Hello All - I am shopping/buying speakers and want your advice
and recommendations on what speakers to audition that might meet my needs/wants. I am looking for floor standing speakers in
the price range of $8,000 to $13,000 with the following info for you to
consider:
·
I currently have an older CJ 120 wat system but
am now changing my entire system starting with speakers. I am looking at AR LS28 or Primaluna EVO 400 tube
preamps and a class D power amp. Right now,
the Bel Canto 600 with 300+ wats. My plan
is to add tube magic in the signal path at the preamplifier.
·
I stream mostly via Bluesound Nod 2i but for
serious listening I have a Linn LP12.
·
I need speakers that are not to room, location or
set-up fussy as I have moved a few times and will move again.
·
My listening tastes are diverse although I don’t
listen to rap, heavy metal, pop or much opera.
The rest is fair game.
·
I love to crank-it-up, but I listen mostly and
moderate to low volume levels – the speakers MUST sound good at low volumes
·
Tied to bullet above - I am partial to highly efficient
speakers with 90 db efficiency or more.
I have a have the impression that higher efficiency speakers still sound
good at lower volume. I have been told,
by salespeople, that this is not correct, so I open to efficiency below 90 db.
·
I need and want something pleasing to the eye
and not obtrusive. Said another way, and
to give you an idea of my aesthetic taste, absolutely no Tektons.
·
The sound that engages me emotionally and I am
looking for in speakers:
o Lots
and lots of air and space
o Beautiful
imaging
o Big
soundstage
o Extended
highs (I like the sound of ribbon tweeters as it seems to extend way up and sparkle…airy)
o I
like base but only as a support and foundation for the rest of the musical range,
but it is not a big focus for me as it is for some.
·
The sound
I do not like:
o Sound
that seems reserved, held back, constrained (i.e., opposite of special and
airy)
o Sound
coming clearly from a box or from specific location….as in from a box
o Lack
of extended highs
o Blooming
base
·
Considered to date:
o Alta
Audio Alec, $10K – Spacial and airy to a fantastic level. Imaging is just moderate.
o Spacial
Audio X5, $7K – To date, they have check most of my boxes except they are
really large and obtrusive. Basically, I
am looking for this sound but in a more attractive package.
o Ohm
– Very open and airy but imaging and top end sparkle missing for my taste
YOUR CHALLENGE – What other speakers should I consider and looking at? Thank you in advance for your thoughts!
@buttermanI was in a similar position as you and there are certainly a lot of very good choices and suggestions out there!
Like you I have a large room to fill with music. My room is 40x16x10 and there is a large opening to an adjacent room that really almost doubles that. My amp puts out 285w into 4ohms so it’s not super powerful by any means but it has some juice and is very musical!
I ended up going with and highly recommend the Monitor Audio Gen5 Gold 300s! Their newest in the line...They are gorgeous with their Piano Ebony and leather finish, and are even better sounding than they look!
The tweeter is the best I’ve ever head and I’ve listened to about every brand for 30 years or so. They are incredibly detailed and have a WOW factor on both the attack and decay! Yet they are never forward or in your face. They just present highs like cymbals like never before, just adding them into the music in their proper place when in the past with other speakers they were muted or not even heard.
The mids are beautiful and life like making Voices come to life. The likes of Norah Jones or Stevie Nicks jumps out at you with such a sense of realism that they sound as if they are there with you in the room!
The bass is deep, tight, and fast bringing fullness to any track you are listening to! The bass can also get down right crazy listening to tracks from the likes of the Dirty Heads who put that exaggerated bass into the recordings. The Gold 300s puts it out in spades making one look for the 15” subwoofer, that doesn’t exist, in the room! Lastly the need of sound output is not a problem, they play big and really need a large room to fill with music. They fill my space with ease and I find myself setting the volume where I did with my last set of speakers only to find myself coming back and turning down the volume. They can play loud!
The Monitor Audio Gold 300s are at the bottom of your price window at $8000 but as I have found out will out play most anything in their class!
TAS has given it a editors choice award two years running. There a lot of very positive reviews online about it here are two. They deserve an audition!
