Let me add for consideration the Holt Hill stand mounted loudspeakers, which sell for $1500 plus $500 for the stands (if one wishes to order the stands manufactured by Holt Hill). They are two way quasi-transmission line speakers employing an unusually long throw 'woofer' and a silk dome tweeter. The 'woofer' design allows for very near to full audio frequency range. The tweeters produce detailed yet 'silky' high frequencies. They 'held up' amazingly well...they were possibly superior in respect of the musicality that the silk tweeters brought to the treble...next to my recently arrived B&W 802d3's. They are larger than traditional bookshelf speakers, they require some form of stand mounting, they come only in a painted gloss black (which I find quite attractive), in part explaining a price more often associated with floor standing loudspeakers. In their price range I have auditioned nothing that comes close to equalling them.
My journey to search for standmount bookshelf speakers...
Over the years, I’ve auditioned several speakers:
System Audio SA706 - Sound really good with classical music with state of the art recording, otherwise I would not consider it as forgiving kind of sound on some less than perfect recording, the high can become pretty hot sizzling, no sibilance though, just a bit bright if listen for a long time, but I have no complain on bass except drum kicks music
Chario Syntar 516R - Sound crisp and clear, thus not so forgiving on some recordings sensitive to treble, though no sibilance found, bass not as clean as others I’ve listened
PSB Alpha B1 - Small little speakers that sound great, a bit glaring on the tweeters over long listening sessions, bass limited due to small woofer size
Q Acoustics 2020i - The best smooth treble I’ve ever heard, I found nothing to complain on the mid & high, rich but not overly lust, bass though again due to limited woofer size not dynamic and fast enough
Elac B6 - Oh, sound pretty balanced, neat and vivid, overall presentation is clean and clear, bass is varied based on recording, I would say it sound a bit light on some, some just right, treble compare to Q Acoustics a little bit less smooth, most probably a better amp will do better, but I’m not sure how much you have to spend again
Dynaudio Focus 110 - I actually feel in awe when listening to this speakers with first track Igor Stravinsky - The Firebird - Finale (from album Tutti!), a small speakers that sound so big dynamic powerful, surprisingly the Focus series is pretty forgiving on some old recordings, very listenable, the only weakness I would say is the woofer a bit stiff for drum music, and frequency cutoff by the crossover design, instead of rolled off I’ve experienced from other speakers I’ve auditioned, I’ve to say the high really special on this
Currently, I own Wharfedale Denton classic speakers, very forgiving speakers, a bit of mid bass bump kind of speakers, high is not as clean as Dynaudio Focus 110 but still sound smooth without hot sizzling effect, the bass is considered not powerful and dynamic enough
Guys, what else I can look for at this price range?
System Audio SA706 - Sound really good with classical music with state of the art recording, otherwise I would not consider it as forgiving kind of sound on some less than perfect recording, the high can become pretty hot sizzling, no sibilance though, just a bit bright if listen for a long time, but I have no complain on bass except drum kicks music
Chario Syntar 516R - Sound crisp and clear, thus not so forgiving on some recordings sensitive to treble, though no sibilance found, bass not as clean as others I’ve listened
PSB Alpha B1 - Small little speakers that sound great, a bit glaring on the tweeters over long listening sessions, bass limited due to small woofer size
Q Acoustics 2020i - The best smooth treble I’ve ever heard, I found nothing to complain on the mid & high, rich but not overly lust, bass though again due to limited woofer size not dynamic and fast enough
Elac B6 - Oh, sound pretty balanced, neat and vivid, overall presentation is clean and clear, bass is varied based on recording, I would say it sound a bit light on some, some just right, treble compare to Q Acoustics a little bit less smooth, most probably a better amp will do better, but I’m not sure how much you have to spend again
Dynaudio Focus 110 - I actually feel in awe when listening to this speakers with first track Igor Stravinsky - The Firebird - Finale (from album Tutti!), a small speakers that sound so big dynamic powerful, surprisingly the Focus series is pretty forgiving on some old recordings, very listenable, the only weakness I would say is the woofer a bit stiff for drum music, and frequency cutoff by the crossover design, instead of rolled off I’ve experienced from other speakers I’ve auditioned, I’ve to say the high really special on this
Currently, I own Wharfedale Denton classic speakers, very forgiving speakers, a bit of mid bass bump kind of speakers, high is not as clean as Dynaudio Focus 110 but still sound smooth without hot sizzling effect, the bass is considered not powerful and dynamic enough
Guys, what else I can look for at this price range?
