2ch Speaker Recommendations

[Zaluss]

Tax return time is coming soon and I promised myself a pair of speakers that would last me a long time (read: no reselling for more expensive ones anytime soon). I was originally going to purchase a pair of X-Statiks but given the recent events at AV123 I've decided against buying new from them. Budget about $800-1000. I've looked at the following:

Used pair of Onix Ref 1's. I've had a pair of these and they sounded fantastic. I was thinking of picking up a used pair at about $400 and doing the Ninja Master mods on them bringing it up to my budget.

Ascend Sierra-1. I absolutely LOVE the look but never heard the sound. Any comments on this?

Paradigm Studio 20's v5. I believe these are right up in my price range. I like the new look and the real wood veneer really puts me to them. I used to have a pair of Paradigm Titan v5's so I can attest to the sound.

My room is 10x10 so very small listening area.

My current setup is in my signature. Thanks!

 

[Knucklehead90]

You might give the Emotiva ERM 6.2s a try. They aren't nearly as boxy looking as in that picture - and with the grilles on are quite attractive.

I have a pair & use them with a sub for my two channel music - they are an excellent speaker. I hadn't owned sealed speakers for nearly 40 years until I bought these. I remember why I liked those AR1s so well - nice tight bass - not a hint of boomyness. The tweeter reminds me of the 1" CMMD used in Infinity speakers for the past 15 years or so - very clear and detailed without being bright. They will take much more volume than the Infinity tweeters.

They are on sale until the end of the month. They also have a 30 day no questions return policy.

 

[Swerd]

With your budget and existing set up the Sierra-1s aren't bad, a lot of people like them.

But for the same price I recommend another speaker that I like better, the Salk SongSurround I. They are marketed as surround speakers to go with a more expensive tower speaker, but they make excellent speakers for 2-channel listening. They are very easily driven by just about any amp.

Look at the standard finishes that are available. Salk speakers are famous for their outstanding sound quality and finishes.

Look here for an Owner's Audition List to see if anyone near you has some.

 

[Zaluss]

Salk sound huh...I've heard of them but never heard any of their speaker line. I might have to look into this.

 

[Ulrezaj]

I just got Veritas 2.2i's and I couldn't be happier with them. You should be able to find them in that price range pretty easily.

 

[KEW]

Paradigm Studio 20's v5. I believe these are right up in my price range. I like the new look and the real wood veneer really puts me to them. I used to have a pair of Paradigm Titan v5's so I can attest to the sound.

Shameful plug: I have an as-new pair of Studio20 v5 speakers for sale for $900 shipped, but in black. Since you mentioned the veneer, I assuming you don't want black (though it is real wood veneer).

When I was auditioning speakers to find my champion, the Studio 20 v5 offered enough bang for the buck in sound quality (to my ear) and build/component quality that I bought a pair to use as reference for on-going speaker comparisons. I ended up moving to $2400 speakers, but the Studio20 were my favorites in their price range.
The Studio 20 v5 retails for $1200 which technically puts it out of your stated price range, but you should be able to get a ~15% discount which gets it close.

I did not listen to the SongSurround when I was auditioning, so I don't know how it would fare against the Studio20. However, I did listen to the SongTower which uses the same 4" CA15 midwoofer as the SongSurround. I think this driver has very good SQ, but have to wonder how well it will perform without the quarter wave tuning of the SongTower in the lower octaves. My guess of it is that the Salk's would best the Studio20's for midrange performance, but I would want to find some information on the Salk's low-end frequency response unless you plan to add a subwoofer.

HTH

 

[Swerd]

I did not listen to the SongSurround when I was auditioning, so I don't know how it would fare against the Studio20. However, I did listen to the SongTower which uses the same 4" CA15 midwoofer as the SongSurround. I think this driver has very good SQ, but have to wonder how well it will perform without the quarter wave tuning of the SongTower in the lower octaves. My guess of it is that the Salk's would best the Studio20's for midrange performance, but I would want to find some information on the Salk's low-end frequency response unless you plan to add a subwoofer.

The Seas CA15 midwoofer is 5". In a small ported cabinet, like in the SongSurround I, it provides bass down to about 50 Hz.

The SongTower, a MTM floorstanding speaker using the same drivers, provides bass down to 38 Hz. The cabinet design makes a big difference.

 

[zeuiax]

If you can stretch your budget to 1500, go with Psb Synchrony two monitors they just :bow: awesome.

 

[KEW]

The Seas CA15 midwoofer is 5". In a small ported cabinet, like in the SongSurround I, it provides bass down to about 50 Hz.

Impressive!
I couldn't find any spec's on them! Is there much more info available? Link? Why doesn't Salk put this on their site (or am I just daft)?

