Spendor 3/5'S you want midrange that's the ticket,should be about $600.00 used.
1K used monitor with wide/uniform dispersion
My wife and I are moving, which means a new listening room and the need for a new set of speakers.
I'm looking for a monitor that will meet three criteria: 1) a very natural, lifelike midrange with a sweet top end; 2) the widest and most uniform dispersion, so the speaker will have not only a wide sweet spot but sound good all over the room; 3) good dynamic capabilities.
My short list right now includes the Totem Model 1 (which I owned very briefly with a weak amp and shrill CD player; I've heard it in other contexts and liked it a lot) and KEF XQ20 (my first speakers were cheap KEFs, so I have a sense of and like the KEF sound). What else am I missing? What else is out there? I don't know that I'm interested in Ohms, and planars wouldn't fit the space.
The new room is 13x18, and the speakers will be on the middle of the long wall (so side-wall reflections won't be a worry). I'll be able to follow the rule of thirds for speaker and listening position, and so will be listening in the near-field. My current Vandersteen 2ce sig IIs will be too big for the room--too much bass with our proximity to neighbors, for one thing, and I won't be able to sit far enough away for the drivers to integrate. I'm bummed that they'll have to go. The rest of my system is an NAD C372 integrated and Rotel 1072 with Tributaries and Signal cabling. I listen at low to moderate volumes, usually in the 60-75dB range. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
I'm looking for a monitor that will meet three criteria: 1) a very natural, lifelike midrange with a sweet top end; 2) the widest and most uniform dispersion, so the speaker will have not only a wide sweet spot but sound good all over the room; 3) good dynamic capabilities.
My short list right now includes the Totem Model 1 (which I owned very briefly with a weak amp and shrill CD player; I've heard it in other contexts and liked it a lot) and KEF XQ20 (my first speakers were cheap KEFs, so I have a sense of and like the KEF sound). What else am I missing? What else is out there? I don't know that I'm interested in Ohms, and planars wouldn't fit the space.
The new room is 13x18, and the speakers will be on the middle of the long wall (so side-wall reflections won't be a worry). I'll be able to follow the rule of thirds for speaker and listening position, and so will be listening in the near-field. My current Vandersteen 2ce sig IIs will be too big for the room--too much bass with our proximity to neighbors, for one thing, and I won't be able to sit far enough away for the drivers to integrate. I'm bummed that they'll have to go. The rest of my system is an NAD C372 integrated and Rotel 1072 with Tributaries and Signal cabling. I listen at low to moderate volumes, usually in the 60-75dB range. Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
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- 31 posts total
Thanks for the suggestions so far. The Von Schweikerts weren't on my radar at all, though I had thought of the Spendors in the new 3/5R version. I owned the 3/5 briefly and with the same weak amp and shrill source I had for the Totems, and I think I judged their highs unfairly on that basis--their mids and soundstaging did impress me, though I'm not sure how they'd be on even dispersion or dynamics (particularly macrodynamics). Any thoughts? Timrhu--I'm still not sure how the smaller Vandies would be for me; the 2s at least have a very narrow vertical listening window, and that's the one thing I'd like to change as I switch by going to a wider-dispersion design. I am factoring an additional 200-300 for stands into my budget, hoping for used. If it helps, my listening is 50% small combo jazz, 40% indie and classic rock, 10% classical, mostly solo instruments and chamber music. I appreciate the input! |
B&W N805 has a lovely response. A used one might stretch your budget but it is worth it. ATC's are also very even off axis but you simply don't need that kind of power (overkill for 65 - 75 db). |
- 31 posts total