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What now?

At the risk of repeating a question that has been asked and answered a few times, let me tell you my story.  I am an old-time audiophile (now 79) who has to adapt to new circumstances.  For the past forty years or more I have listened to music on two pairs of Snell type A speakers (A and AIII), one pair in my living room and another pair in the studio where I paint.  I have moved to a smaller house.  I had to sell the Snells because I don't have room for them (they went to a good home).  I also have sold some fairly high end equipment that powered them.  I now have two Marantz 60009 receivers and a nice vintage turntable.  The turntable is in a small (about 12x15) room, with a piano.  I need to find floor-standing speakers I can put on either side of the piano and close to the wall behind them.  I want to find them used, but not too used - I don't want to need to repair them anytime soon.  I am used to good sound and my hearing is still pretty good.  I listen to some classical, some choral, some solo voice, some guitar, etc.  I like what might be called a "warm" tone - without wanting to get into a debate about what that means - just don't want treble that is on the edgy side.  My budget is flexible, but not unlimited - maybe from $700 to $3000.  I do care how they look.  Some years ago I had a pair of Acoustic Zen adagios, which were OK, but I always preferred the Snells (maybe I was just used to them).  So - what do you recommend?  Adagio?  Vienna Acoustic Bach?  Tannoy?  Sonus Faber?  I am not in a place where I can easily audition speakers, and many of the ones I would consider are no longer sold new anyway, so I need to rely to some extent on the judgment of others.  What do you think?

 

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oldaudiophile
290 posts
 

A word of caution regarding speakers with AMT tweeters. In my experience and as some professional reviewers have also pointed out, speakers with tweeters like this can sometimes cause listening fatigue, sometimes relatively quickly, if the listening position has a wall directly behind it. The emptier the space behind your listening position, the better. I would say, at very least, 6 feet of empty space but more is better.

twilightround's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
twilightround OP
39 posts
 

Again, thanks for the comments.  I have a couple of prospects.  One is Ohm 1000 new at about $2900 with shipping, with a return option if they just don't work for me.  A second is Melin VSM-MXe with Bam in mint condition, asking $3400 and about 50 miles from me.  The seller says he researched speakers for many hours to find ones that worked well quite near a front wall, and the Merlins were his choice.  They were much more expensive than the Ohms ($13,000), Stereophile A rated, but are probably more than 10 years old, which is a concern because I don't really want to get into repairing very heavy speakers. They are supposed to be good in a small room.  Also have a chance to buy Ohm 3X0 about 50 miles away, with new drivers installed by Ohm, for $3500, but Ohm says they may be too much for my smallish space.  I'm thinking the new Ohm 1000s may be the safer choice.  Any thoughts?

grislybutter
2,415 posts
 

i would cast a wider net. If you are comfortable with ordering from Amazon and Crutchfield, you can try out a lot of great options. But it sounds like you are set on the Ohm, and just want confirmation?

stringreen's avatar
stringreen
6,386 posts
 

The answer is earphones

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