Need speaker recommendation

9397SVTs

9397SVTs

Audioholic
I have a Marantz 7011 A/V receiver, Yamaha CDC-697 CD player, and Parasound 2250 V2 amp. What would be appropriate speakers for this set-up in the $4K-$5K range? Or, are the components good enough to move into the $6K-$8K range?

I am only going to use the speakers for music, not home theater.

Thanks for any input.
 
9397SVTs

9397SVTs

Audioholic
Am I leaving out other pertinent information that is needed?
 
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shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
What kind of music do you listen to? If something like chorals or strings, than you don't need very deep bass extension which would change the recommendations that you get. If you like powerful bass, I would get two subwoofers and two bookshelf speakers. If you don't care for thunderous bass, I would go for some tower speakers.
 
9397SVTs

9397SVTs

Audioholic
The music varies, but is prominently rock. 80's rock/ metal mostly. Blues, jazz, and pop 40% of the time. I have a large listening area, so I'm not sure bookshelf speakers will get the job done.

I'm thinking about speakers along the lines of B&W CM 10 S2 to Sonus Faber Venere S. Not sure if my equipment is on the same scale as these. Looking for knowledge opinions and insight.
 
rojo

rojo

Audioholic Samurai
The music varies, but is prominently rock. 80's rock/ metal mostly. Blues, jazz, and pop 40% of the time. I have a large listening area, so I'm not sure bookshelf speakers will get the job done.

I'm thinking about speakers along the lines of B&W CM 10 S2 to Sonus Faber Venere S. Not sure if my equipment is on the same scale as these. Looking for knowledge opinions and insight.
What's the distance between your intended speaker placement and your primary listening position? Are you interested in speakers with higher sensitivity?

Don't sweat the equipment you have. That equipment ought to be fine regardless of the speakers you choose. Good sound comes from good speakers. There's no need to overspend on electronics. And with your Parasound amp pushing out 275W@8Ω or 400W@4Ω, you will still be able to drive even low-sensitivity speakers to satisfactory levels with enough overhead to handle peaks without clipping.

Unless you're in an extreme environment or looking for dance club level output, the Phil 3 speakers @tyhjaarpa linked ought to be at the top of your list. If, however, you're looking for a frightening level of output, then maybe some JTR speakers would be more what you're looking for.

If you aren't crazy about the separate enclosures of the Phil 3s or the industrial finish of the JTRs, you might also consider the Salk Song3 or Veracity towers.

The B&W speakers you're considering have a rather disappointing dip at 5kHz. The Sonus Fabers could be a bit edgy with some tweeter misbehavior at 10kHz. They're both certainly pretty, though.
 
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Dave Blount

Dave Blount

Junior Audioholic
For your budget I woul take a serious look on these speakers: http://philharmonicaudio.com/phil3.html
nice looking speaker, a quick look at their specs I didn't see a nominal impedance ?

to the Op, give us some ideas to your room environment , size, treated, etc

Are you opposed to buying used ? Ever consider Electrostatics ? Martin Logan has some killer close out pricing on their Summit / Montis line right now.
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Your current equipment is fine and @rojo's advice is spot on. If you seriously consider $8k speakers, I must say that Salk's SS8 are the best speakers I ever heard at any price point, including stuff like 100k Wilson Audio
 
rojo

rojo

Audioholic Samurai
Your current equipment is fine and @rojo's advice is spot on. If you seriously consider $8k speakers, I must say that Salk's SS8 are the best speakers I ever heard at any price point, including stuff like 100k Wilson Audio
Jim Salk actually has a pair of SS10s already built for sale at around 25% off. I didn't mention it in my previous post since it was above OP's suggested budget.
 
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shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
The music varies, but is prominently rock. 80's rock/ metal mostly. Blues, jazz, and pop 40% of the time. I have a large listening area, so I'm not sure bookshelf speakers will get the job done.

