stereo speakers-towers

balakrishna

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please suggest hi-fi tower speakers for my 2channel stereo . my power amp is 150 watts/channel continous average output . budget is between 2 and 3 lac rupees.
 
dear marsilians
my system consists of nad 515 bee cd player,nad c162 pre-amp and nad c272 power amp. the continous average power output of the power amp is 150w/channel at 8 ohms. dynamic head room is 2.3 db. i listen to rock and classical.
 
hi balakrishna
this is just a suggestion and i have not tried them but try auditioning lithos kontras speakers for your NAD setup.
 
At these prices you have quite a variety of speakers available. Some of the award winning possibilities (in no particular order) are:

PSB Synchrony Two
Audire Osiris
Cadence Arista
Elac FS247
Acoustic Energy AE Mk 3
B&W 704
B&W 804S
B&W 805S
Dali Mentor 2
Dali Helicon 400
Dynaudio Coutour S1.4
MS Performance 6
ProAc Studio 130 or 140
Tannoy Revolution Sg. DC6T
Wilson Benesch Square Two
Yamaha Soavo 1

Cheers
 
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Hi
Any particular reason to dish out 2/3 L for a pair of FS?
There are some super speakers in that range with totally different sonics from B&W,Dynaudio,Focals,Morels.
IMO a Monitor Audio Silver RS 6 should be a good match for the set up and will be under 65 K and u can spend some of the allocated budget on a good CDP. This should result in a more musical presentation that pairing the Nad 515 cdp + Nad Pre/power with say a B&W 804/805 or Dyna Contour 3.4/1.4 etc or a Focal electra.

Usual caveat is that i am not bashing Nad but that a very revealing speaker in the 2/3 L bracket deserves better to perform.
Rgds
 
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I totally agree with Dinyaar's suggestion. You could audition a very good pair of Vandersteens or Totems for that kind of price in addition to some suggestions from Venkat and get a feel for the sound signature.

Marbin Colah at

Innovative Information Technology Ltd
Audio Distribution Group
1507 Maker V, Nariman Point;
Bombay 21
Tel: 91 22 5 632 5010
Mobile: 91 9819257839
E-mail: [email protected]
E-mail: [email protected]

deals with these and other excellent brands.
 
Hi Balakrishna

Looking at the gear you have I am putting my 2 cents for a pair of ProAc Studio 140. Whatever decision you make , just make it after auditioning these amazeing stereo speakers.

:)
 
Balakrishna since you are in bangalore, I'd suggest you listen to the Usher Be-718 that cranky suggested in his previous post. Please mail/call Sridhar (odyssey on the forum. contact details on the ad banner). Alternatively, you are most welcome to come listen to my setup which is also built around a Be-718.

Also I'd suggest you dump that NAD pre-power if you can. You can do a lot better with that budget of yours.
 
Guys, this does not sound right to me. The poor guy asked for advise on speakers, and we are asking him to dump his current equipment altogether and build from scratch. I think we should narrow down to the speakers that will best match his existing equipment.

Remember there are a loads of users users of NAD equipment who are very happy with it's sound. What we should do is to look for speakers for his equipment, not the other way around.

I just listed a set of award winning speakers at his budget. But, if we can get him something at much less than his budget, I am sure he will be happy. Maybe we can advise his to spend some money or room acoustics, cables, and interconnects that will help him improve the sound quality.

Let us not make him chase a wild dream all over again.

Cheers
 
To be honest, NAD electronics - especially a NAD 515 CD player will do no good to a 3 lac speaker. Its just meaningless to pair such rudimentary entry level electronics with a high end speaker.

Its the same with the preamplifiers - they will just artificially inflate the mid bass and have the typical NAD house sound - not something that goes too well with a high end speaker.

Aren't we supposed to ensure that the OP has the best possible musical experience in his budget? Considering the fact that he's spending 3lacs, it would really be a shame that he ends up with a substandard experience just because of partnering equipment not performing to the level of his speakers.

If he must keep his existing equipment, spending anything over 60-70 grand is not a very wise thing to do.
 
reignofchaos said:
If he must keep his existing equipment, spending anything over 60-70 grand is not a very wise thing to do.

venkat - sentiment well taken. I just think we're offering advice that will get him good sound, not just good equipment. The relationship is not always linear.

Though the speakers you list are very good, when somebody takes the synchrony home (for example) and finds lack of refinement and excitement because the partnering equipment is not up to snuff, who will he blame - himself?

I agree with both these. Maybe I just should not have listed those speakers at all. Anyhow, I yet feel we should work together to advise him what is the best option available for his current equipment.

cranky said:
In any case decision will always depend on the OP, not on anything we say. The spirit of the advice is not to steer into a direction or fixed path, but to provide perspective. There's nothing wrong with that, IMO.

