Kudos Klub

[Coyote Jim]

Might be a few months away but I am contemplating a speaker upgrade from my active Keilihds. I like what you guys are saying about Kudos speakers and will certainly give them a listen. I have an ADSM and Akurate 4200 amp. What is the model I should be contemplating as a replacement to my beloved Keilidhs? Also, what do I do about the active cards in my amp? Do I remove them and bi-amp the Kudos speakers?

Bill.

Hi Bill,
We've got rid of of all the multi wiring and multi amping and gone Kudos Passive that's three of us in a short time and it's so much better and real to our ears anyway.
Kudos X3 lives here.
And one of us has moved on from Keilidhs after a very long relationship ask Mr Onion.

[Dave J]

Downloaded the latest Linn Davaar last night and was delighted to find that the T606s are (at last) supported in this new online Optimisation thingey, they’re doing. After finally figuring that 3.5cms is of course 0.035 in the speaker height field, they sound amaaaaazing!!

Currently revelling in Chris Whitley’s Living with the Law. 100% bloody wow!

[Mr Onion]

Might be a few months away but I am contemplating a speaker upgrade from my active Keilihds. I like what you guys are saying about Kudos speakers and will certainly give them a listen. I have an ADSM and Akurate 4200 amp. What is the model I should be contemplating as a replacement to my beloved Keilidhs? Also, what do I do about the active cards in my amp? Do I remove them and bi-amp the Kudos speakers?

Bill.

My Super 20's are single wire only, so suits me fine. Your aktive cards will be wrong for any Kudos anyway as the slopes etc were designed for the Keilidh. A 4200 with its 200w/4ohms should have plenty of grunt only using the 2 channels needed. my NAPish 250 hardly gets warm at any level setting.

You can get a different backplate for the Super 20's (I think) which will give you more connection options, but do you need them? In his dem room Peter runs a pair of 808's from one NAP 500 (or when I was there last a NAP 300 as I think the 500 had been sold)

FWIW my recommendation is a pair of 'can't tell them from new' Super 20's from Peter and sell the Aktive cards.

[ae111sr]

Kudos Super 20A front by John Payne, on Flickr

Hey John. I do believe that is the very same pair I auditioned a few months back at Ceritech. And I do believe you are the one who told me of the demo day
You may be interested (or not) to know the deal never happened. I couldn't raise the funds
But I am now Akurate Exaktboxed instead, waiting for funds to Katalyse, and still running my 140s (now with the upgrade stands). Half of me wishes the above Kudos' were in my living room, the other half is very pleased with the change from Majik EBox to Akurate.
Swings and the proverbials!

Hi Timster, only just read this.
You must have seen the Ceritech demo speakers as my Super 20A speakers were bought in December last year and the Ceritech Kudos Day was in March this year. I know that Ceritech bought another pair in Santos Rosewood for the showroom so possibly you heard those. A shame that funds would not stretch to Super 20s as you know they do sound very musical and detailed. The Akurate Exaktbox is a major upgrade from the Majik one and the Katalyst upgrade will definitely increase your musical enjoyment.
Cheers

[Billz]

Thanks for all the replies re my upgrading from Keilidhs. I have only recently went active with my Keilidhs and it is an improvement over passive. I also changed my tweeters to Hiquphon and again I like the way they sound at the moment.

HOWEVER....I am aware the Keilidhs are a fair age and the upgrade bug is biting. My dealer in Edinburgh has X3’s on special offer at the moment and at the price I could upgrade now. If I wait a few more months I could get Super 20’s. Any thoughts guys?


Sorry, forgot to mention, that my speakers need to be about 15cm maximum from the wall. My Keilidhs are currently 12cm from the wall and this works well. If the Kudos need a lot of space behind them, I might struggle unless Linn SPACE can sort it out.

Bill.

[Mr Onion]

My Super 20's are ~6" from the wall, so exactly where you are talking about. My Keilish were further into the room, so its going to be down to experimentation (as usual)

Listen to the X3 and Super 20's and decide. I know Jim and Jim love theirs, but the 20's are better. Again, your choice (but I know what mine would be) Try with your amp though as Coyote Jims are LINN and other jim and I am NAIM.

[Coyote Jim]

Thanks for all the replies re my upgrading from Keilidhs. I have only recently went active with my Keilidhs and it is an improvement over passive. I also changed my tweeters to Hiquphon and again I like the way they sound at the moment.

HOWEVER....I am aware the Keilidhs are a fair age and the upgrade bug is biting. My dealer in Edinburgh has X3’s on special offer at the moment and at the price I could upgrade now. If I wait a few more months I could get Super 20’s. Any thoughts guys?


Sorry, forgot to mention, that my speakers need to be about 15cm maximum from the wall. My Keilidhs are currently 12cm from the wall and this works well. If the Kudos need a lot of space behind them, I might struggle unless Linn SPACE can sort it out.

Bill.

