New Speaker Time!

I've finally achieved some serious vintage synergy with a McIntosh MA5100 amp/pre-amp (45Watts x 2) and a Thorens TD-160. I enjoy my Mordaunt-Short Carnival 2 bookshelf speakers, but I'm looking for something...more powerful...or different. They're British, neutral, good imagers, and doubly front-ported.

I need these standards for new speakers:
• $300-400ish
• Front-ported, as they will be on bookshelving (with books, no choice)
• Great synergy with vintage amp/TT (primarily rock, jazz, reggae), will also play TV/bluray through them but record synergy most important
• Enough bass w/o subwoofer (not an option—will use loudness feature on amp for bass boost)
• Non-fatiguing for endless hours in a small/medium-sized living room
• Punchy, not polite—I like to rock
• Nice details, not overly bright

I've been eying the KEF Q100's, on sale for $300 on their site. I like that they're not heavily reliant on perfect positioning (not centered in room) and get good sound image write ups, but I'm a little hesitant as I've heard they're a little bright from some (tho maybe my setup would offset that?), power-hungry (would my 5100 have enough juice?) and they're not magnetically shielded (near my Samsung LCD HDTV—tho maybe not a factor?).

Does anyone have experience with these? Unfortunately, they're not sold somewhere that I can test them. Are they $550 speakers now at a bargain $300, or just $300 speakers normally overpriced at $550?

Are there other similarly priced quality front-ported bookshelf speakers that people have good experience with? There're so many it's hard to wade through them all. I'd appreciate any constructive comments.

Thanks everyone for their time and assistance,

Bill

 

The Andrew Jones designed ELAC B6

 

Metralia,

Thanks for the suggestion. I have seen these. Do you own them? Are they better than the KEF's?

Thanks,

Bill

PS Just checked the Elacs out again. People love them, but they're rear-ported—and I absolutely can't swing that. Thanks for the suggestion though!

 

Focal 706Vs are front ported.

 

Yes, they are rear ported. Don't you have any back wall clearance?

 

I'll check those Focals. Thanks!

Unfortunately, I don't. My speakers reside on inlaid book shelving with a minimum of wall clearance. No choice on that. Front-ported speakers are a must. Hence, my interest in the KEF Q100's.

 

Thanks - I can see why they are a non-starter.

 

My nephew has the Q100s in a bedroom system with an Audioengine amp. Personally, I rate them higher than the Elac B6s, although I do like those as well. The Q100s are not bright in my experience and sound pretty detailed and neutral to me. I'm not sure that they'll give you a lot of bass power/punch that you're looking for, but for their size, they do pretty well in the bass. How large is the space you'd be using them in?

 

TeflonScoundrel,

I'm realistic with the bass aspect. That's a compromise made with bookshelf speaker living. But I've liked what I've read about the Q100's regarding bass—and what you've stated, as well. As long as it's decent—not totally buried—I can probably compensate through my amp and live with it.

My living room is about 12'x10' with low ceilings and rugs in hardwood floors. Can they amply fill that size/type of room, in your opinion?

I'm looking for more "punch" or "attack" from my speakers since I obtained my Thorens turntable, which really beefed up my amp's sound. And I wonder how much further in that direction new bookshelves can take me.

What amp does your nephew use? And since you've listened to them, would you recommend the Q100's, in the end, for what I'm looking for?

Thanks,

Bill

 

The Q300 is $400 ($349 on an open box)- more grunt there.

The Monitor Audio Bronze 2 is $378, with 30-day guarantee from audioadvisor.com

The Monitor is 3dB more sensitive. The KEF handles a bit more power.

What Hi-Fi has reviews on both.

 

I do think that they will do well in that size room.

My nephew's amp is the Audioengine N22 which only has 22 watts/channel and his room is probably similar in size to yours so your amp would be a significant upgrade over his in my opinion and they already sound really good with his.

I also think they do have well defined bass with good punch within their size constraints so I would recommend them for your needs. I think they are a bargain at their sale price as well.

However, If you can stretch to the Q300 and have the space for them, they would likely be even better for your needs, but I haven't heard them myself.

 

Excellent suggestions. Will look up both. Do you have any experience with either of these speakers?

Thanks,

Bill

 

Great details. Thanks for the recommendation/thoughts.

Bill

 

Unfortunately, no. I've wondered about the Bronzes for a good while now, since What Hi-Fi went ga-ga over the previous model, the BX2. To me, they seem like they and the Mac could be friends, but I may have an overly active imagination. Audio Advisor is nice about returns, having done so a time or two myself.

I liked the KEF's 6.5" predecessor of about 15 years ago. Didn't buy them, as they didn't seem to be "me", but they had a unique, and nice, sound in the highs. Likers might have said something like "silky" or "airy" and detractors might have said something like wispy. (My detractors might say something like "full of it". )