are deserving of one. In some way I've followed my values by plunking down some hard earned cash to acquire you. Sure , your cabinets are a little rough but if I wanted Perfection I'd be buying something NEW in the box right? Your minor scars add character and any of the deeper scrapes can and will be mended. While my initial intent was to buy you just to experience your sound first hand. I'm now looking for a place for you to stay in my "I've got way too many speakers and not enough rooms" family.

Keffie! you've re-aligned my perspective yet again and I'm grateful for it. Your system mates, for now, will be the Parasound Zseries, and fear not, each one of you , LEFT and RIGHT will get to keep your own stereo amplifier (In bridged mono), and if we ever come across another Musical Fidelity X-a50, we'll give you a go on that set up. - To my new friends, Welcome to my dysfunctional Audio family, I'm sure you'll fit right in.

J - Aka Bostown!
 
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Dear Kef Reference 101, your cousin the Reference Kef 103.2 sends its humble regards, and would like to relay that its owner is equally happy and content with its performance in regards to such friends as the Rogers JR-149, Celestion SL-6, and younger friends from the Spendor family down the street.
 
Might as well add a photo for reference (pun intended).

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Another former 103/2 and 104/2 owner salute the lil' brother of the family.
I always wanted these back in the day. Those look pretty good too. A little powered sub action and you're in very good shape.
 
Another former 103/2 and 104/2 owner salute the lil' brother of the family.
I always wanted these back in the day. Those look pretty good too. A little powered sub action and you're in very good shape.


Funny you mentioned a little powered sub. This little guy (M&K MX70) was displaced when a "beauty marked" Martin Logan Dynamo was put on LOW frequency duties in my primary Stereo set up. I knew it was only a matter of time before the M&K would be reassigned. It'll add some decent extension to the low end of the KEFs whenever program material calls for it.

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My buddy found a pair of 101's at a garage sale for $5.00....I missed making a deal on them....he swapped them off for a pair of Paradigm Monitor 3's..Ouch!
 
Great post

I'm running Audiodon's 104/2's in my main system and a pair of 103/3's in another.
Remarkable speakers.
 
The original 101, the one that used the same drivers as the 3/5a, was before the KUBE came along. That would have been the 101/2.

hey thanks for the history lesson, I did not know that. I can remember back to the late 80's early 90's when I'd take my U2 Joshua Tree CD down to Advance Audio here in Winnipeg and just kick back and listen to a pair of 101/2 and I think they used the Kube. I had the choice to listen to any of that line and I always choose the 101's. What an awesome, coherent sound. Just kinda could while away a whole afternoon in front of a nice speaker like that.
 
Reference 102 over here sending a shout out to our brothers Ref 101, Ref 103.2, and Ref 104ab.
 
hey thanks for the history lesson, I did not know that. I can remember back to the late 80's early 90's when I'd take my U2 Joshua Tree CD down to Advance Audio here in Winnipeg and just kick back and listen to a pair of 101/2 and I think they used the Kube. I had the choice to listen to any of that line and I always choose the 101's. What an awesome, coherent sound. Just kinda could while away a whole afternoon in front of a nice speaker like that.

Those might actually have been the first KUBE series, the R102 (yes, confusingly they came before the 101/2). Easy to tell them apart, the 101/2 were Uni-Q so even though they were two way, it looked like one driver while the earlier 102 were a conventional two way + KUBE. Those were a favorite of mine, sold many, many pairs. Still on the lookout for a clean pair. They would be perfect in the bedroom on my perirod correct Yamaha RX-1130!

That was a nice lineup. I had the 103.3 which I sold to friend and I am listening to the 107 right now. The famous 104.2 came just before and the production run continued at the same time so they eventually got an optional add on KUBE.
 
Those might actually have been the first KUBE series, the R102 (yes, confusingly they came before the 101/2). Easy to tell them apart, the 101/2 were Uni-Q so even though they were two way, it looked like one driver while the earlier 102 were a conventional two way + KUBE. Those were a favorite of mine, sold many, many pairs. Still on the lookout for a clean pair. They would be perfect in the bedroom on my perirod correct Yamaha RX-1130!

That was a nice lineup. I had the 103.3 which I sold to friend and I am listening to the 107 right now. The famous 104.2 came just before and the production run continued at the same time so they eventually got an optional add on KUBE.

Your right they weren't Uni-Q's so they must have been the earlier model. If I remember right you had the choice of whether or not to buy the Kube and after experiencing how it meshed so perfectly with that speaker I couldn't imagine not having it to compliment them. It was like a 5 and a half inch mid-woofer combined with a 3/4 inch tweeter. I couldn't believe what awesome bass came from such a tiny enclosure, it just floored me at the time again and again.

Shawn
 
Here you go, this should look familiar:

http://www.kef.com/history/en/1970/model102.asp


Same 1" tweeter as the 103.3 and 107 and the KUBE was not optional. It was designed as part of the speaker and even though they will play without it they will sound completely wrong even if some people claim to like them that way. The KUBE was made an option on later series as some people objected to the extra wires and the possibility of sound degradation associated with processors of any kind. They certainly made multi room installations a nightmare!
 
WoW, thanks for the walk down memory lane. I haven't seen those for over 20 years. Man those were nice speakers, how come you never see used ones for sale? If I ever saw a pair with the partnered Kube I'd snap them up in a moment. Wouldn't even require any thought.
 
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