HERE'S SOME SPEAKER ADVICE $800-$1100
Jay Grandin
here's what I posted a few months back...
Here is a comiplation of the feedback that I have recieved through the net.
These comments all refer to speakers in the $800 to $1000 range. Some of
you may recognize these messages and I hope itUs OK to reprint them here.
I decided to buy the Mirage M790Us for $900. I found they were clear, with
good bass. They are bipolar(I guess from some responses, although I was
told they were DIpolar by the salesman at Tweeter, etc.). They were very
rich sounding speakers, because of the extra driver in back. I havenUt got
them in my room yet, but I just saw my Infinity SM122Us march out the door.
Right now IUm using my surround and center speakers as main speakers.
ItUs amazing, but it works for the next three days.
I narrowed my choice down to the Paradigm Esprit and the 11Us, Polk LS 50,
and the MirageUs. The Polks were nice with deep bass, but I wasnUt too
satisfied with their richness. Both ParadigmUs were nice, and I actually
like the 11Us better because they didnUt have the EspritUs titanium driver
which I found annoying. They were also $200 bucks less. Go figure! I
listened to all the above speakers with Adcom amps and components (except
for the PolkUs which I heard on a Kenwood CD player). 100 watts for the
Polk and Paradigm 11Us, 200 watts for esprit, 60 watts for the MirageUs. I
was surprised that the MirageUs had the bass they did with only 60 watts.
At one store, I looked at the Definitive BP 10 (demo $900) and the B & W
600 ($900). Next door I looked at the Polk LS 50's ($800). The
Definitive's are BIPOLAR, the B & W and the Polk's are not. Bipolar
speakers have a driven mounted in the back of the speaker that is in phase
with the front drivers. By the way, DIPOLAR speakers have a driver mounted
in the back of the speaker which is out of phase. These are supposed to
have good sound everywhere, but without messing up imagery. The Mirage
M790's are dipolar (or bipolar, IUve heard different things). Dipole and
Bipole speakers seemed to me to have a MUCH richer sound. Keep this in
mind while shopping around. I liked the Polk's the best out of the three
above, followed by the Definitive's and I wasn't too impressed by the B&W's
because their bass wasn't deep enough for me. The Polk's had really deep
bass and it was fairly clean. The Definitive's just didn't seem as clear
at higher volumes.
If you want speakers that will play very loud then look at Klipcsh, but
they are built more like DJ speakers than home speakers. They sound really
"alive" but are annoying to my ears :-). I also listened to a pair of
Vandersteins 1B's (about $700 I think) which sounded really good, but I
didn't think they could handle the 130 watts of my reciever (they don't
reccommend over 100 watts) and they didnUt really make me want to buy them.
I think they would be good at normal volumes, but not if you want to crank
them. The bass also wasnUt that deep as I remember.
Here are some comments that were either posted or sent via E-mail:
--------------------------------
from sp3u+:
In the sub $1000 range I could recommend looking
at the Spica TC-50, Magnepans, Thiel SCS, among a few others. However,
for your front end you probably could do significantly "better" if you
were willing to spend a few hundred dollars more or carefully buy USED
equipment. You could probably the Thiel CS1.2, Apogee Centaur Minor,
Eminent Technology hyrid, Vandersteen 2ci for around $1000 used. This
would be a big step up from new speakers at that price. That's what I
did.
Thiel CS1.2-- wonderfully detailed, neutral, very well made, decent
bass. Excellent value new, even better used.
Apogee Centaur Minor-- beautifully transperant, great midrange, not much
bass, a bit bright sounding on many solid state amps. Excellent value
also.
ET LFT-VII-- Deep bass (a bit bloated, though) good sounstaging and
dynamics, can be hard to set up and a little dark sounding.
Vandersteen-- Does everything pretty well, but nothing great. Quit
forgiving. I liked the others better, though.
--------------------------------
>From Jim:
AR M6-$900 Nah...
: N.E.A.R 40-$800 ?? Haven't heard
: Snell I A Improved-$800 ?? Ditto
: Celestion 100-$800 Possible!
: Definitive Tech BP 10-$900 No way
: B & W 802FS4-$1200 (Used) May be worth it
: MB Quart 390-$500 (used) Nah...
The above are basically what I recall my reactions were when auditioning
speakers. Coincidentally, I was looking at the Mirage 990s :)
All in all, I found the Mirages had a fantastic soundstage, with a lush
midrange and exc. highs. Lows were extended but a bit uncontrolled in the
low-low regions (~35Hz). Imaging was, IMHO, exceptional... I went for the
990s over the 790s for the extended bass and a bit more clarity. I almost
went for the M7si, but:
1. I really though the 990s sounded better
2. The 990s fit in better :)
3. My wife (see #2) :) :)
The ARs seemed quite muddy and the highs were too pushed for my tastes.
Celestion makes quite nice speakers and the 100s are well worth the
money. They have a lean flavor to them, but that's personal preference.
To me, the B&Ws are just the opposite... a bit too heavy. The Celestions
however have extremely detailed imaging!
The DefTechs show their Polk heritage. Boom and sizzle all the way. The
one nice thing is that they are BiPolar as well, as are the Mirages.
However,
that's the only thing they have going for them. The bass is thick, muddy
and boomy. Midrange is OK but treble is harsh... Ugg.
and
In my opinion, you will tire of the Polks very quickly... Polks are
many things, but "accurate" isn't one adjective I'd give 'em.
For me, the Mirage's are heads-and-shoulders above the Polks. I found
their imaging clear and detailed, soundstage wide and deep, bass extension
impressive, midrange beautifully lush and the highs slightly lilting. They
sound even better Bi-wired and with the grilles off ;)
The Paradigm will give they Mirages more competition than the Polks ever
could, but the 790s will still come out on top...
