StereoNET Kii Three Review

[davewantsmoore]

On 11/16/2017 at 9:05 PM, legend said:

I hope it is the beginning of DSP active speakers becoming mainstream.

+1 

[davewantsmoore]

20 hours ago, zydeco said:

A/D conversion

latency

Both these things can be made a non-issue.   A/D can be high performance, and filters can be used with sufficiently low latency.

[davewantsmoore]

20 hours ago, zydeco said:

A/D conversion

latency

Both these things can be made a non-issue.   A/D can be high performance, and filters can be used with sufficiently low latency.

[legend]

Agree.  For example DEQX processors have very low latency because of their patented FFT algorithms & filters (originally developed by CSIRO) - and they have very good ADCs and DACs.

[Essence]

Very tempting. I wonder if these would still work their magic in a near field setup...

[Darren69]

12 minutes ago, essencez said:

Very tempting. I wonder if these would still work their magic in a near field setup...

They sounded great in a stuffy little Hotel room so I reckon they'd be awesome.

 

I don't know who farted in there but they better fess up.

[PleasantSounds]

48 minutes ago, essencez said:

Very tempting. I wonder if these would still work their magic in a near field setup...

That's how I use them and haven't noticed anything missing. If you can manage about 5 ft between them and 5" from the walls you should be fine. 

These speakers have been designed to be studio monitors and that's probably their biggest market. In studios most arrangements are near to mid field. 

 

[zydeco]

Agree.  For example DEQX processors have very low latency because of their patented FFT algorithms & filters (originally developed by CSIRO) - and they have very good ADCs and DACs.

Agree that both issues are non issues but do think that perceptions on issues such as A/D are, along with other reasons given, contribute to making it a hard sell

[zydeco]

Both these things can be made a non-issue.   A/D can be high performance, and filters can be used with sufficiently low latency.

Re A/D: largely agree that it’s a matter of perception. Is there an issue, though, with A/D at low volumes - meaning that systems have to be redesigned to around volume control being done as part of the speaker DSP?

[PleasantSounds]

These days most DSP engines use at least 32-bit resolution, so digital volume control is not an issue: you can attenuate signal by 72dB and still have 20 bits of useful data, which is just about what a really good analog circuit is able to resolve. As far as I know Kii use 48-bit DSP, so there's even more margin.

 

With Kii Three you have the possibility to feed them with the line level signal and use the Kii Controll for lossless volume control, but in practice it is more a matter of convenience. I have used them for several months as a straight replacement for conventional active monitors with volume controlled by preamp and that worked equally well.

 

[zydeco]

54 minutes ago, PleasantSounds said:

These days most DSP engines use at least 32-bit resolution, so digital volume control is not an issue: you can attenuate signal by 72dB and still have 20 bits of useful data, which is just about what a really good analog circuit is able to resolve. As far as I know Kii use 48-bit DSP, so there's even more margin.

 

With Kii Three you have the possibility to feed them with the line level signal and use the Kii Controll for lossless volume control, but in practice it is more a matter of convenience. I have used them for several months as a straight replacement for conventional active monitors with volume controlled by preamp and that worked equally well.

 

Are you, out of interest, able to control the Kii Control volume via a universal remote? And are you integrating with subwoofers and, if so, then how?

[PleasantSounds]

3 hours ago, zydeco said:

Are you, out of interest, able to control the Kii Control volume via a universal remote? And are you integrating with subwoofers and, if so, then how?

No need for remote in my setup, but I have seen it work with the Apple Remote. According to the manual, RC5 remotes can be used too.

 

Regarding subs: the question should be not "how?" but "why?". There's really no lack of bass, it is flat down to 20 Hz, and I have seen the drivers flex down to 5 Hz. You can also use the built-in EQ to boost the bass if you feel like it.

 

[firedog]

Yes, the Kii Control works with either Apple remote or RC5. 

The A/D conversion is very high quality; I'd say it is transparent or very close to. There are actually Kii users playing turntable (phono pre) output to the Kiis, and reports are they are very happy with how their vinyl sounds coming from the Kiis. 

[davewantsmoore]

On 25/11/2017 at 9:08 AM, zydeco said:

Is there an issue, though, with A/D at low volumes

If (!)  there is an issue with a converter, that's typically where it is.     To put is extremely broadly, you get a rising and distorted noise floor.

