speakers to go with Musical Fidelity a5.5 amp

Revel Performa M22 - a nice combination with this amp. Might also look at new B&W CM5. Harbeth and Spender are great also - Harbeths are little warmer sounding to my ear if that is what you like. If you can spring for 5 grand, check out the Totem Mani 2 - lots of bass on tap there.

I'm not familiar w/your amp, but if you want bass from a conventional box spk, thr first thing that came to my mind was JBL L40, L50, JBL Century 100 etc. Another good choice would be Dahlquist M-905's. (Used Vifa drivers I believe. Soft dome tweeter.) Snell J'II's. Newer spks. I thought of Paradigm Studio 40 and Titan. Another really good spks. were ADS. Sealed spk. type. Beautiful tight bass and excellent midrange. I think a bass-reflex spk. may suit your want for bass better than a sealed-type spk. though. Lots of great choices out there. Good Luck!

Try to find some that are real transparent too.Paired with a Musical Fidelity amp,they should do a lot better disappearing act than the Nad would allow.That makes the music more enjoyable and not thinking about the equipment.

what are some good "disappearing" speakers? I am hoping to stay under $2k.

The JBL 100 looks like it has a lot to offer as far as bass and price (several under $500 here and on ebay), but can it do the imaging/disappearing routine? The JBL L300 looks like a possibility too though it is kind of pricey on the used market.

Quad ESL ,but I don't know about price and how they do on rock.

Tbone1,

You said "I like the look of a more traditional box type speaker rather than towers or some of the oddball looking stuff that is favored by many. My room is about 15' x 20' with carpet and a 10 foot ceiling. Rock and Roll and bluegrass are my main choices in music. I like to feel the bass as well as hear it."

and

"what are some good "disappearing" speakers? I am hoping to stay under $2k."

New to newer big Harbeth and Spender Classics for under $2K that will do lots of bass is going to be tough. The older classic "monkey coffins" like the big Spenders, Harbeths, old JBL's, etc. had many great attributes, but were not necessarily known for their tendencies to "disappear".

Thus, we see the rise in popularity of the small stand mount speakers and the now omnipresent slender yet deep tower speakers. The ultimate disappearing act in this price range usually means a small stand mounted monitor - new or used - and usually means trading the deepest bass for imaging (except, see Totem Mani described earlier in thread).

Two ways I can see your money "disappearing".

1) Quality budget stand mount monitor plus good sub for under $2K

Traditional looking Used Monitors for around a grand - something used like Paradigm Reference Signature, one of the British mini monitors in the BBC LS3/5x mold, various older designs by ProAc like the Response One or Tablette 2000, the Dynaudio Contour 1.3 Mk.II or Dynaudio Audience 52SE, Revel Performa M22, Silverline Reference s15, or Totem Model 1. Maybe other people have other suggestions...

New Monitors for around a grand - consider the B&W CM1, Epos M12i, Focal Chorus 807V, Paradigm Reference Studio/20, PSB Imagine B, or Totem Rainmaker.

For Subwoofers around a grand (don't skimp here) - I would look at any of the larger and more powerful subs used (or new) from REL, Hsu, SVS or Paradigm that fit your budget.

2) Or, if you would consider it, a medium to smallish tower speaker for under $2K could fit your bill

Used Towers for around two grand - consider anything from ProAc available in this price range, Revel Performa F32, Spender S8e, Totem Forest (great bass, will do rock but happier playing bluegrass), Vandersteen 3A (this may be too unconventional looking for you).

New Towers for around two grand - consider B&W CM7, Epos M16i, PSB Imagine T, Quad 22L.2, Revel Concerta F12, Totem Sttaf, Vandersteen 2Ce Signature II (this may also be too weird looking for you).

Anyway, you have a great amp. FWIW, my favorite speaker combination's with that unit have been the B&W CM7, Revel Performa M22, Totem Arro and Rainmaker. Good luck in your search.

I had the MF A5 with Spendor s8e, a good combinations.
or Paradigm Studio 100 v4 or v5.

are the mani-2 sigs that much superior to the mani-2's?
and...any thoughts on how Proac Studio 140's would pair up with my Musical Fidelity a5.5?

We often combine the MF integrated with the Dynaudio Countour S1.4 and C1 monitors, both of which are a bit out of your price range, tho. The Dynaudio Focus 140 is an option. But, another great speaker that mates very well is the PSB Synchrony One B.

bump (to try this question again)...

are the mani-2 sigs that much superior to the mani-2's?
and...any thoughts on how Proac Studio 140's would pair up with my Musical Fidelity a5.5?

I think the ProAc's would sound very nice with the Musical Fidelity A5.

I have not heard the Mani-2 signatures, so cannot comment on differences.

i have a Musical Fidelity A308 and it works well with my VR4jrs in an 18 x 18+ x 10 room

I have the Mordaunt-Short Performance 6's driven by the A5 amp and the sound is excellent - very transparent and great top to bottom integration. The two have great synergy to my ears. Not sure of your budget but well worth an audition if possible.

I finally picked the totem mani 2 signature. These little monitors sound great with my MF amp!

If the Mani 2 Signatures are anywhere as good as the originals, I am sure this combination sounds terrific. Nice bass, huh.

Incredible bass for the size of these speakers. Thanks for suggesting them to me. My system is now up in "virtual systems" if you care to look/critique or make suggestions.

I just finished filling the stands with sand and putting them back under the speakers. After my back spasms subside, I will crank them up and see what was accomplished by this little tweak.