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Musical full-range in the $3-4K range used?

I have been going back and forth on speakers for awhile now. Looking to get a new pair (used, most likely) and I live in a really remote area with nobody except a B&W dealer nearby. I can't reasonably drive 400 miles round trip to bring speakers back home for audition, and demos at the dealer are sketchy at best. I have a decent sized room (21x14x9) and would like a musical speaker, mostly for jazz, jazz vocals, classical. Full range would be best. My last speaker was a Soliloquy 6.3, which was great in a bigger room, but a little too warm, and not tight enough in the bass for my taste.

I can use it with solid state or tubes, either is fine. I have around $2500 to budget for an integrated amp, but figured it best to find speakers I like, then an amp down the road.

Budget is max $4,000.

Some speakers I have heard at dealers, or have heard good things about:

Coincident (haven't heard these, but lots of good reviews)

Sonus Faber (seemed very musical, easy to listen to)

Tyler Acoustics (again, musical, a touch warm, nice and detailed)

Opera (haven't heard them, reputation is that they are similar to SF)

Aerial Acoustics (heard the 7b, a little flat, but could have been the $1000 integrated powering it: 9 was superb and sounded huge)

Dynaudio (heard the 5.4 at a dealer, but room was poor and speaker sounded thin and lifeless)

Acoustic Zen (haven't heard these)

Thiel (heard the 2.4, sounded really thin)

Devore (dealer is 3 hours away, but might be worth checking out the Super 8)
komaki
komaki OP
7 posts
 
Wow, thanks for all of the responses! It sounds like every speaker on that list has at least 1 fan, plus a few more. I will look into the other suggestions as well.

Unfortunately, it doesn't really narrow it down too much! How about this: any I should eliminate, for one reason or another? Any I should eliminate as not being a particularly good value?

Is the Cremona too "warm"? I don't want a detailed, etchy hi-fi sound, I just want it to sound like music, for lack of a better term. Watching a live jazz band doesn't sound hi-fi'ish, it sounds full and natural. That is the sound I am going for, simply an accurate reproduction.

I did a search of Audio Kinesis and didn't see anything listed here. He is in Southern Idaho, and I am in SLC from time to time, so perhaps I can work out a demo.
ngjockey
1,042 posts
 
Some Genesis APM-1's listed at an Illinois dealer on the list. Powered woofers. One-third origional retail.

Or how about the Rocky Mountain line arrays from Colorado.
hchilcoat
159 posts
 
Komaki,
For AudioKinesis, go to audiokinesis.com and his speakers are under the products links.
Have fun checking out you options!
martykl
3,578 posts
 
Komaki,

I own Cremonas (non-M series) and they feature a modestly elevated "warmth" region. Unlike some of the older SF speakers (I have also owned Minuettos for app 15 years) these speakers have more output through the presence region. The net effect is a nicely balanced, musical sounding, (though not strictly speaking "neutral" or "accurate") loudspeaker. OTOH, these are not so colored -IME - as to eventually wear on a critical listener.

Mine are in my living room with a Pathos One integrated amp and a matching Digit cd player. It sounds very nice and looks terrific. By audiophile standards this may not be the last word in system performance, but - even after listening to the more "pedigreed" speakers I use in my listening room - I'm never disappointed when I use the living room system. IMHO, it's really quite good.

Good Luck

Marty
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,957 posts
 
Duke sold a set of speakers to one of my friends here in town, so I got to hear them in my system before delivering them. I really was not prepared for how good the speaker was! Very well integrated, good bass extension (into the upper 20s to my ear) very detailed and extended, but relaxed and easy to listen to.

I was using a pair of our M-60s (60w into 8 ohms) and was really challenged to clip the amps- I think Duke is very conservative about his efficiency ratings. They were very nearly the efficiency as the ZU Druids (which seem to be about 97 db), so I make the Stormbringers to be in the area of 94-95 db by the same standard.

In my friend's home, they replaced a set of Carver Silver Amazings. My friend thought he was down-sizing to please his girlfriend, but he is ecstatic about the move- they sound better than the Carvers in every way (his girlfriend likes them a lot better too), plus they are a lot easier to drive. At the time, the Duke was retailing the speaker for $2800.00/pair. Hard to argue with...
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