8-16 ohm budget speakers

Soliloquy 5.3

Allison2, thabks for the tip on the Soliloquy line. Looked them up and am adding the 5.0 to my list. Seems to meet specs and budget.

Some of the late 70's - early 80's BBC monitors would fit the bill. 

Dynaco ST 70s love to be mated with any vintage Klipsch,The  Heresy used would be in your price range.   A Dynaco ST 70 would really like to curl up with a Dynaco PAS preamp for a very satisfying musical sound.

Agree with the soliloquys if you can find them.  The Silverline Minuets are also worth a very hard look and can be had in your price range used. 

Robinhood, I have a friend who owns the Klipsch Heresys. Plan on taking amp to his house to give that combo a listen. Also been considering getting a PAS 3 to couple with it. I would prefer to find a pair of monitors for my purposes. 

Soix, I have been watching for a pair of used Minuets. I realize that those who own them are not likely to part with them. You may have been one of others who have recommended them to me regarding my fireplace needs as posted on another thread. I need to check out their specs again.

Currently I have too many system projects in the mix. Need to sell some gear to help fund them.  

You can build the LM-1 kits or Jeff Bagby's Continuum speakers in this price range. The LM-1 are around 89 dB sensitivity.  Both are small monitors though so you won't get full range.

I am still looking for speakers compatible with my ST-70 and budget. Never thought that this would prove to be such a daunting task. Most speakers listed as 8 ohms fall to 4 ohms or below somewhere across frequency range. In addition sensitivity ratings are often over stated.

I have looked into the offerings by Klipsch though hesitant to go there. Possibly the RP-160M might be OK. 

Any thoughts would be highly appreciated!

You may want to check out Tekton. If you are patient you can find a used pair of Mini-Lores in your price range.

I will check out Tekton. Thanks.

rsfphil, Thanks for the Tekton rec. I looked Tekton up and now have the Mini Lore Monitor's on my short list. Imagine them to be hard to find on the used market. I plan on giving them a call tomorrow. 

If you have the space I would recommend the Mini-Lore floor-standers. They are pretty much a full range speaker and are only $25 more than the monitors. Your Dynaco will have no trouble driving them. Talk to Eric and he will recommend which speaker is best for your situation. 

I have a bookshelf kit that will run you about $350 if you want to build them yourself. :) More if you go with premium crossover parts.

Measurements are here.

Design is 100% free and parts available from multiple sources. Sensitivity is 89dB, impedance is over 8 Ohms until around 200 Hz where it drops to 6.  Should be a very easy load.

Erik, thanks for that link. There was a time when I I would enjoy making my own speakers however for now I already have too many projects on the books. 

Did look like these speakers would be easy to build and serve my needs.

OK, I bit the bullet and bought a pair of Klipsch RP-160M speakers (at a good sale price). I have been breaking them in and comparing them to B&W 685s as driven by my NAD 326BEE. Thus far comparison made playing system on back deck, thus no room reinforcement. I intend to make comparison in my dedicated room as driven by my main system soon. As a general comparison there are the obvious tonal differences with the Klipsch having a more forward upper mid/lower treble. I believe the B&Ws to be somewhat more refined (again outdoor environment). As driven by the NAD I felt the Klipsch represent themselves well. That said, there is much competition between budget speakers at their asking price of $440. 

I bought the Klipsch based on claimed sensitivity of 96dB. No way they approach this value. Based on listening they seem not much greater in sensitivity to the 685s, maybe 90dB. I have driven them with the Dynaco ST-70 to reasonable levels however remain looking for a speaker easier to drive. I know sensitivity is often overstated by manufacturers, but to this degree. Wonder how it was measured?

Anyway I will continue to keep everyone posted as I continue down this road.  

Well I sold the RP-160s and purchased a pair of DALI Zensor 1s. Not any more sensitive than my B&Ws however an easier load as impedance doesn't go below 5 ohms.  Haven't received the Zensors yet to pair with the Dynaco. 

I expect that the Zensors won't compete with the 160s on the bottom end however expect the midrange to be more cohesive and detailed.  

I don't know the exact dimensional differences but Elac B5 or UniFi B5 would have been on top of the list if I were looking for bookshelf speakers in that price range.

Actually, my old ST 70 seems to have a good amount of power for only 35 wpc.  Does anyone have a guess what it would be equal to in a SS design?

Kalali, I agree that either B5s are considered very good in their respective price range. I bought the Zensors used (in like new condition and age) for ~price of the B5s. I believe the Zensors retail at ~price of the UniFis. I haven't heard any of the three, being the 1st time I bought a speaker pair without listening to them 1st. The Zensors fit my needs size wise, I believe, based on my last check, the B5s are slightly too large (see my fireplace thread). 

Jetter, I agree that the power output stage is very capable at 35wpc provided by a pair of EL34s/channel. I believe the issue is the single rectifier tube. Therefore I was looking for a speaker that didn't drop too low in impedance. 

I believe any comparison of tube power to SS power would have to be made considering the designs of the tube and SS amps under comparison. Based on the only comparison I could make, I believe that there are several mid sensitivity, 8 ohm rated speakers on the market that could be driven to higher volume levels by my 50wpc SS NAD 326BEE than the Dynaco. I am referencing safely driven over extended periods. The Dynaco can in no way drive low ohm speakers the way my 50 wpc BEL 1001 MK5 can.

Well, I just purchased a pair of Contrast Audio Model One AS3 speakers from a fellow Audiogoner.  Rated at 16ohms nominal and 92dB sensitivity. Been almost a 3 year journey. Will get back regarding my thoughts once I have given the ST-70 a go with these speakers.  

OK, I have been using the Contrasts with my ST-70 as driven 1st by a Schiit SYS passive pre and then with my Jolida Fusion tube preamp. 

The ST-70/Contrast pairing came across a little lean, lacking in bass when driven by the passive pre. I am not sure the reason why. I haven't been able to find the input impedance of this amp.

With the Jolida pre in place, I achieved the sonic experience I was hoping for with the ST-70. I find the Contrasts to be a good fit with this amp. Bass was much improved, though not what can be achieved by a SS amp, midrange was superb with the desired tube 'bloom'. Soundstage was expanded with nice imaging. 

As the Jolida pre serves my main system, and the ST-70/Contrasts serve a secondary one, I will be looking for a budget active tube pre to use with the ST-70.