DQ-10 as compared to Kef 105.4

[davidryan]

Good Morning All;

Shopping to upgrade from my current Wharfdale Diamonds (early models, mid-80's vintage), but am hopelessly stuck in that same 'era'...

Several sets of DQ-10's within a few hours drive, prices in the 300 - 575 region. Also a pair of Kef 105.4's in the same driving radius.

Did some searching of the archives, and can't come up with past results of direct comparisons, etc, hence this post.

Music tastes run the gamut, from classical/opera to jazz and acoustical solo guitar, all the way to The Velvet Underground and synth pop.

Vintage Hafler electronics (DH-220 and DH-100), Systemdek IIX 'table, Nak 682ZX sources.

Thanks in advance for anyone who would care to share an opinion.

r/
Dave

 

[baco99]

they are totally different animals. very hard to compare. get both!

 

[orionkc]

Get the KEF's. That is all. :thmbsp:

 

[barkerd]

get the DQ's. Love them or not they hold a very high place in audio history and are a real reference when discussing other speakers / I certainly love mine (not to diss anything else) It's like saying "visit Paris France or Punkey-Doodle's Corners?" .... if you want to be able to have a travel reference that most people relate to / so you can converse with more people about your experience .... visit Paris (as exciting as Punkey Doodle's corners is )

 

[Tedrick]

KEF's. They'll image nearly as well as the DQ-10's, and do everything else better.

 

[frommerstop]

I've had DQ-10s, and have listened to 105.4s a fair amount. Never really did a side by side comparison, but I don't think I'm sticking my neck out too far by saying the KEFs are superior over all. I do respect the DQ-10s as very competent speakers, well worth their current resale prices, but they are far from the almost legendarily great speakers many paint them as. The KEF R105.4s are better in both of the areas that Dahlquists are supposed to excel... imaging, & balance. IMO, the KEFs have noticeably better high end detail, without the somewhat "wooly" character in the upper mids that the DQ-10s have. While maintaining at least as good a sense of driver integration, and over all tonal balance as the Dalquists, the KEFs sound more "alive", and have much tighter bass.

Both are "good" speakers, reasonable folks could (and most likely will) disagree with my assessment. Over all, tonally, their differences make direct comparisons a little hard.
The Dalquist is a mellower, some might say more relaxed, sounding speaker, that to my ears has always had a bit of a bloated upper bass, with little output below that (the subs help with that), and a slightly tiring brightness at the very top (many folks disconnect the horn super tweeters). Imaging is good, not really exceptional, but driver integration is very good, especially when one considers it's a wide 5way design!
The KEF is a bit more detailed, and in my opinion, the more engaging speaker to listen to. Mid range detail & coherence is really excellent... about as good as it gets from a box by anyone! Imaging is noticeably better than from a DQ-10, again right near the top of the class. Bass is good, with better detail & control than the DQ-10s, but without the upper bass bump, they do sound a bit "lighter"...this doesn't bother me, but some do like a little more of the warmth that the Dahlqists have around 90-160hz.

In room bass extension is similar between them in my experience, and both speakers do need good amps, though I think finding just the right amp for the DQ-10s might be more tricky than for the KEFs. With the wrong amp, the DQ-10s can really sound dull, and bass gets downright sloppy. A really good amp however (I liked Audire on mine best), will clean up the bass a lot, and sharpen their midrange as well.

The KEFs aren't as picky. They just need a good solid amp, comfortable driving a 4ohm load. Like anything, if you feed them junk, they'll play it back as such, but they don't NEED an amp to make them work well, they just need it to get out of the way.