Best speakers under $500? Fire away!

I  have a pair of Infinity primus 363’s that I use for two channel and multi channel, I will say that for the price the p 363’s are a darn good speaker, I recently bought a pair of wharfedale Diamond 220’s online, the 220’s are pretty good but they DO NOT compare to the Infinity p 363 in my A and B test, that said... I returned the wharfedales, the p 363 sound really nice with a small tube amp.
Another good sounding speaker is the revel f12, I bought a pair used a few years back for $600, these sound even better than the p 363 if you can find a pair used.

I agree mesch.  The Infinity's are 92db and would probably match up well to my 3020.  

34Dean - 

About 10 years ago I picked up a pair of Bowers & Wilkins DM604s locally on Craigslist for $250 (a steal).  They were absolutely amazing speakers, particularly for the money.  They are 90db and I recall having powered them w/ a 100WPC Denon AVR at the time and that was plenty to fill a large room.  If you can find a set locally at a good price, they're going to be pretty tough to beat for under $500.

BTW - It's a 3-way floor-stander w/ two 7" woofers and are good down to 30Hz.

Greg

Your rebuilt 3020 should not have any trouble driving 6ohms 86db as you listen to normal levels. The 3020 was renown to drive difficult speaker loads. That’s what made it a best seller. I have had the 315 driving such loads and it was just fine (before the pre-amp section started to short... but that one was a cheap made in china).
I would definitely not limit my search by speaker efficiency if the goal is not too reach the highest db possible with the given amp. But I agree, the 3020 would be a bad choice to drive MMGs or, given the specs and reviews, the Elac.
Also, keep in mind that you can try for 30 days and return if it does not fit...

B&W 685 and Monitor Audio Bronze 2 are safe bet very easy speakers to drive with excellent sound, The Infinity are very medicore speakers I wouldn’t touch them at all .

I can catch a great deal on Monitor Audio Bronze 1 speakers.  Is there a noticeable upgrade in the 2's?

The Bass in the 2’s is more deap and tight, better soundstage as well .However the 1’s are very good  too if you can’t afford the 2’s.

you're at the point 34dean where it becomes personal preference and system - many good suggestions - some like Infinity some B&W and some dislike them...you have a good amp - to some it is underpowered, to some it is ok...

Greetings, Have you tried the Marimbas' from Music Hall?  Musical with Pretty decent reviews and reasonable prices.  They are 6ohm and 87db efficient, so your receiver may work with these.  Talk to/ask the experts (which isn't me), all I know is that they sound good. 
Good luck...

You you might try the Emotive Airmotiv 4s active speakers and just use the preamp out on your NAD 3020. Each speaker is bi-amped with a 25 watt amp driving the air motion ribbon tweeter and and another 25 watt amp driving the woofer. The price on these speakers I believe is $299 for a pair direct from the manufacture. The received a good review in Stereophile and have a C class rating although one of the reviewers thought it to be class B. Plan on getting some good interconnects to hook the up to your preamp. I'm using Kimber Cable "Hero's" on my Airmotiv 4s' so that will bring you to your $500 give or take any deal you get on the interconnects.

I had paired Jolida 502 int amp with Totem Rainmakers for several years for 2 channel music in my home office. I got a pair of Monitor  Audio Bronze 2 for about $350 on sale to use for front wide in my theater. I hooked MA2 to Jolida just to test but what a surprizpse. MA 2s were as good as Rainmakers. 

Dealer disclaimer

Elac UB5 is unbeatable at $499/pair astonishing speaker that somehow does it all.  Magic.

Another vote for JBL Studio 530. Compression driver is super smooth. 

The NAD 3020 is only 20 watts, but has a really stiff power supply.  It ... might ... be OK with Elacs.  I'd definitely have the soft clipping feature turned on, though.

I'll second the post for Paradigm 20 or 40 Studio v's. They fade next to XR50's and 100's but are still sweet and (used) are easily in this range.

If you can find a pair of Spica TC-50s (with stands) or a gently used pair of Magnapan MMG's (new they're only $599), you might be surprised at how musical and how accurate they both are.