Bill.
I think I know the dealer and I'd bite their hand for X3s they're much better than what you have in any guise IMHO the super 20s are even better but in my domestic environment i couldn't justify the price difference I wanted Single wire passive as I was sick if all the multi wiring and multi amping less is better and less in the path is purer too.
The newer ones S20 have multi connectors on them for activating and I didn't want that.
Oh mine are closer to the wall than that.

Been here done that no good.

[Dave J]

Might be a few months away but I am contemplating a speaker upgrade from my active Keilihds. I like what you guys are saying about Kudos speakers and will certainly give them a listen. I have an ADSM and Akurate 4200 amp. What is the model I should be contemplating as a replacement to my beloved Keilidhs? Also, what do I do about the active cards in my amp? Do I remove them and bi-amp the Kudos speakers?

Bill.

My Super 20's are single wire only, so suits me fine. Your aktive cards will be wrong for any Kudos anyway as the slopes etc were designed for the Keilidh. A 4200 with its 200w/4ohms should have plenty of grunt only using the 2 channels needed. my NAPish 250 hardly gets warm at any level setting.

You can get a different backplate for the Super 20's (I think) which will give you more connection options, but do you need them? In his dem room Peter runs a pair of 808's from one NAP 500 (or when I was there last a NAP 300 as I think the 500 had been sold)

FWIW my recommendation is a pair of 'can't tell them from new' Super 20's from Peter and sell the Aktive cards.

That was my “old” 300 he was using... and my “new” 500 you heard. Single wire for me...

[Mr Onion]

That was my “old” 300 he was using... and my “new” 500 you heard. Single wire for me...

I wonder what Mrs O would say if I tell her it was your old 300 we heard last time

[Coyote Jim]

My Super 20's are ~6" from the wall, so exactly where you are talking about. My Keilish were further into the room, so its going to be down to experimentation (as usual)

Listen to the X3 and Super 20's and decide. I know Jim and Jim love theirs, but the 20's are better. Again, your choice (but I know what mine would be) Try with your amp though as Coyote Jims are LINN and other jim and I am NAIM.

image.jpeg

On the subject of distance.
No Father Ted required.

[timster]

Kudos Super 20A front by John Payne, on Flickr

Hey John. I do believe that is the very same pair I auditioned a few months back at Ceritech. And I do believe you are the one who told me of the demo day
You may be interested (or not) to know the deal never happened. I couldn't raise the funds
But I am now Akurate Exaktboxed instead, waiting for funds to Katalyse, and still running my 140s (now with the upgrade stands). Half of me wishes the above Kudos' were in my living room, the other half is very pleased with the change from Majik EBox to Akurate.
Swings and the proverbials!

Hi Timster, only just read this.
You must have seen the Ceritech demo speakers as my Super 20A speakers were bought in December last year and the Ceritech Kudos Day was in March this year. I know that Ceritech bought another pair in Santos Rosewood for the showroom so possibly you heard those. A shame that funds would not stretch to Super 20s as you know they do sound very musical and detailed. The Akurate Exaktbox is a major upgrade from the Majik one and the Katalyst upgrade will definitely increase your musical enjoyment.
Cheers

Yes I remember you had their previous pair. The ones I heard were the last ever with that finish.
Was it as far back as March? Time flies....!

[Billz]

I notice John has the same amp and speaker cables as me. How do you connect your Kudos speakers to your Akurate 4200 with K400 cable John?

Bill.

[Coyote Jim]

Hi.
I know you've directed your reply to another member but for what it's worth I thought I might reply with what I had been doing for many years being multi amped and multi wired K400
The bi wired method I used was straight forward the the cable was double terminated at one end instead of separate Amp channels the the crossover linking plates or jumpers removed and the two drive units independently connected.
Even when I used 109s three sets of terminals I did the bass on its own then pos to the highest frequency driver then the neg to lower frequency tweeter with the plates moved up.
Now I use my K400 split into single pairs and simply use the two terminals on the Kudos.

image.jpeg

It depends which Kudos you go for as to variations in available termination but like all if it's single wired to a multi point terminal is links or jumpers in place then pos to the highest frequency terminal then neg to the lowest frequency terminal.

image.png

I'm enjoying more musical enjoyment now single wired but when I had multi amp systems it was more HI FI but not so together musically.
Hope this helps.

[ae111sr]

I notice John has the same amp and speaker cables as me. How do you connect your Kudos speakers to your Akurate 4200 with K400 cable John?

Bill.

Hi Billz
As you can see from my signature my Super 20A speakers are driven Exaktly. I have connected the tweeters to the amp terminals closest to the amplifier power input socket and the bass driver to the outer terminals. I don't know the configuration of the aktiv cards for the Keilidhs so your tweeter terminals may be in a different position in the amplifier.

[Billz]

Thanks for the the replies again guys. I will need to think about how I am going to wire whatever Kudos speakers I go for. I do get the simple single wire approach. A friend of mine has Shahinain arcs which are single wire and no spikes and they sound great. It just seems a shame not use all four channels in the 4200 and both sets of cables in the K400. I do remember when I bought the K400 to Bi-Wire my old LK280/spark amp that I was not convinced about the Bi-Wiring effect. Bi-amping certainly sounded better. Lots to think about, thanks again for the comments and suggestions.

