[elmoe]

I'm moving to the US soon and will be looking for a decent pair of speakers under 1000USD. I currently own Dynaudio Audience 62 floorstanding speakers (the smallest Dynaudio floorstanding) and absolutely love them. I'm hoping (praying) to find something under 1000USD (even used) that can at least come somewhat close to them.
 
Floorstanding or bookshelves, for a medium size room, and I'll also be buying a proper amp for them.
 
So far I've been looking at:
 
Wharfedale Diamond 10.5 floorstanding speakers
Focal Chorus 806V bookshelves
 
Something around 6-700USD would be better, but I am willing to go up to 1000 for the right pair.
 
Any suggestion is welcome!
 
I listen to a lot of different genres, but I am aiming towards a dynamic pair of speakers that will do well with classic rock. It would be nice if they also did well with jazz (especially piano) and old soul/funk/rnb.
 
Ideally, I would like a pair of speakers that have a decent amount of bass (not boomy), while retaining good piano timbre and being dynamic enough to sound "fun" with classic rock.

 

[eugenius]

See if you can get two of these, they're well worth the price:
http://www.amazon.com/Jamo-Front-Floorstanding-Tower-Speaker/dp/B00EZ1V9RI/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1407837965&sr=1-3&keywords=jamo+c605
 
Other than those, I think you can get a used Dynaudio Focus 140 for 1000$. I wouldn't do it though, I'd search for a used pair of Contour 2.8's in good condition - that is by far the best attainable Dynaudio speaker. Something like this:
http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/649000033-dynaudio_contour_28
 
It's much better than the Focus which is much better than your Audience.
 
Another good option is any pair of Legacy Audio speakers.

 

[Blackmore]

Try to find Tannoy D300 or D500, easy to drive and price should be right under / around USD1k
 
Pair them with anything, but cold and analytical amp and they will deliver.

 

[elmoe]

  See if you can get two of these, they're well worth the price:
http://www.amazon.com/Jamo-Front-Floorstanding-Tower-Speaker/dp/B00EZ1V9RI/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1407837965&sr=1-3&keywords=jamo+c605
 
Other than those, I think you can get a used Dynaudio Focus 140 for 1000$. I wouldn't do it though, I'd search for a used pair of Contour 2.8's in good condition - that is by far the best attainable Dynaudio speaker. Something like this:
http://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/649000033-dynaudio_contour_28
 
It's much better than the Focus which is much better than your Audience.
 
Another good option is any pair of Legacy Audio speakers.

 
I will look into all of these. The Jamo is particularly interesting considering its price. If I can find a pair then I might just get those!
 
Dynaudio Focus 140s I looked into, but they're hard to find used. I'd love a pair of Contours but unfortunately I'm already stretching my budget at 1000USD. Ideally, I would buy the speakers + power amp for around 800USD.
 
I will look into Legacy Audio as well. Thanks for your suggestions!
 
 

  Try to find Tannoy D300 or D500, easy to drive and price should be right under / around USD1k
 
Pair them with anything, but cold and analytical amp and they will deliver.

 
Thanks, I will look into Tannoy as well.

 

[cel4145]

Since you are coming to the US, you might want to think about US Internet direct brand. Philharmonic Philharmonitors and Ascend Sierra 1s. Research these over at AVS Forum, and you'll find they are two of the most popular choices in your budget range.

 

[elmoe]

Since you are coming to the US, you might want to think about US Internet direct brand. Philharmonic Philharmonitors and Ascend Sierra 1s. Research these over at AVS Forum, and you'll find they are two of the most popular choices in your budget range.

 
Thanks but I do not want monitor speakers. Passive only.

 

[eugenius]

Monitor means bookshelf. Philharmonic is a good up-and-coming speaker company, on their way to higher prices for the same stuff.

 

[cel4145]

Monitor means bookshelf. Philharmonic is a good up-and-coming speaker company, on their way to higher prices for the same stuff.

No doubt. I think the price/performance value of these companies is similar to Schiit Audio or Audio GD. They are small shops who have designed their own equipment selling them for excellent prices since they aren't building in profit for a retailer. It is similar to how Emotiva has put out such a great powered speaker with their Airmotiv series, only I don't think the design is Emotivas.

Dennis Murphy, the owner/designer at Philharmonic, also regularly participates in discussions about his speakers over at AVS. Dave Fabrikant owner/designer of Ascend, also has a forum community on the Ascend website where you can similarly often get answers from him That's one of the other nice advantages of ordering from the small Internet audio companies.

One advantage of the Sierra 1s over Philharmonitors is that one can, later on, order the tweeter upgrade and switch it out. Or, with a little more effort, order the components from Ascend for the Sierra 2 and upgrade it yourself. You can learn more about that at the Ascend forums.

 

[eugenius]

Let's not turn this thread into an arcane speaker discussion.

 

[cel4145]

Let's not turn this thread into an arcane speaker discussion.

They may be "arcane" speakers in Romania, but not here in the US among home audio speaker enthusiasts

 

[elmoe]

Philharmonitors look good but will they be as dynamic sounding as a floorstanding speaker though? I've never owned bookshelves before mind you, but the main thing I want from a pair of speakers is "slam", I want something that sounds fun and dynamic.
 
