In this review, we will be comparing GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and Q150, two Passive Bookshelf speakers from GoldenEar and KEF. Let's have a brief look at the main features of GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and KEF Q150 first before getting into our more detailed comparison.
In the following sections, we will get into details in order to better understand how GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and KEF Q150 compares and hopefully end up with enough arguments to decide which one of these loudspeakers is the better choice for you.
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Drivers
Both GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and Q150 are 2-way speakers. GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor features a " Folded Ribbon Tweeter and 1 x 7" Polypropylene Woofer . On the other hand, Q150 features a 1" vented aluminum Dome Tweeter and 1 x 5.25" Aluminum Woofer with a Crossover frequency at 2500Hz.
Frequency Response
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor has a frequency range of 38-35k Hz whereas Q150 has a frequency range of 51-28k Hz. With a minimum frequency of 38Hz, the GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor can go significantly deeper on the low side and provide stronger bass compared to the Q150's min frequency of 51Hz.
Below graphs depict how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average values of the Min and Max Frequencies of other speakers under Bookshelf class in our database.
Low Frequency
Bookshelf Speakers
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor
High Frequency
Bookshelf Speakers
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor
Impedance and Sensitivity
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and Q150 has the same Impedance of 8 ohms but where they differ is the sensitivity levels. GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor sensitivity is rated at 90 dB and Q150's is at 86 dB. This 4 dB difference makes GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor a more sensitive speaker compared to KEF Q150, hence will play louder with the same amount of watts.
Sensitivity
Bookshelf Speakers
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor
Power Range
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor has a power range of 10-250 watts RMS whereas Q150 has a power range of 10-100 watts.
Input Type and Bi-Amping / Bi-Wiring
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor features Post type posts and Q150 has a Post type posts. None of these speakers feature bi-amping/bi-wiring.
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor's 5-way post terminals
KEF Q150's Post terminals
Cabinet Type and Port Position
Both GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor and Q150 have rear firing ports. Rear ported speakers generlly need more room between the backside of the speaker and the wall compared to sealed and front/bottom ported speakers. Placing too close to the walls may cause the bass to sound boomy.
KEF Q150 Port
Physical Specs
Size of a speaker can sometimes become an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, We are going to compare GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor's and KEF Q150's external dimensions. GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor has external dimensions of 356.0 x 229.0 x 281.0mm ( 14 x 9 x 11-1/16inch) whereas KEF Q150 has external dimensions of 303.0 x 180.0 x 278.0mm ( 11.9 x 7.0 x 10.9inch) .
GoldenEar Aon 3 Bookshelf Monitor is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 49mm wider, 53mm taller and 3mm deeper than KEF Q150.