I have the Divas, and while I dearly love them, they are very room and placement dependent. If you have the ability to work with the speakers position and not horribly limited by furnature, doorways, etc, then I would vote for the Divas. Should be able to find a used set for around $5k-$6k.
Utopia Micros + Sub vs. Utopia Divas vs. Merlin
Hello,
This is my first post and my first foray into the home audio world. Everything I know about 2 channel systems I've learned in the last two weeks reading hundreds or thousands of posts here. I'm building my first system for a carpeted room that is 13x18 with an 8' ceiling where the speakers have to be placed against the long wall and no farther than 3 feet from the wall behind. I listen to singer songwriter stuff (Jack Johnson), acoustic leaning indie rock (Shins, My Morning Jacket), some pop (the Fray, Corinne Bailey Rae), and a little classical. I only am interested in CDs.
I have a deal working for a McIntosh MC352 and MCD201 cd player, which will also act as a pre-amp.
I can only afford used speakers--Micros and VSM-MMs seem to be in the $4K range; Divas more but the difference is about the same as a sub--looking at the ACI Titan.
Given this approximately $5K-$6K speaker budget, would you recommend the Utopia Micro Be + a sub, the Utopia Divas, or the Merlin VSM-MMs?
Can I even run a sub without a dedicated preamp?
Thank you very much for your input.
This is my first post and my first foray into the home audio world. Everything I know about 2 channel systems I've learned in the last two weeks reading hundreds or thousands of posts here. I'm building my first system for a carpeted room that is 13x18 with an 8' ceiling where the speakers have to be placed against the long wall and no farther than 3 feet from the wall behind. I listen to singer songwriter stuff (Jack Johnson), acoustic leaning indie rock (Shins, My Morning Jacket), some pop (the Fray, Corinne Bailey Rae), and a little classical. I only am interested in CDs.
I have a deal working for a McIntosh MC352 and MCD201 cd player, which will also act as a pre-amp.
I can only afford used speakers--Micros and VSM-MMs seem to be in the $4K range; Divas more but the difference is about the same as a sub--looking at the ACI Titan.
Given this approximately $5K-$6K speaker budget, would you recommend the Utopia Micro Be + a sub, the Utopia Divas, or the Merlin VSM-MMs?
Can I even run a sub without a dedicated preamp?
Thank you very much for your input.