Best upgrade path from Borresen X3s

@stanleo ​Also I have about $20k worth of AGD's resonance and noise reducing accessories.

Wow can I ask which ones and where are you using them? At Axpona a rep showed me some of their resonance accessories but then told me the prices and it was more than the speakers!​​​​​​

Well, you’ve got some pretty good speakers so the key questions would be what specific improvements would you be looking for and your budget.  Also, how big is your room and are you open to moving to a more powerful amp or are you sticking with the Forte3?  Gotta ask — as a relative newbie how’d you get to $20k in room treatments so fast?  Just curious. 

Borresen X6 would be my choice or whatever speakers you can find used. Good electronics to good electronics does not make that big of difference. 

Figure out how to to integrate a pair of subwoofers or even a single sub...Ime, the Borresen lineup is a bit difficult to integrate with a sub...(maybe Michael Borresen will release a cool sub at some point). Among the existing options, the KEF KC62 or Rythmik FM8 would be a decent choice of subwoofer for that speaker. That could be your single biggest upgrade.

Thanks for the thinking so far.

for accessories I have the first level darkz under the speakers and the Forte3, the sparkz in two open plugs in the power distributor, the A3 power distribution and RJ 45 box, 1 sorta in the Forte USB, and 1 Sortz in the internet box. My contact from my dealer came to tweak my speaker positioning the added each asscessory one at a time. I could hear the background get “darker” with each one. There are more I could add and higher up the chain ones but I’m happy with accessories.

My room is 18x38.

I’m looking to improve my sound with my next upgrade. I imagine I can save $10-$15k over the next year to upgrade, I’ve been thinking the X6 speakers would be logical. My dealer will give me 100% trade in on any upgrades I buy from them for the first 3 years.

The X3 is considered somewhat a sonic bargain, so topping it may be costly. If you like the Borresen sound, then go up the line.  If other brands, it's best to demo for yourself.  

I’m looking to improve my sound with my next upgrade.

That’s too vague to make any meaningful recommendations.  What specific areas would you like to improve?  If that’s at all hard to answer then the best thing to do is go listen to other speakers to see what you might like better.  If you don’t have some good dealers that are close enough then go to a major audio show or two so you can hear many other speakers and then go from there.

Another option if you like what you have but are just looking for “more” then adding a couple good subs can make a world of difference and be a huge upgrade.  The X3 only goes down to 35Hz so there’s likely a lot more to be had by simply adding subs.  Just another thought FWIW.

D2 Powerswitch and a D2 Ethernet cable between the router and the switch. Quite the difference.

I heard Michael Borresen say in a recent interview that Borresen Acoustics will produce a sub. Waiting for that might be a good plan. I have the power cables you mentioned and they were quite an upgrade.

Stanleo,

their sub will probably have sixteen 4.5” drivers lol. 

   Before the Borresen fanboys chew me up and spit me out let me say I love MB deigns.Ive owned 3 of his speakers.Ive stated more than once about the pitfalls of buying Borresen designed speakers new and the quick depreciation of his different speakers due to very quick turn around times on new releases..ie..the Z line is being or has been replaced by the C line hence we have seen dealers giving big discounts on that Z line recently..The new L line just came out under Axxess and im told its close to the X series in terms of what you hear?..im seeing a few discounts on the X series as I was offered a sealed pair of X3 for 3 grand under MSRP recently..im sure there are other speakers in the pipeline or ready to be as I write this...I would say if your dealer will give you the full paid amount on the X3 as trade-in to move up the  line( as you stated above)  go for it,You will never ever get anything close to that selling privately...but always when it comes to Borresen design products IMO always buy used to lessen the blow of quick depreciation.

