$1500-2000 ish budget for main speakers

[am74Gibson]

Hi everyone. I am slowly rebuilding my HT/Music system and have come down to the last purchase. I am looking for a set of mains which won't make me regret getting rid of my current Infinity RS6 Kappa 6'S.

My old system is/was Marantz SR9300. Infinity RS6 Kappa 6 (nice oak with oak stands), Infinity Alpha 37c (beech) , Infinity RS210 wall-mount surrounds. I will be selling these soon and will place an add in the classifieds and audiogon.com.

I have a pair of M&K v125 subs I will be keeping.

My new system so far is...Denon AVR4308ci, Infinity TSS4000 center channel, Infinity ES250 surrounds, and of course my dual M&K subs.

As you can tell, I have an affinitey towards Infinity ;-) But am not adverse to trying different brands. The only complaint I have had about my current infinity's is that they are hard to drive, and at extreme volumes, even my Marantz goes into protect mode. They are rated at 4-6 ohm.

Here is what I am looking for in a new pair of speakers...Slim tower, visually stunning (wife factor) good soundstage for music as well as movies. Doesn't need a lot of bass, because of my subs. Crystal clear highs (to compensate for the subs) .

Here is what I have taken notes on so far.... I am leaning towards Infinity Cascade model 9's ...they ARE visually stunning whether you like the look or not. This way I could keep all Infinity setup (except for subs) But I found a pair of KEF XQ5's used for $1400. Others that have caught my eye are the Mirage OMD 15, Mythos Tower 1, even found a deal on the Dali Piano noble (Like I said, needs to have unusual looks to sell to the wife)

Any advice on these or other speakers is appreciated.

 

[am74Gibson]

One other thing

I have looked at the Infinity TSSSAT4000 Mains. They would match up to my center speaker and look good, but I get the feeling they would not have the performance I am looking for. Any thoughts on these?

 

[Kolia]

The Mirage are known to have fairly rich bass. I don't know what kind of sound the Infiniti center speaker you have has, but you'll have to be careful that hey blend well together.

The Denon can't drive the one you already have?

 

[gus6464]

Maybe you could move up to Revel which is the high end Infinity. You might like the Revel performa F32. A guy is selling a pair on audiogon for $2000. Retail is twice that.

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1204754074

 

[am74Gibson]

Thanks

Seems like a good deal on the Revel, but I am looking for something Black/silver for the wifes remodeling plan :-0 . I haven't hooked my Denon up yet to my exisiting speakers. My Marantz is 140w x7 THX certified. The Denon has the same watts, but not THX. I bought it mostly for the video features and other bells and whistels the Marantz doesn't have. I figure if the Marantz has trouble driving them at high volume, so will the Denon.

Thanks for your feedback.

I also was just looking at the Mirage Omnisat V2 FS...if anyone can comment on these.?

 

[gus6464]

Seems like a good deal on the Revel, but I am looking for something Black/silver for the wifes remodeling plan :-0 . I haven't hooked my Denon up yet to my exisiting speakers. My Marantz is 140w x7 THX certified. The Denon has the same watts, but not THX. I bought it mostly for the video features and other bells and whistels the Marantz doesn't have. I figure if the Marantz has trouble driving them at high volume, so will the Denon.

Thanks for your feedback.

I also was just looking at the Mirage Omnisat V2 FS...if anyone can comment on these.?

I was considering the Omnisat V2 FS at one point and they are a decent speaker. I found their midrange a bit recessed though and it's probably because of their omnipolar nature. I think there are better speakers out there for the price and since you are looking to spend $2000 there are other options you should be looking at. I am not too familiar with the Infinity sound so don't know what to recommend. If you are looking for something different I have more experience with british speakers like B&W, Epos, Tannoy, Monitor Audio, and some Quads.

 

[davidtwotrees]

I have an older version of this Canton model bought from the same vendor. The sound is breathtaking. I have the silver and they look HOT. They also come in black, and white, too. These are going for $2400. I paid $2000 shipped for mine.
My neighbor has the same infinitys you did, and these were a few notches up the food chain, methinks. High WAF.

Canton Karat 711DC

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Check out the Def Tech Mythos ST: 25Hz-20kHz +/-5dB, nominal impedance 7 ohms, sensitivity 90dB.

http://www.guidetohometheater.com/speakersystems/1107deftech/index4.html

http://digitalcraze.com/Details.asp?ProductID=2804

http://www.definitivetech.com/reviews/reviews_PDFs/MythosST_TAS108.pdf

http://www.definitivetech.com/reviews/reviews_PDFs/MythosST_TPVWinter08.pdf

 

[rded]

Sonus Faber Grand Piano

This guy is selling for 2300 or best offer! Its gonna be the best speaker for this price!!!!

