[HiddenFatKid]

Hey guys,
 
I'm looking for some advice on buying some bookshelf speakers for my desk setup in my dorm. I have an Infinity BU-1 Subwoofer that i got for a great price a couple years back, so not looking to upgrade that yet, and I have a pair of Infinity Modulus MS-1 satellite speakers that I got from my dad when he upgraded. Would there be any point in trying to get another pair of bookshelf speakers so i can have a speaker in each corner of my room (would benefit from movies).
 
They'd be hooked up to a Denon AVR-2308ci a/v receiver (also a handmedown). I've been looking at a pair of Audioengine P4's, or Polk RTI a1's.
 
Would it be even worth getting another pair? 

 

[melen1717]

Hi....
 
Get another pair I can't really say but this I can... I recently purchased a pair of ELAC B6 Debut speakers and I can only say WOW... that's right WOW. These "poor man's audiophile" speakers are excellent and I guarantee you that you won't regret it. Price $279... incredible. For the price you won't find anything with this sound and build quality. They're tons of reviews on the internet just goggle "ELAC reviews" and you'll be surprised what is mentioned on these speakers. I got mine on AMAZON... http://www.amazon.com/Debut-Bookshelf-Speakers-Andrew-Jones/dp/B014GSEQ06 .
 
I have a few AMP's... NAD 3020 (1980's 20 watts version)... Onkyo A-9010 Integrated Stereo Amplifier... and Cambridge AZUR 351A. Also have a couple of speakers...  DALI-ZENSOR 3... Wharfedale-Diamond 10.1 and a pair of vintage Bose 901 Series. As you can see my audio equipment is quite humble, nothing fancy or expensive and all music is either from my computer or a NAD CD player. When comparing mentioned speakers to the ELAC's there performance is clean, high's & mid's are accurate, powerful, room filling sound (my music room is 27 by 24 feet) and to my surprise no sub-woofer is needed, well at least for my liking. Maybe the DALI-ZENSOR 3 is a bit more accurate but they are $600 (twice the ELAC price) so it wouldn't be a fair comparison and still I prefer the ELAC's. Of course they won't compare to "high-end" 2 or 3 thousands dollar speakers. That would be like Ferrari against Chevy if you know what I mean but they are excellent for the money.
 
Let me know if you buy them.
Enjoy...
 
George

 

[Chillzone21]

Audioengine are good also.

 

[HaNs SuPeR]

getting some Elac B6s this summer based on what I've read. Never heard them.
Great reviews, Andrew Jones is a well known audio engineer, Elac is a well known/good ole German company (Electroacustic GmbH).
I have some Pioneer BS22s (andrew jones), for the price they are great. ($90 on sale), the mid/bass driver is only 4 inches. It's amazing what comes out of that small driver, but I want the 6.5 inch drivers for my main stereo. No sub, I'm sure they will provide plenty of bass for me. They are BIG bookshelf speakers. As Melen mentioned, the Dali would be my choice if I wanted to spend a bit more. They are a bit smaller and probably sound as good as the B6 if not better. 

 

[melen1717]

Hello HaNs SuPeR...
 
I was initially inclined in buying the Andrew Jones Pioneer's but after seeing all the excellent reviews on the ELAC's it was a no brainer and got the ELAC's. The DALI-ZENSOR speakers are very good and bass is a bit more audible for it's 7 inch woofer but, seriously, my go-to speakers are the ELAC's with 6.5 inch woofer's. Don't need a sub woofer and when powered with my new ONKYO A-9010 the sound quality is unheard-of. Just to think that sub $300 speakers hocked to a sub $300 integrated amp can produce that kind of sound quality is for me mind blowing. Of course I'm not implying that you can compare this set-up to audiophile components which would run in the thousands $$$ but for the less than $600 I assure you that it would be difficult to find a combination like the ELAC's paired with the Onkyo. Both are budget "audiophile" grade components and I would say an "audiophile's poor man's dream". I stream my music from my Wins 7 PC and also use a NAD CD player and I'm happy & satisfied with the results. BTW, the Onkyo has a high-quality Wolfson WM8718 DAC (excelent) unit which decodes PCM signals, features 192 kHz/24-bit-capable coaxial and 96 kHz/24-bit optical inputs to accept Hi-Res, lossless, or compressed audio signals from source devices including PCs and media streamers. This is a plus and don't need to buy an external DAC and actually has better features than most DAC's. If you are in the market for a new AMP you should definitely look at the Onkyo. Great stuff...
 
Enjoy...
 
George

 

[cel4145]

No doubt. The Elacs are very good. However, there are other speakers that have been around a good bit longer that compete in the $250 to $300 range: HSU HB-1, Ascend Acoustic CBM-170 SE, Chane A1RX-C, EmpTek R5Bi, and Wave Crest HLV-1. Just must people don't know about them because they are Internet direct speaker companies.

