Help deciding between two speakers.


 

I am trying to decide between a vintage pair of infinity rs iiia and triangle borea BR08. I will have them in a large open living room and I listen to rock, pop, and country music. I will be pushing them with a pro-ject audio rs amp. The infinities are legendary speakers but obviously are older and may need to be refoamed. The BR08‘s are new. I will save a few hundred going with the infinities. Is there a big leap in speaker quality between the two? Are vintage better made? Any input would be greatly appreciated. I should also say I am not looking to blow the doors off the house. I am looking for great sounding and detailed sound. I am open to any other suggestions. There is no particular reason for these two other than they are in my price range of around 1k and they are available in my area.

the room they will be in is 20x30 with a 10’ ceiling. And the specs on my amp are as follows.

Tube assembly: 2 x ECC88 (6922)
Power output: 2 x 110W / 180W @ 8 ohms / 4 ohms
(2x 180/250 W @ 8/4 ohms with PS Box RS)
2 ohms drive capability
Frequency response: 20Hz - 50kHz (- 0,8dB, - 3dB)
Signal to noise ratio: >-100dB (IEC -A)
THD: < 0,05% @ 100W
Input: RCA & XLR-sockets
Input sensitivity: 1,35V
Input Impedance: 22kohms
Speaker terminals: 4mm Ø Banana, spade or bare wire
External power supply: 48V/2,5A DC;100 - 240V, 50/60Hz

Thanks in advance for your input and again if anyone has another suggestion please let me know.

 

 

honkykong7777

Your Project puts out more than enough power for either option. But as @yogiboy suggests, the Infinitys may need more than just re-foaming; their caps may need replacing as well and the wiring is probably due for replacement. They spec at 89db (which I think is a bit generous), while the Triangles are at 92 db. The Borreas are going to give you a more neutral, crystal sound - balanced throughout - while the RS's will give you more warmth in the midrange (though not as warm and bassy as most Infinity speakers from the '80's)

Age is baloney, spend a few dollars reform, rewire recap if necessary doesn’t take a rocket scientist and is not expensive. the Infinity’s  are a Dipole speaker and have a sound well worth listening to. The RS 111a’s and RS111b’s are essentially the same and given their MSRP alone show they’re certainly a better speaker. Do yourself a favour and listen to both if possible…you’ll walk away with the infinity’s. 

Cheers 

What 1971gto455ho said. Infinity. Imagine what the Infinity's would cost in today’s dollars.

Loudspeaker technology has vastly improved over the last 25 years! There is no logical reason to repair a random 40 year old speaker other than to sell them. Unfortunately many in this hobby have a skewed emotional connection with vintage audio gear that has very little or anything to do with performance levels.

This feels like attempting to purchase  speakers based on reviews.  It's like buying a mattress you've never slept on.  Really bad idea.

Assuming you like the sound of them, the only issues with the IRS IMHO are the impedance curves were really punishing.  No idea about the Triangles, but not really my cup of tea, but perhaps yours.