Bookshelf Speakers - Urge To Upgrade Soon

...are fabulous. Heard them at Audio Element in Pasadena, California. They sounded really nice all throughout the shop,* cranked out some Led Zeppelin and sounded really sweet on some Kind Of Blue tracks. If they fit my current situation I'd grab them in a minute, quite possibly over more expensive stuff. Old school appeal but they are brand new! And thus, benefit from 30 years of refinements in loudspeaker design theory, design/simulation tool improvement, and manufacturing efficiency. Much better driver-to-driver integration that I believe you would experience from actual ancient speakers. I cannot believe Lintons are just $1500 with the so-retro-cool matching stands. I don't have vinyl but I could buy a bunch of damaged LPs cheap, glue them together to make a false front, and hollow out the interior to hide the, er, uh, ahem. Ah, maybe I'd put potted plants under the Lintons. Anyway I sure vote for those.

*@Schwinnparamount mentioned Evo, I can say we agreed the more expensive 4.4 towers did NOT sound good throughout the shop, they had a narrow sweet spot, neither of us would have bought those. We preferred the previous Reva 4 actually.

 

if you consider the Linton, I dont see how you could be happy with the likes of ls50 which have bad bass vs the Linton which use a 8 inch that is meant for bass. Reports seem to indicate that linton vs shl5 in the bass is a obvious step up from the Linton. and the shl5 are no slouch in the bass department.
but yeah, they are bigger.

 

A $900 speaker is not likely to be an upgrade on a speaker that cost $450 11 years ago but technology does move on a bit in that time. A floorstander doesn't actually take up more space than standmounts and not subject to having the right stand. I would say up to $2000 is where you should be looking. KEF R3 territory. For cheaper check out the Wharfedale Evo 4.2. I suspect it is better than the Linton having the larger 4.4.

 

LYD 8
LYD 7
BM 5

With amps included, if your only source is a hard drive there's no need for a preamp, you'll need only a DAC/audio interface (preferably balanced with XLR outs) with volume control.

 

I might disagree with a few folks here. In your first post, you gave us a realistic budget of $1200. And you mention casual listening. By that, I don't think you're the type of audiophile who is listening for every system component to examine what is wrong/missing, etc. You just want to listen to music, and not components.

Plenty of good speakers in your budget. We always want to spend more, but is it necessary in your case?

I do agree with others about maybe considering floor standers. They don't take up much more space all things considering. Plus you could avoid speaker stands ($200), and a sub ($500+). That being said, I like stand mount speakers (for me) because I have a smaller room.

Dynaudio's are a nice choice on your list. They need a good amp though, so you'll probably want something with higher current. The Emit 20's are 4 ohm and fairly low sensitivity. Same is true with some of the Elacs as well. The new Elac Debut Reference ELAC DBR62 Debut 2.0 Reference Bookshelf-Audio Advisor should be on your list, and only $600. Plenty of funds left over for a good sub too.

I haven't tried them, but I would think the Monitor Audio Silver 100's would be worth checking out, top of your budget here. And I think the Wharfedales are worth checking out too, even at different price points they seem to get great reviews. The Lintons as mentioned would be on my list, but you gotta add those cool stands too! Then you're a little over budget. But probably no sub needed since they're 3 ways.

Overall, I think you have a lot of good speakers on your list and what's been mentioned. For casual listening all of these should be bring sense of great sound, at points that still meet your budget. Plus your amp is going to need an upgrade next, and could easily be as much as these speakers. It never ends, if you let it. Our spouses tend not to be quite as supportive of this hobby, but that is a generalization and a bit sexist so I apologize in advance for lumping everyone into the same boat.

 

You probably know this....but the 7025 is a stereo amp. What would you use for a preamp?

Left field suggestion here, but you may want to consider the KEF LS50 wireless.

 

Revel M16 at Music Direct $900 a pair.

 

Another good question. Let me back up to my original plan:

My idea was to build a system that started with a miniPC (like the ones Dell offer) and 27 inch monitor running my customized Foobar2000 layout. This monitor and miniPC would be sitting on top of a credenza-like cabinet right next to all of the stereo equipment.

I thought I could run the signal out of the miniPC's USB and into a basic external DAC like the Schiit Modi 3, and then to a basic 2 channel amp.

I could then either control Foobar2000 with keyboard/mouse directly at the source or remotely with a smartphone app.

But now I am questioning how I would control volume so I guess the Schiit Modi 3 is out unless I buy a seperate preamp.

Most preamps these days have DACs built in and the choices are endless and expensive. Honestly I don't understand why some of these peripherals are so expensive. $1,000 for source switching and volume control....really?

Originally I didn't consider integrateds because just about all of them in my price range have DACs built in which I don't need.

So I'm having to rethink this a bit. I always wanted a piece of Marantz gear but none of them really fit what I am trying to do.

If I up the amp budget a bit the Rogue Audio Sphinx 3 is an integrated that is all analog that might work (but includes a phono stage....ugh).

 

Use a set of heavy metal darts. They make a lasting impression on the wall.

 

ELAC - Debut Reference DBR62 Bookshelf Speakers (Pair)

Supposed to be a fantastic new speaker.

 

These:
Model 81

With an 8" woofer they'll likely do scale better than any on your list. Probably sound better overall too. American made with custom drivers. I own a pair of the EPI 100s they're modeled after, and I'd take even those over any on your list.

 

Focus on if something will meet your needs and don't worry about stuff you don't need inside. If (IF!) the designers are careful, it doesn't hurt anything. I often read this "paying for stuff I won't use" complaints about AVRs, but all that stuff actually LOWERS the price because it enables a much higher sales volume which often is actually more important than parts cost.

And...um...if you're talking about a DAC external to your PC (probably good as PC guts have a reputation as electronically noisy) then why would it be bad to have a DAC in an integrated? It sounds quite convenient. Even more convenient is built-in Airplay or Spotify Connect etc, stream all kinds of tunes* for such a ridiculous low price.


* (or free podcasts like this Irish and Celtic Music Podcast )

 

Rega Brio integrated amp and Fyne Audio F500’s or B&W 606’s. The Brio has a phono but you don’t have to use it.