Cambridge S30 and Jolida 102b

Yeah that's pretty deep. The Minuets were just about perfect for desktop use. I think I'll just keep a look out for another used pair. Thanks for the help!

One thing to be aware of if space is a constraint is that the S30's are deeper than many other small monitors. The height and width are 8.5 x 6" but they're 9.5" deep. That may not be obvious looking at pictures of them.

I used to own the FX10 and Silverline Minuets. It was a decent setup but in the end I felt that the Minuets were a little under powered. On paper the S30s look to be more efficient and along with the extra 10 watts from the 102b I was thinking that I would be satisfied. I also have my eye on the JB3s but they are hard to find used and new are out of my price range.

Mathewm - I'm not sure I can tell you anything meaningful about the bass response of the S30s with the FX10. I would have to ask, "compared to what," and I wouldn't be able to answer because I didn't do any A/B critical comparisons to any of my other speakers or amps.

I use the FX10 in my office in a near-field setup with a pair of single-driver JohnBlue JB3s and love that combination with the music I listen to. The JB3s have a beautiful mid-range but don't go as low as the S30s and cost twice as much.

The only way to decide is to buy a pair and try them. One of the reasons the S30s are such an easy recommendation is that trying them will be cheap and easy, one of the pair I bought was $120 used. But they really are quite remarkable in every setup I've put them in.

How was the bass response with the FX10?

I'm also a big fan of the S30s. I have a pair in a basement system and have bought two other pair for other's systems.

I don't have room for them on my desktop but I have tested them with the Jolida FX10 which is a 10 watt tube integrated I use in my office.

They sound way better than you would have thought possible at their price. I didn't try playing them at high volume but in my living room the level was as high as I normally listen and they sounded wonderful.

I wish I could say that this was the only time I sold something only to go back and buy it again (I think I'm on my third Creek headphone amp). I really sold the Minuets only because I couldn't justify them for background listening in my office when the Cambridge S30s were nearly as good--for 1/3 the price!

Ha, ha... you sound worse than me. Any particular reason that you came back to the S30 after the Minuets? I kick myself for selling the Minuets since they're hard to come by used now.

I had Cambridge S30s in my office system for a couple of years. They're excellent speakers and a great deal. I replaced them with Silverline Minuets, and then replaced the Minuets with another pair of S30s. Don't get me wrong, the Minuets are better speakers, but not much better. I found the S30s to have similar strengths. Like the Minuets, they sound big, have better bass than you'd expect, and they're not at all bright. I ran them for awhile with a 20-watt T-amp, so I think they'd be fine with tubes. They could be just what you're looking for. I hope that this helps.