Oh yeah... the 790s are BIpolar :)
------------------------------------
From: twhe2
I know very little about the other speakers listed but I own a pair of the
esprit monitors and enjoy them most of the time. However depending on your
amp
or amps it may be a bad choice. For example I have Adcom gfa555II, plenty
of
the power for the high efficiency paradigms, but the flatness of the adcom
mixed with the titanium tweeter fatigues the ears very quickly. If you buy
these speakers ensure that you listen to them with the same amp you will
run
them with. or bi amp with a high range amp having a more pleasant tone.
Try
the B and K or maybe carver. I am sure there are several others but the
come
to mind quickly when it comes to softening music. Especially the carver
TFM
mag field amps. Anyway, good luck.
--------------------------------
>From Terry:
The B&W folks are big in Eurpoe amongst classical fans, and you will
find their Speakers at EMI and other Classical Labels. I have a set of
803s and 805s, and if you are looking for midrange clarity, I would
reccomend
them. The smaller Models are a bit bass shy unless you have subwoofers in
your System. I understand the new 803s have an additional 8" woofer cone,
but have not heard any yet.
-----------------------------
-From Jasen.
Paradigms are defintely good speakers. (I happen to own a pair so I cannot
claim
complete objectivity here 8^) HOWEVER, Paradigms and Infinities sound very
different. When I went to purchase my system, I listened to a couple
different
pairs of Infinities and found them WAY too bright (treble extremely
exaggerated
for the hi-fi jargon impaired). If you are happy with your current
Infinities,
you may find Paradigms flat and uninteresting by comparison.
Paradigm also carries a good warranty (five years if memory serves). _I_
feel
that Paradigms are better speakers. As in all things related to audio: let
your own ears be the judge.
--------------------------
>From Ka
First of all, I would like to say: please don't trust me too
much!! :) I'm pretty much an amateur audio connoiseur!
Okay, for the $850-$1100 range, you can try out the PSB Stratus
Minis. These are really nice speakers but are VERY placement
sensitive. They are rated class C in Stereophile, which is great!!!
I've personally listened to them at a friend's place and they sound
great. But he's selling them because he can't get the placement right
in his tiny room.
You might also want to consider buying the NHT 1.3as with a
subwoofer. The 1.3as are rated class E in Stereophile, and I they are
borderline Class Ds. They sound great, with lots of detail and
smoothness (the PSB Stratus Minis are a tiny bit better in clarity and
sweetness but I can't afford them or place them anywhere :)). I don't
personally use a subwoofer because the base is good.........but for
lots of rock and stuff you would probably would want one.
-----------------
>From George
When buying speakers, and you are spending that much money, you
will not get a bad speaker. It pretty much comes down to personal
preference. Unless you have a really good ear for sound, whatever
you get will sound great to you. Am I making any sense? probably
not. To give you a suggestion, I like Snell alot. I think the Snell
Type E is a floor standing speaker that to me sounds great and can
really jam. I think it retails for around 1000 to, sa you can
bargain down, and buy some new cable as well.
Tell me what you get.
------------------------
>From Tim
I recently was looking for speakers in nearly the same price range as
you and found a pair I think you should listen to if you can find them
in a Higher-end store. They are the Fried A/5 and list for $825.
They are floor standing (about the same size as the paradigm esprit
models you like) and I think they sounded much better than the Def Tech
BP8 or BP10, and the Paradigm Esprit.
-------------------
>From GHChen
I bought a Quart 390 MCS, and it seemed to be not bad, but I don't know
whether
it is still in sale.($1095) But I really do NOT suggest other Quart
speakers as
500, 600, 800.
------------------------
>From Carlos
If you are already up in the $1100 range, check out the Mirage M7si,
I was able to get a pair of these for about $1150, and they sound
incredible.
------------------
from Jon
I own a pair of polk auido crs series they are great !
the base is super tight and even better if you ad a subwofer.
I think it all depend on what kinds of music you listen to.
what state do you live in ?
i live in maine and the high end auido stores suck i
get alot of my auido from affes(army and airforce exchange services)
and get real good prices. it may be something to consider. just make
sure you dont comprimise what you want for price and or availability
i will write you back with the price of the polks you are thinking
and see if it is any better. have you ever listen to any kliscph
speakers i have a pair of cornwalls they sound really big
and the polks sit on top. i also have a pair of bose am 5's i use in
in the rear so i have a real varity of speakers and each has its ups
and downs for instance my polks are in a sealed box with a low
senstivity so they require alot of power to really make them sound
good. i use a carver 4.0t amp rated at 375 wpc and it really does
alot of power.where as the cornwalls have a sensitivity of 101
so you could run them with a clock raido
--------------------
>From Mark
AR M6-$900
: N.E.A.R 40-$800
: Snell I A Improved-$800
: Celestion 100-$800
: Definitive Tech BP 10-$900
: B & W 802FS4-$1200 (Used)
: MB Quart 390-$500 (used)
None of the speakers in the list of demos struck me as being particularly
better than the Mirage or the Paradigm... though the Definitive Tech BP-10
images quite well. I would suggest listening to Apogee Centaur-Minor.
They are a bit pricer that your budget $1295 list, but I have seem demos
for sale around $900. I though the Minors where the best sounding speakers
I listen to (other than the Martin-Logan Aerius $1995) for under $2k.
------
Thanks for all your responses I REALLY reccommend the Mirage M790's!!!!!
-Jay Grandin
--
Jay Grandin
Brown University
E-Mail: John_Gr...@PostOffice.Brown.EDU
Phone: (401) 863-6616
--
Jay Grandin
Brown University
E-Mail: John_Gr...@PostOffice.Brown.EDU
Phone: (401) 863-6616
Malcolm Parks
used for $900. Never looked back-- still think they are terrific!