BEST FLOORSTANDING SPEAKERS OF 2022

Serious about your speakers? Then it’s time to bring out the big guns. By The Master Switch

13. KLH Kendall ($1,300)

Recommended Amp Power: Up to 250W/8Ω
Sensitivity: 96dB
Drivers: 2 x 6.5” Woofer, 1 x 5.25” Mid-range, 1” Tweeter
What We Like: Stunning bass, gorgeous looks.
What We Don’t: Probably a little too traditional.

We admit that we haven’t experienced too many speakers from KLH before. We are very happy we got to rectify that, because the Kendall floorstanders have a lot to recommend about them. One of the things that surprised us the most was just how powerful the bass was. It quite happily went toe-to-toe with the SVS Prime Pinnacle – if not in raw power, then certainly in clarity and depth. If you’re a fan of bass-heavy music genres like EDM or hip-hop, you’re going to love the Kendalls. They look great, too, with a thick wooden body that still feels elegant.

However, while listening to the Kendalls, we couldn’t help but feel that they were a little too traditional. They were a solid set of floorstanding speakers, but they didn’t get the pulse racing in the same way that, for example, the ELAC Uni-Fi 2.0s did. The bass was killer, but there were no other real surprises here. Consider these a pair of very good, but not quite top-five, speakers. They would fit well in a moderately large listening room, and would work especially well for those who can’t stretch to a pair of Ultra Towers.