Kali Audio LP-6 Monitor Review and Measurements

Discussion in 'Speakers' started by purr1n, Aug 6, 2020.

  1. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    The Kali KP-6 monitor has taken the world by storm for two years now. For good reason, it's dirt cheap for 6.5" woofer, and so popular in fact that it's brought down prices across in the board (I just noticed the JBL LSR305 are $149 now). @Psalmanazar asked me about the Kali a while back and I mentioned that I would do a more formal review. Here it is.

    Kali LP6.jpg

    One of the most amazing things that Kali has done which I don't think any other competitor has done, at least not to this extent, is provide an insane level of adjustability. There is serious pro stuff here. There are adjustments for half-space, quarter-space, free-space, and anything in between such as how far away from the wall the speakers are place. In addition, there are separate LF and HF trims with a center point of 700Hz with a slow rise to the shelf. This approach makes it much more useful as opposed to the approach the Focal took with the Alpha 80.

    The LP6 is also enormously versatile in terms of inputs, offering RCA, TRS, and XLR. There is a variable gain knob in lieu of an input sensitivity switch. Everything is illustrated on the back of the cabinet! There is no need to RTFM. Kali makes it easy.

    IMG_20200806_190616.jpg

    The Kali LP-6 is not bad. Compared to the JBL LSR305, these subjectively sound a little less linear, less extended with air (the JBL has better off-axis response), moderately less dynamic and punchy, not quite as fast and snappy, moderately less detailed. Imaging isn't as good as the JBLs. This seems to be a weak spot as I found the imaging frustratingly nebulous - not sharply focused. I was hoping they would have less hiss than the LSR305, but they are about the same. (It's my understanding that the level of hiss on the LSR305 can vary from unit to unit). The thing that probably bugged me the most was the lack of clarity, especially in the lows which tended toward the muddy and one-note bass side. The bass extension is good though. And the highs are smooth and not harsh without being extended. While the LP-6 is not the best in class, they are very usable. I can get the job done with them.*

    As value proposition and considering the features, I have to rate the LP-6 as pretty good. However, it seems like a race to the bottom for Kali. For the same money, I'd rather opt for the 5" JBL which has now gone down to $150 from $200 and deal with 10Hz less bass extension but slightly everything else, or cough up $100 more for the 6" JBL. It's hard for me to say because $100 is a lot of money for starving students. I get it because I was one myself.

    To be clear, these are a great bargain. It's just that there is better for a bit more in this super competitive arena.

    *There are pricier studios monitors that I simply would not touch and rather send to @JK47 to burn in a bonfire at the beach or @LetMeBeFrank to see how far the 50 cal round from the Barrett would penetrate (we still owe @LetMeBeFrank something to destroy - I do not forget my obligations).
     
    Last edited: Aug 8, 2020
  2. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Kali Audio LP-6
    Frequency Response
    1/6 octave smoothing
    GRN = 0 degrees, YEL = 15 degrees, GRY = 30 degrees
    upload_2020-8-6_19-41-59.png

    Subjectively listened to at my desk above with a little bit of toe-in (photo in first post) for best results, the LP-6 sounded hollow. I suspect this could be attributed to the dip from 300Hz to 1kHz. The effect is minor and I am being rather nitpicky. The LF and HF trim can't quite take this out because the rise is very slow to the shelves. The waveguide does a decent job. The off-axis rolloff is slight with most of it occurring after 13kHz. For those you are sensitive to bright, setting up the LP-6 so it doesn't quite beam straight into your ears can do the trick. There a bit of a rise in the treble, but the highs with the soft dome are pleasant while being decently detailed.

    Kali Audio LP-6
    Step response
    upload_2020-8-6_19-52-59.png

    No surprises here. Tweeter is front of the woofer. It's not the end of the world.
     
    Last edited: Aug 6, 2020
  3. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    These are measurements where I placed the microphone a little less than an inch away from the drivers. I didn't unplug the other drivers, so there will be cross contamination. This is just to get an idea of what's going on.

    GRN = FR
    VIO = HF
    BLU = LF
    GRA = Bass port
    upload_2020-8-6_20-0-53.png

    This LF to HF crossover point looks set to be pretty low, around 1.3kHz. The HF crossover slope appears to be steep, perhaps 24/octave , which would be needed to protect the tweeter since so much is being asked of it. The low pass looks to be more gentle, maybe 12/octave.
     
