ELAC Adante AS61 $2,500 pr. Outstanding speaker. Will best most speakers at double the price. Check them out. You will be impressed.
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Accessories 4 Less. I’m tempted to buy a set myself, but for my next purchase, I’m wanting a 4K TV! https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/focalaria936dwa/focal-aria-936-6.5-3-way-floorsta... |
The Monitor Audios I have heard are very good, especially with the ribbon tweeters. I would also look into whichever Golden Ear speakers fit your budget. My main speakers are in your price range - Ohm Walsh 2000s ($2800/pr). Although they do thrive on large reserves of power, they worked fine full range when I hooked up an old Onkyo surround AVR rated at 80 watts per channel. They are sold factory direct with a 120 day return option, but you will lose the round-trip shipping if you return them. In fact. for the last three months with my amp in the shop (ugh, don't ask), I have been running them off a $500 Pioneer AVR, and they sound great. Not as good as with my regular amp, but pretty darned good. I am about 50/50 2-channel music and video myself. I have smaller Ohms for the center and surrounds, and Paradign Atoms for the rear channels. Although I am not as picky about my surround sound as I am for stereo listening, my system is more than adequate for film soundtracks. I have a Def Tech sub for the LFE channel and a pair of Vandersteen 2Wq subs for the left & right main channels. There are better speakers, but there are few that I have heard in the sub-$3K price range that I would rather own than my 2000s. My complete review of these speakers is in the review section of A-gon. |
https://www.audiogon.com/listings/monitors-harbeth-hl-compact-7esiii-2017-12-30-speakers Incase you live in California. Pretty good deal with the stands. I got mine for 3400 new tiger ebony. the cherry is about 200 less. The Harbeth will be great with your solid state receiver. Incredible detail with these speakers. |
Ascend Acoustics Raal Towers. I purchased a set in 2015 @ 2800. I sold them last month. After listing them on another site, within 8 hours I had 6 buyers. It was strange trying to pick which one got them. They sound incredible for the price . I updated to a set of speakers costing 4 times the price of the Ascends. They spoiled me,and I just refused stepping backwards on my updates. Obviously they hold their resale. The reason being its really rare for them to become available on the used market .I originally had them with a Marantz 7500 @ 110 watts. They needed a sub to bring life to the rock and roll that I wanted to listen to. But most people think their fine with out one .Listeners choice . |
The aforementioned Vandersteen 2CE Sig IIs are another must audition in this price range but are not as efficient.I'd take it even farther, the 2Ce Sig II is a must-audition up $5K. I drove mine to satisfying SPLs with my Ayre AX-7 (60 W into 8 ohm, 120 into 4 ohm). I only heard clipping if I tried to reproduce The Who at concert levels. Anyhow, the 2Ce is superbly balanced in it's price category without any substantial weakness. |
Have to ask what your goals are? Is your priority movies or 2-channel music listening? If the latter, what are the most important sound reproduction characteristics to you from a speaker perspective? At this price level for speakers I think you're outclassing your receiver and won't get the best out of what speakers at this level have to offer, unless your plan is to upgrade your upstream electonics fairly significantly in the future. Don't mean to be a buzzkill here, but without knowing the answers to these important questions it's really impossible to make an informed recommendation for your specific situation. |
Helomech i agree the ones may be a great choice . One day we delivered a pair of Vandersteen 3 a sigs their full range ability Multi enclosure 86 DB SPl the fellow had an 80 watt Dennon and I said man this is gonna suck much to my surprise playing Enya Watermark the sound was amazingly enjoyable and it killed my predjudece into always staying open minded. thats why I invite folks in with their gear to try it for their confidence isnt its always better to see with your ears then listen with your eyes JohnnyR |
^ Johnny, There are plenty of truly efficient speakers that don't result in audible ringing. However, I agree that plenty of ineffienct speakers sound excellent. I suggested he look toward higher efficiency speakers because Denon receivers often lack grunt IME. I suggested the 1Cis because my experience was that they're plenty efficient for modest power but they also trump many speakers in this price class. His particular receiver is supposedly capable of 140 watts into each channel, so maybe it would be just fine with more demanding speakers. |
Is Hi-efficiency majoring on the minors? Okay but be careful what you wish for Less fatiguing? nice but can also mean a pulled down in the midrange response later feeling bored with the music. Many folks interpretation on efficiency with 90 db and above numbers are often mistaken with speakers actually ringing, achieving said numbers with hi efficiency specs, but in reality with blow back into the measuring microphone compounded with their unwanted baffle reflection distortions, box ringing, Ports howling with cows mooing so forth. As they radiate these out of time artifacts and redirect it right back into the accumulated measured numbers folks say wow 94 DB yet when the brain takes this in many are left wondering why listening fatigue prevails. Sad but true many quick to gaze at spec types may even dismiss a better sounding 86 db speaker with an easy impedance load for a receiver without a listen and rely on these 90 plus db ringing artifact numbers as something desirable or special. When Vandersteen was asked the question ""when are you going to make a real high efficiency great sounding speaker?"" Richard replied ""if I could make an accurate honest high-efficiency speaker with my name on it successfully id already be retired floating in the Hawaiin islands somewhere counting my dollars."" Could it be we are listening with our eyes instead of seeing with our ears? Best JohnnyR Vandersteen dealer |
Get something of high efficiency. The Focals have decent efficiency on paper, but not so much in practical use. Check out the Monitor Audio Silver 300s, they’re more efficient, less fatiguing and simply better speakers. The aforementioned Vandersteen 2CE Sig IIs are another must audition in this price range but are not as efficient. Their 1Cis are efficient enough and competitive in the $3K class. |
Literally came in here to post Aria 936. Although many will will come in recommending their own speakers they purchased and love, I actually don’t even own them, and have huge amounts of experience with other speakers in the price range. Nothing beats them in the price range for musicality, soundstage, holography, and the ability to have good detail without ever being bright or fatiguing. Did you get a chance to listen to them? |