I have owned three sets of Q Acoustics floorstanders over the years and they offer more bang for your buck than many more esteemed brands imho. They are very well built, good looking and offer a sound signature that impresses across a number of musical genres. They may are made in China but that should not deter anyone. There is nothing not to like about this brand.
Appreciate your willingness to share 'missing the room size' on Q's site. Room size matters. Indeed. Perfect timing of your review for me. I have been considering the 5040 model. And will now further pause and think regarding room fit. Thank you John.
I’m not surprised that the QAs were appreciated, I have owned three different pairs including the Concept 500s and I have been impressed with all three models.
do you still own the Concept 500? how do you like them? how do they perform with jazz and classical (if by any chance you happen to listen to those genres)... thinking about upgrading my Concept 40s which I really like...
Thanks for a very informative review, and I'm of the opinion that words really matter. Your descriptors are obviously carefully chosen for the purpose of accurately assessing the strengths and weaknesses of the speakers. These communication skills have been responsible for me purchasing some of your recommendations. I have yet to be disappointed and I appreciate that.
A couple of months ago I bought a pair of Q Acoustic 5050, giving an opinion about them, is really simple, they are simply Sublime, defined treble as drawn by Rotring, deep bass , but controlled, these 5050 have the same philosophy as The Ivy League, if you are a brilliant student you stand out, but if not, they don't help you, I mean, if the recording is good, the 5050 shine incredibly, and they allow you appreciate every detail, they are dynamic and lively, now, if the recording is not good enough….you can see the flaws. Listening to I can explain by Rachelle Ferrell, with these 5050, is to live the experience of seeing her sing in your own home. Extraordinary, they are clearly differentiating, if you are looking for definition and bass control, it is difficult to find something better out there.
I have their Concept 50’s and absolutely love them. The looks of those pretty glossy white towers are nice. The build quality is exceptional and the sound is superb. I would buy them again.
I watch your videos for the musical selections as much as the technical review content. Thanks for the tip on Brian Eno & John Cale - Spinning Away! It's terrific! Room Size Matters
I'm Italian native speaker, and I clearly remember using the term tower speaker up until the early 2000. When I started watching yours and others' channels about Hi-Fi (also this term I understand is demodé 😅) I was initially puzzled by the term floorstanders. And I'm still hesitant to use it, my 52 years old brain is hardwired on tower speakers! And yes, Room size matters 😊
Yes, room size matters. My QA3030i are too big for the 3 x 3m room I have them in, gives a lot of low down resonance at medium to high volume. If I use the port stuffers it cuts out some of that resonance, but I miss out on the thumping bass unless I listen at uncomfortably high levels. I added a cheap sub woofer as an experiment and that helps fill in at low levels, but it loses cohesion when things get a bit louder. It's a conundrum. Stuffing the ports isn't the best solution for the music I like. I may resort to headphones in that room, as it's where I sit at a workbench and don't move around much. Thanks for the insights John, as always.
Thank you for reminding me to put some Photek on. Pulling the foam plug out of the bass port is quite an image, and I think someone who makes them with an attached pull tab is on to something.
Nicely Done. When you refer to your room size/ recommended room size are you talking about how loud you need to listen to the music from your amp to make it sing or what ? Thanks
I love loud speakers, i tend to go with this kind of speakers over anything else. I love how much fill you can create in a room. Loud speakers can fill out a whole room with ease. Yes they can suffer from lack of audio quality but that's fine in my honest opinion when you can fill out a whole room and get a feeling you rarely get outside of concerts
Room size matters. So, should I buy these to replace my Buchardt S400 Mk2s that are paired with a pair of SVS SB3000 driven by the I50? or get the Buchardt Audio A700 LE instead?
Hi John I agree with you on the ENO album. I bought it on CD because it’s digitally remastered and i agree. I listened to it over this past weekend and it fits together really well. Oh Mercy is one of the greatest sounding record ever released. It’s a great album for me (IMHO) to test hi-fi
Speaker is pulled out too far into the room. Follow instructions in the manual. 6-12 inches from the wall. Same as 5040. With my 5040, I've paired it with yamaha r-n1000a and a emotiva xs8 subwoofer. 😊Sounds wonderful. Mine pulled out about 8 inches from the wall.
O, they are definitely on my shortlist. Room size does matter, so I will certaily request them on trial. Would you say the 5040 are a tad better for a smaller room? I have 5x7m
Good speakers, bet they loved the a1. I went for a Rega elicit instead which would also be a great choice for them. But driving Dali Oberon 5 floor standers which work a bit better in a small room - wonder what QAs recommendation for a small room speaker at this price would be?
I have made the same observations with bass heavy music with the Concept 50. After trying it out several times in my room, I only use one port bung, which according to my observation is the best bass balance for any music.
Room size does matter. I used to lean towards big speakers only to settle on my Revival Audio Atalante 3 monitors that didn't give up much deep base at all (-3db @42Hz [7" mid woofer] compared to my old JBL 4319, -6db @ 44Hz [12" woofer]). The Atlanate 3 had better linearity all the way down! In my smallish room 11' X 18' I only had to turn up the volume1-1 1/2 db to get the same results, and all without the bloom. You should check out that line of speakers when you get the chance.
How about the 5050 with the port bungs (somehow sealed) but also the Kef subwoofer added. Sure these are big boys, but I'm not sure why floorstanding speakers shouldn't get any support from a small subwoofer friend. It could maybe mitigate the room size issue
Room size matters....but not as much with room correction. I have the Q Acoustics Concept 50, which is similar size and shape as the 5040 with the port on the rear panel, and listen in a 15'x10' room. My Lyngdorf tdai 1120 does a great job of controlling the bass with its Room Perfect feature. Do you still have yours John?
