KEF Q150 Vs Q350

With daily advancements in technology, the speakers and all the techy devices come up with different features and specifications. In this post, we have included a detailed comparison between KEF Q150 Vs. KEF Q350.

Before investing, it becomes crucial to check out the various variants of a particular brand to get the perfect knowledge about which s better than the other and worth the money.

Hence, in this post, we will provide you with a detailed review of the most popular bookshelf speaker variants, KEF q150 VS q350.

The parameters are carefully considered in the rest of the review so that you come up with the right decision about which speakers best suits your needs in the aspect of money, space, and requirements.

About KEF speakers

KEF

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

Key Highlights

  • Uni-Q driver Array
  • Q Series Optimised
  • CFD Designed Port

The KEF bookshelf speakers are small to medium-sized perfect, and they are perfect for any room or even for a moderate space.

The speakers can fit in very easily and look stunning while delivering impeccable quality of sound.

The bass of the speakers is excellent. You can enjoy the high volume music with taut sound in your house without even troubling your neighbors.

Overall, the KEF q150 and q350 are the perfect choices that you can make to get your hands on the best bookshelf affordable speakers.

Though being variants of the same brand, there are many similarities between both KEF q150 and q350, but they are different from each other.

In simple words, we can say that KEF q150 has a very wide soundstage and sounds fantastic even at low volume with neutral sound.

Whereas KEF q350 has a large woofer, stronger bass, and sounds complete.

KEF q150 speakers

KEF Q150

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

Key Highlights

  • Uni-Q driver Array
  • Q Series Optimised
  • Nominal Impedance: 8 ohms

We can say that KEF q150 is the upgraded version of q100 bookshelf speakers.

It is a 2-way bookshelf speaker, which comes along with a rear port as well.

The speaker comes with a flagship speaker, LS50.

The KEF q150 speaker range comes with an MDF cabinet which is very sleek in look and reduces all the extra vibrations and distortion, and hence provides excellent quality of the sound.

Also, the dimensions of the KEF q150 speakers are relatively smaller, almost very similar.

The drivers installed are also the same in KEF q150 and q100 speaker ranges.

The significant difference is that q100 has a front port, whereas KEF q350 has a backport.

The fantastic speakers are perfect for any small room, hall, or living space. Also, they are speaker than KEFLS50 speakers as well.

The latest model of the Q series, the Q150 is small, compact, and elegantly powerful. The Q150 is available in a matte black and white vinyl design.

When space seems to be at a shortage, the Q Series bookshelf speakers shine.

The Q150s provide comprehensive natural sound with high clarity and powerful bass thanks to the trademark KEF Uni-Q driver array and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) port architecture.

The Uni-Q driver array is at the core of the advanced Q Sequence.

The tweeter is placed in the acoustic middle of the midrange cone, taking the acoustic concept of a single point source closer to reality than ever before.

The effect is a more complex, realistic three-dimensional sound picture that is spread more uniformly across the room than can be achieved with a traditional speaker.

KEF’s ‘tangerine’ waveguide over the tweeter dome adds to Uni-ultra-wide Q’s distribution.

Key Highlights

The Uni-Q driver has been reconfigured to the middle of the cabinet to improve the clarity and quality of the Q Series bookshelf speakers by reducing unnecessary internal resonance and adding precision to their acoustic clarity and detail.

Lower treble output is greatly enhanced with the inclusion of the damped tweeter loading tube, which offers a smooth termination of sound emitted from the rear end of the tweeter, and a new low-distortion inductor provides clearer bass on the crossover.

The Uni-Q driver has indeed been reconfigured to the middle of the cabinet to improve the clarity and quality of the Q Series bookshelf speakers.

Clarity is enhanced by reducing the audibility of midrange leakage through the port, thanks to a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) port configuration with the port reconfigured to the speaker’s back.

The ports’ design has been tweaked to reduce vibration at higher speeds, resulting in little port noise and LF compression.

To optimise the listening experience, the Q series provides the Uni-Q driver has been repositioned to the center of the cabinet.

This reduces resonance within an enclosed space. Moreover, by shifting the low-frequency port to the speaker’s back, the audio loss is minimized.

KEF q350 Speakers

KEF Q350

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

Key Highlights

  • Uni-Q Sound
  • Q Series Optimised
  • CFD Designed Port

KEF q350 is another popular variant of the bookshelf speaker. And as the model was launched recently, it is more advanced and equipped with better features and technology.

Though the speakers have the save drivers installed along with the same enclosure material like q150.

Although, the size of these bookshelves speakers varies up to a great extent. Many other technical specifications come along with these new speaker models.

This is a 2-way popular bookshelf speaker. It comes with a rear port. People who love to enjoy their music at higher bass can attach a subwoofer to it.

Also, the design and specs seem perfect for all the small and medium-sized rooms.

Besides, the Q series KEF speakers are almost similar to each other in terms of technology, features, and design elements.

Key Highlights

The KEF Q350 Bookshelf Speaker is the most recent addition to the Q Series from KEF.

