Advice on speaker upgrade $1500 or so budget

Hello to all.

I'm thinking about upgrading my current speaker setup. I have really been enjoying SACD and hi res music for about 6 months now and thinking about possibly getting better sound out of my R/L speakers.

This is my current setup:

Oppo for SACD feeding a Denon X4000 AVR via direct DSD
Denon X4000 R/L Pre out feeding Emotiva XPA-200 2CH amp
B&W 602 S3 Bookshelf speakers
Theater/Music room dimensions 17x15 with 7 foot ceiling.

I would really appreciate your advice/recommendations and I don't mind buying used.

 

I suggest listening to a pair of KEF LS50. Excellent sound (in my opinion) and keeps the same relative size.

 

Do you need bookshelf speakers?
If you can go with floor standers, I would suggest listening to a pair of Vandersteen 1CI's.

 

Or B&W 683 S2.

 

Rega RS3's or maybe RS5's, not sure of pricing …

Sjöfn 'the Clue'

 

No I don't need bookshelf speakers. These will be on either side of my 65" LCD TV.

I listened to an interview talking about Golden Ear Triton 7. Anyone ever hear of them? There is a dealer in my area.

 

Go listen to the Triton's if you can. I would try and listen to some Vandersteen 1Cis. Those, with stands, are right in your range.

http://vandersteen.com/media/files/Reprints/tone_vandersteen1ci_review.pdf

I had a pair of 1Bs for more than 20 years. Take some time and listen to everything you can.

 

Or you could go planar for a real change. Maggie 12qr or the upcoming .7s? The Emotiva might be considered a little underpowered by some Maggieficionados, but I have a similar wattage T+A 1520 on my Maggie 12 speakers and am loving life...

 

Hi. I have the B&W DM601s (original version), used them in my main stereo system with older amplification, now serve as main L-R in my 'inexpensive' surround system in the family room. When I went to my current Triangle Titus monitors (ca. 2003) these certainly were a step up.

I suspect you are correct in thinking there are better speakers ... at $1500 there are MANY choices, as with all things. Yes, read, listen if possible etc. to as many examples as you can. IF you want to stay with monitor types, maybe look at the KEF LS50s or used Reference 3A MM DeCapos (which are MY desires at the moment). Of course there are others.

Floorstanders? Certainly the GE Tritons seem appealing. I'd also look at Monitor Audio, their Silver series (was RS6, then RX6, now just '6' and etc. I think) looks/reads interesting. Other KEF floorstanders? Q700s or something?

Huh! here's an interesting link http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/2014-buyers-guide-stand-mount-loudspeakers-1000-2000/
altho they don't seem to have one for floorstanders in the same price range.

Maybe the PSB Image T6 or something would be good too ...

 

Nola Boxers, Totem Rainmakers, KEF LS50s

 

Guru Juniors

 

http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/2013-tas-editors-choice-awards-loudspeakers-1000-1500/
has some other speakers ... and check out the comments too.

 

They are a great speaker for the money and I think will surprise you with their performance. I was at a dealer and demo'd them against the B&W 683. The sales guy acted like he was embarrassed to play the Tritons, obviously thinking they were vastly inferior. But for me they tromped all over the B&Ws in ways that matter to me--e.g. I could easily follow bass lines but without being overbearing, plus the tweeter is very nice. Speakers are the most personal component, so you should definitely listen before buying.

John K.

 

i'm not sure why the kef r300 hasn't been mentioned. stunning speaker that bests many floorstanders. some consider it the best 'bookshelf' going, but them may be fightin' words. check it out.

 

Boy, thanks for all the advice so far.

I went to a dealer in my area "Hi Def Lifestyles"

I listened to:

GoldenEar Triton 7 - $1150 I thought the imaging was really good.

Dali Zensor 7 - $1000 nice mid range and good imaging (speaker is recommended to not be toed in)

Focal Chorus 716 - $1349 These sounded maybe a tad better then the first two but not by much.

Mozart Grand SE - $1800 These are really small for floor standers. I think they were 4" drivers. At first they didnt sound that great until I turned them up and they really came alive. They seem a little power hungry but sounded great.

They all sounded quite better than my B&Ws. Anyone have any comments about these 4? They didn't have the Vandersteens.

 

This is precisely what I was going to recommend.

 

http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo.asp?number=1MRSS6

Monitor Audio Silver 6 (latest version in the RS6 - RX6 series) ... I'm tempted to buy these myself ... and a Parasound A21 ... but would be divorced/killed ...

PS: the metal spikes can be removed (unscrewed) leaving the teflon (?) pad for use on hardwood (or Pergo in my case) floors.

PPS: I have bought several items from Audio Advisor (mostly demo, refurbished, closeout, etc.) and have always been very pleased. They are superb to work with and very responsive etc.. My refurbed Parasound P7 ($2395 list, $1499 refurb price with original 5 year warranty intact) arrived the other day, itching to install it this weekend!

 

I'm partial to the LS50s obviously but I do feel they need help down below. That said, from 80Hz on up they trounce the KEF Q700s (I have a pair of those as well.)

Truth is, there are a lot of great options in this price range so as has already been said - check out as many options as you can.

 

I like the Vandersteen 1Ci recommendation above. Once set up properly, they are great for the money.

 

I was going to suggest the Focals that are on clearance from Music Direct. Here is the 826 for $1499 (free shipping.)

http://www.musicdirect.com/p-139684-focal-chorus-826v-tower-speakers-pr.aspx

 

these do look amazing especially at the price ... I was concerned about the minimum impedance (seemingly <3 ohms but only around a narrow region in the upper bass) but with the high sensitivity they seem easier to drive than one may think (at less than jet-engine levels, of course). If your Emotiva amp runs out of steam, I bet the aforementioned Parasound A-21 would be an excellent match!

 

I have the Focal 826w which uses different drivers. I really like them. If you have a Bonnie situation, the Focals are highly attractive and the price is extremely right. Had the Vandy 1c's for years. Recommended, but the 826w is superior.

 

as others have asked, loved the golden ear t-7, extremely smooth. just not enough deep bass for my preference and the tweeters had a narrow sweet spot- a small amount of head movement and the response changes noticeably.
the two I would recommend are paradigm monitor 11 (deep visceral bass and smooth midrange / high end yet with sparkle) and PSB image t6- clear accurate midrange voicing (a true 3-way system with dedicated midrange driver) and plentiful bass from the dual 6-1/2" woofers.

 

These seem physically large? I need something wife friendly thats why I checked out a couple smaller towers like the Triton 7 and Vienna Mozart Grand SE.

I heard the KEF LS50 today. How did they get a speaker that small to sound that good? They are nice but are a little small and might not look right in my setup. Also worried about their low sensitivity.

By the way what's a Bonnie situation?

 

Even with the KEFs' 85dB/W/m sensitivity, your Emotiva should drive them to quite loud levels ...
http://myhometheater.homestead.com/splcalculator.html not sure what to put in the boxes exactly, but 84.5dB, 150W, 8' (with 2 speakers), away from walls (worst case) you can get 100dB SPL which is pretty loud IIUC. The Emotiva actually can put out 240W into the 4 ohm load ... maybe the sensitivity should be 'reduced' to 81.5 due to the 4 ohm load, but if you then put 240W into the calc, you still get 100dB.

BTW, seems to me that the Focal speakers aren't really much if any 'bigger' than the Triton 7's, and even the LS50s on stands will take up as much space/be as large as those.