  4. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    Thanks Purrin. That’s a lot of range for an off the shelf chinese neodym button dome to cover. They’re crossing over into the raised response of the plastic waveguide, losing sensitivity.

    Those Two bass port nulls look gross below 1khz. That alone dooms many monitors because if there’s a weird instrumental resonance at that frequency, you won’t hear it. Sound on Sound looked the other way for Kali, also the very audible cab resonance in LP8, yet the JBL 705, APS Aeon 2, and other monitors got that pointed out. This is hugely important because it prevents you from eqing out weirdness at those frequencies in raw multitracks. The monitors can’t do the entire job. Front ports are very hard to get right. Some of the older Adams chuff Horribly, And the KRK Rokit 5 S4 had serious overhang, but the V series doesn’t.

    Cheapest thing that can do an entire eq job is the HS8 but mix bus compression and depth It can’t do. That’s the cost of cheap speakers. You can’t hear 1 db changes in dynamics to a mix because of the limiters on the plate amps but the cab and port is much better than the Chinese OEM monitors. I’m glad I bought something better. Ditching the Chinese plate amp monitors for beastly Brit fi will be better still for me but alas covid.
     
  5. Hrodulf

    Hrodulf Prohibited from acting as an MOT until year 2050

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    I used to shill Kali, but then most of the EU stock went tits-up. Some of my buddies would go through 4 pairs before getting something that is able to keep the magic smoke in.

    A5X... I once did a speaker review when we would go and measure them in 8 or so studios and then in the anechoic chamber. That thing sneezed like my cat.
     
  6. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    Yeah The Chi com plate amps in most monitors die quickly. Focal also uses them. You can tell by the back panels. At least my good KRKs use the TI class d chip amps (Nice warm soft burr brown sound.... with hiss!!!!!!) instead of ST microelectronics home theater bs but they’re also over a thousand dollars a pair. Focal uses the same Chi com OEM plate amps in even more expensive monitors.

    Neumann, Genelec, Dyn, and Yamaha use more reliable plate amps but they are all underpowered. They won’t break on you. You jsut constantly hit the limiter. Always in real world use if Yamaha.

    ATC and Quested are the only monitors you can buy in the USA with plate amps that aren’t gimped. Behringer class ab plate amps aren’t that awful either. They just overheat and die. Like KRKs :p

    that’s funny about Kalis dying because The 305 has drivers die before the amps. The mkI tweeter just burns up and dies. The woofer dies on both mk1 and 2. I have seen mk1 shit out. Mk2 tweeter is only a little better. Van Halen 1 guitar oveheats the tweeter causing shift of stereo image the next record you listen to. The 705 and 708 have tons of plate amp failures. The crown pa amps also die irl use and Samsung service sucks just as much as it does with their household appliances.
     
  7. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

    Pyrate Slaytanic Cliff Clavin
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    I need to go passive or Brit fi soon for my own sanity. I have the amp... just need the speakers to fry.
     
  8. EagleWings

    EagleWings Friend

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    Reading about the magic smoke, I am glad I skipped the LP6. Btw, I heard the new 305Ps aren't as great as the old LSR305s. Is that true?
     
  9. Riotvan

    Riotvan Snoofer in the Woofer

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    Their IN-8 seems interesting too, a pair of 3 ways(coaxial mid with 8" woofer) for under 1k. Though there are reports of hiss and they probably aren't very reliable as well then.

    Didn't know Focal cheaped out on their plateamps, probably the reason one of my Solo's had to go back coz of a fucked up power switch(really?).
     
  10. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    For people who want to use monitors like this and the cheap JBLs at their computer for listening, are there mods that can reduce the hiss? Is it a gain thing where a couple resistors could be swapped?
     
  11. atomicbob

    atomicbob dScope Yoda

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    Mackie HR824 in 1997. The back picture here is the mk2, but the original had the same features as mk2, minus the marketing curve. I still have my Mackie HR824 original for good reasons.
    mackie_hr824_rear.jpg
     
  12. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    I thought about putting a 6db resistor pad at the speaker terminals, but things like this are never ideal - we will lose some power into heat. For casual desktop monitors better than anything from MicroCenter, the power loss will probably not be an issue. Best would be modifications on the PCB to reduce gain, but I have no idea on the circuit topology.