Also feel free to take this thread off topic and discuss speakers, so long as the suggestions keep coming I don't mind at all 

 

[cel4145]

Movie theaters don't use floorstanders, and yet they require fantastic dynamics. Whether or not a particular pair of towers is better than a specific pair of larger bookshelf speakers depends on the drivers and overall design. The only advantage that towers tend to have is deeper bass extension, but not always. For example, the Sierra 1s have better bass extension specs than the Focal Chorus 716 towers: 44Hz - 22kHz ± 3dB anechoic response for the Sierras vs. 50Hz - 28kHz +/- 3db for Focal Chorus 716 (could be anechoic or typical in room response since they don't say). Philharmonitors are 42Hz - 30kHz (+/- 2db)--even better.

If by "slam" you mean midbass slam, you'll probably never get that from speakers. For that you need a good sub. If by slam, you mean powerful mids and treble, then the distance from the listening position, your listening volume, the sensitivity of the speakers, maximum power limits of the speakers, power of your amp, and how the speakers hold up as they near their limits are all factors which affect what could work best for you. So to begin thinking about that, you have know the distance speakers will be from the listening position and use an SPL meter to calculate listening volume. Also, if this is a serious concern, then you should be talking to speakerphiles, not headophiles.

 

[eugenius]

No they won't be as dynamic as a floorstander. The problem is that in your price range the best sounding speakers are bookshelf speakers. You're concentrating the investment into fewer parts compared to a floorstander with the same price and typically you get better mid-range, better integration and (for small rooms) less bass nodes which helps the speaker sound good without careful setup.
 
By the way, if you decide on Jamo's - the C607's are worth it compared to the C605's - if you can get the same type of discount for them. Jamo's are good speakers (I have C803's) and the C607 has real bass extension. For some reason Jamo's have been extremely discounted in the USA, I think they're not selling them anymore there and they're clearing stocks. Vanns.com had some teriffic deals on them (not any more though). If it wasn't impractical to ship them to Romania I would have jumped all over those deals.
 
Bass extension in the 40 Hz range for bookshelf speakers is something you really don't want. That is not a frequency a 6-7" woofer can do with low distortion and good dynamic range. You get some bass to help the speaker not sound thin and that's it. You don't get the midbass clarity and punch you get from a floorstander with a single tiny woofer. Don't look at bass extension specs, they don't mean much. Look at piston area to see how much clean bass extension a speaker can do.
 
A good (and big) bookshelf speakers can do (has the piston area for) a clean 80Hz (more like 100Hz though). What you get under that is mush, especially if the manufacturer uses the port a lot to gain that bass extension. BTW, Dynaudio are one of the best at getting acceptable bass from small woofers and speakers. But acceptable isn't great and you also need a powerful amplifier because they're inefficient.
 
It makes a lot of sense to get DUAL subwoofers and mate them with good two way speakers - you get more for your money that way, with the way audiophile floorstanders are priced. Dual SVS SB2000's for example. And recently there's been good development in room correction systems to help you integrate subwoofers.
 
Here's an example: http://www.dspeaker.com/en/products/20-dual-core.shtml

 

[cel4145]

No they won't be as dynamic as a floorstander. The problem is that in your price range the best sounding speakers are bookshelf speakers. You're concentrating the investment into fewer parts compared to a floorstander with the same price and typically you get better mid-range, better integration and (for small rooms) less bass nodes which helps the speaker sound good without careful setup.

By the way, if you decide on Jamo's - the C607's are worth it compared to the C605's - if you can get the same type of discount for them. Jamo's are good speakers (I have C803's) and the C607 has real bass extension. For some reason Jamo's have been extremely discounted in the USA, I think they're not selling them anymore there and they're clearing stocks. Vanns.com had some teriffic deals on them (not any more though). If it wasn't impractical to ship them to Romania I would have jumped all over those deals.

Bass extension in the 40 Hz range for bookshelf speakers is something you really don't want. That is not a frequency a 6-7" woofer can do with low distortion and good dynamic range. You get some bass to help the speaker not sound thin and that's it. You don't get the midbass clarity and punch you get from a floorstander with a single tiny woofer. Don't look at bass extension specs, they don't mean much. Look at piston area to see how much clean bass extension a speaker can do.

A good (and big) bookshelf speakers can do (has the piston area for) a clean 80Hz (more like 100Hz though). What you get under that is mush, especially if the manufacturer uses the port a lot to gain that bass extension. BTW, Dynaudio are one of the best at getting acceptable bass from small woofers and speakers. But acceptable isn't great and you also need a powerful amplifier because they're inefficient.

It makes a lot of sense to get DUAL subwoofers and mate them with good two way speakers - you get more for your money that way, with the way audiophile floorstanders are priced. Dual SVS SB2000's for example. And recently there's been good development in room correction systems to help you integrate subwoofers.

Here's an example: http://www.dspeaker.com/en/products/20-dual-core.shtml

* Vanns filed bankruptcy a good while back. Jamos are no longer the popular price/performance values here in the US that they were.
* The US has speaker brands other than Dynaudio and Jamo that offer excellent price/performance values. For instance, there are speakers designed for HT usage here in the US that can beat many towers in dynamics at their price point.
* A tower design does not automatically guarantee better bass quality.
* Dual subwoofers may not be necessary when coupled with a good EQ setup with a single listening position. The advantage of dual subwoofers is smoother frequency response through a wider seating area *if* one can place them properly.
* Antimode is a very expensive option for subwoofer EQ. MiniDSP, their mic, and REW can be effective and a lot cheaper.

 

[eugenius]

In practice, dual subwoofers are much better and a good automatic eq is worth it's weight in gold. Not everyone is into graphs and a speaker geek. And you don't listen in a single position unless you're an audiophile nutcase.