These two pairs of five-star KEF speakers are reduced to £899, so which of these great Black Friday deals should you get?

(Image credit: What Hi-Fi?)

The Black Friday deals just keep coming in, and one that has caught our eye is for the KEF Q Concerto Meta, currently down to £899 at Richer Sounds, Sevenoaks, Peter Tyson and Smart Home Sounds. That's a tasty £200 off the RRP and the cheapest we’ve seen them. Plus, these great-sounding, five-star standmount speakers even come with 3m of QED XT25 speaker cable thrown in.

They are not the only set of five-star KEF bookshelf speakers currently being sold for this price, however, as the formerly What Hi-Fi? Award-winning LS50 Meta are currently available for £899 at Peter Tyson.

If you’re looking for a mid-range set of standmount speakers to enhance your hi-fi setup, both are excellent options. They are different propositions, however, while in the case of the LS50 Meta, this is not the first time we’ve seen them at this price this year.

Solidly built and smartly finished, the KEF Q Concerto Meta offer a nicely balanced sonic presentation with impressive bass weight and power. All three finish options (Satin Black, Satin White, and Walnut) are available at the reduced price, which is the cheapest we’ve seen these excellent speakers selling for.

Deal also <a href="https://sevenoakssoundandvision.pxf.io/c/221109/2903710/34070?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk%2Fp-68485-kef-q-concerto-meta-bookshelf-speakers.aspx%3Fim_ref%3D%21FN0BAH7_Lsq2fxHwqmDHgCETIk36clQbyFQR8L0h3TcWFRi3BKpVOmSFg3vWkYuChRaDA1-1gyysDwAAms3K7Q%26sharedid%3Dwhathifi-gb%26irpid%3D221109%26irgwc%3D1%26afsrc%3D1" target="_blank">Sevenoaks, <a href="https://www.prf.hn/click/camref:1101l3NS7I/pubref:hawk-custom-tracking/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fpetertyson.co.uk%2Fkef-q-concerto-meta-bookshelf-speakers-walnut" target="_blank">Peter Tyson and <a href="https://track.webgains.com/click.html?ps=OTM9NQ%3D%3D&wgu=295550_162949_17638941710815_756fc52cd2&wgexpiry=1795430171&source=webgains&siteid=162949&utm_source=webgains&wgcampaignid=138485&wgprogramid=295550&clickref=hawk-custom-tracking&wgtarget=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.smarthomesounds.co.uk%2Fkef-q-concerto-meta%3Fps%3DOTM9NQ%3D%3D%26wgu%3D295550_162949_17638941710815_756fc52cd2%26wgexpiry%3D1795430171%26source%3Dwebgains%26siteid%3D162949%26utm_source%3Dwebgains%2393%3D5%26source%3Dwebgains%26siteid%3D162949%26utm_source%3Dwebgains#93=5&source=webgains&siteid=162949&utm_source=webgains" target="_blank">Smart Home Sounds

The Q Concerto Meta standmount speakers deploy a three-way design, sporting KEF's famous Uni-Q driver array comprising a 10cm aluminium midrange, a 19mm vented aluminium dome tweeter enhanced by the brand's own Metamaterial Absorption Technology (MAT) for more efficiently absorbing unwanted vibrations.

Across the board, their build quality is excellent. The enclosures are solid, the edges neatly finished, while their clean lines and lack of visual clutter gives them a stylish aesthetic.

The KEF Q Concerto Meta are superbly balanced performers, too, and pair well regardless of partnering electronics. During testing, we noted their “smooth tonality that still delivers enough bite to satisfy”, while more complex arrangements are well managed thanks to the speakers' impressive dynamic handling and overall cohesion.

By comparison, the KEF LS50’s Uni-Q driver array also makes use of that signature MAT tech, while a 25mm aluminium tweeter dome sits in a 13cm magnesium/aluminium mid/bass unit.

The cabinets feature a curved front panel made of Dough Moulding Compound for a stylish façade, all while providing a sturdy foundation for the driver unit. The rest of the speakers, meanwhile, are built from MDF that has been braced and damped to reduce unwanted resonance.

Sound-wise, we find the LS50 "generate an expansive and tightly focused soundstage where the instruments are layered convincingly". They sound surprisingly full-bodied and have a "good amount of muscle" for such compact speakers, while they handle large-scale dynamics well.

Looking at the Q Concerto Meta and the LS50 Meta side by side, however, the right choice becomes a matter of taste.

During our in-house comparison, we found the three-way Concerto offer more when it comes to low-end muscle and definition, and sound more comfortable at higher volumes. The LS50, however, “counters with greater insight, refinement and naturalness from the midrange upwards”. That’s not to say the Concerto are lacking in this regard because they offer plenty of sonic sophistication in their own right.

In terms of size, the LS50 Meta are the more compact option (30cm tall opposed to the 41cm Concerto), so they may be better suited to listening rooms where space is at a premium.

Regardless of which of these two pairs of standout standmount speakers better suits your needs, you’ll be getting a fantastic product. So, if you’re looking for your first set of speakers or an upgrade to your existing hi-fi set up, check out the KEF Q Concerto Meta for £899 at Richer Sounds, or the LS50 Meta for £899 at Peter Tyson.

MORE:

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James Cook is a staff writer at What Hi-Fi?. He spent several years writing for various business publications, before completing a National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) Diploma in Journalism. Outside of work, James spends his time playing bass guitar, watching TV and motivating himself to keep fit, often unsuccessfully.

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Two five-star KEF standmount speakers are down to £899 for Black Friday – but which should you pick?

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