    If there is enough interest, I may take up this project. I gave the Drop JBL LSR30X away to someone who really needed them. Despite their hiss, which I didn't always hear, I miss them.

    I think it's funny how pros, who earn their living with this gear, are much less "princess and the pea" as us audiophiles.
     
    Last edited: Aug 7, 2020
  13. Luckbad

    Luckbad Traded in a unicorn for a Corolla

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    The Kali LP-6 was a good monitor for me to have briefly. It exposed how much better you could get than my PreSonus Eris for not much money. It also reinforced my hatred for hiss. I couldn't handle it.

    I stepped up to slightly higher end at first. I tried out Mackie HR and XR (the HR being notably better than XR, but also pretty hard to find at a good price). If I found an HR in great condition at the right price, I'd probably have stopped there.

    It wasn't until I checked out HEDD and Dynaudio that I got a proper taste of how much better monitors could be than almost any headphone I've ever heard.

    I don't actually think there's much in in between the Kali LP-6 and JBL LSR305. Both hiss. Both are pretty good. Both are cheap. If you have one or the other, there's no point in sidegrading to the other.

    The Mackie XR624 was a notable step up for about the same price when I found them on sale. In fact, you can still get them for $130 a piece at PSSL: https://www.pssl.com/products/mackie-xr624-6-inch-powered-studio-monitor-each

    Or the XR824 for $190 a piece. @purr1n they're local in Westminster if you feel like buying up a pair to test. They're a little crunchy in the upper registers but are a crazy good deal at the price. I might even grab the XR824 as an alternative to my Dynaudio BM12A at that rate.
     
  14. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    ASR did a review on the IN-8 and hated it. TBH, it looked like one of his usual hatchet jobs. His business interests with Harmon / JBL are of concern. He relies too much on measurements and has been subject to confirmation bias. (The IN-8 measurements showed a small midrange bump. His subjective impressions were "all midrange"). He invokes his wife as a "uninterested" third party to back up his subjective impressions. And most frighteningly, I think he may have not utilized the back panel switches on the IN-8 to dial in the correct boundary compensations. Those are there there for a reason. ASR focuses only on measurements, but not how to properly use and setup a product.
     
    Last edited: Aug 7, 2020
  15. Riotvan

    Riotvan Snoofer in the Woofer

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    Oh never read it but i’m not surprised that he didn’t like it. He seems to hate on 90% of the speakers he reviews from what i gather. His integrity and competence are eh well... maybe he can work for CNN or something. Would be a better fit than the review game.
    I saw one review on youtube from a studio guy that had some pretty decent stuff saying these hiss more than any of his other monitors from i’m guessing 2-3m away. Heard it through some quiet parts of the music iirc. That seems pretty bad tbh. Other than that he seemed to like them. Let me try finding the video...

     
    Last edited: Aug 7, 2020
  16. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    Kali KP-6
    Frequency Response - actual listening position measurement from the above photo.
    Monitors slightly toed in. 2ft from back wall. Side walls at least 10 feet in both directions. Back wall 20ft. High ceiling with rafters.
    RED: approximation of B&K target from AES 1970.
    upload_2020-8-7_10-48-1.png

    I played with the switches on the back to get the best response from 50Hz to 10kHz. I couldn't quite get rid of that dip at 750Hz. 90Hz dip is room and table. Note drop in upper part of last octave is the microphone (used different mic that has a drop).
     
    Last edited: Aug 7, 2020
  17. Hrodulf

    Hrodulf Prohibited from acting as an MOT until year 2050

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    Usually the filters are to blame. You can pad them down with resistors, but you're essentially killing max spl.
     
  18. fraggler

    fraggler A Happy & Busy Life

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    I normally sit about 1m away from my speakers. I would be more worried about hiss than max spl all things being equal. Are monitors like this and the JBL ok for low spl listening (assuming the hissing is addressed)?
     
  19. Psalmanazar

    Psalmanazar Most improved member; A+

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    750 is the port resonance causing a dip in the resonance. Impossible to get rid of. Same as a KRK Rokit.
     
  20. purr1n

    purr1n Desire for betterer is endless.

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    They are good at low volume and mostly how I used them since I only crank my main systems and not my desktop systems.
     

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