I'm thinking about speakers along the lines of B&W CM 10 S2 to Sonus Faber Venere S. Not sure if my equipment is on the same scale as these. Looking for knowledge opinions and insight.
Your equipment is fine for those. As for bookshelf speakers, if the listening area is large, than not all bookshelf speakers are appropriate. Some might work though, as long as they have the requisite dynamic range, such as these. A couple of those Klipsch P-17 speakers plus a couple of good subwoofers like these VTF15h subs in rosenut would rock hard and look nice while doing it. If looks don't matter very much, I would get a couple of these JBL 6332 speakers and a couple Hsu VTF-3 subs. Those speakers are some of the most accurate you can get at any price, and they have plenty of dynamic range to, if you like head-banging. The subs are very accurate as well and have loads of punch. That combo is pure performance for the dollar, but aesthetics do take a backseat to performance in that set.

Another bookshelf speaker that could handle large rooms are these JTR Single 8HT speakers.
 
L1C4

L1C4

Enthusiast
What don't you like about Klipsch and B&W? This reads more like prejudice than useful advice. Support your position with details, please.
You can get a lot better SQ for less money if you find older KEF or Dahlquist. Obviously, I am not speaking to the entire Klipsch line but the reference series is very commonly liked and the sound is mediocre. The same can be said about B&W but you are paying more.
 
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shkumar4963

Audioholic
All good advice. But do audition the speakers you are considering and buy what moves you. If you can not hear the difference, someone is trying to feed you BS.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
9397SVTs

9397SVTs

Audioholic
I have attached a diagram of the main living area. I currently sit 15' from the speakers. They are 10'6" apart, 18 1/2" from the rear wall, and 19" from the side walls. The ceiling height varies from 9' to 10'. The room is untreated. There is ceramic tile throughout. The living room has a 7' X 11' area rug. The furnishings are very uncluttered. The window has full length drapes. I am not opposed to going with used speakers. What is the general consensus of PBN Montana, Linn, or McIntosh? Some of these fit the budget, used of course.

Thanks.
 

Attachments

P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
I have attached a diagram of the main living area. I currently sit 15' from the speakers. They are 10'6" apart, 18 1/2" from the rear wall, and 19" from the side walls. The ceiling height varies from 9' to 10'. The room is untreated. There is ceramic tile throughout. The living room has a 7' X 11' area rug. The furnishings are very uncluttered. The window has full length drapes. I am not opposed to going with used speakers. What is the general consensus of PBN Montana, Linn, or McIntosh? Some of these fit the budget, used of course.

Thanks.
If you can get some good deals on the KEF R500, or R300 plus stands you probably can assemble a 5.1 system for $6000, not including a sub.
 
B

Brian H.

Enthusiast
I would recommend purchasing the JBL LS-80's. They go for 6-7g's, but man are they ever worth it! They would fit right in with the equipment that you have. They have the compression drivers, 90db's sensitivity, 3 1/2 way, horns, absolutely drop dead gorgeous polished rosewood grain finish, etc. I personally have 2 pair's of them that I use . I replaced the front main's with the array 1400's, and currently use the other pair for rear surrounds. I will be putting the first pair into a dedicated stereo listening room. I seriously recommend you give.these baby's a demo. You will not be dissapointed. You can demo a pair at Alltronics 2000 on blood st. W. That is where I purchased mine.You can listen to these speakers for extended periods of time and not get fatigued at all. They will sound great with any music or movie's that you have. But, like anything else you demo, if you find yourself getting more enjoyment out of your music with whatever brand you audition, then your on the right track. Put these guy's on your short list. You will NOT be disappointed at all. Thank's for listening to my comment's. Happy listening, Brian.
 
B

Brian H.

Enthusiast
Correction on my spelling bad ,it should have read Alltronic's 2000, on Bloor st. W. Sorry about that. Brian.
 
Peggy A Heil

Peggy A Heil

Audiophyte
Well if you have not already purchased something, you would not be sorry if you auditioned a pair of Legacy Audio series tower speakers. They have incredible sound and are built like a piece of furniture. Absolutely gorgeous sound and looks. Mine weigh in at 110 lbs. each. whatever you do just be happy with your decision...
 
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