Amazing deals on demo YG Hailey 2's, probably 25K
Or get one of the last pairs of Revel Salon 2's for about 10 - 12k. Besst value out there IMHO.
Speakers - Your "Safest" Choice
Hello All: Many of us have limited access/ability to audition multiple speakers brands. That got me to thinking- If one had a budget of $20K max, a solid state amp rated at 125WPC, and listened to all varieties of music (primarily rock, pop, folk), what speaker(s) would you be most willing to recommend to that person and feel confident they would be happy with the purchase?
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About two years ago, I purchased a pair of Fyne Audio F-702 floor-standing speakers, replacing my Infinity Modulus system of 1990, not the mass market Infinity speakers but the one's with the servo-woofer and EMIT tweeters. I upgraded the rest of my system as well, and I have found the Fynes produce excellent imaging, superb tonal qualities for the instruments, and a broad sound stage. My music tastes run from Beethoven and Bruch to the Moody Blues and CCR, with stops along the way for Big Band music, soft rock, and vocalists of the late 1940s, 1950s, and a smattering of later vocalists; I listen at slightly loud, but no where near concert, levels. If I had $20K to spend on speakers and knowing there are a great many really good speakers out there, I would consider and audition the B&W 803 D4 (admittedly slightly over budget), the Vandersteen Quatro Wood CT, and the Fyne F704s, admitting some initial bias towards the Fyne F704s, which have 12" bass drivers compared to my F702s 8" bass drivers. I am just very pleased with the sound quality produced by the F702s and believe the F704s would provide that with more punch at the bottom end. Of note, the 700 series speaker are made in Scotland. |
“Or get one of the last pairs of Revel Salon 2's for about 10 - 12k. Besst value out there IMHO.”
I don’t think his amp would be anywhere near powerful enough for the big Revels as I’ve heard they require BIG power to get them cooking. I’ve heard them but can’t remember the amplification but they were big monoblocks. |
@gnoworyta wrote: "What I was trying to get to is the speaker that you or others think are a "crowd pleaser" (for lack of a better term)...." I understand the appeal of a safe-bet "crowd pleaser" speaker, but imo this is an unrealistic expectation for two reasons. First, while a wide range of listeners would probably agree on a list of desirable attributes for a loudspeaker, in the real world tradeoffs are inevitable, and individual tolerance for the various inevitable shortcomings (in dynamic capability, timbre, imaging, sweet spot size, bass extension, inner detail, aesthetics, positioning requirements, or whatever) varies widely. Second, given that speaker/room interaction plays a very significant if not dominant role in the final result, imo it is premature to specify speakers without having a pretty good idea of what their acoustic environment is going to be. Actually, I would expand this to include the amplification, with "speakers + room + amp(s)" being in effect a "system within a system". Imo there really is nothing approaching a "one size fits all" solution within a given loudspeaker price range. Duke |
Three cheers for grislybutter providing an actual list of good speakers. Congrats on the research and time ti took to compile. You have provided an excellent service. Thanks! |
@ellajeanelle , “jl35: Aren’t the speakers themselves unnecessary? Logic tells me that most able to spend 20K on a pair of speakers would likely be traveling first class, staying at a 4–5-star hotel and eating in nice restaurants, not including drinks and entertainment. Not to sound snobbish, but I know I would.”