The Q350 has a new cabinet, new colours, and a 6.5″ Uni-Q driver array that has been upgraded.

The Q350 features an improved Uni-Q driver array that smooths out treble frequencies, as well as reinterpreted crossovers for smoother, more precise bass.

The Q350’s front port has been relocated to the rear. Inner construction has been modified to eliminate internal resonances and increase audio quality.

The front port has been shifted to the rear of the Q350. Sleek matte Black and White vinyl finishes are available on the Q350.

It uses the same Driver and framework content as the Q150. However, the driver size and other technical requirements are different.

The Q350 is a small to medium-sized 2-way bookshelf speaker with a rear port. Audiophiles who like more bass should still match this with a subwoofer.

Regarding hardware, content, and other features, the Q series bookshelf speakers are very close.

Apart from the Driver and design, both speakers also share the same crossover frequency of 2.5Hz, the same technology of the Uni-Q array/CFD port, and a nominal impedance of 8ohms.

KEF q150 vs q350 – Features

KEF Q150KEF Q350
Bass ReflexEnclosureBass Reflex
MDF/Vinyl-wrappedFinishMDF/Vinyl-wrapped
BlackColourBlack
NoVideo ShieldedNo
Hard-DomeTweeter TypeHard-Dome
1Tweeter Size (inches)1
N/AMidrange Size (inches)N/A
5.25Woofer Size (inches)6.5
AluminumWoofer CompositionAluminum
RubberWoofer SurroundRubber
10-100Power Range10-120
86 dBSensitivity87 dB
8Impedance (Ohms)8
51-28k HzFrequency Response63-28k Hz
PostConnector TypePost
NoBi-amp InputsNo
11-15/16Height (inches)14-1/16
7-1/8Width (inches)8-5/16
11-1/16Depth (inches)12-1/16
12.3Weight (pounds)16.8
NoMounting Bracket IncludedNo
18-24Recommended Stand Height (inches)18-24
5 YearsWarranty5 Years

Sound Quality: KEF Q150 Vs Q350

We are starting by comparing the sound quality of kEF q150 and q350. KEF q150 is a strong bass speaker.

The speaker’s entire functioning is based on the unique arrangement of the driver, which is dubbed and integrated with uni-Q technology.

Usually, the traditional arrangement of drivers is made in vertical form. Instead, in these KEF q150 drivers, the drivers are stacked one upon each other.

Also, the tweeter is placed right in the middle of the speaker’s driver unit.

The embedding of the tweeter at this particular position ensures dynamic and more precise sound delivery.

The specific effect is followed by the tangerine wave effect method. Which implies more gain at lesser power consumption.

A low distortion inductor is settled inside the speaker to reduce all the abrasion sounds, which tend to distort the quality of the sound.

The Uni q driver is positioned right at the center of the entire driver box.

The position also ensures lesser mechanical resonance and also helps in generating more stable output as well.

Although these speakers do not come along with amplifiers, you need to use a medium-watt amplifier if you want to experience the full sound capacity of these speakers.

KEF-Q150-Vs-Q350

KEF q350, very much like q150, is a popular passive bookshelf speaker. This variant of the KEF speaker uses the patented Uni-Q driver technology.

In this variant of the KEF speaker, the position of the tweeter is in the acoustic center of the line instead of the usual mid-range of the speaker where the twitter is embedded at the very heart of the uni-q driver technology.

This strategic positioning of the tweeter helps decrease the noisy frequencies of the sound to the front side.

As a result, this tends to provide a more ideal and pure sound source for extracting and rendering her notes sounds.

The position of the tweeter is also ideal for reducing the mechanical resonance, unwanted vibrations.

These vibrations may affect the drivers and their performance in a brutal way.

These speaker series follow the tangerine waveguide. In this, the main motive of the wave effect is to reduce the microscopic compression.

This eventually leads to higher gain and less power consumption, very similar to the q150 series.

Hence, it turns out an excellent way for saving power along with excellent sound delivery.

The significant difference comes around the inbuilt wattage. The q350 series has higher wattage as compared to q150.

This tends to deliver super powerful sound with broader coverage.

The Controlling Features: KEF Q150 Vs Q350

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

There are many other advanced features within this price range of the KEF features.

The KEF q150 is scarce. We can say lack in terms of the control system.

As the maximum of the controlling attuning of the sound is executed by the amplifier.

Although you can choose your type of amplifier can be considered as a customization feature.

Coming to the receiver, you still won’t find much versatility in the control options here.

Therefore, you can either use exposed wires or banana plugs here. Also, not all the receivers come along with these elements.

Hence, you might need to purchase them separately.

The other control part that you get with these speakers is that you can lay down the speakers on their side.

All the drivers are arranged back to back together and are in the center of the cabinet.

Also, the orientation doesn’t matter. What matters is the schema of air circulation here.

As the circulation of air can make a difference in the bass reflex of the sound.

