[shuurajou]

Currently I have a satisfactory (mostly) headphone setup. I'm looking to get a decent speaker setup now.

Right now I have a Toshiba TLP-T60M projector in my bedroom (where my setup is based) and I was considering getting a 5.1 setup on the go, or at least the beginnings of one. I was considering a £279 Yamaha 5.1 speaker setup; however, I quickly came to the conclusion that I would prefer to make a high quality setup and add to a bit at the time as I hear they lack in the mid-range area (and mostly all pre-made speaker setup do from what I'm told).

Something that has been in my mind though is a 2.1 setup. As it may be more preferable due to the size of my room and I'm not too fussy on having surround sound as I quite enjoy listening to movies through my headphones. I'm after good quality audio out of this, in a small space. Obviously the choice between a 5.1 and a 2.1 setup will be critical due to choice of amp. I want neutral, natural sound, no inflated bass or missing midranges etc. The selection that I have at my finger tips (as they have a few of these stores around here) are Richer Sounds.

The speakers are going to have to be Bookshelf Speakers as I can't really fit anything else. I guess the idea I have in my head is the speakers that you see in studio rooms behind thick glass. I just want accurate reproduction of what the music was originally. I'm sort of new to speakers so please excuse the vagueness of this post, hopefully I might be educated with a few of the posts

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The amount of money I have to play with is going to have to be a capped at £300. Please bare in mind that this is pounds so the costs are going to be a bit different, but if you look at the site I have linked you to you should be able to see what price bracket the speakers are in.

Thanks for taking the time to read (and hopefully respond) to this post.

 

[soundboy]

Ahhh....Richer Sounds, parents to my Cambridge Audio A500 stereo integrated amp.

The no-brainer here will be the Cambridge Audio Azur A540 and the Mission M71 speakers. The Mission speakers are truly awesome and the CA amp should be more than powerful enough to fill your small room with great sound quality.

All under 300 pounds.

 

[shuurajou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundboy Ahhh....Richer Sounds, parents to my Cambridge Audio A500 stereo integrated amp. The no-brainer here will be the Cambridge Audio Azur A540 and the Mission M71 speakers. The Mission speakers are truly awesome and the CA amp should be more than powerful enough to fill your small room with great sound quality. All under 300 pounds.

That AMP does look the business, but does it sound the business?

. The Missions don't look too bad, but I was looking at some of the slightly more expensive Mordaunt Short's. I notice that they are available in maple wood as well, does this make any difference to the sound (I'm thinking only minor)?

Thanks for the response, this is great

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[soundboy]

Nowadays, most every speaker is made of MDF (medium density fiberboard). The difference would in the thickness of the MDF and not what's on the outside....of course, unless the color matters to you.

Cambridge Audio amps do mean business. I think they are competitive with, for example, NAD....just at a lower price. You can do a search here and you will be surprised at how many of us use CA products.

 

[shuurajou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by soundboy Nowadays, most every speaker is made of MDF (medium density fiberboard). The difference would in the thickness of the MDF and not what's on the outside....of course, unless the color matters to you. Cambridge Audio amps do mean business. I think they are competitive with, for example, NAD....just at a lower price. You can do a search here and you will be surprised at how many of us use CA products.

I think I can settle myself on that type of AMP then, obviously subject to what my store has in stock. Now down to the speakers. I've heard good things about Celestion & Mordaunt Short, but I'm curious of what offer the most natural sound. I know that you've mentioned the Mission M71I-BCH, but I didn't know if I payed a bit more for one of the other speakers that I may be able to get any improvements worth considering?

 

[fr4c]

how about the Paradigm Atoms?

 

[Magsy]

Go out and buy what-hifi, the review section at the back tends to be worth its weight in gold. (You may disagree with some ratings, but you have to believe someone)

You can try to pick something thats last year (or older), you can get a right bargin then, just use a google search

I had a CA Mk1 and mission 701's a looong time ago from Richer, was a good system utill I killed the amp and damaged one of the drivers

If you have RS nearby they tend to be quite helpful with their demoroom facilities, I spent quite a lot of time in there having them unbox various setups for me to hear. Book yourself in and have a showdown!

If you are going bookshelf you really do need to get some proper stands, so factor that into the price.

 

[shuurajou]

It doesn't look like it's going to be easy for me to get the paradigm's. Everybody seems to like the Missions, just the price seems too good to be true right now.

 

[shuurajou]

Don't know if anybody else has anymore input. It's most likely that I'll have to make the dive for the purchase tomorrow as that's when someone is going to be putting in their bit for christmas into it

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[number1sixerfan]

This thread may be of some help.

http://www6.head-fi.org/forums/showthread.php?t=98238

 

[soundboy]

Canadian brands like Paradigm, Energy, Athena, Mirage, etc.... will be hard to obtain in the UK. Not to mention more expensive than what they cost here in North America.

The best thing to do is listen. Bring several of your favorite CDs and audition these components. We all have our listening biases and only you will know what you like best.

Here's another choice you may want to look at for speakers....the Wharfedale Diamond 8.1 or 8.2. Wharfedale just released the new Diamond 9 series, so the 8 series should be on clearance. Check the 8 series out since they may be heavily discounted in price. They were highly rated by the British hi-fi press when they were in production.

Otherwise, the Mission M71 is really nice.

 

[shuurajou]

Yeah, I think I'm going to have to audition some of them as it seems that the main manufacturers here in the UK are not so common in the US, so not many people here would have heard them or heard of them to comment. Well, I'll let you know how it goes

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