Upgrade from Spendor SP 1/2, what's next?


I currently have a pair of original SP 1/2's and am upgrading from a Cayin TA-30 to a Cayin a88t to drive them. Listen mostly to classical and jazz vocals and love the sweet mellow warm sound. I'm considering trying a new speaker and was thinking of going to a floor stander. What Spendor floor standing speaker (or other maker) would you recommend? The room is 20' x 14' with 10' ceiling, wood floors, minimal furniture.
mikewdc
I think. Sometimes, too much of the sound is still trapped in the speaker.
I think we're getting somewhere now, though that brings up an issue none of us can do much about - the quality of recordings.

Far too many recordings, even in the jazz and classical world, tend to be both very closely miked and multi-miked. What we hear is the results of music that is miked in a fashion that we do not hear live. Even if you sit in the middle of a live orchestra, you are close to some instruments, further from others, and you'll never get the multi-miked mixing console version at a live acoustic concert.

I find the Spendors very good about showing me what is on a recording and often, while quite engaging, it isn't very close to what one would hear live.

You might want to audition a speaker with broader dispersion to get a "bigger" sound. However, it is going to be critical that you audition them in your home since such speakers necessarily involve the room reflections to create their effect. What works wonderfully in one room may be a disaster in another.

However, I suspect that you may find you address one problem only to find that you lose some of that midrange magic that you enjoy so much now.

Good luck in your search!
Try a good subwoofer. Spendor SP1/2E + REL Stentor worked for me, creating a solid foundation and seemingly improved soundstage. Let us know how your changes work out.
I will try some auditioning. I suspect that I might find the new amplifier (which I've not yet received) may also have a significant impact. Who knows, maybe it doesn't get any better than the SP 1/2's--that's not a bad thing!

Goheelz, thanks for the subwoofer suggestion. I should have added that I have a REL Strata II.
The REL suggestion is a good one. You have the speakers on the long wall which is preferable and far enough from the back wall, although I was able to get mine out to 5' and this increased depth. Play around with toe-in as this may help too. Even 1/8' increments can make a difference. I had mine toed-in about 20 degrees.

Personally, I never got what I desired out of my 1/2e speakers with moderately powered tube amps, even in a smallish room. IMO these speakers perform better with solid state amps, about 150 watts give or take to start.
Personally, I never got what I desired out of my 1/2e speakers with moderately powered tube amps, even in a smallish room. IMO these speakers perform better with solid state amps, about 150 watts give or take to start.
Interesting - I went exactly the opposite. I had a Bel Canto S300 at 150 watts per channel and went to an Image 65i with 6550 outputs and 50 watts a channel. I'm very pleased with the current setup and have no urge to change out either amps or speakers.

As they say, horses for courses. ;-)