Acoustic Energy Aegis One Speakers.

Im listening to a pair right now in my office system. Smooth, grain-free and a little rolled off. Definitely not bright. Didnt need much breaking in either. Id suggest losing the Monster ic and RS speaker cable. Dont need to spend a lot of money. The Radio Shack audio/video cables are fine as interconnects, though of course you can do better for a lot more money (yellow and white color coded and thick, in a white package, number something-1504, not the red and white thinner audio cables). A lot of people swear by Sound King or Carol 12 gauge, but depending on length, the RS 18 gauge solid core hook up wire is also ok. Again, you can do better by spending more money but I doubt you want to spend more money than you have in the speakers themselves.

those RS interconnects are 8mm, black, with little yellow and white rings on the end and come in a white package. If you try them, be very careful about mounting them on your amp. The connectors are very tight.

I used the Analysis Plus Oval 9 and the Pathos Classis One to much success. I placed the system in my bedroom about 6 to 8 inches from the wall with no toe-in. A region of bass (real bass) heavy material shortly came up and literally scared me as I was reading. The speakers can sound quite good when paired with the right gear and positioned just about 6 - 8 inches from a rear wall (rear of the speakers) for bass reinforcement. Happy listening Regards, Mike

My son has these for his H.T. and complained they sounded the way you talked about ,but after a few 100 hours or so they really sing, lose the wire, get some D.H.Labs T-14`s and they will do much better

I have a pair hooked up to a Kora Mercury 40 watt tube integrated with Analysis Plus Oval 12 cable and the sound is incredible for the price. Can't believe a $300 speaker can sound this good. Soundstage is excellent with no harshness and little grain. They can sound just a touch on the bright side with solid state electronics but hey, that's solid state.