There's so many great choices - but it gets down to so many things - room size equipment comparability and the most important what sounds right to you both.
I have been fortunate to own many great pieces of gear over 40 plus years of listening - if you like a non clinical sound and can drive them Sonus Faber Olympica iii are very easy listening and the wife approval factor is isually 100% - good value used and Wenge are popular with the ladies - a win all round and nodded sound to boot,
Good luck and enjoy the journey!
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If you are at all handy you could look into a DIY kit for the open baffle Linkwitz LX521.4. It is a superb full range speaker. The kit can be purchased from Madisound for less than $5K. I haven’t heard them all, but this is a truly great speaker system. I have enjoyed it enormously for the last year or two. A gift to audiophiles from a very important engineer and talented designer (now unfortunately not with us). |
If you can find a used pair of the PSB Stratus Gold i, they are a very dynamic speaker with deep and solid bass. Also, if you have room to place them out from the wall, at least 2’, and 2’ from the side walls, they are also very open, with a large detailed stage. From the mid 2000s, there were many great reviews and unlike some of PSB’s current models, they were incredibly well made in Canada, not China
Even though I’m a believer in subs (except for very low volumes) these are one of the very few, of the many floor standing, full range speakers, I’ve had or Auditioned, that I actually felt no need for a sub.
They are about 12"W x 17"D x 43"T and quite stout at about 90 lb. ea.
I have a pair that I relocated to my AV system and wouldn’t trade them for anything (in an inclosed dynamic speaker) anywhere close to their original price of $2,200. You may be able to find used for under $1,000.
Just another thought,
Jim
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Look for a used pair of Harbeth 40.1's. Could augment these with one SVS SubW and you'd have a sound that rivals the neutrality, smoothness, and excitement of the old Quads(I had the Quads for 30 years!!!!) |
The Soul Supremes mentioned earlier. They will ship them and you can listen. If I were approaching this tier in a normal living space and going for a big dynamic sound I would consider. They're unobtrusive visually and very dynamic in a big way.
Many great suggestions in this thread. Listen to as many as possible. |
PSB Imagine T3s, you can get them for $5k open box on ebay. At the top of your budget, but they are absolutely magnificent, I love mine. Reasonable sensitivity as well so you don't need a honking huge amp to drive them.
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why not the persona b? probably sound full range and if not you can add a sub next year. when on sale they limbo under the $5k mark. |
+1 for GoldenEar Triton 1.
But wife might not approve.
WHY NOT? Tall black phalluses in the living room? LOLOLOLOL |
What kind of music do you listen to? What do you like about your current sound? What does good bass sound like to you?
Wharfedale Lintons are efficient. Should maybe try to audition Klipsch Forte as well? That's efficient!
Subs could potentially solve your bass issue. I might audition the REL T9/i. Used Vandersteen 2wqs, though you need to get a hi-pass inline crossover, could be good, but matching them with the 75fs, if you decided to keep them, might be an issue.
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Never buy speakers without listening to them first, regardless of what others may be saying about them...nobody is using the ears that are attached to your head except you. |
+1 for GoldenEar Triton 1.
But wife might not approve. |
OHM speakers allow for a 120 day in home audition. Huge soundfield from a slim and not to tall enclosure. The Walsh 3000 is approx. 11" x 11"x 41" tall, goes from 32- 20,000 hz, need 45 watts, and will fill a space from 2400-5400 square feet and cost $2000 ea. |
Check out the new Fyne 700 series
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I use Sonus Faber Sonetto V and they are $5k - right at your upper range.
I’ve upgraded from Sonus Faber Venere 3.0 and was exploring other brands. I preferred the sound.
I think $5k can buy an amazing speaker. |
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if if you can get Daedalus speakers as dodgelum has suggested you will be set for life A pair of Rel subs would also help in getting the very low end if you are looking at the 23HZ to 24Hz my Poseidon will go lower than stated 28Hz bottom & my Rels S/812 will go down to 19 Hz but I have adjusted them for a perfect blend at 24Hz
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yeeesh... too many good/great choices $1.5-$5k used or new, you can even choose a used Klipschorn! Choosing a high-end speaker without listening first is pretty tough, like buying toilet paper during COVID. So I'll try to stick to "safe" choices: ELAC - designed by speaker designer Andrew Jones (TAD, Pioneer). Best bang/buck reputation. Consistently positive reviews. Frequently puts out new speaker models. The
ELAC Adante AF-61 got good reviews and is now half price at $2.5k - I suspect to make room for newer models. KEF - I listened to the KEF-LS50, which a very large number of positive reviews, and compared it to the R700. To my attentive untrained ears they generally sounded/voiced the same with the exception of more bass for the floorstander R700. You can get the R700 for $3.6k, the newer model R7 for $4k. GoldenEar - Triton series got great reviews. Designed by industry great Sandy Grossman (just retired). Great bang/buck reputation. Monitor Audio - Gold 300 $7k. Although I've never demoed these speakers, I did demo their upper tier Platinum 300 series and I was very impressed with the sound and the solid build quality which punches significantly above it's price point. I know that the Gold 300 has garnered multiple positive reviews including Stereophile. For me, the Gold 300 is one of a handful of speakers I can purchase without demoing but confident it would meet my satisfaction and beyond. |
Naturally it is dependent upon the area you want to cover and the room acoustics. Try and demo a pair of Harbeth Super HL5 Plus. You won’t be disappointed.
