Looking for Bookshelves under 70k

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Flash

Flash

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Hey Guys

I have decided to get me self a pair of bookshelves and use it for Pure Stereo.

I will be using it in my spare room and it measures in at approx
11x15
I just started with Auditoning bookshelves. I know that some of u may point me towards floorstanders, I already have the Wharfedale 9.6 and Klipsch RF So no more floorstanders for me.
I somehow prefer bookshelves for music. (Personal preference)
My observation so far haveiing owned quite a few bookshelves in the past is that they color the sound a lot less than towers. Towers tend to add their own color in the lower ranges / higher ranges which is not necessary a good thing


As mentioned by the title, my budget is 70k max, could stretch it a wee bit .

I Auditioned the the B&W 685 and i really liked it they are a brilliant set of bookshelves but at 42k i feel they are over priced in India.
I am going to Audition the Mezzo , Quads over the weekend. The last time i heard quads was over a year ago. so got to do it again.
What specific speakers / model numbers should i be auditioning .

Again it is not necessary that i spend 70k on speakers . I would be happier spending 50k but then again 70k is my upper limit
My Genre of music is Classic Rock, Instrumental, Blues, Jazz
Point to mention I play music loud - really loud

I have not yet finalized on the Stereo Amp. will put up another thread for it i want to keep this simple just speakers and not bring amps into question here

I was also thinking of Studio Monitors , Tannoy, JBL Pro etc
I know that studio monitors are generally meant for nearfield sound. But does anyone have experience using them at larger distances.
Studio monitors imo add the least amount of color and thats whats pushing me towards them. but not too sure if it is a good idea

Your inputs would be valuable
 
Kittu said:
Have you auditioned EPOS M12i or Dynaudio xcite series?
Click to expand...

Not yet Kittu, got to build up a list of speakers i should be looking at first and den audition as much as i can over the next 3 - 4 weeks
whats your take on studio monitiors ?
 
 
Flash said:
My Genre of music is Classic Rock, Instrumental, Blues, Jazz
Point to mention I play music loud - really loud
Click to expand...

I was in a similar situation a few years ago as you and have built a secondary music only system. However one difference would be that I don't play loud. My goal was dynamics and soundstage even under low volume (night time) listening.

Book shelves cannot play very loud. Could you give a range in dB scale what is loud for you? Also are youooking for only new speakers or open to used ones. Lots of options in your price range once you clarify above questions
 
Are you open to used speakers? If yes, keep an eye out for the Dynaudio Focus series (or an older Contour if you are lucky)

IMO, the Xcite doesnt live up to the older Audience series (I own a pair of the old Audience 52 bookshelf - was an absolute bargain at 40k, my next real upgrade cost many times that number)
 
Last edited:
Flash said:
I was also thinking of Studio Monitors , Tannoy, JBL Pro etc
I know that studio monitors are generally meant for nearfield sound. But does anyone have experience using them at larger distances.
Studio monitors imo add the least amount of color and thats whats pushing me towards them. but not too sure if it is a good idea

Your inputs would be valuable
Click to expand...

I have JBL studio monitors 4410a. I am using them from 15 ft distance. They work fine, no imaging problem at all. But again, all speakers are different. So, there may be other studio monitors which can sound not so great from distance.
 
+1 to usher x-718. around 60k. 1.5" thick inert cab, good drivers, good crossover (supposedly). I have heard them, liked them better than mezzo2 and 685.
 
WHen i mean loud i dont mean overbearing loud volumes. but enough to fill the room completely i like to be immersed completely when i listen to instumental, Jazz and Blues

marsilians said:
I was in a similar situation a few years ago as you and have built a secondary music only system. However one difference would be that I don't play loud. My goal was dynamics and soundstage even under low volume (night time) listening.

Book shelves cannot play very loud. Could you give a range in dB scale what is loud for you? Also are youooking for only new speakers or open to used ones. Lots of options in your price range once you clarify above questions
Click to expand...
 
Thanks for the inputs guys .
Atleast i know where to start off now . some more models would make my life more exciting and auditions even more.
I am working out something with some dealers here to get the speakers i desire to audition delivered to my house for 3 - 4 hours so that i an listen to it in my room with my equipment with my room acoustics .

I am not a big fan of auditioning speakers , subs etc at showrooms.
What may sound nice there may sound like crap in my house and vice versa..

