S

Speaker dude

Audiophyte
So I stopped using my nad receiver not audiophile but not low end either. Definitive tech speakers and paradigm sub. Anyway we stop watching movies and gave it to my son. Now I am using airpulse 300a pros and I enjoy them. I was recently told that svs was a better brand. Ok whatever right. Then the guy told they sound better. Now I am listening because the 300a pros sound pretty damn good. Then he went to the amp and golden ear deal. I do want another set for a different room. And really will probably stay with what I know. But he is talking a Cambridge receiver and golden ear 2ways with stands for 1500. Or svs powered 2 ways for 600. What I am asking is long term what have you folks found that you like. Like I said the airpulse 300a pros with my blue sound 2 sound damn good.
 
Trell

Trell

Audioholic Spartan
If you are happy with what you have: Stick with it!

If you want to experiment: Choose a shop where you have excellent return policies.
 
S

Speaker dude

Audiophyte
That's a great answer, never thought about returning it. I would most definitely not damage it etc. So that's not a bad idea
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Welcome aboard. You're the audiophile, not the NAD receiver (a decent brand but....). Personally I don't find listening to sales people at audio stores to be of particular value, they're more experienced with selling what they've got than sources of good general advice and/or knowledge usually.

Never heard of Airpulse before but the A300 looks like a decent active speaker if it provides the connectivity you want and sounds good to you, then they are good (there's always the chance you can find better, tho). Use your own ears to determine what speakers you like, not what some guy on the street or sales floor "says". Auditioning a variety of speakers is a good way to narrow down your choices, or even measurements can help do that. I don't have any brick and mortar stores near me and have used several internet direct audio companies and buying other brands over the internet, as long as there's a good return policy to back it up it works well for me. YMMV. There's a lot of very good performing gear at reasonable prices these days in any case. There is a wealth of reviews/articles/discussion here at Audioholics to help out in your research.

SVS makes some fine speakers and subs in any case. They've mostly offered passive rather than active speakers until recently and I see they're selling the Prime Wireless Powered speakers direct for $400/pr at the moment. Personally I'd rather have something from their Ultra line of speakers (passive). FWIW I have an older pair of passive bookshelves (MBS-02s) from them, they're very nice speakers. Ascend Acoustics I have several models of, JBL as well as some others.

Golden Ear is owned by a company called Audioquest more known for their silly and too expensive wire/cable with unsupportable claims for performance, but highly profitable (Fraudioquest is what I prefer to call them), and I"d not even consider spending my dollars that way personally, but that's me. Cambridge Audio is a decent brand but depends on the specific models as to how suitable it is or how well its priced compared to the competition. There are a lot of choices out there, tho. What particular gear/speakers I have may not be particularly relevant to you but the speakers (and your room) are the most important aspect as to good sound, the electronics make much less difference, as long as they have the feature set/connectivity you need.

Brand alone only means so much, specific models and pricing offered might be a better basis for your questions (and are you even in the US or ?). Not sure how downsizing from one system to two systems works particularly for you either....personally I have five systems, four of which are multich and combined with video as I like to combine my audio/visual experiences but I hate selling old gear and have plenty of room for it to still be put to use, and sometimes I have even helped friends out by giving them gear to use.

What are you particularly looking for, a simple 2ch system for music only?....is using a sub still on the table or ? Hard to know what your goals are unless you share 'em....
 
S

Speaker dude

Audiophyte
Well we really just stopped using the nad, it took up a lot of space. I had set of theils that I wished I would have kept. Anyway yeah I do more critical listening if you will and just don't like surround for it. The 300 pros i use now have a small sound stage. And are very picky on sweet spots. The bass is really great maybe a bit slow if that makes sense. They have chora 826s for sale as well. But I find them ugly. I know it's about sound but I just don't like them. I think the theils and airpulses have been my favorites. If the airpulse had a bigger stage I would just get those but the living room is just too big. My father has janzen krakens I believe those sound just ridiculous. But man i don't have money like that. So any way my favorite receiver and you will laugh was my JVC dp 20 or maybe my 555 es. I had an Onkyo 777 as well. I always give my stuff to family etc when I get bored. To be honest never like the nad 785 I think. I am bad with numbers. The Cambridge didn't really grab me either. So what do you think about blue sound node 2 Rotel amp and speaker to be named..I have around 4300.00 to spend. So if you have ideas let me know. Speaker wise I have used polk theil paradigm definitive tech. Didn't care for def tech or polk sound. I used infinity also they they were tinny of that's a word. The theil we're warm. The paradigm we're decent. I use focal in my car. Hope this gives you a glimpse into me. The room has a cathedral ceiling and is fairly large. And sure a sub is workable. Sorry If this seems hap Hazzard. Guess that's part of my character as well... So any ideas let me know
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Speakers and subs take up a lot more space than a box of electronics, but YMMV. If all you listen to is 2ch music I can see just having a 2ch system, I prefer multich capabilities myself (as well as video). I'd need subs with all the speakers you've mentioned, but I could well like bass more than you do. I wouldn't laugh at most receivers, they're more similar than different, and mostly they vary in amp section, connectivity and dsp features....not some vague "audiophile" audio quality. Have you checked out the Philharmonic BMR speakers? Arendals?
 
M

MrBoat

Audioholic Ninja
I am a die-hard two channel listener. Stand-alone mains I prefer a larger 3-way if I can't have subs. Otherwise, I like stereo subs, which opens up a lot more options, including some great 2-way speakers, that helps to give that 3-way presence without sharing the cabinet with the mids. A good AVR that can handle ridiculous loads is good for 2-channel with much more tunable bass management options. I use passive subs and mains, a too old AVR that just won't die or quit sounding great.

I don't have the time, or interest in dealing with the acoustic gremlins of most large, multi-purpose living spaces. I follow a near field style of listening that is much more intimate and more isolated from the room that focuses on a singular listening position. Figure a super desktop system is what I classify as these days, with really potent 12" (bookshelf's daddy) speakers and a pair of 12" subs. I can fit 3 people, if we all like each other a bit but two is ideal and one, even better. Oddly enough, friends like to cram in this space and one even comes over to have a session with it of his own or to play back his bass guitar recordings that he makes.

Audiophiles are far and few between these days. Treating a whole room for a crowd of 1 was a waste of my time and resources. Just the sound treatment it takes to treat an average sized living room can exceed the cost of the room itself. Up close I have it all. That chest punch, the vibe thru to the core sub bass when it is present in the recordings and incredible staging. Even those who know nothing about hi-fi notice the image. It confuses them that they can't place the actual speakers, even though they are only 3-5ft away. I have sofas on either side of me. It seems to really help just about everything in my immediate listening space. No EQ needed at all and none on the sealed subs. Really clean mid bass, which is really noticeable on songs with excellent bass lines such as ELP's "From the Beginning," or Elton John's "Rocket Man," among others.

Near field to me, is as immersive as headphones tend to be, without the missing dimension that our heads replace while clamped in between them. I fiddled with desktop 2.1 systems for years while I was taking time off from a full-size home system and I learned I can make a very capable small system up close, just with gobs of headroom now.
 
Trell

Trell

Audioholic Spartan
For me multichannel sounds much better than stereo for recording that is in multichannel to begin with. I’ve just have to play a multichannel classical SACD to reconfirm that.

That said I do play stereo recordings in stereo as upconverting does not sound nice in my 5.2 setup.
 
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