82 responses Add your response
Wim1983 wrote... @4play The metal tweeters could be the concern for me, as I'm using a Yamaha A-S801, may sound bright on some materials? On the contrary they DO NOT sound bright at all. These are the best speakers I have owned. The 3D holographic texture makes these speakers stand out from other speakers. I would love to move up the Focal ladder and get the Aria 906. |
Good thing is they dont impart any tone on speaker...some say .001%...lol...i have no idea anymore about dyns (new)...the 160 was the one to get i guess before they changed everything... The atc 11 as i mentioned earlier...used for the money...if music is all your after...you’ed be hard pressed to find something to my ears that has more bang for the buck...imho. |
@digsmithd yeah, both speakers need quite some power to sing, I believe ATC will need more? I've a look on the SCM10SE, without grill I think it's sexy in some ways, with grill it looks like a metal dustbin haha. May I ask one more thing about the Dynaudio Contour series, between old, S, and new, which one you prefer in terms of sound? Some people said the Contour S series is no no? Even so, it's so rare to see a pair of old Contour on sale, I guess it's really great, and also the Special 25, hard to be seen anywhere. The new Contour look a bit weird to me, of course also bloody expensive, take lifetime savings earned to buy |
I understand that wim1983...ive had a couple pairs of dynaudio 1.3 se's and 52 se and they were beautifully made...and great little speakers...the atc is pretty simple looking...but saying that the 1.3 se isn't the atc 19...and having (had) both I can say hands down the atc for my tastes... Have to say that back then i was running sim audio with the dyns...the atc have a modwright 200 watt aside amp...i believe makes alot of difference. |
Lots of great recommendations here, I'll add one more. Until about a year ago I had a pair of Totem Fire monitors. Purchased them new from a dealer ($6000 the pair, if my memory serves me), before I knew about Audiogon. They come up on Audiogon fairly frequently, you could probably snag a pair for less than 1/2 of retail. The had really excellent soundstage, dynamics and did not "shout" at you, great for all kinds of music. |
I owned the 11's and went up to the 19's...11's are still very musical and might be more forgiving than 19's. 19's have the "pro" mid/bass driver as same as 20 so they are on a whole other level as the 11...but the 11's are no slouches...reading about your amps i wonder if you would get the best out of them though? |
My advise by used much much better value. Currently the Excellent Rockport Mira for in the z $4500 range used Or the excellent--Marten Duke-2 around $5k Either one is outstanding my Any reasonable standard.and Very well respected Noth are more then double this cost New.and are on Audiogon currently As with most monitors a powered sub would make these a legit free range sytem. |
Try the ATC SCM11v2 - I have these speakers, very detailed and neutral. Only thing is you need a beefy amp since they're inefficient (86db). I drove them w/ Peachtree audio nova300 in the past w/ excellent results(had to return the amp though coz' of static noise issues). At the moment I'm using an Marantz AV receiver (140w @8ohm) but planning on upgrading to ClassDaudio SDS-470C in the future. |
For a budget of 2K, i strongly doubt that you will find anything better than the XTZ Master M2. This swedish designed speaker has just about all the qualities to a level really unheard of for a bookshelf at this price, including esthaetics as a bonus. I have a pair and have compared it to many others at over 5 times the price, it was never to be equaled !!! I have been recommending those speakers for some time now, and none of my friends who got one too have regretted a single moment, but have thanked me for finding this incredible little audio gear. It really is one of those rare jewels in the audio world. The other incredible thing about that speaker, is that it sounds good with many amps, tube and SS. Go read about it, buy a pair and thank me later. I know this sounds much too good to be true, and can seem doubtful, someone with so much positiveness about an audio product, but I dont know how else i could tell you about it. I really really do not have a single instant of hesitation about these and will most probably keep the ones i have for a lifetime. One word of caution: it needs a good deal of break-in before sounding great. |
A lot of great suggestions...Try and find a used pair of TYLER ACOUSTICS, they use SEAS Millineum tweeters and SEAS Excell mid/bass drivers. The drivers are used in speakers in the $8000-50,000 range by many of the high-end speaker manufacturers. I bought my Tyler Linbrook Signature Monitors for $1400pr. Mind boggling performance for the money. Google them...loads of rave reviews. |