Anyway it seems positive and one dealer with whom i share a good relationship is acutally going to send me the quads and Mezzo tomm for an entire day :yahoo:
 
If your open to buying from u.s.a ascend acoustics sierra-1 they compare favorably to the dynaudio focus bookshelf.
 
http://www.hifivision.com/diy/19688-best-ever-deal-loudspeaker-kits.html
http://www.hifivision.com/diy/19688-best-ever-deal-loudspeaker-kits-25.html

OK, so what are your current speakers and amplification? Please do take some time out to answer these

and post answers here.

The ques are:-

*music, movies or both?
*%age of each if both?
*what kind of music? which format ie cd, mp3, flac, cassettes or records?
*what kind of movies ie dvd, hard disk or blu ray?
*average daily usage in hours?
*brand conscious or hearing conscious?
*ROOM SIZE?
*Do you have a sub? If no, don't you ever want one?

But personally speaking, I would never go in for a budget bass reflex tower design (ported design). Problems at all budgets, actually. I would rather go in for a GREAT bookshelf at that price point. If it has to be a tower, it ought to be a TL (transmission line)/ horn-loaded/dipole tower whether 1 way, 2 way or whatever way.

SAY, at this budget why don't you join this group buy n build here
http://www.hifivision.com/diy/19688-...aker-kits.html.
(Also read my comments here http://www.hifivision.com/diy/19688-...r-kits-25.html)

to get these
Search Results - av123

at this price/description for the kit (sans cabinet)
X-Statik: $379 a pair.

This hugely popular model is an MTM in open baffle with an addition pair of woofers below.

Some pics here: x-statik - av123

This speaker was reviewed by Affordable Audio, AV Guide, Gear Patrol, Audioholics, and the Absolute Sound, winning their Top Value award and an Editors Choice award. Stereo Mojo also gave it a Best of Show at RMAF 2008.


Above extract from here:-
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php...;topicseen#new

This is a world class, very well acclaimed pair of speakers AND what I call quality and VFM, doubtlessly so.

I suggest you get in touch with FM captrajesh FOR THESE at the earliest for further details.

Original X-LS mini-monitor: $109 per pair.

These were reviewed by Audioholics, Affordable Audio, Home Theater and High Fidelity, GoodSound, Tone Audio, Consumer Guide, Prillaman.net, and several others. They received two Product of the Year awards, Best Buy award, Budget Speaker of the Year, and seems like there might have been one or two more that I can't remember. An upgrade for that model offered by the Skiing Ninja was also reviewed by Tone Audio.

Original X-CS: $79 each.

This was a matching MTM in a sealed box using a pair of the 16 ohm woofers in parallel. These were reviewed by Home Theater Talk, Audioholics, Consumer Guide, and Affordable Audio.

X-LS Encore: $149 a pair.

This was an upgraded version of the original X-LS. A few pics here: X-LS Encore - av123

These were reviewed by Positive Feedback, and several others. A Skiing Ninja upgraded version also won the small speaker shoot out by Stereo Mojo: SmallSpeakerShootout2007Part1

X-CS Encore: $99 each.

An upgraded version of the original X-CS, MTM center channel speaker.

This was also reviewed by Positive Feedback. There was also a review of the X-MTM, X-CS, and X-ls at Home Theater Sound, and they were given a Reviewers Choice award.

X-Omni: $169 a pair.

This is an omni directional design for left and right mains or rear surround applications. It was reviewed by Affordable Audio and given a Best of 2009 award.

X-Statik: $379 a pair.

This hugely popular model is an MTM in open baffle with an addition pair of woofers below.

Some pics here: x-statik - av123

This speaker was reviewed by Affordable Audio, AV Guide, Gear Patrol, Audioholics, and the Absolute Sound, winning their Top Value award and an Editors Choice award. Stereo Mojo also gave it a Best of Show at RMAF 2008.

X-Voce: $189 each.

This speaker is a center channel version of the X-Statik.

A few pics are here: x-statik Centre - av123

It uses an open baffle MTM center section with an additional sealed box woofer on each end.

These were also reviewed by Gear Patrol and several others.

I also have some MFW-15 woofers. These were 15 woofers made by Eminence. They make great home theater subs. I'll be letting these go for $79 each.

The MFW-15's are now all gone.