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thanks snapsc! I like those speaker but they're local pick up only.
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naimfan - is there a particular model of ProAc you'd suggest looking at?
Thanks!
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adam8179 - Where did you buy your bass traps? I like that suggestion a lot and adding room treatments is another item on the audio "to do" list.
Regarding the bass on the 75f. I've actually been impressed with how much bass they deliver give the size of the drivers, but I had the misfortune of hearing the Wilson Alexia at a friend's house, playing a record I brought and knew well. I was floored at how much music was there in the lower frequencies that I didn't even know was there. Granted, it's a totally unfair comparison, but eye opening none the less.
I really like the way the 75f's do drums and bass, but I sometimes find it hard to hear a clear difference between the two and understood this as a function of the speaker limits in low frequency extension.
Thanks!
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Three brands to consider:
Vandersteen, as mentioned above.
ProAc - work beautifully with CJ tubes.
Monitor Audio - Gold 200 or 300. I have GX300s that I got for ~$1600; if you can find a 4th or 5th gen set of Gold 300's I'd do that - and they'll be in your price range.
Good luck - and enjoy!
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+1 ianrodger.
ZU: I purchased ZU Omen Mk II, 3 months ago. I’m waiting for new Soul Supremes to arrive now at end of month. I do use a subwoofer They have an excellent trade in program. Check out the details on their website. I got full purchase price back for an upgrade to the Supremes. Their speakers are fantastic or I wouldn’t be trading up.
Bent
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I will add a third recommendation to look at the Audiokinesis Swarm subs; with them you will get good bass to 20Hz.
The speaker you need to do 60Hz or so and up is then a fairly easy prospect as it does not need to be large!
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@robertbrook I have the same Paradigms that you have, the 75fs. It's interesting that you feel you need more bass? I absolutely loved the bass on the paradigms. Very fast accurate and punchy. They don't go super low and they don't make your chest vibrate but I was very pleased with the bass. There were other aspects to them that I didn't love but I do think they are really nice speakers, especially if you like a very clean and exciting sound. I would agree with the folks that say add a couple subs if you want bigger bass. Also, if you haven't already, look into getting some bass traps for your room. I was shocked at how they not only improved the clarity of the bass but the amount as well. Plus it's a lot cheaper than buying new speakers ;) Good luck! |
+1 for tomic601's Vandersteen suggestion. If your lucky enough to be able to audition most any Vandersteen model along side your Paradigm's you'll experience, as my family and I did, within the very first minutes what time and phase design brings to a speaker presentation. To quote my wife, "...wow, it's not even close."
Close your eyes and pick out the individual drivers of each pair. If setup properly you'll have difficulty doing so with the Vandersteen's.
In my limited experience full range low frequency has more to do with the ability to control individually powered woofers by equalization, gain, and proper room placement.
All the best in your search. |
LSA-20 Statements are available here new discounted to $4500/pr (normally $7k) and, very importantly, offer a 30-day, in-home trial. They’re only 39.5” tall and 9.5” wide but will go down to 25Hz and will likely be a considerable improvement over your Paradigms in virtually every area. These may be a very good fit for you for many reasons. They’re sold direct so offer very good value for what you’re getting.
There are a couple pairs of Nola KOs available here now that love tubes and will bring a very impressive and “live” feel to music with their dipole midrange/tweeter arrays, and they’re only 4’ tall and not very wide so not too imposing. Used Joseph Audio Perspectives are a fairly easy load for an amp and will also be a significant sonic upgrade in every way. They are very attractive with a small footprint (i.e. very wife friendly) if you can stretch to $6k, and you also have the option to upgrade to the new Graphene drivers if you want even more down the road. Lastly, there’s a pair of Usher CP-8571s with Diamond tweeters available on US Audio Mart for $4500. They’re not very tall or wide and they’re downright gorgeous end-game-type speakers, but they’re quite deep and weigh 250 lbs if you can swallow that. Hope this helps, and best of luck in your search.
