What are the best bookshelf or monitor speakers, mounted on stands, paired with a Sunfire True Subwoofer Junior for classical music, orchestral and chamber? Associated equipment: Magnum Dynalab MD-308 integrated amp; Rega Jupiter CD player; Taddeo Digital Antidote II between CD player analogue and pre-amp inputs. Listening room: 120 sq. ft. Listening for best possible tonal balance specifically, clarity of midrange and relative sharpness/harshness or softness of high frequencies. Fullness of bass is not a concern - will purchase crossover to relieve midrange/woofer of 150 Hz and down. Also listening for imaging, i.e., projection of a 3-dimensional space; and spaciousness = the overall depth conveyed and a sense of sound happening in a real space.
Green Mountain Audio Callisto, but run them full range and crossover your sub for low octives below the Callisto's range, maybe 45HZ or less. The Callisto's are music. You will not want to eliminate anything they do.
You might want to listen to a pair of Sonus Faber Guarneri Hommage. In my room and for classical they are tremendous and I think they would work well with your assoc equip.
For a smaller speaker maybe the Harmonic Precision Caravelle Monitor would be a great choice, alot of positive postings about this model. If it is too pricy I really like the Green Mountain Callisto wich also has a great following.
My small music room is 10' x 13' with vaulted ceilings. I have the OVn Schweikert VR-1s and a small REL 108 sub. This setup is best with classical music and Jazz. See my equipment for other details, but I highly recommend the VR-1s.
I second the mention of Lipinski's - lthough I only heard them with/without a Lipinski sub. You might also try to find a used pair of Celestion SL700s.
Shadorne - Telarc studios uses ATC speakers which are way out of my budget, thnaks anyway. Elsneb - checked out the Callistos - way beyond what I can afford, thanks for your suggestion. Bob Reynolds - checked out the Lipinski's - way to large for my room and I use a sub woofer not needed with the Lipinski's. Also checked out the M&K B1600's. If my amp is not the problem I will probably go with these. Thanks for your suggestion. Daveyf - the Sonus Fabers are too expensive for me. Thanks for your suggestion. Chadnliz - these are way too expensive for me. Thanks for your suggestion. Tgrisham - I checked out the von Schweikerts at www.nax.com @ $1000 a pair they maybe what I want and need. thanks for your suggestion. GSM18439 - Thanks for your suggestion. Jaybo - thanks for your suggestion.
You need to change your post to "Best Monitor for Classical for $xxx? You asked for the best, not best on budget, hope you still find what you are looking for.
I own the VR-1s, use them with a sub, and love them. You can buy them for much less then $1000. If you want new, go to:
www.higherfi.com
They are the one and only authorized online dealer for VS, and they currently have them for $749 shipped. If you want used, they come up frequently here on Audiogon for $450-600. I bought mine used here and they were perfect.
Fred, You can pick up a pair of Green Mountain Audio Europa's for the same price as the Von Schweikerts. Do a search here for comparisons between the two speakers.
Fred I listen to mostly classical and the speaker I found best for me is the Thor, its a MTM design. Tyler has the same design with his Linbrook Sig Monitor, featuring dual 7 midbass and the Millennium tweeter. Orch gets full voicing in the midrange with the dual 7 inch Seas Excel. . You won;t need any "extra" xover.
The SF G's would have been my reccomendation but for the past few months I have been living with a pair of Verity Audion Parisfal Ovation Monitors (Yes, the monitors are sold seperatly for the bass cabinets if you want - $8800)
Very impressed, and if you grow out of your space and/or want bass perfectly mated with them....Just order the base cabinets when you are ready.
If you plan to go the speaker-sub route, then go for the Manger Swing. It has all the qualities that are required for a small room setup and can still end up sounding huge. It looks great too.
120 square feet is pretty small. I like Tyler Linbrooks (which I own). They are very easy to set up and listen to in the near field. I listen to classical also, and still have yet to find a speaker that does much better, especially for anywhere near the price.
If you have a good local shop that can do some relatively simple speaker mods, then I highly recommend getting a pair of KEF 101s. A nice used pair can be had for $300 to $500. Paired with a good sub, these will be very hard to match for classical music. I can tell you that my pair has all the qualities you specified. If you’re inclined, let me know and I’ll tell you the mods ( internal wiring, upgrade crossover parts, bypass overload protection circuit).
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