 

On 25/11/2017 at 1:29 PM, PleasantSounds said:

These days most DSP engines use at least 32-bit resolution, so digital volume control is not an issue: you can attenuate signal by 72dB and still have 20 bits of useful data

 

On paper, yes.    In a real world device... see above comment.

 

Even 16 bits is enough if implemented very well.

[Marc]

You know, I'm a big fan of KiiTHREE.

But now it's just become a whole lot more appealing to me.

 

Looking forward to hearing this Kii THREE BXT next week in Munich:

 

 

It's an extension for the Kii THREE that can be added at any time turning the stand mount speaker into a veritable floor stander.

It adds 16 drivers and another 4000 WATTs to the current Kii THREE will give you a hint on what to expect.

Stay tuned for more pics and listening impressions at this link - 2018 Munich Coverage

[sir sanders zingmore]

49 minutes ago, Marc said:

You know, I'm a big fan of KiiTHREE.

But now it's just become a whole lot more appealing to me.

 

Looking forward to hearing this Kii THREE BXT next week in Munich:

 

 

It's an extension for the Kii THREE that can be added at any time turning the stand mount speaker into a veritable floor stander.

It adds 16 drivers and another 4000 WATTs to the current Kii THREE will give you a hint on what to expect.

Stay tuned for more pics and listening impressions at this link - 2018 Munich Coverage

That looks very very good 

[Darren69]

4 hours ago, Marc said:

You know, I'm a big fan of KiiTHREE.

But now it's just become a whole lot more appealing to me.

 

Looking forward to hearing this Kii THREE BXT next week in Munich:

 

 

It's an extension for the Kii THREE that can be added at any time turning the stand mount speaker into a veritable floor stander.

It adds 16 drivers and another 4000 WATTs to the current Kii THREE will give you a hint on what to expect.

Stay tuned for more pics and listening impressions at this link - 2018 Munich Coverage

Phaaark. Yummo. Interested in hearing how these go but I imagine they will be in Lotto win territory. Well, for me anyhoo.

 

@firedog time to stock up on baked beans and start saving.  

Edited May 3, 2018 by Darren69

[PleasantSounds]

If that sounds half as good as it looks, I'll be very tempted. But something's telling me that the purchase of Kii 3 will feel like a small downpayment. And I sincerely hope the 4000W of amps won't be fed by 200W PSU like in the Kii 3.

 

 

[firedog]

That link doesn't really give any info. Where's this from?

[Marc]

From? It's from Kii Audio. There's no news out there about this yet as it's being unveiled at Munich. I'm wondering if this image was even meant to be shared yet.

That link will continue to get populated with coverage live from the show from next week.

[firedog]

16 drivers and 4000 watts? Sounds like it will be 2-3 times the cost of the original Kii Three.

[Greenjoyce3001]

On the subject of pricing, anyone else notice how the Threes keep going up in price? On Sonic Purity's page, they are now showing as 20,500 for the speakers alone - I'm pretty sure I remember them being around 16K last year. The missus has given a nod to purchasing a pair on our 10th anniversary, but that's still a year away!  :0

[PleasantSounds]

I hope that soon we can expect some Kii monitor stands on the 2nd hand market.

 

[wikeeboy]

11 minutes ago, Greenjoyce3001 said:

On the subject of pricing, anyone else notice how the Threes keep going up in price? On Sonic Purity's page, they are now showing as 20,500 for the speakers alone - I'm pretty sure I remember them being around 16K last year. The missus has given a nod to purchasing a pair on our 10th anniversary, but that's still a year away!  :0

 

Yep, i reckon when they first came out they were approx 12.5. That then went up to 15. Now 20+, guess that's what happens when a product wins awards!

[Marc]

I don't think it honestly has anything to do with awards.

Sometimes I think people don't realise how much trouble (or a perception) they create by throw away comments on a forum such as this.

It's likely get everything more to do with currency exchange rates. Then stands came along, then the controller came along.

You have to be sure you are comparing apples with applies. We can be thankful that this brand is the hands of Pure Music Group also, who I know for a fact run very lean on margins and have an overseas price parity approach to their own local pricing.

 

Truth be told, you get a heck of a lot of service for the small margin Rom and Warwick charge on the products they sell. Anyone who has dealt with them I am sure would completely agree.