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If looks are very important then Totem has some nice models. I liked their older models but have only heard the new a few times at audio shows and don't really know what I think about the sound. But they are very small and looks easy to place in a room. |
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A s/h Wilson Watt Puppy 7 offers a great price performance ratio. The tweeter can be sensitive to any issues with upstream components. maybe also look at wilson sasha - not sure of the specs.
WWP7 Description: Three-way, floorstanding, dynamic loudspeaker in two sections. Drive-units: 1" titanium-foil inverted-dome tweeter, 7" midrange cone, two 8" woofers. Crossovers: 125Hz, 2kHz (approximately). Frequency response: 21Hz-21kHz, +0/-3dB. Nominal impedance: 4 ohms. Sensitivity: 93dB/W/m.
Dimensions: 40.25" H by 12.25" W by 18.5" D. Weight: 170 lbs (WATT, 65 lbs; Puppy, 105 lbs).
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Chorus, the OP said that he WAS concerned about not being able to hear the speakers first. Very hard to do that depending on where you live, especially buying used.
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Not concerned about hearing the speaker before you buy?
Now that is concerning!!
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Audio Physics Classic 5 or others in the line. This is a very detailed imaging transducer. Surprised people all of the time. Smaller footprint with finishes to fit in well.
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Lots to digest here. Thank you all!
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I could not believe what my single REL 328 sub did with any speaker I paired it with. Also, I saw some nice Totem Element Earths on sale at Echo hifi which looked great. If you look at The Music Room, you'll see quite a few great ideas, including some mentioned here. |
Just curious. Why aren’t the more known brands in any of these suggestions? Monitor Audio Silver 200. Or KEF R3. Or Evoke 20. Just add an SVS sub and you’ll be tickety-boo. I’d even consider MagnePan LRS with a REL or SVS sub. |
I don't have any personal experience with them but the last time I was able to visit a hifi dealer and listen to a number of set ups, the one speaker that left an impression on me was the ProAc D30 (powered by CJ Electronics if memory serves). Very dynamic. It might fit the bill. |
I suggest looking at the AudioKinesis Swarm Subwoofer System,
which is not expensive for what you get. It is much easier to find
speakers that sound great from about 50Hz and up but getting those lower
octaves to sound right from your main speakers can really cost some
money. There are benefits to multiple subs that you just can't get by
using only your two main speakers. If you decide to upgrade your main
speakers later, the Swarm will likely keep pace and do a great job
filling in the lower octaves. ^^This. Or for super high value you could DIY your own DBA with one Dayton SA1000 and four 10" subs for about $2k leaving $3k for some nice small speakers, that will give you awesome imaging with awesome bass. The DBA helps with spouse approval because they are not fussy with placement and can go in corners or behind furniture. |
I haven't listened to a lot of speakers but I would say the the Vandersteen CT Treo was the most dynamic I have heard. Out of your price range new but maybe used would be close. Also only comes up to your waist or a little higher depending on how tall you are. I have the same requirements from the wife, "Don't overwhelm everything else in the room". |
If your top end is $5k, make a list of full-range speakers that retail for around $8-10k, then sit back and wait for demos or used. It will happen. |
Wife may not like the looks... but golden ear triton 1 is at the top of you budget but definitely a full range speaker and the woofers are powered, so your 70 watts is only driving mid and hi... I have the GE references driven by a carver 275 in a large room with no problem...
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Have a look at the Zu "Dirty Weekend" offer.
Great full range speakers that you can borrow for a weekend.
Not huge, very efficient and sound wonderful |
Good suggestions so far. I do like the Parsifals but I oped for Vandersteen 5As myself. I do enjoy having the subs and all of the room adjustments that they have. Less cables and placement of adding subs into the room. Plus resale is always pretty easy.
I also like Nola speakers with the alnico drivers. The open sound always draws me in and so far I have yet to find a speaker that does mid-range magic like they do.
Good luck and Happy Listening. |
Like @johnss said, "add some subs."
I suggest looking at the AudioKinesis Swarm Subwoofer System, which is not expensive for what you get. It is much easier to find speakers that sound great from about 50Hz and up but getting those lower octaves to sound right from your main speakers can really cost some money. There are benefits to multiple subs that you just can't get by using only your two main speakers. If you decide to upgrade your main speakers later, the Swarm will likely keep pace and do a great job filling in the lower octaves. |
keep the paradigms and add some subs. will really fill in the bottom end.
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tweek1,
As I saw it, the Pro II is $4495.00 per pair. |