KEF Q350 Review

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

Similar to KEF q150, this variant also lacks all of the control features.

But as we have already mentioned that it is a passive speaker, the customization shouldn’t be expected anyways.

Still, you get an option in these speakers to add a grille.s though you have to purchase it as it doesn’t come along with this unit.

With this, you also get two golden prong receivers which are considered as the rear features of the KEF q350.

The speaker’s output can be amplified at various sound levels and volumes with different bass and frequencies.

Price: KEF Q150 Vs Q350

KEF-q150-Vs-q350

Now comes the price that you should consider before you finally decide to invest in any of the variants.

Also, as now you know about all the specs and features of the KEF q150 and q350 bookshelves speaker variant, let’s look at the difference in the prices.

Considering $1000 be your highest price, according to most users, the Q150 speaker model seems to be underpriced.

This comes with the exclusive arrangement of drivers which deliver pure sound.

Apart from that, the design element is also stunning with sober colors.

No doubt, there are more expensive speakers available in this range, but KEF q150 stands out from all these with these stunning features.

The only thing that KEF Q150 lacks is the presence of the grille, which many people might not need to maintain the aesthetics.

Now that we know about each speaker and their specifications, let us compare the two based on a few factors listed below:

Size of Driver:

A speaker’s drivers are its brains. Tweeters (over 2000Hz), midrange (200-2000Hz), and woofers (under 200Hz) are the most common types of drivers used in speakers.

Bigger drivers produce greater bass in general. The woofer sizes of the Q150 and Q350 vary.

Frequency Response:

In speakers, frequency response is a critical component.

They indicate the frequency spectrum that a speaker produces, including higher and lower frequency values.

It has an effect on the sound’s bass, midrange, and treble, as well as tonal harmony.

A loudspeaker’s frequency response ranges from 45Hz to 20 kHz.

The bass is usually louder if and when the lowest frequency is lower.  The frequency response of these two speakers differs.

Voltage:

This voltage criteria is a measurement of a speaker’s volume, and it should be expressed as 2.83V RMS at a distance of one metre.

Highly sensitive speakers require less power from the amplifier to play the music at high volumes.

The louder the speaker will be, the higher the sensitivity.

As opposed to the Q150’s sensitivity, the Q350 can get marginally quieter and use less power.

Placement of speakers:

The position of a speaker has a significant impact on the sound quality.

It makes a significant difference to move it forward or farther away from the wall.

Since the Q150 and Q350 have back ports to boost bass, you should not put them too close to the wall.

Often, for the highest audio dispersion, bookshelf speakers should be put on stands.

Alternatively, one can position the speakers on open shelves with the tweeter at your ear height.

As a general thumb of rule , to optimise the audio experience one should place their speakers six to ten inches apart, that is if you own a pair.

Moreover, using a stand that is quite tall, probably in the range of 18 to 24 inches will enhance the experience tool.

Even maintaining a 9-inch gap between the wall and a speaker significantly improves the experience.

Amplifier:

buying an amp dependent on THD, SNR, and power balancing with the speaker is preferred.

The BasX A-100 Stereo Flex Amplifier, SMSL Q5 Pro, or Dayton Audio DTA2.1BT are all viable options.

KEF q150 vs q350 – Comparison

Audiophiles prefer bookshelf speakers because they are small and portable.

The soundstage is comprehensive and big, with heavy bass and reasonable treble, making these speakers suitable for confined areas.

If you are debating between the KEF Q150 and the Q350, here is what you should know. What you are searching for and your budget will determine the answer.

The Q350is bigger than the Q150 and is ideal if you already have a tall stand maybe in the range of 18-24 inches.

Moreover, it has an exquisite bass which is more than enough for a small room.

As a result of this it does not require an additional subwoofer.

If your budget provides you with the liberty of spending more, you should probably opt for the Q350.The Q350’s CFD port ensures a deep and clean bass whilst eliminating noise or distortion. Ideally, this is great for a small room.

The sound quality of the Q150 is comparable to that of the KEF LS50, but at a lower cost.

The KEF 150 is recognised for its high-quality recording and accurate soundstage.

The Q150 comes with just enough bass for small to medium rooms and does not instil a vibration.

As a result of this sometimes it does need to be paired with a subwoofer which will eventually increase your cost.

In comparison to other bookshelf speakers, the Q150 is suitable for laptop tables. This is how the drivers can incorporate and change the audio even though you are seated next to the speakers.


Ending Thoughts – KEF Q150 Vs Q350

The price of the KEF Q350 is double the price of Q150. Well, the increment in prices is only due to the larger size of the driver.

Though both the variants of the speaker use the same driver arrangement, the design of the KEF Q350 speakers is also more sturdy and thicker.

The KEF Q350 speakers turn out to be more efficient and durable.

Also, due to the better and more strategic position of the tweeter in this version of the speaker, it delivers a more powerful sound even at the higher frequencies.

Let us know your views about the KEF Q150 Vs Q350 speaker comparison in the comment section.

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