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Recommended speakers around $10K used

Looking for recommendations on speakers to audition...

Current gear: Bel Canto DAC2, via Bryston SP1 and Bel Canto Evo 2 monos, to Talon Peregrines. Love the deep, fast bass, but midrange is lacking something -- it just doesn't grab me like the Silverline Sonatas used to -- and the soundstage is unnaturally recessed... back behind the wall somewhere.

Good news: I have $10K budget, perhaps a little more, and I am happy to buy used equipment.

Bad news: speaker placement is limited. Room is smallish (14' x 17') and speakers have to be on 14' wall, pushed back toward corners with TV and audio equipment in between. Back wall is actually only a partial wall...opens onto dining room.

I'm looking for speakers that excel at reproducing guitar (acoustic and electric), image well, and go deep. I like monitors but always end up missing the visceral bass of big floorstanders. Current ideas from trolling A'gon:

- Revel Studio or Salon
- Aerial 20T
- Wilson Sophia...listened to thess recently and was impressed by quantity of bass, but it seemed a little muddy and overall presentation was uninvolving...or maybe I was just in a bad mood
- JMLab Alto Be...really liked these with Sim Audio W5 amp, but thought they might be missing the last ounce of bass. Maybe my Evos would match better? Front ported should help with placement.

Would Dali Megaline be a significant step up for the extra $5K?

Any & all opinions appreciated. Thanks.
jezzholland
drseid
201 posts
 
I think the Megalines might be overkill for your room size (although I did like their sound)... Maybe a better choice from Dali for your needs is to look at their Helicon800s. I liked those too, and they are more practical, IMO.

I concur with the Tyler recommendation by the way, but the Linbrook Signature Monitors are rear ported, so I would not recommend that particular model for your needs. That said, Tyler has a Linbrook Signature System 1 piece model that is front ported, and goes down to 25hz cleanly for about 5K new (for disclosure purposes, I own the two piece, rear ported version of these that sells for the same price and has the exact same specs). Also from Tyler in your range are their top-of-the-line Woodmeres at 10.2K new that would also work nicely (also front ported)... They go down to 22hz, and are amazing speakers in every way.

Other contenders I can easily recommend are the McIntosh XRT-28s (at about 9K used, a fabulous speaker that goes down to 18hz with ease -- these sound great with rock and female vocals in particular), the VonSchweikert DB99SEs (6-7K used -- great all-arounder, that does not take up a lot of floor space), and the Ayon Butterflies at $5.5K new (hard to find, and bass extension to only 38 hz, but *very* clean).

---Dave
ndeslions
79 posts
 
With 10K i would buy Hyperion 938 and a pair of Nuforce Ref 9.
Great great match, bass is fast with impact, the soundstage is huge and very stable...
jimmy2615
440 posts
 
Dave, your reasoning is based on sound principle (no pun intended), but from experience with similar rooms the rear ported Linbrook Monitor (NOT with the bass modules, which need 4-5 feet from the wall), as long as thy're at least 12-18 inches from the wall, offer nice bass without being boomy, and really get down into the listed 30 Hz range, and based on his set up I think would be a good match, since many of the fuller-range speakers listed would probably, in fact, be boomy. Although exactly how close to the corners the speakers needed to be was never stated.
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