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sonus-Faber-Grand-Piano-Black-Home-Tower-Speakers-Mint_W0QQitemZ300196585037QQihZ020QQcategoryZ14993QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[am74Gibson]

Thanks for the feedback!

Hi everyone, I have looked at the Canton Karat's They look great, but since I already have TWO... M&K V125 powered subs, I think the woofer in these may be too much.

The Sonus on EBAY I had looked at already, and if I had a larger living room, I would seriously consider these. But they are about $600 more than I really wanted to spend. And think they would find me dead from DB overload and my ears bleeding!!

Now that brings me to the Deftech's... After a lot of research and agonizing, I "think" I have narrowed it down to these two....The Infinity Cascade Model 9and the Deftech Mythos ONE. Again the only reason I am not considering the Mythos ST, is because I don't need a built in woofer (and, the price too). Both the Infinity and the Mythos ONE have visual appeal and get good reviews. But I am thinking 2 or 3 years down the road, the Mythos will still look timelessley classy, while the Infinity may look like POP-ART from the 60's. I mean, while the Infinitys look good now, the look may wear on you after a while. And besides, when my friends come over, I want the to be watching my TV, not my speakers ;-0

If anyone knows where I can get the best prices on the Mythos, let me know..

 

[gus6464]

Totem Forest
http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1206308278

There is some other good stuff on audiogon but they are not black But at that price those are a super buy.

 

[mazersteven]

IMO You can do so much better for $1500 bucks then the Mythos One's. Said someone would pick looks over sound quality.

To bad you put all your money into that receiver instead of speakers.

 

[am74Gibson]

So Mazer what do you think would be better for $1500? (Remember I have the Wife factor to consider) Thus the looks have to be approved :-(

 

[mazersteven]

So Mazer what do you think would be better for $1500? (Remember I have the Wife factor to consider) Thus the looks have to be approved :-(

IMO a traditional tower speaker without having to have that metal thin enclosure.

Salk Sound
SongTower QWT
http://www.salksound.com/SongTower.shtml

SVS
MTS-01 Tower Speakers
http://www.svsound.com/products-spks-mts01.cfm

 

[am74Gibson]

Too many choices!

I finally figured out how to search on Audiogon within my price range. Wow, there are a lot of speakers I have never heard of! (Not that I am a real knowledgeable audiophile...that is why I am getting suggestions here). Here is one that caught my eye, what do you guys think of Theil CS1.6 ? the guy is asking $1600 OBO. They are a bit of a novelty because they are made in Lexington Ky.....So was I!!! My hometown!

 

[gus6464]

I finally figured out how to search on Audiogon within my price range. Wow, there are a lot of speakers I have never heard of! (Not that I am a real knowledgeable audiophile...that is why I am getting suggestions here). Here is one that caught my eye, what do you guys think of Theil CS1.6 ? the guy is asking $1600 OBO. They are a bit of a novelty because they are made in Lexington Ky.....So was I!!! My hometown!

You will get so much more for the money by buying used but as you can see there are too many options out there. Whatever happened to the speakers having to be black or silver? Those Thiels are neither. You should really be looking at the Revel F32 I posted earlier.

 

[grizzlyman]

New Speakers

Listen to some polk towers for example RTI 10. I listened to def tech BP7002 in the store watching the movie Transformer. Today I watched that same movie today at home on my 80 watt sony reciever and 150 watt, four or five year old polk towers and they sound really close to them def tech. Now in the detail of the sound not the low end since the def tech have subs and there own amp in them.

 

[am74Gibson]

Color Exception

The Theils were a possible exception in Color (not black or silver) because They would match my current (Bello') entertainment stand (Beechwood). I maybe could have sold the wife that If I get something unique looking like the Theils, I wouldn't have to ultimately sell the stand and my Infinity Alpha 37c (Beechwood) center speaker, thus saving some money having to buy replacements. Probably won't do the Theils, but just curious on the quality of speaker. While I agree with your assessment of the Revel speakers, I have to balance quality of speaker with fashion statement...I know that sucks, but it's the only way I can spend this kind of money on speakers instead of divorce lawyers ;-) She just does not like the look of a straight rectangular tower like the Revel's. I did see some Wharfdale Opus 1's in Gloss black on Audiogon....they have more of a sleek, rounded look, and the reviews looked pretty good.

 

[gus6464]

I don't have any experience with Thiel but they do make some impressive speakers. Here is the stereophile review:
http://www.stereophile.com/floorloudspeakers/663/index.html

If you are looking for nice looking and great sounding there is also the Totem Wind.

http://www.totemacoustic.com/us/products/columns/wind/

 

[The Chukker]

Sorry in advance, I am not trying to hijack your thread; I was looking at a Bello tv stand for my set up and I was hoping to get your opinion on overall quality/fit and finish of yours. I have a BDI stand but it is doesn't have enough "headroom" for my center channel speaker, not to mention it is gray and doesn't match my new tv. Thanks.