@billybob7088 Yeah, I'm finding a set, but not available anywhere, Epic 1 I seen a pair, but condition not very good, the Epic 2 seem pretty big? This is my medium room setup: https://forum.lowyat.net/uploads/attach-38/post-437138-1456557949.jpg |
@knownothing Actually both Wharfedale Denton & Wharfedale Diamond 9.1 works well with Fostex HP-A3 DAC/preamp + Marantz PM6005, I'm not replacing both, I'm looking for another system for medium room setup. I agree DAC maybe one of the reason you get different sound, but as far as I can tell the DAC within Fostex is good enough to let you hear everything from 50 oldies up until today, no jokes. For amp, I have 3, include the Marantz, the other 2 are Class D Audio SDS-400C and Yamaha A-S801, the Yamaha seem a bit picky on matching, not that it sound horrible, it just sound not great enough if pair with the wrong speakers. As I mentioned from first post, I can hear a hot sizzling effect from System Audio 705 from the tweeters when high frequency reach certain condition, so my gears are fine so to conclude, try this track from Libera - Ave Maria, there are few versions, try the one with high frequency beaming, most British smooth rolled off speakers seem fine for this track, the best I've heard would be Dynaudio Focus, which special in high freq. presentation |
Some comments. Are you sure the issue is with the speakers? DAC and amp may be Limiting your sound more than your speakers. Have you demo'd the Wharfedales with different electronics? That said some argue you pick your speaker "sound" and then shop for electronics over time that are the best match. Some speakers to try for smooth treble and more bass from stand mounted: PSB Imagine B Monitor Audio Silver 2 Focal Chorus 807/Aria 906 (brighter voice) I like either Harbeth or Spender suggestions descended from the BBC school. I also like the Dynaudio/ATC/PMC pro audio styles, but driver accuracy would demand more of electronics all around in terms of accurate DAC implementation, circuits and robust power supplies. good luck with your search, kn |
You get what you pay for. ATC make their own drivers in the U.K. in small volumes. You have to decide whether the diminishing returns of a better build are worth it - many speakers can do a great job at lower listening levels where compression and distortion due to non linearities are less of an issue. ATC are not hard to drive but they certainly require a beefy amp - so that is a consideration too! |
@shadorne I'm eyeing on ATC SCM11 v2, price is not cheap but at least affordable, I read somewhere claimed that this is a redesigned for home users and more forgiving to listen compare higher end pro series like SCM20 and models beyond that, what do you think? My only concern would be the Yamaha A-S801 amp gear matching, not sure the total package include DAC works well with the ATC? |
You should look at ATC and PMC. Your comments suggests that you really notice the true dynamics of music when playing Dynaudio. Some people are not very sensitive to this aspect but obviously you noticed it. Many suggestions above are good but they won't have that "awe" effect that you noticed with a pro-driver that does not compress as easily as home audio gear. Dynaudio make and use better drivers than the usual consumer stuff. Same for ATC and PMC. |
I may be late to the party here, but you should consider Wavetouch Audio's (Alex Yoon) Antero's. Not only gorgeous but a wonderful sound - they use the AMT (Air Motion Transformer) 2" tweeter .. .... three words come to mind: neutrality, transparancy and realism. Highs are so sweet, have a nice bass extension and very detailed mid range. And when they're broken in .... they disappear into the wood work~! |
I have had Spendors since they came out and still use them off and on despite having had many other more exotic ones over the years. They simply have an accurate sound that does not exaggerate any part of the music. What there is on there is what you hear. Harbeth is also great, the designers worked together at the BBC and the speakers are named for them and their wives. Spencer and Dorothy Huews and Beth Harwood. I was a dealer for them both years ago and still have Spendor SP1s SP2s, and S100s I quit being a dealer years ago but still listen to them and am getting ready to set up systems for my family members using them. Forgive my spelling |
KEF KS50 are a default choice. Surprisingly good bass response in a small room. Triangle Titus 202, first version with metal bullet phase plug in the tweeter mouth. Great HF extension, whip sharp transient response, completely disappear in room, very easy to drive- even with low power amplifiers. Downside is no bass response in room below about 70hz. |
If you can find a pair of Focal 706V or 806V, you will experience a 3D holographic sound unlike anything you will ever experience. I have a pair of 806V along with the Focal S700 stands, and these have been the best investment besides my network audio player I have in my system. These are definitely worth the price, and if you can find a pair lightly pre-owned, that would be even better. |