Depending on the details & how that is interpreted, that could put the Song Surrounds low-end on par with the Stuidio20's. The studio20 is +/-2dB from 54Hz to 22kHz with a low-frequency extension of 36Hz (DIN).
http://www.paradigm.com/en/reference/speaker_only-specification-26-1-2-13.paradigm.

 

[Swerd]

Impressive!
I couldn't find any spec's on them! Is there much more info available? Link? Why doesn't Salk put this on their site (or am I just daft)?

Depending on the details & how that is interpreted, that could put the Song Surrounds low-end on par with the Stuidio20's. The studio20 is +/-2dB from 54Hz to 22kHz with a low-frequency extension of 36Hz (DIN).
http://www.paradigm.com/en/reference/speaker_only-specification-26-1-2-13.paradigm.

There aren't any specs for the SongSurrounds on the Salk website. I have a pair of CAOW1s that I built. (See the link to them in my signature below.) The CAOW1 and the SSI have the same drivers in cabinets with the same dimensions. Their crossovers are both at 2600 Hz, but the CAOW1 crossover has 2nd order slopes, and the SSI has 4th order slopes. You can see the CAOW1 crossover schematic at the website, but the SSI crossover is proprietary.

 

[Zaluss]

Yeah I'm trying to stay away from black. I LOVE the look of a nice wood veneer. Especially exotic looking ones.

I'm definately going to consider the Salks and I'll look into the PSB Sync.

This is a very small room and it has to work well without a sub.

 

[zumbo]

misread

 

[KEW]

I LOVE the look of a nice wood veneer. Especially exotic looking ones.

Salk is great for exotic wood options. They also match woodgrains with what you might have in your home. Email them and ask. Jim Salk is very helpful.

In the end, you should try to find speakers which you can listen to with a low-frequency roll-off similar to what you are looking at, to see if you have enough low end. Only you will know if your standards are met.

 

[zeuiax]

Yeah I'm trying to stay away from black. I LOVE the look of a nice wood veneer. Especially exotic looking ones.

I'm definately going to consider the Salks and I'll look into the PSB Sync.

This is a very small room and it has to work well without a sub.

Like these ????

 

[GO-NAD!]

Shameful plug: I have an as-new pair of Studio20 v5 speakers for sale for $900 shipped, but in black. Since you mentioned the veneer, I assuming you don't want black (though it is real wood veneer).

When I was auditioning speakers to find my champion, the Studio 20 v5 offered enough bang for the buck in sound quality (to my ear) and build/component quality that I bought a pair to use as reference for on-going speaker comparisons. I ended up moving to $2400 speakers, but the Studio20 were my favorites in their price range.
The Studio 20 v5 retails for $1200 which technically puts it out of your stated price range, but you should be able to get a ~15% discount which gets it close.

I did not listen to the SongSurround when I was auditioning, so I don't know how it would fare against the Studio20. However, I did listen to the SongTower which uses the same 4" CA15 midwoofer as the SongSurround. I think this driver has very good SQ, but have to wonder how well it will perform without the quarter wave tuning of the SongTower in the lower octaves. My guess of it is that the Salk's would best the Studio20's for midrange performance, but I would want to find some information on the Salk's low-end frequency response unless you plan to add a subwoofer.

HTH

I second the Studio 20 recommendation. I just bought a pair, after comparing them to the B & W CM5 and Mordaunt Short Mezzo 2. Of course, you'd have to listen yourself. In a room that small, you might even consider the Studio 10.

 

[Zaluss]

Like these ????

Yes pretty much.

I was looking at the 10s as well. Its a 10x10 room with my listening position roughly 7ft from the speakers.

 

[Zaluss]

Anyone local in the bay area have any 2ch setups I can demo?

 

[Zaluss]

http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_info.php?products_id=767{SALT}4a7d1ed414474e4033ac29ccb8653d9b

Now I'm very intruiged by this pair. Anyone heard these? I love the beautiful wet look of the speakers.

 

[tgferg67]

http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_info.php?products_id=767{SALT}4a7d1ed414474e4033ac29ccb8653d9b

Now I'm very intruiged by this pair. Anyone heard these? I love the beautiful wet look of the speakers.

I have a had a pair since April. They are front ported but still need to be at least 2 feet from the wall to sound their best. They are essentially a front ported clone of the Swan 2.1SE's

I can only comment on what I have compared them to - my brothers Monitor Audio RS6's and his friends Paradigm Studio 20 V4. They are much more revealing speaker than the RS6's without harshness or fatigue but lack the bass extension of the RS6's. And compared to the Paradigm Studio 20 v4 the thing that stood out was the ed W6-6TC sounded like a much larger speaker, while still being revealing, when playing music genre's of rock and classic/orchestral. The Paradigm Studio 20's are much more placement friendly than the W6-6TC's.

They still seem to be available for $475 shipped with the "w6sale" code.

 

[Zaluss]

$475 shipped seems like a steal at the performance and look. Looks like I might have found my speaker well below budget...