not necessarily, I live in Brooklyn. Can afford 20k speakers, would happily stay at an under $200 hotel, use the subway and eat street food (which we have some of the best in the world). And I personally love dive bars which still have beer and shot specials for $7. Even in nyc! |
@gnoworyta Please dont get me wrong, but if you are not listening (or caring for ) the unamplified acoustic music (classical or jazz) you really do not need sophisticated or complex speakers that might cost 20k. Now, I do not want to sound arrogant and of course you may buy any speaker you like and listen to what ever makes you happy on it, but if we are speaking on 'hi fi terms', you can obtain same quality of reproduction, for (rock) music, for much, much less. Furthermore, imho, if you are spending 20k on speakers, the rest of your system, without cables, should cost around 50k at least. Again, you might use R.Royce to pick up your groceries and thats perfectly fine, but for simple pleasure of hearing your favorite rock or pop music, that is overkill |
+1.5 for Volti Rivals! (. 5 for the Razz). I really enjoy mine! Of course, it’s a matter of taste. If you value the utmost in hyper detailed, bat worthy high frequency extension & a highly mirror, polished statuesque pieces of furniture, then many of the fine speakers mentioned would work well. If you value, imo, music that sounds close to live w/ outstanding dynamics, full bodied sound not requiring heroic amplification, check out Volti. |
I recently asked a similar question. The brands that kept coming to the top of the list were Joseph, Magico, Borresen, and I do think the Revel Ultima noted above fits here also. https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/what-speaker-could-safely-be-ordered-without-hearing-it-first |
Pre owned is a great recommendation. Speakers come down to personal preference and advice on speakers is almost always colored by the preferences of whoever is giving the advice. Electronica and room acoustics also play a big role as well. Spending 20 k on speakers you haven’t heard seems crazy unless you have a trial period. I’ve had Focal, Alta Audio and Omega speakers. You’ll find a loyal following for all of them, they all have a unique sound signature, dans if one are not likely fans of the others but that doesn’t mean that are all not great speakers. Good Luck! |
Your post (question) sounds like a fishing expedition to me. Particularly the "If one had a budget of $20K max". Not being snarky. My advice is to get a map and spend a good while, days at least, and mark all the audio stores that are within striking distance by car. Exhaust those stores and then go flying to get to the next level. The best advice above is to go to the Florida show, which includes another great piece from above. Spend $1k on your search and $19K on speakers. Regards, barts |
What I did was shopped the market to get a feel for actual value, read all the reviews of the speakers in my price range and then shopped used so I could get my money back if my ears didn't hear what everyone else did. I learned that when a reviewer says a speaker needs 100 watts it usually means 500 watts and while measurements may show ports extend measured bass more often than not I can't hear it. Metal tweeters are much smoother than they were in the 90's...Stepping up my speaker game required me to step up my component game to really appreciate what was capable in home audio. |
Seems like the OP is asking for the “safest” choice, although buying a speaker without a demo is usually considered a poor decision as speaker preferences are highly subjective. Also, at 125wpc it can’t be very inefficient. Maybe the Joseph Audio Graphene Perspectives reviewed here. Always seem to garner positive reviews.
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I’m a fan of buying barely used equipment after spring training camp in Florida where you get $40k speakers for $15k that have not really even been used. And having an open mind with several chocies that work for you . i bought Bowers 800s, essentially new, for about 1/3 retail this way. Happens every season.
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I had the Goldenear Triton 1.r-very close to the T-Ref. I then replaced them with Legacy Audio Focus XD's and that was a HUGE improvement. There may be a Legacy Speaker that would be worth your consideration. (Focus XD + Wavelet crossover?) Most people are very happy with them. They are not a bright as Focal, as dry as Magico, etc. They are usually under the radar but or under appreciated and a huge value. |
+1 @mapman When I first saw the title of this thread Fritz came to mind. Then I saw the budget, which is closer to my total system cost including Fritz speakers. |
gnoworyta - How do you like your Van Alstine 225 monoblocks? I have been interested in them (and the Schiit monos). Thanks |
happy new year bud! you raise a good point as the op was interesting in that it gives parameters for price of speakers and amp power but nothing about the room i agree that fritz’s are very nice sounding, but do best in smaller to medium sized rooms...and certainly don't need 125 wpc of amp power to shine... |
@jjss49 Happy new year to you as well! One can not recommend or purchase speakers without consideration given to the room. Yes, the Fritz speakers do best and offer quality bass when placed in smaller rooms. Also serve as a great match with tube or low watt SS amplification. Two my ears their sonics support an expense in quality source and amplification beyond their price.