Most every speaker mentioned are unduly/unwieldy heavy. I offer you Emerald Physics OB (I have 3.4s). There's a couple models available right now in AGon ads. Both had an MSRP in ~ $10K range, but now available < $3K
Whereabouts on the planet are you? I have a pair that are 92 dB efficient, bass to 18 hz but flat to 24hz and articulate! While these rock concert levels I really like that I don’t have to turn them up to hear all the detail in a recording. These speakers are sensitive to source and really respond to proper component matching, they’re about the size and weight of the revel salon 2’s, but more attractive and much easier to drive. My favorite passive speakers evah.
I went similar shopping and chose Revel Studio 2's. (used 6-8K) new 12K. Excellent for the money. I have since upgraded to Salon 2's , but I have a big room. They are not the most efficient, but are smooth and a great value if you can still find them. Excellent imaging and soundstage, non fatiguing. Solid resale. I believe the Salons and ?Studios are discontinued, My thought is that they will be reinvented by Revel at a much higher price.
ATC 19A. Forget the amps, you don’t need them. Sealed cabinets so less interaction with surroundings. Quite dynamic and really really fast. Substantial bass yet not rumbling. Small unobtrusive footprint. 10K/pr.
Why is efficiency an issue, if your projected amp will be 300 watts? In your price range, Rick Craig at Selah Audio could do something really special, tailored to your tastes. Many of his designs are a little less efficient, say sub 90. Daedalus makes higher efficiency box designs that are lovely, and can sound very nice at low volumes.
I'll chip in and 2nd the suggestion of Tritons...great imaging, open, delicate tops and deep, deep, controlled bass. Have about 91db efficiency. Currently I run an NAD M33 out to mine and have zero complaints.
+6 (or whatever we're up to) for Legacy Audio. Girlfriends come and go, but my Signature SEs stay.
Sublime sound and particularly beautiful in the rosewood (although JL19's olive burl ash sounds lovely). And at the bottom of the OP's price range.
Obviously, there is a world of great choices for $8K or thereabouts, but what I and others are saying is that you just can't go wrong with Legacy. Stunning fit and finish, rock-solid workmanship, and top-notch people.
I’ll second the Vandersteen Treo CT’s. I have had the original Treo’s for a few years now and continue to be blown away by how good they sound. I have similar music tastes as you and listen to vinyl, CD’s and Stream and all formats sound great at both low and high volumes. They are definitely worth auditioning.
I owned the Focus 20/20, a previous model and had a hard time parting with them, but they were just too big for my listening space. From everything I’ve read the SE is a big step up from the 20/20. I was tempted to drive down and get them, but I know at some point I’d end up getting rid of them due to the size.
NSMT Model 100, Spatial X3/5, QLN P3, Legacy, Emerald Physics. @glupson, Yes Eric is looking at aesthetics for future models, there could be a new design using the 15 tweeter array that is a big departure from a Moab box.
Have you considered Larsen Model 8's? At the high end of your price range but specifically designed as agnostic to room placement. I run them with a Bel Canto EX Black Integrated, BLUOS Vault, and a modified Shinola (API) turntable. I occasionally think about switching to Harbeth but after a long wear in period (over 1 year now) overall sound is great. They can be placed against the wall (Larsen recommends), but I've tried some different placements. Good luck!
