"Dazed and Confused" about upgrading current speakers


I currently have a pair of Golden Ear Technology model 7's. I don't have any particular or serious gripes about their sound quality. However, I think I could do better in overall sound  quality, especially highs and midrange detail and clarity. I know and have read they are noted for their low distortion.

The following speakers may not be upgrades but I have given them consideration:  Ohm Walsh Tall;  Neat Iota and Iota Plus;  and the Larsen 4.2 .

The Larson and the Neat seem overpriced, but their size and profile are attractive  In addition. the very new  Magnepan LRS..... and Magneplanar ..7.   I realize that none of the above may provide a major and noticeable upgrade in sound. I am not as mobile as I used to be and so can't go county wide speaker shopping..

The last go-around of looking, I considered the Revel F-206 and the PSB Imagine T-2, but not many come up for sale, especially the PSB T-2.  The Revel  F-206 I have somewhat lost interest because of their size. 

My electronics are definitely worthy of any of the above speakers and then some   The amp is a BAT VK-200  (100RMS)   Conrad Johnson PV-14L SE; preamp line stage;. Ayre CX7e mp CD player The separates could be replaced by a integrated amp, but that is not in the works at this time

Advice and recommendations welcome

Thank you,

S.J.

   


sunnyjim

Thanks to all who have responded

To Mr. decibel1

The CJ  PV-14L SE  is a line stage.  Therefore, can you explain what a passive pre-amp brings to the table and possibly improves the sound?? (especially an inexpensive one) Remember, I also have a CD player and turntable to plug in.

Also, I need a remote. The CJ's  remote is excellent because it is smoothly calibrated at 0.5 steps. It also has an excellent balance control. Unfortunately, the plastic case is cheap.


To elliotnew.... The room is size is 12X15 with almost 9 ft ceilings It opens into a dining/kitchen space of approx. 12X22 The two spaces are separated by 70 inch wide coach. There is an area rug in front of the couch and a recliner,  and three book shelves. There are two small area rugs attached to the sidewalls and also back of the speakers and 2 wall maps of no acoustical consequence.


S.J. 

i'm using Ohm 5000's in a small room.  i went this route for the adjustability and flexibility for future use.  also, i've got 300w mono's driving them, so again, beyond what you are talking about.  none the less, after they broke in, i could not be happier.  they are just great and virtually invisible.  that's saying a lot for these monsters.  i would give any Ohm a try.....their trial period is hard to beat.
Sunnyjim... what part of the country are you located. I have some PSB T2’s.  I’m in San Diego. I’m planning on listing them soonish. 
I agree with mrdecibel

First place to look after that is your cabling. WireWorld Series 8 is amazing.

Both these companies offer a in home money back guarantee
The goldenear amt is both loved/hated for its sound...but there is no doubt that amt's are fast and open...I'm thinking that if you are going to change, you might prefer another speaker with a similar fast top end....a RAAL, another amt...a Be.

Some suggestions include Legacy, Ascend Sierra RAAL models, Salk RAAL models, Selah ribbon models, Ryan Speaker 610 Be, Tekton Lore Be.

There are a lot of good choices and a lot depends on your room...as an example....the Magnepans are very narrow dispersion and need to out from the wall a minimum of 3'...more is better.  The ohms have super wide dispersion and like to be close to the wall...12" or less.
Larsen (never heard them) (similar to OHM),

My guess is they will not give you what you are seeking.

btw, I haven't checked out or listened to current stuff in years, so this is fun hopping about, learning this and that.

My comments are based on fundamental principles I learned along the way, very active learning/listening age 20-50; somewhat active 50-60; essentially in-active 60-70.


EXISTING SPEAKERS.

https://www.goldenear.com/images/brochures/GET_T5_T7_Literature.pdf

for reference, they are decently high sensitivity 89. working easily with your 100 wpc amp.

The dual mids and ribbon tweeter should give you excellent mids and highs, EXCEPT, I believe your Triton 7's dual passive radiators are making too much bass that is not tightly controlled, masking everything else.

"And dual side-mounted inertially-balanced, planar sub-bass radiators deliver impactful, superbly detailed, subwoofer-quality bass performance".

Even reducing their bass by tone control is unlikely to give you what you are wanting, so I feel you will definitely achieve your goal when changing to new speakers, efficient enough to work well with your 100 wpc.

........................................

NEAT. (never heard any of them).

I presume you are not needing to blast rock and roll or 1812 overture anymore, correct? And wanting mids and highs, deep bass is not that important, also correct?

Willingness to forgo deep bass helps you get happy with a multitude of physically smaller enclosures, smaller drivers, thus smaller prices.

Narrower front faces also help get clear mids and highs.

NEAT Iota is one of the lowest sensitivity speakers around, only 84, I would avoid that.

NEAT Motive SX-1 design concept looks very interesting, narrow face, upward slant, not trying for extended bass, adding bottom port for some extended bass keeps the drivers/face narrow. and directs the port down, not into side/rear/corner walls. Much less likely to overpower mids and highs with unwanted room interactions.

It's sensitivity is low also, but at 87, a bit easier on your 100 wpc amp. IF it's lower port gives you trouble, (unlikely but possible) you could easily block it (as with any port). A bottom port is less likely to have room interaction 
............................................

What


Ohm Walsh Tall link, scroll to the bottom, there is a room size chart and recommended model, what size room do you have??

https://ohmspeaker.com/speakers/walsh-tall/#wt-1000
Post removed 
This I can chime in on for I have been involved with upgrading the 
Loudspeakers internal wiring , connectors and especially upgrading the cheap stock crossovers , that most companies skimp on you can Dramatically improve Every aspect of its performance  by putting in Highquality boutique capacitors ,resistors,and inductorsas well as quality solder  .i just finished a $2k Monitor That competes with ease speakers 3x that. This is a very logical  option if you ,or a friend can solder ,
I would try and bypass the CJ preamp, as it could be adding to much warmth, robbing you of exactly what you are saying you are missing ( try an inexpensive passive unit, such as a Schiit Sys, or a Douk Audio passive, the HiFi version on the Bay ). I went passive awhile ago, and would not go back to using a preamp. Enjoy ! MrD.
Post removed