Though I agree with this, many times previous experience or knowledge will help people avoid a lot of steps that some of us have gone through. For example Dinyaar visiting the shops along with Magma has helped Magma quite a lot in terms of understanding the what and how of auditioning.

I will also step aside so that people with experience on NAD equipment can offer good advise.

Cheers
 
Hi Venkat,
I understand what u are saying. The guy asks for speakers we suggest him some. My point (as i mentioned above too) is similar to what ROC opines . Spend 3 L on a speaker for the above Nad combo is not the way to go. Buy an RS 6(or similaly priced FS or SM) and he will be happy. Spend 3L and then the guy will spend 3 L more soon enough upgrading electronics.

Also award winning speakers may sound poorer with Nad gear than some much cheaper alternatives. By that i mean that a MA RS 8 @ about 80/85 K may sound better than a 3L B&W 804 on the Nad Pre/power.
Hence the suggestions to avoid the guy setting up an ill balanced system.

Cranky, the speakers i suggested were just a few options and nothing more. Actually speaker options now are just too many and frankly its damn difficult suggesting something as all our tastes vary greatly. Also we are all merely giving our opinions and the originator can take a call. I used the Dyna Contour 1.3 SE with a Nad pre/power and was not happy but the guy who bought it off me is running it with a MA RS 6 and is over the moon.
RGDS
 
Thanks Dinyaar, ROC, Cranky.

Balakrishna I will take the liberty of summing our discussions for you. For the equipment you have, it is best to look for speakers such as the MA RS6 or RS8. They will work well with your equipment and give you good music.

Listen to the Ushers, but see if you can listen to them with your equipment.

Broaden your horizon at around a lakh, and you will be rewarded with a good set of speakers for your equipment.

Please ignore the list I have posted above.

Cheers
 
Dear Venkat,
Please never feel offended if we dont agree on certain issues as that is never the intention. I have loved many of your posts and have found them very very informative.

Mr Balakrishna please DO NOT ignore venkats recommendations as they are good speakers!!! Just that u will need to shell out a lot and revamp your gear to get the best out of your new speakers if u go the B&W 804,Dyna contour/confidence,JM labs, Wilson etc etc way.

I hope u guys (cranky & Venkat) do not unsubscribe as more opinions (and even some contrasting views) are always welcome.

Rgds
 
Hi all,

Real experts talking here, still I feel I can offer my two cents. Although I am a strong believer in having the best possible speakers within a budget, this philosophy has its limits, as very correctly pointed out by knowledgeable friends in the above. If balakrishna does NOT improve his source and amplification, it does NOT absolutely make any sense for him to buy a pair of 3L speakers.

We cannot read Balakrishna's mind. Does he then want to go around and upgrade his source and amp (after the purchase of the speakers) that would suit the 3L speakers? Is it what he wants to do? In that case, it is fine for him to go for the expensive speakers.

If not, he should reconsider his plan, and if the 3L is still available, I would say he should perhaps upgrade the electronics and buy the speakers to go with. If properly done, I would imagine he would have better music this way than pairing 3L speakers with the current electronics. The third possibility: If balakrishna does not want to change his source and amp, then he should look at speakers under a lakh. (Even in this case, I would really request him to upgrade his source to a mid-level CDP like an Arcam, CA740/840 or Cyrus 6se). Money is better spent that way, as said overwhelmingly by almost all members above.
 
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Please never feel offended if we dont agree on certain issues as that is never the intention. I have loved many of your posts and have found them very very informative.

Dinyaar, this has been a very informative and courteous discussion. So why should I take any offense at all? It is only that after reading what you, Cranky, and ROC have written, I realised I may have erred in putting up that list vis-a-vis Balakrishna's current equipment.

In any case, we will wait for Mr. Balakrishna to come back with his comments.

Cheers
 
fellas,

I think there are a few choices for Balakrishna now. The theme seems to be able to balance the NAD components (weakest link in the chain) with serious speakers. The only reason I did not comment on upgrading the components, though that was the first thought that came to my mind was that he might actually prefer the NAD sound to others. Thats the reason I suggested the Vandersteens and Totems to balance the NAD signature.

Bala - if you are flexible to split your budget into component upgrade + speakers purchase, I say to look at brands such as Simaudio, Cary, Linn, Theta, Meridian, Arcam for CDPs. These will sound significantly different and better than the NAD.

For stereo amps, Simaudio, Cary, Musical Fidelity, Bel Canto and Classe would be phenomenol as well.

Disclaimer : the only reason I am quoting these brands are that I have listened to them sometime or other for extended periods over the last few years.




It looks like he has to do some legwork and serious auditioning before dropping the cash.
 
dear dinyaar
the nad 515 bee is the cd player i bought to pair with my earlier 45 w int amp. i have kept around 80,000 rupees for upgrading the source ,but iam yet to decide on the make and model of cd player . i will be thankful for any suggestions.i will buy the cd player after buying the speakers.
 
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