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$600 +/- Bookshelfs w/ Holographic Soundstage

Hello all,

Thank you all for your time & dedication to Audio :-)
This site has been a wonderful find for me (and a constant source of amusement for my wife watching me! LOL!)

I have been reading a bunch of the articles - trying not to clog up the forum with yet another speaker advice column - but have learned that it is the specifics of each individual situation that makes this such an exciting topic. So ...

I am looking to upgrade my bookshelf speakers - and would love input on my situation:

Right now I have a pair of B&W DM.601 s1 - that I am enjoying, but I feel their holographic soundstage is a bit limited.

This is my #1 priority - I love 'seeing' the music. My pinnacle moment came when listening to Rimsky-Korsakov, Sherezade on Primare driven ProAc Response D28s - when, with my eyes closed, I could tell you exactly where each member of the orchestra was sitting! That was when all of this began!!

Budget is self set at $600 +/-
Used / New all-ok
I'm partial to bookshelfs due to the size of my room (12'x10') in an NYC Apartment.

My current system:
Rotel RX-1052 Receiver (my upgrade dream right now is the Primare I30)
Rotel RCD-1072 CD
Technics SL-1200MK2 (w/ Shure M97xE)
B&W DM.601 S1 on Stands
Decent Wiring (Monster M850 Interconnects, Kimber Kwik 12 Speaker, I'm working on power cabling next)

What I've listened to in the last 48 Hours:
Art Farmer - Modern Art - CD
David Byrne - Grown Backwards - CD
Pink Floyd (bootlegs circa 1968-1974) - FLAC burned to CD
Thin Lizzy - In Sunshine or Shadow - LP
Radiohead - OK Computer - Audiophile LP
Miucha & Antonio Carlos Jobim - LP
Jorge Ben - BEN - LP Digitized to CD
Amadou & Mariam - Dimache & Bamako - CD
Pepe & Cheich - CD
Franz Liszt - A Faust Symphony - CD
Schuman - Frauenliebe und Leben - CD
Bach - Sonatas & Partitas - CD

Ok - I think this is probably more then enough info!

Thank you all so much & Happy Holidays
Ethan
128x128septemous
buconero117
2,311 posts
 
proac's, don't accept others.
jfacker
85 posts
 
Hey Ethan, I share your enthusiasm for the textural qualities of a fine two-channel image :) My suggestions as far as speakers go would include Alons, Meadowlarks, Green Mountain Audio, and of course Spicas. If you get a chance to listen to any of the Alon open-baffle designs, don't pass it up, they are amazing. The other suggestions I have to preserve that dimensionality are 1) a good passive preamp, like the Luminous Audio Axiom, and 2) a good tube amp. Happy listening!
slikric3000
638 posts
 
I don't care what speakers are out there, a bottle of your favorite spirits will make any speaker many many times more halographic. This is one of my secret tweaks that I don't share often.
pdn
438 posts
 
Ethan:

The new B&W 685's could be just the right move for you. They list at approx $650.00/pair and are a far cry from your DM601 S1's. Even the 601 S3's (of which I have a pair) are a vast improvement over the S1's. I think you would love the 685's. Have you auditioned them yet?

BTW, I too have a Rotel RCD-1072 CDP.
nolitan
865 posts
 
if you can find a used totem model 1 that would be a good candidate.
the harbeth HL-P3es2s
Proac Ref 8s
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