Before the Borresen fanboys chew me up and spit me out let me say I love MB deigns.Ive owned 3 of his speakers.Ive stated more than once about the pitfalls of buying Borresen designed speakers new and the quick depreciation of his different speakers due to very quick turn around times on new releases..ie..the Z line is being or has been replaced by the C line hence we have seen dealers giving big discounts on that Z line recently..The new L line just came out under Axxess and im told its close to the X series in terms of what you hear?..im seeing a few discounts on the X series as I was offered a sealed pair of X3 for 3 grand under MSRP recently..im sure there are other speakers in the pipeline or ready to be as I write this...I would say if your dealer will give you the full paid amount on the X3 as trade-in to move up the line( as you stated above) go for it,You will never ever get anything close to that selling privately...but always when it comes to Borresen design products IMO always buy used to lessen the blow of quick depreciation.

Lack of perspective on display...

A 11k X3 speaker sonically seems to beat out 50k+ speakers from certain competitor brands.

Such competitor brands lose 20k, 30k easy on resale.

Some guy lost 2k, 3k on a X3 resale..no big deal!

Thanks for all the comments. I like the AGD "house sound" and so I'm pleased with my initial system. I think upgrading to the X6 speakers next year is my plan. I choose the "buy new" path because I wanted the help from the dealer and I wanted to be sure I was getting product without any hidden flaws or concerns, or at least had a warranty to cover that if needed. I don't think I'll want to spend more than another $20k max on my system. I'll probably buy some more Ansuz pieces also as they do make a difference.

Borresen and their sister company products (in particular cables / accessories) can have close to an 80% margin...that’s why your dealer is giving you 100% trade credit. Borresen / Raidho are infamous for this. You seem like somebody who likes to change their gear, just something to keep in mind...

Lack of knowledge.... 11k speakers rarely beat out 50k speakers..oooh, unless your shilling Tekton.   Some guy lost 3 grand on speakers no big deal...I'd say mist of us think 3 grand is a big deal...and it wasn't some guy it was a Borresen dealer

Well, i suppose you could get yourself a pair of ....say Wilson Alexia Vs for about 70k. Set it next to your X3 and start comparing. Determine what beat out what after equalizing the caliber of electronics used for both speakers.

Later on/an year later, try selling that Alexia V and see if you can get 30k for it. If 3k is a big deal, a 40k Alexia loss could hurt the feelings a lot more, i’d think..

I'll just add my voice to those who have asked what the OP is trying to "improve."  You'd think for the dollars in play that one would be able to identify some specific traits in the current setup that are weak compared to what he would like.

Something less aggressive and smoother sounding ?  E.G Spendor Classic or D9.2.  

A room your size would really benefit from a swarm sub array.  Will definitely make your x3 sound much bigger/fuller. 

Comparing the 13k? Borresen X3 to $50K+ speakers is ludicrous. Too many Audiophiles have dreams of grandeur when a component meets most of their biases and budget. Depreciation is determined by percentage not dollar amount. Wilson Audio has one of the highest(speaker)resale values in HEA, much superior when compared to Borresen.

Dayglow......You will have to excuse our good member,,He owns the X3 Borresen speakers so take his comments with a grain of salt and lack of knowledge.The X3 is actually 11k msrp or was,maybe its gone down .Although big discounts abound with that brand it appears right now, but i agree only fools venture to make that comparison.Thanks for pointing out the depreciation is a % thing not an actually dollar amounts which i guess some dont quite get yet.

There’s no excuse for @deep_333 . He makes @millercarbon seem like a choir boy. 

Dayglow......You will have to excuse our good member,,He owns the X3 Borresen speakers so take his comments with a grain of salt and lack of knowledge.

Correction...I own a X6 and i also own many other speakers. I have also owned speakers that retailed for 60k+....Schweikert, Wilson Wamm, etc in the past.. I even owned the TAD Reference for a decade or more.

You all can’t fool me anymore with that grand facade, got it?

As you all kept going up in price, i kept coming down in price because i started figuring out how to create that flagship sound or whatever at a lower price. It took me about 20 years though to figure out such things (no biggie).