Gallo Acoustics still has some Classico CL-2 in stock. They were originally 1200 through dealers, then 800 direct. I just bought a pair for $390. A friend brought over his Elac B6 for comparison. The Gallos, as expected, completely outclassed them so he bought a pair of CL-2. Awesome speaker for that price.

edit, I think Dan at Gallo only has one pair left. Get em!!

Dude!
Are you listening?
The ELACs, mmmmannnnnnnn!

You may like the sound of the Elacs, but you will most definitely not be happy with their fit and finish. Terrible, cheap veneer. The Gallos are made to a much nicer and long lasting standard.

B&W Matrix 805 used

Phenomenal imaging, very balanced and nuanced midrange, and decent bass for their size.

Used is about $500, and will retain that value for some time. Remarkably hard to beat for $500

Depends a lot on the type of music you listen to.  Your 3020 certainly images well ..... so used Thiel 1.5's or better yet 1.6's (much rarer) might fit if you are interested in classical or jazz or singer-songwriters.  Not the best for rock, though.

you can have my Infinity IL40s for $250...great home theater speakers.

I like the Dynaco A-25 with the NAD 3020. 
I think on par with the AR-3 for much less $. 
Not super detailed or extended highs, but very natural, smooth in ways modern stuff isn't. 
The A-25 is really an early B & O,  back when they made good sounding stuff. Easy to drive and I still think what 200 for a nice pair. 
If you like em, you can upgrade to a nice vintage tube amp for the leftover dough and use the 3020 phono stage. Exactly the path I had my friend take and it sounded very good. Upgrade was to Eico HF-86. 

Would also agree with TC-50. 
Also Epos Es-11 and Es-14. I used to sell them
25 years ago. Minimal crossover, easy loads. 

Was given a pair of Infinity Reference 162s as a warranty replacement from Harman. Thought I would sell them but I'm really impressed with them and now use them for my home theater. Excellent value at $450. $350 or lower New on eBay. Elacs are very good but the R162s are in the same ballpark IMHO. 

I dare make no claim of "best" as this is highly subjective to your complementary components, listening environment, media source, music preference and listening habits, but I do like the Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 $249
http://www.musicdirect.com/p-15476-wharfedale-diamond-101-bookshelf-speakers-pr.aspx?utm_source=goog...

With current sale prices they fall well within your stilulated $500 budget with these highly recommended speaker stands: Wharfedale Diamand 10.1 (matched pair) $160
http://www.musicdirect.com/p-99915-wharfedale-diamond-101-102-speaker-stands-pr.aspx

The only remaining question is: Where do you find a great sub for $91?

Just purchased a pair of Wharfdale Diamond 225's, which are featured in the current Stereophile issue.  Bought them on Amazon for $379, excellent build quality.  I burned them in for 2 weeks straight.  They sound pretty awesome for the price.  They're a bit laid back, which I like, but what really stands out is the bass!  No need for a sub in a small room.  I also own the Elac Debut 5, had Monitor Audio Bronze and Silver, and the Wharfdales are more musical. They don't sound as good as my Red Rose Monitors, which were around $1500, but for $379, they get pretty close.  Hope this helps those looking for new bookshelfs.

The Elac UB5's hands down, however I had a pair of the B6's and they were fine and easier to drive.  The UB5's, for the price, make such good sound they seem like a gift even though I paid the $499. 
Emotiva XDA 1-Sony SACD DVD- Van Alstine T8+-Job 225-Elac UB5's is what my system consists of.

I have a NAD 3120 paired with a set of Wharfedale Diamond 10.1 speakers bi-wired and i am very happy with that combo. I would also be auditioning Elac B5 & B6 based on reviews if i was still looking.

Bose 301,  with the right set up and speaker position .Only complaint the speaker terminals suck elephant dick, big time .

I have been an audio retailer for decades. I might be politically incorrect in saying but I see a pattern of recommendations on sketchy information and experience. For instance, based upon my experience the original NAD 3020 drives speakers amazingly well. Additionally the overall sound quality of a speaker is more important than a speaker's sensitivity especially in the absence of knowing other factor such as listen habit. On the other hand it is encouraging that so many folks agree on the Elac speaker. It means there is hope yet!☺

johndorsey... thank you for your input.  So............. with ecerything you have read, what is your recommendation?  ELAC UB5's or B6? Or another?

