[2deadeyes]

Greetings fellow Head-Fi'ers,

Lately, I've taken quite an interest in speakers decided to get my feet wet by starting with a set of decent bookshelves. I'm willing to spend $1000 - $1500 for a new/used pair & will most likely be powering them with a Stello power amp. I have the Acoustic Energy Aego M mini speakers and am really surprised how good they can sound for their size. Should I continue climbing up the AE ladder & check out their other offerings since I already like what I hear from the Aego M? Any good bookshelves others have experienced in my specified price range?

Many thanks!

 

[2deadeyes]

No one?

 

[VicAjax]

i LOVE my Rega R5, right in your price range.

i bought mine down at In Living Stereo... great guys and a great selection too. they're very tight, fast and groovy... they make me want to get up and dance. go give them a listen. they have other great speakers too, if the R5 aren't your flavor.

 

[islewind]

If you like the AE sound, and aren't itching to make a move for the sake of trying a new brand, I would definitely consider moving up within AE. I own AEsprit 300's and they have been amazing, I've heard a number of other AE speakers including the Aegis 1 and the new linears... It's a great brand.

 

[CarbonTi]

Good speaker sound is seductive and hard to pull away from.

As the Stello will be powering the speakers, you have an entire world of passive monitors/speakers to pick from. I would not chase up the ladder on AE for this reason alone, there are some very good speaker makers out there. As a fan of British nearfield monitors, check out anything from Spendor, Harbeth, Proac, even a NOLA Mini. None of these will have the bass thump of the sub-woofered AE but the balance will be far better and give a flavor of real audiophile sound (pardon the mixed metaphor).

 

[2deadeyes]

Thanks all for the suggestions so far. After much research, I've decided to go with a pair of either the Amphion Helium2s or Ions (most likely the Ion for their smaller footprint). Now my question is will I damage these speakers by overdriving them as their suggested power ratings are 20W ~ 120W? The Stello S200 is rated @ 150WPC.