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Very Specific Speaker Request!

post #1 of 47
3/17/05 at 9:57pm
Thread Starter 
Hello guys!

I know that this may seem repetative, but I'm on the lookout for speakers.
My budget is maximum 1000 dollars, but prefer to have it in the 600-800 dollar range.

I don't mind used, but it just has to be in good condition.

As far as sound characteristics go, I need the following:

Lows: Bass extension is somewhat important, bass impact not as much - I want it musical and fitting to the sound, not overly-done
Mids: I like it to be natural and musical. The mids are the most important for me, and mid impact is a nice feature too
Highs: I don't mind if they're rolled off as much, just don't make them shrill or grainy
Soundstage: I just don't want Grado soundstage. I want to be like fifth row center, if possible - not next to the instruments, not in the balcony
Detail/Resolution: Not a top priority, but always nice
Characteristic: Warmth is more important than forwardness

I don't mind if they are monitors or floorstanding, but if they are floorstanding I'll need to incorporate stands into the price. If they are large speakers but not quite large enough to call them floorstanders, I have small stands that can get them off the ground, but not as high as required for a monitor.

They also must not be REALLY power consuming. For now, I am using a 15watt (8 Ohm) Pioneer SX-450 receiver. It's a great receiver but it also has a bit of a power restraint -- at least I plan on upgrading it some time. My Ohm (Model B) speakers run fine out of it, as a guide. I am satisfied at it turned about 1/10 of the way up!

If anybody has a good recommendation, I'd be very appreciative! Thank you in advance!
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post #2 of 47
3/17/05 at 10:42pm
Thread Starter 
I just was recommended these -- anybody tried them?

http://www.pinnaclespeakers.com/prodfrm.htm

Apparently they are 1000USD but I have found them for 600 dollars new on Audiogon
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post #3 of 47
3/17/05 at 11:34pm
What about your current speakers needs to be improved.
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post #4 of 47
3/17/05 at 11:39pm
Thread Starter 
Most importantly the distortion in highs.

The bass is good.
The mids are really bloated and sometimes are not even present because of the damaged tweeters, which give off realy distorted highs.

That's about it as of now. They just don't sound good anymore, partially due to age I believe.
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post #5 of 47
3/17/05 at 11:47pm
I listened to some KEF speakers with Tannoy's coaxial design and they sounded pretty good, really warm speakers imo. I think they were the Q series, ~450 for the small bookshelf (Q1), so an entirely reasonable investment. I don't know if your current speakers would actually be better or not. One thing...bass wasn't that great from them, I like the bass output (in sound quality) from the Totem super-small speakers better. You might try out the Totem Mite-T (with dual woofers) as they're like 900 bucks a pair. I didn't listen to those though, the Totem small ones had a great focused soundstage with lots of depth and imaging while the KEF sounded big but the soundstage sucked in comparison. This was in a showroom, however, but since both were right next to each other it is a fair comparison.

Oh, there's always Aerial Acoustics, the makers of the 500,000 pound bookshelfs
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post #6 of 47
3/17/05 at 11:57pm
Aman ,

your budget will buy you a great pair of monitors , but it wont buy you a great pair of floorstanders.

you will miss a little on the bass extension with the monitors but the mids will be to die for.

save about $200 for decent speaker stands and spend the rest on the speaker pair .
id go used but make sure it is near new.

look at spendor, green mountain audio europa(more bass than regular monitors and efficient), silverline , pro ac , totem , revel, etc.

there are a lot of audiogon sellers in your area so you might be able to pick it up and save shipping - maybe get a listen as well.

then later on you might want to integrate a subwoofer in your system - for about $500 you can get a used REL or ACI subwoofer.

to get a very good pair of floorstanders will cost a lot.
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post #7 of 47
3/18/05 at 12:14am
Thread Starter 
I live approximately 20 minutes from Omega Loudspeaker's headquarters.
Could anybody vouch for me about them? I think they'd be an awesome source to get the gear from because I'd be able to do all sorts of things with the speakers later, such as upgrade, mod, get open-box specials or the like.

I think I am going to check them out unless somebody tells me that they aren't meant for my kind of tastes.

I have a Polk subwoofer (and it's actually pretty good! - much more musical than their previous ones) that I can use for bass extension.

Thanks for the tips!
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post #8 of 47
3/18/05 at 12:35am
From what I've read about Omega, and what I know about Fostex drivers in general, they may be just what you are looking for. Definitely get an audition and see how you like them. Plus Louis is by all accounts a really, really nice guy.
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post #9 of 47
3/18/05 at 12:41am
They won't have flat frequency response by nature of the full range driver and will not be as pinpoint in imaging as slimmer designs because of the baffle width, but also by design, they should be very dynamic and will have no phase problems. So if you like headphones, you may very well like Omegas, since they are similar in many ways. Worth an audition in any case. Especially since you don't care about the highs that much, not that I really think you can hear much up there in the first place, except in harmonics once in a while.
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post #10 of 47
3/18/05 at 12:56am
How did you determine that the tweeters were damaged?
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post #11 of 47
3/18/05 at 1:03am
Thread Starter 
They just sound like they are damaged. And they look worn and old.

Trust me, every time an organ or a high electric guitar note strikes, the tweets crack up.

This does not happen when outputting to headphones.
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post #12 of 47
3/18/05 at 1:42am
Try to test another amp with them if you can. Even if the problem isn't happening with headphones, it might be the amp that's breaking up and not the speakers. Look at recent posts by Asterix, he had a very similar situation, even replaced his speakers, just to find out the amp was the culprit. Before you spend money, it might be worthwhile checking to see what happens with a different amp.
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post #13 of 47
3/18/05 at 1:48am
Thread Starter 
If I had another amp I would
The guy at the audio store I talked to said it was most-likely a speaker problem, due to the symptoms.
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post #14 of 47
3/18/05 at 1:59am
Thread Starter 
Asterix's problem was that the amp was clipping because apparently his amp couldn't handle his Vandersteens (my speakers are much more efficient than Vandersteens).

I notice that even when the volume is down a lot, the distortion is definitely still there.

I don't know how I'm going to fix it though -- both the speakers and the amp are VERY old. I may be able to try different speakers, but not a different amp- would this accomplish the same thing?
Thanks!!
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post #15 of 47
3/18/05 at 2:04am
Technically, no, Mr. MIT man
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