Best Speakers for Forte 4a amp and F44 pre

Benie, I love Maggies. I wore out a pair of MG1s. But alas they would not fit well into my room. I am probabaly going to have to settle for bookshelf speakers on stands or small floorstanders. I would have to believe Maggies would be near the top of my list if I had a different listening room. I listened to some b&w 704s a couple of weeks ago with new Classe monoblocks and their $3000 or was it $3500 CD player. I have to say I liked them, but I really want to stay under $1000 (used is ok). The b&w 704s are $2200. Anyway, I think I may just live with my current speakers a bit longer and try to upgrade my CD front end from the Audio Alchemy DDS Pro and 3.2DDE I currently have before I get to the speakers.

Maggies sound great with both Forte + Threshold. The model 1.6 would fit the bill. A little more room behind + beside would be nice but it can be made to work very well, throw in some MYE stands and you will still come in well below budget. Used 1.6 + new stands.

Ferrari, thanks for your response. Where I live I do not have access to a wide variety of high end shops, so my choices for listening are fairly limited. I have relied more heavily upon opinion and reviews than is probably wise but given logistics, I don't have a choice. I am familiar with the Alons only by reputation and have not had the pleasure of listening. After your response I looked around on the net for information. Some of the comments about the Alons being hard to drive concern me. I know the 4A is capable of driving down to some difficult loads, still I wonder if a more efficient speaker might have more punch. I have driven my Sound Dynamics (not particularly efficient themselves) with 2 NAD 2100s running dual mono and there was a lot of punch and the music was not bad but a bit "steely". I probably am not the best with audiophile lingo but I would like to have the punch with the musicality of the 4A. The 4A drives my SDs with no problem and the 4A makes them sound better than they ever have, but I still miss the punch. Maybe this is just the Class A vs AB difference. I have also driven the SDs with the F44 and a Superphon DM220 which gives the music a middle of the road quality, more punch than the 4a but definitely does not sound as good as the 4A but not as steely as the NAD combo. The 4A is definitely the part of the equation I want to stay. I can tell you this, I have never felt the music "down to my spine" the way the 4A delivers.

An interesting side note, A friend of mine brought over his Dynaudio 82s that we hooked up to my rig and while they sounded good, I thought them to be rather flat with not a lot of depth, tight but thin bass and highs roll off quickly. The bass on the SDs extends lower but is not as tight. The midrange is comparable but I give the edge to the Dynaudios here. Bottom line is the Dyns cost 5x what my SDs cost. One of the comments that was really interesting about the Alons was how holographic they sound and how they soundstage-I definitely want to give them a listen.

I currently use Alon Model One speakers with my current Forte set up which includes the F 44 preamp and Model 7 Forte mono blocks. The Alons have been a dream match and
should fit into your system and space requirements quite nicely. You can usually get a good pair of Alon Ones for around the $600.00 mark depending on condition. I do recommend you use the Alon Black Orpheus speaker cables for best results. Depending on length the Black Orpheus cables will set you back anywhere from $325 to $425. Worth every penny though.

The Alons are truly special by any standard. To do better sonically than the Alons you will pay dearly. The Alons love Class A power that the Forte 4a has.