Used speakers

Thanks, Trelja. I would have given him my old Klipsch 4.5's, which have an excellent sensitivity, but a friend of mine who was,shall we say, feeling no pain cranked my new amp to maximum and blew them. Not an easy thing to do with those!

Actually, Trelja, your comment is so right on it is hard to believe anyone could seriously disagree with it. My SO's 17-year old daughter listened to my system (Hales Rev. Threes/McCormack DNA-1) for 10 minutes before proclaiming, "My friends' systems sound better. Your's doesn't have any bass. Even their car systems are better." She even had the audacity to smirk when she said it, too, the insolent little twerp! Just wait until I'm her Dad... Anyway, I would suggest that less sensitive speakers shouldn't be disregarded if they fit the budget and other parameters. All in all, very good advice.

p.s. I've gotten some used PSB gold i's as you previously recommended. I'm eagerly awaiting their arrival.

If you can go a little higher, I would recommend the AR 303 for $439 NEW at accessories4less.com. They are the authorized web dealer for AR closeouts. These speakers are an ultimate bass-slam rock speaker with a 12" woofer. On the downside, they really need a lot of juice, and 120 watts would probably be a minimum requirement for a headbanger. On the upside, they made it into class D in Stereophile a few years ago. If you don't need bass quite as deep (only 35hz) but still plenty of it, you might consider the AR 302's at the same site for $249 NEW! Good luck, Steve

I think that I would go for a used pair of ADS "large" bookshelfs in your situation. There are many two way models that were made from the 70's into the 80's, just make sure that they have rubber surrounds. The three way models are more expensive, but worth it, and I am not usualy a fan of moderately priced three ways. I had a pair of 710 (three ways) in the 70's that sell for more now than I paid for them used 25 years ago. They have plentiful bass and a good balanced sound for "all" types of music should your nephew branch out. They are also easy to power.