[strokerace]

i know these topics come up all the time, but i'm wondering if anyone has my same amp and has found good budget speakers with good synergy. i'm still relatively new to this hobby, though i've done a good amount of research/lurking in the headphone sections.

i listen to classic and 90's rock, as well as rap and am looking for a set of bookshelf or floorstanding speakers for a small room to be powered by a kenwood ka-7100. i need some bass as my bose monitors are killing me.

currently looking at infinity primus p152 or p162 and paradigm atoms. will be going to a local stereo shop to check some out today, but i'd like to get a few suggestions before i go. i have no idea what kind of pricing to expect at a retail store. i thought atoms were going to be around $200 but from what i've been reading they've gone way up in price in the last year or so (i'm guessing with each new revision?).

in the last few days i went from being one click away from ordering a TSC P6-PR or TSBL to pair with a small sub (the price for each seemed like a steal), then i figured why the f would i spend the extra money on a sub if i can just get bookshelves with nice bass. i've heard my friend's m-audio bx8a straight out of a laptop and the bass is nice, but it's way out of my budget and self powered.

i've been hesitant to buy used speakers on craigslist because of their conditions, but maybe i'll try ebay...

also, does anyone know any good hifi shops in the los angeles area? i'll be checking out audio concepts in san gabriel today.

thanks in advance.

 

[Uncle Erik]

There aren't many good hi-fi shops left in LA. One you might try is DMC Electronics in Garden Grove. That's a little bit of a drive, but I got a pair of PSB Alpha B1 speakers there for about $200 last year. They're good little speakers and my parents are quite happy with them.

If you might be willing to try DIY, you can get nice Fostex singledrivers from Speaker City USA in Burbank for $100-$150 or so. They're very nice and helpful there, too.

If you don't have tools, you can take a mill bill of the cuts you need to Bohnhoff Lumber in Vernon, just east of downtown LA. They hav a full shop and can cut cabinets at a reasonable price. You will have to finish them yourself, but that's more labor than skill and you don't need to buy any special tools.

For $200, I'd probably put Fostex drivers into a Voigt Pipe design - you can find a number of examples at Melhuish's singledriver site. Then I'd have someone cut the cabinets and put them together myself. That would give excellent sound at a very low price.

Also, do not be afraid of Craigslist for speakers. Speakers are stable components that hold up for years. If something is in bad shape, you'll see it. If they're working, they're unlikely to go bad any time soon. The only exception would be electrostats, since their diaphragms can go back much more quickly than a dynamic speaker would.

 

[strokerace]

so audio concepts shut down their old location in san gabriel and are only in long beach now...

if i had some experience in making cabinets, i would've went the DIY route a long time ago, but i may try your idea of getting someone else to make the cabs for me.

i'm thinking about buying paradigm titans (unknown version) for $80 on CL or some b&w v-201 (can't find any info on these) for $130 but may try to talk them down.

also, maybe some wharfedale diamond 8.2 that are going for $140 on tsto.com. it's hard to demo speakers but i guess i should wait until i can... If the PSB's are still around $200, they might be the one to get. how is the bass response on these?

i can't decide whether i should just get a used pair of speakers and using the leftover money for a uDAC or a cheap sub. any ideas?

 

[analogsonar]

plug the headphones into the kenwood and find out if it is bright or warm, then its much easier to find the right speakers

 

[strokerace]

the sound is warm through my hd280's but the imaging is odder than anything else i've plugged my phones into. it's hard to describe. it wasn't bad, just wasn't used to it.

anyways, i have a chance to pick up some dahlquist m-905's for $75 off CL. from everything i've read, these are gems. i've only been reading mixed reviews on everything else. there are also dcm timeframes for $200, but right now i'm torn between the dahlquists and the wharfedale diamond 8.2 for $140 new. am i right in assuming that at least a 6.5" woofer would provide a good amount of bass (that extends lower than 60hz)?

i have a pretty small room (around 8' x 8'), and at the moment my setup consists of bose monitors sitting on a plank above a tall stereo cabinet (containing the amp, turntable, and my ps2) with my tv on top weighing it down..haha. next to it on the floor is a small boomy subwoofer from a logitech speaker set being fed by the tape out of the amp. it's a slight upgrade over just using the logitech 5.1 speakers set but that's not saying much... my 2.1 yamaha set from the hd out of the envy24pt of my desktop comp is much cleaner sounding overall than either of the other setups. my dad is also giving me his cambridge subwoofer which has some water damage on the cabinet, so it may need a new box.

there is about 3 ft of room from my bed to the wall so floorstanding speakers would be ok if they aren't more than a foot or so deep. if i get small monitors, i'd make some stands from parts from home depot.