Speakers for a large room for around $1000

me again,there is a store in my state called sterio discount center,this store sells paradigm,listened to them many times,but not the 7s.just keep in mind that with the viennas if in time to come,may it be 6months, 1year, 5 years, etc.you decide to upgrade you electronics.that speaker is only going to sound better and better with upgrades.where as the 7s are limited.i personally listen to jazz, and alot of female vocals,midrange is very important to me that is why i am a harbeth owner.but you have to go with what you like,and keep the wife happy as well, anyway good luck with what ever choice you make.

Rrog, er, O.K., if you say so, and you say so.:-)

I didn't read every post here but it isn't clear what amp you intend to use - although I thought I saw something that indicated you might like tube gear (which is generally preferred, imo). With respect to tubes, there are lots of amp (and preamp) choices, but some speakers will need more power than others. If you happen to select some high efficiency speakers (100db efficiency or so), you could then look into low powered SET amps (I like 45s, but 2A3s and 300Bs are other possiblities). This would allow you to get great tube sound for perhaps less than medium to high powered tube amps. I think your biggest challenge is the WAF. If you could live with Vandy 2Cs (used in good condition), or Dahlquist DQ-10s (used in good condition) you would be looking at speakers well under $1k for the pair and you could get yourself a nice $1k or so ARC or other tube amp. Or if you could live with the Cornwalls (under $1k used vintage), you could get a 45 SET amp. Almost no speaker is going to sound very good pushed up against a wall or in a corner (although that's what Cornwalls were supposedly named for). Based on what you have written, I think you would like Vandy 2Cs if you could get permission to put them several feet out from the back wall. You could get yourself a vintage ARC D76A or D70MkII, or you could get yourself a Marantz 2230/45/70 receiver and I think you would be surprised at how good it would sound. Or you could put the same electronics on a pair of DQ-10s. I think you are down the tube path (given your guitar amp experience) and you really ought to get some speakers that will synergistically show off what a good tube amp can do.

One thing you will find is that all the good speakers and electronics in the world will only constitute some portion of the resulting sound. The room size, shape, and furnishings will drive a bunch of the results and the location of the speakers in the room will also drive a bunch of the results. Clearly, the speakers and the speaker interaction with the room are key considerations, none of which almost ever synchronizes well with the WAF.

Blnd2spll,

I am not crazy about unique Mirage or Ohm sound. Some people love it, but it is not my cup of tea - personal preference. So I think you can't go wrong with either Vienna or Paradigm. I wonder if your local Paradigm dealer has the SE model available for a look and listen - they have real wood veneer versus the Montor 7's vinyl, and have better parts and sound top to bottom. If the Monitor 7 is a great budget speaker, the Paradigm SE is a REALLY great budget speaker. Either will probably make you and your wife happy.

That said I have to agree with where Dmastri is trying to take you here with the Vienna recommendation. The Mozarts are a cut above the Monitor 7's and probably the SE's too. Craftmanship and sonic qualities are more sophisticated and as Dmastri says, will reward better upstream gear as it is upgraded. The Vienna sound quality is understated but very natural to my ear. I agree with you on finish, and prefer a nice warm wood grain over black. I know my wife would send tall, dark and shiny speakers straight to the dump.

Another idea:

If you can stretch to $1249, there is a pair of Spendor S6 for sale on Agon right now. Like the Vienna's or ProAc's mentioned above, these are very, very nice speakers.

There is also a pair of Monitor Audio RS-8's for $800 that look to be in nice shape. Nice sound, high WAF.

Good luck.

I suggest you give the Polk LSi 15 a try. A truly fantastic speaker for less than 1K (used) and will compete with many up to 3K. It's a no-brainer, read up on it.

Good luck.