Considering your requirements (especially tonal/timbre accuracy, dynamics, air, etc) and for your budget, you may find it hard to beat the following two speakers:
Technics SB-R1 (16k USD MSRP, you could possibly whittle it down to 13k) Yamaha NS5000 (15k USD MSRP, you could possibly whittle it down to 13k)
1. Spatial Audio X5. I own these speakers and they SMOKE! They do need to be at least 3 ft. off the front wall to create a musical magic show and the more distance from the front wall will help to eliminate bass cancellation that dipole speakers are prone to have. They take a long time to break in, so you should not judge them critically until after about 200+ hours of break in. They are very thin in depth, but they are 14” wide as you mentioned they were big, but they work for me in my space, so hopefully you will reconsider them. I haven’t heard anything in their price range that sounded that good. Pure Audio Project (PAP) supposedly has a nice open baffle design, but I chose Spatial Audio because the PAP’s were even bigger in width and their business model of having customers build their own speaker wasn’t something I wanted to deal with. PAP’s owner, Ze’ve, was great to talk to and I almost bought a pair. With the X5’s, all instruments sound real and they deliver a very open soundstage. It is very different from box speakers which don’t sound as open after you compare them to Spatial Audio’s open baffle design. I would say you have to spend a lot of money on a box speaker to truly outperform the X5’s. My front end gear is a Mac mini, Intona USB isolator, Intona USB cables, HoloAudio Spring DAC2 KTE version, PrimaLuna EVO 400 preamp and amp combo, Cardas Audio XLR interconnects and speaker cables. I can’t say if PrimaLuna sounds better than the AR LS28, but the build quality of PrimaLuna gear is hard to beat at it’s price point. Call Spatial Audio’s owner, Clayton Shaw. He is very personable and will answer all of your questions.
2. Wilson Audio Sabrina (Used) - If I decided to go back to a traditional box speaker design, I would buy a used pair of Wilson Audio Sabrina speakers. They smoke, period! My cousin owns a pair of Sabrina’s and his front in gear is a CJ LS17 preamp and CJ Premier 11 mono blocks and his system sounds great. His room treatments took it to another level as well.
Lastly, after all these years of building my hifi system, I finally learned that room treatments make a big difference. We don’t realize how much we are listening to our room vs. our hifi gear. We keep replacing components thinking something is wrong with our gear when it’s our room we are listening to due to a lack of room treatments. Treat the room before critically judging your hifi gear. The room treatments are cheap compared to what we pay for our hifi gear. I like GIK Acoustics’ room treatment offerings.
I've had the Spatial Audio X5's for almost a year now and really like them. Can't help you with size, although they are less than 4 feet tall. If it's about being obtrusive in the room, I have Herbies Audio Labs slider / isolation feet and I slide them in and out of place for listening sessions. And if you like ribbon tweeters, you will love that top of the line AMT that Clayton uses on the X series. Plus you are at the low end of your budget. One suggestion....I've had the Prima Luna pre and had Don Sachs all in preamp made for me about a year ago and there is really no comparison. Don's pre with those high end 6sn7 tubes gives depth and soundstage, along with tonal quality that is stunning. Best of luck on your search.
Scansonic is Raidho’s low end. I have owned Raidho’s personally. They are great speakers and that sound is why I suggested Scansonic. I think “wildly” overpriced is a bit extreme but they are not inexpensive. I think their monitors are their best speakers.
Hey gakety, I too am an owner of Legacy Signature SEs. You nailed it, amazing, natural, accurate, easy to listen to, and extremely well built. I went to the factory to audition and back again to buy them. Went back a 3rd time to buy their 5 channel amp. Got a tour of the facility and met with the staff and Bill. Brice and Victoria were very kind, personal, knowledgeable, patient, and welcoming. And then there is the owner/chief designer, Bill. An absolutely brilliant, personal, funny, engaging, and down to earth midwest guy. The kind of guy you'd sit next to in a bar and the conversation would go on for hours without knowing he is an award winning pioneer of sound. I've been to the factory 3 times and 3rd time Bill took my wife and me into the sound chamber to listen to a new product to get our input. Blew our minds and had a blast. One other thing, Legacy Audio is a family owned USA company and each product is built by real people who take pride in their work. Good luck and give them a listen, you won't be disappointed. KH
Fyne Audio F702 (8" drivers) or F703 (10" drivers). By way of technology and engineering team, they’re the new Tannoy. By all witness accounts I’ve seen so far (I really need to hear them), they’re also modern successors of the "good Tannoy" sound (imo Tannoy had some models that missed the mark, e.g. I never liked the Definition series).
I simply love the coherence and musicality of the dual-concentric design. It’s unlikely I would consider anything else ever again. They’re high efficiency: 92dB / Watt on the F702, 94dB on the F703! The Fyne F70X cabinets, in your choice of finish, look SWEET and are contemporary/modern/cool, unlike the traditional English Tannoy Prestige & Legacy cabinets. Tannoys are good for all genres, and by all accounts the same holds for Fyne. Tannoys were always good loud. What I’m hearing is that the new Fynes may be better than Tannoys at low volumes, too.