Skip the P4s. They are meh, merely popular among Audioengine fans.

 

[melen1717]

cel4145...
 
Thanks for the info. I'll be looking at the mentioned speakers..

 

[pspa123]

Bringing this to the top rather than start another thread as it is close to what I want to ask about.  So in my price range, perhaps slightly higher than the OP's, I have located a few speakers which seem to fit my criteria/taste  all of which get at least some rave reviews and in some cases have been named "best" in category by one site or another, and none of which seem to have any significant negatives.  But there is no way I can possibly audition all these speakers, as some are internet only, and I very much doubt I could find the others locally.  So I guess that leaves me asking people here who might have experience for recommendations among them.  The ones I have found are, in no particular order, Wharfedale Diamond 220, Ascend CBM 170-SE, Dali Zensor 1, Chane a1.4, HTD Level 3, and Elac B6.  These would be for a fairly small room, would be played at only moderate volume, and used primarily for folk, soft rock, jazz  and classical.  Thanks for any help.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

 
I'm looking for some advice on buying some bookshelf speakers for my desk setup in my dorm. I have an Infinity BU-1 Subwoofer that i got for a great price a couple years back, so not looking to upgrade that yet, and I have a pair of Infinity Modulus MS-1 satellite speakers that I got from my dad when he upgraded. Would there be any point in trying to get another pair of bookshelf speakers so i can have a speaker in each corner of my room (would benefit from movies).
 
They'd be hooked up to a Denon AVR-2308ci a/v receiver (also a handmedown). I've been looking at a pair of Audioengine P4's, or Polk RTI a1's.
 
Would it be even worth getting another pair? 

 

Assuming you can even play loud enough, then sure, get a new pair. But use the Infinity for the surrounds since they're that tiny, and the RTI A1 for the mains.

 

That said though using speakers from different series like this has a tendency for them to sound different, but given your attention is also on the visuals, on top of which it's rare for something more obvious to be on all channels, like a human voice if the character is going around the character whose POV you're supposed to share (ie like Bruce Wayne trying to figure out where Ra's Al Ghul is or that one scene in The Grey...which coincidentally, are both Liam Neeson).

 

[Digitalis]

Forget the Dali Zenzor 1 speakers, I auditioned a "burned in" pair and all I can say is that a stuffed cat has better acoustic properties. You might want to look into the Cambridge audio SX-50 passive speakers, they are small, light and it is said they perform very well at low volumes. The Chane a1.4, and Wharfedale Diamond 220 would be good choices - however they are on the big side.

 

[MikeW]

JBL LSR305 /w a preamp. Tough to beat for the price. pair with a schiit passive pre-amp, or a headphone amp with pre-amp capability.

 

[sterling1]

  JBL LSR305 /w a preamp. Tough to beat for the price. pair with a schiit passive pre-amp, or a headphone amp with pre-amp capability.

​How about pairing with the OPPO Sonica DAC?

 

[cel4145]

​How about pairing with the OPPO Sonica DAC?

You could do that. But not a very good optimization of one's budget to spend $800 on a DAC/headphone amp and then <$300 on speakers. I would put MUCH more of that budget towards speakers for best price/performance.

 

[sterling1]

You could do that. But not a very good optimization of one's budget to spend $800 on a DAC/headphone amp and then <$300 on speakers. I would put MUCH more of that budget towards speakers for best price/performance.

​Well, sure you would want to; but, considering the OPPO's capabilities: DAC, Streamer, Headphone Amp; as well as the balanced output and Airplay, it would be ideal. And, pretty hard to buy desktop speakers having a better price to performance ratio than the JBL 305s.

 

[MikeW]

 
​Well, sure you would want to; but, considering the OPPO's capabilities: DAC, Streamer, Headphone Amp; as well as the balanced output and Airplay, it would be ideal. And, pretty hard to buy desktop speakers having a better price to performance ratio than the JBL 305s.

 
this, if your not careful you could spend triple for less performance, if you want something better then 305's best to build your own.  http://www.diysoundgroup.com/featured-for-mg04a00409/speedster-kit.html
 
But doing this means you now need a decent amp too ~200$ more. The JBL's have integrated amp, they are actually biamped, with an amp for the low's and and an amp for the high's. You could use a cheap t-amp, but for something like a Speedster, that's almost criminal. Need a good, entry level A/B amp. The cheapest i'd recomend is a parts express  75 watt per channel amp(Dayton APA150, 160$) . But the Emotiva A100 (229$) is probably worth the extra cash for an excellent budget choice. Either way, now we are talking about a pair of speakers and a relativly large, hot A/B amp. Alot less "Clean" then a headphone amp/dac/pre combo with a pair of JBL's. (or other powered monitor)