Bill.

[Dan Steel]

My Super 20's are ~6" from the wall, so exactly where you are talking about. My Keilish were further into the room, so its going to be down to experimentation (as usual)

Listen to the X3 and Super 20's and decide. I know Jim and Jim love theirs, but the 20's are better. Again, your choice (but I know what mine would be) Try with your amp though as Coyote Jims are LINN and other jim and I am NAIM.

image.jpeg On the subject of distance.
No Father Ted required.

Are they slightly turned in Jim.

[Coyote Jim]

My Super 20's are ~6" from the wall, so exactly where you are talking about. My Keilish were further into the room, so its going to be down to experimentation (as usual)

Listen to the X3 and Super 20's and decide. I know Jim and Jim love theirs, but the 20's are better. Again, your choice (but I know what mine would be) Try with your amp though as Coyote Jims are LINN and other jim and I am NAIM.

image.jpeg On the subject of distance.
No Father Ted required.

Are they slightly turned in Jim.

Yes Dan.
In old money 3.5"inside - 4"outside toe in.

[Dan Steel]

My Super 20's are ~6" from the wall, so exactly where you are talking about. My Keilish were further into the room, so its going to be down to experimentation (as usual)

Listen to the X3 and Super 20's and decide. I know Jim and Jim love theirs, but the 20's are better. Again, your choice (but I know what mine would be) Try with your amp though as Coyote Jims are LINN and other jim and I am NAIM.

image.jpeg On the subject of distance.
No Father Ted required.

Are they slightly turned in Jim.

Yes Dan.
In old money 3.5"inside - 4"outside toe in.

Nice one..

[Mr Onion]

Mine are toed by ½" as well

[Billz]

If I get myself a pair of Kudos speakers with only one set of inputs, what is the best way to connect my Akurate 4200 to them using my K400 cables?

Bill.

[Coyote Jim]

If I get myself a pair of Kudos speakers with only one set of inputs, what is the best way to connect my Akurate 4200 to them using my K400 cables?

Bill.

Bill,
Can't use four channels into two so only use one pair of channels on the amp and the other end into the speakers.
It's much more tidy if you do what I did and cut the K400 up the middle to make what is known as K200 black.
Then it's a simple two channels of power.
Probably a better idea is sell the 4200 and get a 2200 instead.
Single wired to the Kudos.
Sorted.

[Billz]

Thanks Jim, I thought that would be the case. My 4200 is only a few months old, so probably not going to get a good deal selling it, although it does have active cards installed, so maybe get something for them as well.

I am still trying to get my head around going back to non-active, non-biwire, etc., but I can understand the Kudos approach of less is more.

Bill.

[Coyote Jim]

It's not just the Kudos way of thinking I did the same when I had my 109s had them bi wired then single wired pos to Supertweeter and neg to Bass with the links back in place and it was more together and musical it was after those I got the Kudos X3s
I used to have a Kairn and two LK280 amps and two Sparks and Kan II each Channel and half a spark just went to one drive unit.
It was very dynamic and interesting but again going through all the electronics just lost musicality.
Less is more.

[Mr Onion]

With the Keilidh's I went from single wire (NAC 4 with the Keilidh plates) to bi wire (Chord Rumour) back to single wire (Kimber 8TC with Kimber Jumpers) Although I enjoyed the ChordBi Wire I always felt that there was something missing,

No such dilemma with the Kudos.

If you decide to go the Kudos route I agree with Jim. Sell the 4200 and cards and get a 2200 (or better)

[Edb]

Might be a few months away but I am contemplating a speaker upgrade from my active Keilihds. I like what you guys are saying about Kudos speakers and will certainly give them a listen. I have an ADSM and Akurate 4200 amp. What is the model I should be contemplating as a replacement to my beloved Keilidhs? Also, what do I do about the active cards in my amp? Do I remove them and bi-amp the Kudos speakers?

Bill.

Hi Bill,

Sorry to pick up an old thread but I saw you have the 4200 with keilidhs and I was wondering if you would offer up your opinion please?

Basically I have a 4200d with keilidhs that have the hiquiphon OW1-92's installed, I originally used the Keilidhs with a classik as a pre and a klout and was so impressed with the improvements that the OW1-92's bought to sound....... However I have now connected the same keilidhs to a majik dsm and 4200d bi amped and I'm really disappointed! The sound is super harsh and fatiguing and I feel that the bass is far less than before. The room is totally different but the speakers are setup properly but I just don't enjoy the sound at all. Oh, I have disabled the internal power amp in the dsm FYI.

I think I'm going to disconnect one of the treble resistors to reduce the treble as a first port of call. I'm also going to try the klout with the dsm and see if that reverts the sound back a bit.......

Did you find that the keilidhs were too bright in passive mode with the 4200d?

Many thanks in advance for you thoughts...

Cheers,

Ed