OK... I think I have narrowed down my choices to the ELAC Debut B6 and Wharfedale Diamond 10.1.  Both are roughly $259 shipped and can be returned easily.  Sensitivity is 86/87db for both.  

Any input on which way I should go?

Now for something completely different, if you can DIY a little, the Lx minis from Madisound  are in your price range. The caveat is that you need to biamp using the Linkwitz active crossover, which may blow your budget. These do the best staging I have heard in this price range, and look , er, awesome, if you are into steam punk

Not into DIY nor streaming punk.  But thank you for the suggestion!  :)

"I think I have narrowed down my choices to the ELAC Debut B6 and Wharfedale Diamond 10.1.  Both are roughly $259 shipped and can be returned easily.  Sensitivity is 86/87db for both."

Keep in mind that because both are 6 ohm speakers, that sensitivity rating is for 1.5 watts. Correcting to a 1 watt rating will be 84.5/85.5.

OK... I think I have narrowed down my choices to the ELAC Debut B6 and Wharfedale Diamond 10.1.  Both are roughly $259 shipped and can be returned easily.  Sensitivity is 86/87db for both.  

Any input on which way I should go?

Buy them both, audition them with your system and keep the pair you like best.  Send the other back.

I have both the b6 and 10.2 . The Elac has a lot more wow factor, 10.2 is just as good.The b6 is a clear choice.

I would suggest that you consider improving your power first, which will open up many more choices on speakers.  Much of the high-end stuff we talk about here is fairly inefficient.

My recommendation would be to look for an amp that can push 100 watts per channel minimum, and use your NAD as a preamp (I'm pretty sure you have pre-outs) so you don't lose your investment.

Once that's done, if you're willing to look at pre-owned gear, have a listen on a pair of Dahlquist DQ10s.  They can be had for under $500 a set in excellent condition, are easily maintained and are still to this day considered a terrific value.  They are, however, highly inefficient.  ;-(

I bought a pair of concentric tweeter KEF Q10s for near field monitoring years ago and they still work swimmingly. I assume they still make a cheap version of these. 

Going with the ELAC Debut B6's to start.  Thank you all for your terrific input.  

xyobgyn:

"B&W Matrix 805 used

Used is about $500, and will retain that value for some time. Remarkably hard to beat for $500"

The only ones I've seen for sale recently ran $795 unless they were seriously damaged. There's a pair without tweeters for $395 on eBay, $749 for a pair in which two front clips on tweeter housings were broken and glued back on.

There was a pair on Audiogon for $795 IIRC a week or two back. I guess they sold for that amount, as I no longer see them when I search. There's even a guy who's had a pair for $995 on US Audio Mart since September.

If you have a pair you'd like to sell for $500, xyobgyn, please let me know.

I have as surround a pair of def tech sm 45, just do some research on them, they are very very good

The Monitor Audio Bronze 2 I recommended before is much better than the worfedale 10.1 (9.1 the predecessor was better if you can find one) the Elac is better but less than MA Bronze it can’t matck the strong dynamics of the Bronze I was really overwhelm once I first heard it ,you are buying speaker worth 1K in terms of capability  for $ 400 it’s really a bargain. It’s almost as good as the B&W 685.

seriously, the Gallo CL2's I bought are still breaking in and have detail, accuracy, spaciousness and natural tone that will put many of these suggestions to shame. They are 90db and a transmission line - the bass is extended and accurate, you can actually hear the tone and articulation of the bass, not just boom like the B6. I heard them up against the B&W 685 mentioned above - the Gallos are in a whole different league for sure. That CDT tweeter and crossoverless design is special. Call Dan at Gallo!!!

One other option is a used pair of Tekton Lore Reference - They can be had about $500. Very efficient, huge effortless dynamics and soundstage. 

I see you went with the B6. I think this a mistake based on your amp - they are overly warm, (rolled off really) and very bass heavy (boomy) unless you have a room that is very well treated or can move them into the room about 4 feet, no kidding. I feel like NAD will only exacerbate these issues. B6 would be best match with very accurate and neutral electronics, even on the slightly lean side. good luck.