Of course you can also look at Tannoys too - they’re still good! Prestige Turnberry GR and Legacy Ardens fit in your budget.
Thank you all. There is a lot to think about and I had a friend mention a used pair of Raidho's. Everyone seems to love them and equally so mock their price new. Anyone own Raidho's and if so, what are your thoughts? Thanks
The LS27 or The Ref 5 or 5e will really rock a pair of Maggies 3.7i. I`ve own Maggies since 1978 I`m still holding on to my 3.6`s I`ve used the AR LS22 all Tube line stage Preamp also the ref.5
+1 khowlett. I am a new owner of Legacy Signature SEs and am smitten with the sound. Airy and extended in treble, powerful, but not bloaty bass, smooth midrange, just easy on the ears, being quite detailed, yet non fatiguing. They're not even broken in yet. This is coming from Tannoy X8TF floor standers. The Legacy have so much more meat on the bones, and the Legacys sound richer at lower volumes as well. I was worried that the 4 ohm impedance might be a problem, but my Rogue Stereo 100 with almost 100 watts in ultralinear drives them with authority and finesse. Also, the friendly and knowledgable customer service of Legacy has been welcome. I love these speakers!
The ohm would need a different type of amplifier to open up the treble range for you they are current hungry and hard to drive properly but they would be the best choice of your three listed with the right amplifier. Another very good choice would be a large british monitor from harbeth or spendor. The only thing is that a class D amplifier will have issues in the treble with all of these speakers.
This is tough because each speaker behaves differently in different spaces. It is tough to say you can get one universal speaker that works everywhere. But, what I can offer is two suggestions if your room is generally larger (> than 15' x 20') or Smaller.
If your room is larger and you like ribbons, you have to look at Scansonic. For what you want, I would consider the MB5 Bs and MB6 Bs. The 5s are probably best as they are not as imposing. The 6s are...large but impressive. Huge, immersive soundstage. Wonderful imaging and they will give you the top end sparkle you are looking for without drifting to brightness.
If your room is smaller, you should look at MBLs hybrids. The Radialstrahler 126s are a standmount, in your price range. Nothing images like them. You would probably want a subwoofer with them. Something like a Perlisten D12S would be an incredible match. For what you are describing, MBL is the ultimate product.
The final product you should think about is the Audiovector R3. This is a super flexible speaker in terms of placement, designed to give you an insane soundstage, wonderful imaging. The only thing I would say is that you should re-think your amp choice. Despite having an AMT, it is very natural sounding. Bel Canto will be nice with it, something a hair brighter might be better.
Full disclosure, I am a Scansonic and Perlisten dealer. I am evaluating MBL and am likely to become an MBL dealer and continue to flirt with Audiovector.
Amazing, but no longer made. I love my 3.4s, but due to my large room I have 2 @ 12" SVS powered subs, but dual 15" x 4 in the 2.8s will be much better I have a pair of 2.8s coming soon
Made in the Springfield Illinois, USA, Legacy Audio speakers will blow your mind and check all you boxes. Do yourself a favor and go to their website for a good read. Heck, give them a call with your questions. The staff is very friendly, extremely knowledgeable and you never know, you may even get the owner, Bill, on the phone. Legacy Audio is a world class audio company, made right here in the good old USA. Their products are second to none, you will not be disappointed. Kevin
Bache Audio. I've been living with the Tribeca's now for just over a year and couldn't be happier. 90db, and that modified 8" wide band driver produces a beautiful sounding midrange. Very open and holographic. I had Quad 57s and sold them because I felt the Tribeca's were much better overall. Plus, they are great from anything from female vocals to acoustic rock, Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Mahler, or Blue Note jazz. These are below your budget. I was looking at speakers up to $15K.
Physically, these are relatively unobtrusive, good-looking speakers. All have received good reviews.
But, what do the HiFi shops in your area sell? Have you checked out what you might be able to try out in your home without risking a big deposit or re-stocking fee?
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