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I use my NS5000 (they are superb) with a CODA #16 amp and Holo Serene preamp. The amp is rated at 150 | 300 | 600. It is great with the NS5000 and I think the most powerful amp I have tried with it. I also have a Sanders Magtech that is 500 | 900 watts, while it is an excellent Class AB amp it does not have the same thunderous bass of the CODA #16. The Sanders is a very strong amp. Next Friday, I am going to demo the SimAudio North Collection 761 (200 watts) with the NS5000. I guess watts and power that I hear are not the same. Otherwise, the Sanders should have been the most powerful with the NS5000. |
Your post was very interesting, can you expand a bit more on that? Where do you find the speakers? Are you referring to baseball players buying gear for 6 weeks of use?
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Lot of great choices......here are few brands I enjoy: Wilson Kharma Sonus Faber Couple of add on: Make sure that your amp and the speakers are a great match and play well together. For example, Audio Research and Wilson, McIntosh and Sonus Faber, etc. Do demo your amp brand with your speaker options, it matters. Lastly, save $ for some nice speaker cables. For example, Wilson Audio uses Transparent cables in their speakers. Also, Transparent will bias your cables to match your speaker and amp. Good Luck and tell us what you decide to do!! |
I recently acquired a pair of Marten Parker Duos and matching stands for about that much, and I am extremely happy with them. I auditioned them at a dealer along with speakers from YG and Dynaudio, and the Marten sound appealed to me more for rock music, which is mostly what I listen to; they rock out even at lower volumes; I've got a 200 wpc SS amp, but I'd think they'd do perfectly well with 125 wpc. |
Just because you have $20k to spend on speakers doesn't mean you should or that any speaker represents value. Yamaha NS-5000 speakers were introduced in 2016 for $15k. They took a while to get to the USA, but are still $15k. That's $19,200 in today's dollars. They are state-of-the-art in so many ways and really an incredible value. Check them out and give them a listen. |
Pre-owned Rockport Atria IIs are an easy recommendation. Hard to go wrong with those as they only have sins of omission, notably the bass extension, which is understandably limited given the design. The other I’d consider are the Dutch and Dutch 8Cs. These could save you money as they negate the need for separate amplification. Note that both of these products perform as well objectively as they do subjectively. And contrary to a common belief around these parts, good measurements do matter. I for one have yet to encounter a poor measuring speaker that actually sounds good and correct. I can always hear the warts that show up in a response plot. A/B the aforementioned models to less accurate competitors in the same setting and you’ll hear the difference. The reason some prefer the wonky response of inferior counterparts is they are not comparing them back to back in the same room, and are instead relying on their unreliable auditory memory. |
With that kind of budget, go audition the Dutch & Dutch 8c system. At $15k, it is a complete audio system - powered loudspeakers with active crossover, DSP room tuning, DAC, and if you have enough common sense to be strictly digital (more on that later), then you can connect to it as a Roon client. Boom. You’re done. |
First of all, you are not that specific to get good responses. Why is $20K your budget? Equipment you will be using? Many responses here are form people who don't really know that much meaning they have comments that are general and have not had the opportunity to match things together. For example, Sonus Farber are not for rock. Please come to our listening room in NJ and we can demonstrate what they can do. Some of the other generalizations we can also demonstrate with other opinions. While many people have gone to a dealer or audio show, they have not really heard what proper equipment matching can offer because they have not had enough time hearing things in their own systems and with so many different components. So while there are some good suggestions, some are generalizations. Sorry folks, it is simply the truth. Happy Listening. |
Sorry I am late to the forum. The AG website was compromised. A phisherman. They fixed it today. An expenditure like that warrants dealer assistance with system integration, installation, and optimization. Audition mandatory. There are many excellent recommendations from members. I did not see my personal favorite- Vivid. Aesthetics are a personal taste. I find their designs artistic and pleasing. I find their sound quality exceptional. Clarity, integration, dynamics, staging, imaging, and musicality- they have it all. The Kaya 90 is in your budget. Better is a pre-owned pair of Giya G-3 S2 which would be slightly below $20k. Call or visit GTT Audio in NJ. |
