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Speakers which always sound good

This is brought up because I'm home shopping, but I'm not actually looking for speakers right now, so please don't take this as a request for advice so much as opinions.

As I shop for homes I've realized how few are really equipped for the audiophile.  Too many fireplaces and windows and damn kitchens and bathrooms placed completely inappropriately for us! :-)

And as you may know, I'm a big fan of appropriate room treatments.

So, wanted to step away from this world for a bit and ask, what are speaker brands that you feel always work?  Or at least, work really well without having to think about the room acoustics or placements?  Reminder that this is 99% of the buying public.  We who have laser line levelers, a closet full of measurement microphones and a chair which bolts our head into a fixed location may not believe it is true, but this is the majority of the buying public. 

What do we, the audiophile community recommend to them to actually be helpful in getting them as many positive music listening experiences as possible?

Best,

Erik
erik_squires
zyphryx's avatar
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zyphryx
128 posts
 
I've always enjoyed PSBs. The sound good, are built well. and don't break the bank
erik_squires OP
16,056 posts
 
I just have to say, it is true, I have yet to see a house that has a good room for a stereo. It is frustrating. But then again audiophiles are probably in the 1% category.


I can say that I'm firmly in the below 50% category.
mjdenn910
2 posts
 
I know that not everyone likes the omni-directional sound, but if you do, they are hard to beat for ease of placement in a room.  I've had a few different models of Mirage omni's and the original Omni-Sat's were the best.  Pair with a subwoofer in whatever location works best for the room, and you can place the omni-sats on the wall, ceiling, stands, shelf.  They just sound good.  They have more presence then the micro or nano versions, and are much easier to place then the tower version.  Don't get me wrong, they are not as good as Maggies, Focal's, or any other "audiophile" grade speaker, but they do sound very good and are very consistent with whatever room you put them in.
ilkeresmer
42 posts
 
I had too much experience with YG's, Harbeth's and Magico's, i think noone can judge those big brands or criticizes, if they are not playing good it was our problem, but if you like to have pure , refined sound without any of box resonance you must go for Open Baffles, end of too many years i bought Diesis Audio speakers, those open baffles are very very good in every way!
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lou_setriodes
682 posts
 
I think most British two way monitors are generally very musical and consistently good sounding speakers.  There’s a lot to choose from here but you can’t go wrong with ProAc, Spendor, Epos, Castle, Linn or KEF, IMHO.
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