new loudspeakers..help!!

[bkmerrill]

so im new to this, obviously, and was wondering if i could get some advice!

i am looking for two new floorstanding speakers to use in a 5.1 system, as the front left/right speakers, as well as for music (50/50 music/movies)...my price range is 400-500 each (~1000/pair) and had looked at jbl L880's, polk monitor 70's (although i heard they had bad tweeters...), klipsch reference 8", and a few others...i am not a home theater or audio guru, so i dont need the best of the best, but i DO want something high quality, something durable, something versatile (for movies AND all types of music), and something that isnt gonna wimp out if i crank it up...any advice is appreciated!!

 

[dronezero]

Do you already have a center speaker? It is going to be important to match the center speaker with the two mains so that you have a seamless front soundstage for movies. Also at $1000 you might want to consider bookshelves on a stand if you have a good sub already.

Disregarding the above for the time being you should check out Axiom audio their M60 would be a good tower in your price range.

 

[bkmerrill]

Well, I have a center speaker and 200w powered sub that came with my Sony 7100 system, they should do, but the sub isn't the best, and I'd still like loudspeakers with good bass capability for music...knowing this, what would yall advise?

 

[fredk]

The M60 is a very capable speaker for music. It has a very flat frequency response and some find it dosn't have enough bass for their liking. I personally think it has enough, but thats me.

The M60 + sub would give you all the bass you need.

Fred

 

[calnbs]

There are many brands that you can look into from Axiom, Aperions, AV123, Swans (Swan's 4.1 are on sale), and many other that are sold in-store such as Boston Acoustic, Polk RTi. What ever you do, make sure your Left, Center, Right speaker matches. For budget speakers, look into BIC and ED as well. For more info, hit www.avsforum.com speaker owner's thread.

As for HT experience, you might be better off with one of the subs from AV123 MFW 15, SVS, or HSU. But with these options, your budget also goes out the door as well. Look at it this way, better to get good stuff once than keep on upgrading every other year...in the long run, it's cheaper to go good once than go average many, many more times. My .02 cents.

 

[dronezero]

Having the front 3 speakers matching is going to be very important for movies. I would recommend decreasing the budget on your mains in order to squeeze in a matching center. Looking at the Axiom maybe the M50 instead of the M60 would allow you to get the matching VP100 for just a hair over $1000.

 

[bkmerrill]

so ive never heard of the axiom speakers before, they are high quality im assuming? ive heard of boston acoustics, polk, klipsch, jbl, and a few others, but some of these names are new to me (since im kinda new to audio equipment)...so i know my receiver is 140W/channel, which should be sufficient to drive the speakers for what i need them for, so what ive gathered so far is that even though ive purchased a htib system, id be best off buying new left, center, and right speakers (all matching) to replace the speakers that came with the system, rather than just buying two front left/right speakers and keeping my sony center channel, is that correct? so i need to sacrifice having better left/right speakers to ensure that the center matches...i wasnt planning on buying a center channel, but based on yalls advice, now im considering it...so what would be the best 3 speaker set for this for under 1100? keeping in mind that im going to be using them for music a lot also, not just movies.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Aperion is one good option. There are so many.
I think the Def Tech BP10Bs are also great speakers in your price range & description.

 

[bkmerrill]

so, the big question for me is that, with so many options, how can there not be one or two sets of speakers that set themselves apart from the rest? is it that much of a subjective thing, that there arent certain speakers that are just considered the best? or the most durable? or the best sounding? i figure as a consumer that there has to be a way to find what would be the "best" option, but then again, im new to this, and maybe speakers are really all very similar and their quality is just based on the opinion of the listener...

 

[calnbs]

Yes, its better that your front 3 matches. Most of the speaker companies you never heard of are internet-direct companies. They don't sell their speakers in retail stores and are not mass marketed like other traditional speaker companies like polks or infinity. With that said, they all have received excellent reviews by many websites, forums, and owners. They do offer a great bang for the buck type of deal without dealing with paying the middleman. I, myself went with Internet Direct and I am very happy with my results.

The choices of speaker to go with will all come down to your taste. What do you like as far as sound goes: foward, netrual, laid back? Tweeters: dome or horn? These are the kind of questions you are going to have to ask yourself. All the speakers mentioned so far are all great in their own ways and there are also a lot of others that have yet to be mention that are also great.

Start hitting the owner's thread on the other forum to get a sense of what these speakers are all about. In the END, ONLY YOU KNOW WHAT'S THE BEST SPEAKER TO YOU.

 

[bkmerrill]

you mention different types of tweeters, and i know there are varying levels in the bass capabilities of different speakers, so because my knowledge is lacking, let me inform you more on my use of them:

i am a younger consumer, listening to rap, rock, and country...i do not need something good for classical music, or anything like that...as far as movies go, i watch a lot of things...what is the difference between domes or horns as far as music goes? to be honest, i probably wont be able to tell a difference in the sound unless i have the speakers side by side to compare, which is impossible with these internet direct companies, so im relying on the information, opinions, and advice provided through my research now knowing what i use them for, what can you say? oh and i will listen to LOUD music too, as i previously stated, so i dont want something that will not like louder music.