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Best Small Speaker NOT B&W's 805N?

We auditioned B&W's Nautilus 805's in our living room and they sounded great. Unfortunately, my wife doesn't like the aesthetic styling of the B&W's and would prefer a more tradional looking box. We'd like to listen to some alternatives before making our final choice and would appreciate some help. Our living room is sonically awkward, because it is large and very bright. The windows and the furniture are situated to take advantage of some lovely views; but this makes speaker placement difficult. Still, we can create a quite nice near-field listening environment so long as the speakers we use are roughly the size of the B&W 805N's. We listen mostly to jazz, particularly piano and vocal. We would appreciate suggestions for 'best' speakers that are similar in size to the B&W's but with a more traditional look to them. Thanks in advance for your help! Kurt ield . look of the tweeter sitting on top of the box We have a living room in which the furniture layout prohibits anythin auditioned the B&W 805 Nautilus y wife and I
kvolk11f2e
avalon
23 posts
 
If I were you I'd give a try to Audio Physic Steps SLE with out a doubt in my mind that better than all mini monitors form Pro Ac....good luck
rt
1 posts
 
I think that the Proacs mentioned would be a good bet. But also consider the following speakers: For the price of the B&W 805's (which I examined, but did not demo last weekend) you should consider a pair of meadowlark shearwater speakers (avoids buying a stand, but is a transmission line 2-way speaker) (see www.meadowlarkaudio.com), the gershmanacoustic x-1 monitor (see www.gershmanacoustics.com), or the nohr reversed horn 7.0 monitor speakers (see www.nohr.com). Two of these speaker use the scanspeak driver/tweeter combination which are world renowned drivers and it easy to hear why. The nohr is a radical look, which I doubt your wife will like. But I think that Nohr speakers and meadowlarks are THE best deals on the market. The gershman speaker I am not familiar with except that I own the Gershman Acoustics Avante Garde speakers (a 3-way versus 2-way) and also a pair of meadowlark kestrels speakers. These are by far some of the best speakers on the market. The Gershman speakers are known for their ability to maintain proper tonality on piano pieces, perhaps of interest to you. If you live in the Denver area, I can hook you up with Michael Cellani, formerly of Proac who designs PHENOMENAL two-way speakers. He sells for about $1,700/pair. Very traditional looks. Email me at Todd_Herrington@Parsons.com if I can help with info/experiences. Good luck.
suensiu
5 posts
 
The N805 costs $2000/pr. In this price range, you may try the ProAc Response 1SC and the Focus FS-68 Signature. I listened to these two before and I like them very much. Other possible choices that I haven't auditioned before include the Aerial 5, the Hales Transcendent 1, and the Platinum Solo. It would be better if you state what amplifier you are using with your future monitors.
kvolk0a93
2 posts
 
Thanks to everyone for their kind advice. My wife and I are relative newcomers to 'high end audio'and appreciate the help! Our dealer let us borrow a pair of Revel Gems to audition over the weekend. They are much more expensive than the B&W 805's but they have us pretty well "hooked". For the first time I really hear new sounds on records I've owned for twenty-five years. It's pretty exciting! We're not sure we can afford the Revel Gems, but they sure sound wonderful! Our other equipment includes a "VSP Labs" amplifier, which I think sounds very nice - (I posted a seperate question looking for info on this amp). Our pre-amp is from PS Audio and will soon be upgrade to a Mark Levinson 380S or Krell KRC-HR or the Sonic Frontiers SF usnit. We also have a Nakimichi Tape Deck which is superlative. Our turntable is from Denon. It is not 'audiophile' caliber, but it seems to work convenieand well. Thanks for al he help. KVolk
kvolk0a93
2 posts
 
Thanks to everyone for their kind advice. My wife and I are relative newcomers to 'high end audio'and appreciate the help! Our dealer let us borrow a pair of Revel Gems to audition over the weekend. They are much more expensive than the B&W 805's but they have us pretty well "hooked". For the first time I really hear new sounds on records I've owned for twenty-five years. It's pretty exciting! We're not sure we can afford the Revel Gems, but they sure sound wonderful! Our other equipment includes a "VSP Labs" amplifier, which I think sounds very nice - (I posted a seperate question looking for info on this amp). Our pre-amp is from PS Audio and will soon be upgrade to a Mark Levinson 380S or Krell KRC-HR or the Sonic Frontiers SF usnit. We also have a Nakimichi Tape Deck which is superlative. Our turntable is from Denon. It is not 'audiophile' caliber, but it seems to work convenieand well. Thanks for al he help. KVolk
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