Hey! Hey! Hey… waddaya mean “…all the way back to the 70s”??? I graduated 12th grade in 1982. Now I feel ollllllldddd. But Brian Eno was much cooler than his peers back then too! (Talk about the test of time!) Good work bro! Thx for this review. I’m watching a second time. I’m looking for reasonably good speakers for the Advance Paris A10 Classic. I’m open to suggestions.
You know that room size matters. As does speaker placement. Putting speakers in the corners of the room make a difference, and the distance from the wall.
Room size matters ... *Dear JOHN* Have you heard any albums/tracks from a Japan-based (ex-pat Scotsman) electronic/soundtrack/quasi-industrial/electro-punk solo artist working under the name, *AKATOMBO* - He's been interviewed and reviewed on all the publication/musical websites you mentioned at the beginning of this episode - *Especially* on *THE QUIETUS* >>> *I think you might really like some of his tracks* - Cheers for another sparkling, informative review.
Hmm The bulk and look of these Q Acoustics is not for all. I loved the Q Acoustics standmounts you reviewed with the three legged stands. Is cubic size of the speaker box directly linked to room size?
IMO better crossover components will affect smooth crossover a lot more than the curvature of the cone. Is it a cost-cutting exercise not to spend on those because they are more expensive to mass manufacture? I have to think maybe. I suppose if both are addressed it could only be positive.
Am seriously considering purchasing this pair of nice tower speakers from Q Acoustics because I have great experience with one of their powered bookshelf speakers. And also the fact that my future house will have bigger living space since room size matters.
Room size matters indeed, and that's why I bought the Dali Oberon 5 floor standers although I could afford the larger Oberon 7. Five years later I haven't regretted the decision, nor craved for larger speakers (or even a subwoofer) in my 5x5m living room.
Hi John, niggles indeed. I have the original 3050 design by Karl-Heinz Fink from 2016, on which all later designs are based. I purchased them last winter for $399/pair from Q-Acoustics USA (an absolute bargain, now out of stock) based on the excellent online review by Martin Colloms. The 3050 is both efficient & an easy load for my NAD amplifier. As you noted, I believe all later designs starting with the 3050i have elevated treble to compete with B&W etc. I replaced the supplied port bungs with rubber garbage disposal stoppers ($5 each) from Home Depot (a US home improvement store), that are an exact fit & much easier to remove. I find about 10% of recordings require bungs.
This is going to sound specific, but I like the form factor of these, not having a grill down low, because I have cats. I usually shy away from most traditional "tower" loudspeakers for this reason.
Hello John. I hadn't heard a better set of tower speakers for $2000 at a recent well known audio show. Room size does matter. I have had lots of situations where the speakers were too big for the room. I wonder how many houses in the rest of the world are far smaller than Texas sized, and go for a higher price.
Room size matters,,,,,but what’s happening with the different room sound treatments through the video. You have different panel treatments on the back wall. Surely that’s going to have some effect ?
Roomsize matters, but for me a simple rew inroom measurement would matter more, to see how much elevated the treble is and seems to gives the "cristal clear" highs. But nice review beside that, Love the First Song, always a high Fidelity Video!
John, this floorstanding quest should continue. Now that you have treatment in room, it would be great to follow a quest for optimal sound in the Berlin apartment. What would be the tipping point price that wouldn’t offer significant improvement for the sound quality in your music room?
Room size matters, for sure. I find Q Acoustics products are great value propositions, but I do get the large room requirement for these. I was running a pair of 3030i in a larger room (12'x35') and even in that space they were rather weighty. Great sounding speaker for the money though.
#RoomSizeMatters Hi John, is it a good Idea to place Hifi on a Sideboard Like you habe? Have seen some Isoacoustics products, but not under all devices
I use them for listening but for video shooting not so much -- because I don't like the look. I struggle to hear a difference between them being in place and not.
Hi, John or anybody else who knows, I am looking for a hifi cabinet and the one in this vid looks the business but cant for the life of me find it on the links... Does anyone know the company and model? cheers
It’s always gets me that speaker manufacturers design speakers that need to be placed out 2 feet into the room, I live in the uk very few people have the space to be able to place speakers in the middle of there room 😄
Room size matters BUT i used to have a pair of tiny jbl bookshelf speakers with a passive sub powered by a quad Amp in a 10x10m room and they could fill it with excitement just fine.
Damn, John. Sometimes I feel as if you're selling me a bridge. Sometimes I take it as gospel; we like Low, Giant Sand... Sometimes you really offend my audiophile sensibilities - then I know you're on the right track. Always knowledge to be garnered. With thanks...
Id really like to see you review some high end stuff. I know it's not your thing but that's precisely why I'd like to see you do it. I doubt I'll ever be able to afford a 20k set of speakers but I'd like to know if they are even worth it. Most of the people who review those kinds of speakers just seem to always give them amazing reviews.
Heres where dual ports would have been best, especially at that price point. If you ever get your hands on the oroginal KLH Kendall Towers for 1499, youll be blown away. Best towers under 1500 bucks ever made. I added an outrigger kit from Dayton Audio…still less expensive. Out of production but still a true bargain and a true audiophile system! 96db, down to yes, 25hz!!!
Nice review, can you comment on difference vs the "q acoustics concept 500"? Or didn't you review this speaker. And I did notice also a different room treatment behind the speakers. is it all felt? by the way; #roomsizematters
