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Speaker upgrade itch Opinions 2500$used

Hello all and happy new year!!!

Like you all I have the upgrade itch and have decided that the speakers are what I want to change out next.

1. My goal is the most holographic soundstage and best imaging I can afford at this price range
2. I have no preference between bookshelf and tower speakers
3. I have no bass requirements as I currently live in an apartment and wouldn't want the bass to annoy the neighbors anyway!
4. Resale value is important, so very rare brands are out
5. My next speaker upgrade probably wont be for 2-5 years
6. Appearence isn't important, although I'd like to keep a reasonable footprint for the speakers
7. This is for a 2 channel only system

Currently the only speakers on my list to audition are Audio Physics Virgo IIs so all other suggestions are appreciated!

Some info about my tastes:

My current system:
Tyler Reference Monitors
Rogue Audio Magnum 66/88 (pre/amp)
CAL CL15 (cdp)
Transparent Audio MusicLink Plus Interconnects
PS Labs Lab2 powercord on cdp
Harmonic Tech ProAC-11 powercord on amp
(no special room treatments)

Current room is 14x18, but will be moving again in 7 months, so who knows what next (so not shopping for room specific speakers!)

The cd's I've been playing a lot of lately:
Cyndi Lauper - At Last
Patricia Barber - Cafe Blue
Cowboy Junkies - Trinity Sessions
Paul Simon - Graceland
Peter, Paul & Mary - 1st LP
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue
Steely Dan - 2 Against Nature
Laureena McKennit - The Visit
Fleetwood Mac - Fleetwood Mac and Rumors
geoffgarcia

Showing 2 responses by fathom7

fathom7
57 posts
 
It's all about synergy I keep saying. There are some additional tricks and a couple of qualifiers to the recommendation I have to offer. For this money -- I would throw in JMR Trentes or Offrandes. You can get either within this price range and if you go with Trentes you get to pocket some cash. They LOVE tube gear and the soundstage they give is wonderful. The trick, and I told you there would be one, is that you will get the best results using non-terminated JMR cable. This stuff was made for the speaks and does make a huge difference. Add the cost of the cable to the mix and your still at your budget range. The Offrandes come with their own stands as for the Trentes, the Magic Stands that were an option are now discontinued but good stands are not that expensive and are reported to work well. Listen to these (ones that are broken in since they take some time) and you could find a nice little synergy with the tube gear.

F7
fathom7
57 posts
 
Distortion:

Gotta agree with the "bright = depth" assessment. The trick for me is finding the right cables to get the brightness down to a manageable level without getting in the way of the imaging and spatial presentation. I think I've got the idea now (don't have the cables yet but am working on them) looking to put them in sequentially (budgetary issues). When I put together the system I have now I was least knowledgeable about cables and thus have a mix. That'g going to change. Still. I stand behind the JMR recommendation. IMHO they throw a stage that is behind, in-front and well beyond the edges of the speaks. This is with a variety of hashy cables some of which were really muted in the high end. What I have now gives just a hint too much brightness. Not the speaker wire mind you -- it's the other bits. I've got two digital cables in-line as well as a lot of silver running from the analog outs to the amp -- hence the sparkle. Good insight though.

F7
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