All of these kits use the original crossovers (made in China). If you want Sonicap upgrades or want to purchase all the parts to completely build out point to point wired networks than all of that is obviously going to be extra.

So tell all your friends or post the good news all over the place. You'll never find deals like this again.

You'll need to call to order these. GR Research 940-592-3400

Above extract from here
Best deal on loudspeaker kits ever.

Cheerio
 
Hmmm the OP already has two sets of floor standers. I am sure they can play LOUD. Now why go for another setup costing $$$$ whose major strength is also to play loud?

If I were to spend on multiple setups, I would pick gear that had different strengths. For example Speaker X is great in the lows and highs but maybe fatiguing, then go for speaker Y that is mellow easy and non-fatiguing and also outstanding in the mids.

For a 12x15 room even a speaker rated at 30W continuous paired with an amp of 60W RMS will suffice, and it can be made even more enjoyable if you hear things differently in a way the existing speakers cannot deliver. :)

Just my chaar aanas... :eek:

HTH
--G0bble
 
Last edited:
gobble said:
Hmmm the OP already has two sets of floor standers. I am sure they can play LOUD. Now why go for another setup costing $$$$ whose major strength is also to play loud?

If I were to spend on multiple setups, I would pick gear that had different strengths. For example Speaker X is great in the lows and highs but maybe fatiguing, then go for speaker Y that is mellow easy and non-fatiguing and also outstanding in the mids.

For a 12x15 room even a speaker rated at 30W continuous paired with an amp of 60W RMS will suffice, and it can be made even more enjoyable if you hear things differently in a way the existing speakers cannot deliver. :)

Just my chaar aanas... :eek:

HTH
--G0bble
Click to expand...

Gobbie,

Yes my present floorstanders do play loud however the weakness with both of them is that they add their own color to the source. And that is why I am looking at either bookshelves or studio monitors. Basically I am looking for speakers that can play as close to what the recording artist had originally recorded without any coloration.

When I say loud indent mean deafening loud. I mean crisp clear no prominence in higher or lower frequencies when I turn up the volume to a level wherein I am in a way sort of completely blanketed by music. As mentioned I do listen to a Lot of jazz and blues coupled with instrumentals .
Towers I have realised add their own color to it. It's bad enough that different amps have different sonic signatures but speakers add their own as well

So in a way I am looking at something which is smooth cleat no prominence of any particular frequency .

My first option was studio monitors but not to sure how it would work at 14 feet away . As far as I know they designed more for nearfield sound

So my next bet is bookshelves
 
Flash said:
Gobbie,

Yes my present floorstanders do play loud however the weakness with both of them is that they add their own color to the source. And that is why I am looking at either bookshelves or studio monitors. Basically I am looking for speakers that can play as close to what the recording artist had originally recorded without any coloration.

When I say loud indent mean deafening loud. I mean crisp clear no prominence in higher or lower frequencies when I turn up the volume to a level wherein I am in a way sort of completely blanketed by music. As mentioned I do listen to a Lot of jazz and blues coupled with instrumentals .
Towers I have realised add their own color to it. It's bad enough that different amps have different sonic signatures but speakers add their own as well

So in a way I am looking at something which is smooth cleat no prominence of any particular frequency .

My first option was studio monitors but not to sure how it would work at 14 feet away . As far as I know they designed more for nearfield sound

So my next bet is bookshelves
Click to expand...
Have you tried PSB. I suppose these will suit your taste. I auditioned these (don't remember model number) some two months back at Lakozy, New Delhi and found good for music.
 
Flash said:
Gobbie,

So in a way I am looking at something which is smooth cleat no prominence of any particular frequency .

My first option was studio monitors but not to sure how it would work at 14 feet away . As far as I know they designed more for nearfield sound

So my next bet is bookshelves
Click to expand...

Yep I read your posts and figured you are on the right track anyways, but still I posted :)

Are you going to power the new speakers from the same amp?

--G0bble
 
gobble said:
Yep I read your posts and figured you are on the right track anyways, but still I posted :)

Are you going to power the new speakers from the same amp?

--G0bble
Click to expand...

Well not completely decided on an AMP . i am weighing in my options but i am seriously contemplating 'Sunfire'
 
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A beautiful, well-constructed speaker with class-leading soundstage, imaging and bass that is fast, deep, and precise.

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