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Speakers in the 5-6K$ region & their components

Hi all,

This is my 1st post here.
I'm a long time audio enthusiast and even worked in high-end audio sales for a few years a while back, but I've been out of the loop for a few years now. I'm looking now for a new pair of speakers in the 5-6K$ range to replace my current Merlin TSM. The type I'm looking for is a 2 way 6-6.5'' speaker, preferably a floorstander. I know many brands and models and went through a lot of speakers in the past, so my question is a technical one:

I'm looking only for speakers in this range which use high end componenets. which ones are there?

I've already done some research, so here are a few examples of what I mean:

Proac in its response range is using Scanspeak D2604 tweeter (48$/unit).
PMC in its "i" series - Seas 27TFFC (45$/unit).
Spendor, "A" series - Seas 29TFF/W (52$/unit).

I can go on and also bring examples of the woofers used and more speaker brands, but I think the picture is clear. These are all quality units of well acclaimed manufacturers, but are by no means high-end units. Which are?
My research brought me this far to the following (All in my price range):

Kudos audio Super 10/Super20: Seas T29CF-002 tweeter (330$/unit) + a version of Seas W18NX (196$/unit)

Marten Form Floor: Accuton C173-6-095 woofer (over 300$/unit) + a ribbon tweeter I was unable to recognize (anyone?)

Merlin VSM (as second hand only): Dynaudio D330/A tweeter (over 400$ per unit) + Scanspeak 18W/8545-01 (173$/unit).

BTW, my current Merlin TSM is using Morel MDT30 tweeter (80$/unit) + Morel MW166 woofer (124$/unit) and sounds wonderful to my taste, despite a considerable lack of bass (being a sealed- box design). 

So, given all that, does anyone have any more ideas for speakers I should consider?
roylindenfeld
erik_squires
16,242 posts
 
@bassdude

Is of course quite right.  Did I misunderstand the point of the original post?

I though the point was good speakers in the $5K range with top notch drivers.

Best,


Erik
austinbob
235 posts
 
Well I just purchased a pair of Dynaudio Contour S3.4 speakers with upgraded Esotar tweeters. $3800. I would definitely consider these quality speakers and components. 
erik_squires
16,242 posts
 
Hi Roy,

So, in general, the retail price of a single speaker is 10x the driver cost. It goes up and down, but that’s it in general.

So, it pays to go with a custom-speaker builder for a good design. Taylor, Selah, etc.

Otherwise, for a $5,000 pair, on average, you’ll be getting $250worth of parts (retail) in each.

There are some exceptional values though, Monitor Audio among them, which I consider very good sounding, but since they make their own drivers, it's quite likely they are actually charging more than 20x a single speaker.

Lawrence audio is also another company that has exceptional value in terms of parts cost.

NONE of this makes a speaker worth buying though. :)  As @bassdude said, the whole package matters.

Best,


Erik
dorkwad
548 posts
 
If you're looking for a floor standing speaker, the VMPS RM30 has dual 6.5 " woofers, 3 ribbon planar mids, a ribbon tweeter, and a 10" passive radiator in each speaker in a slim, but deep cabinet.  If you can find a used one with auricaps and silver wiring to the bass, that would be an upgrade.  These are 120 lbs. per speaker and have soundcoating on the interior.  They are very dynamic, transparent, with great clarity and are adjustable at all frequencies.  Used ones would be about $1800-2400 depending on upgrades.   Another speaker to check out would be the Evoke Eddie's.  It had similar looking drivers (1 each per speaker) but it has more expensive drivers and crossovers--also a very solid cabinet.  It is a larger monitor at 24"  H, 10" W, and 17" D.  The Eddie is new and they are running a special pricing on it until a certain number are sold.
inna
7,296 posts
 
You know, self-sufficiency can be great, but let the professional designers build speakers and other stuff. I can sometimes argue with Atmasphere here about certain points but I will not argue about how to make a great amp, or any amp for that matter.
I don't like so-so quality parts though, but nor would I want or be able to to pay $6k for one driver. But $20, $30 doesn't sound right to me when it comes to expensive and presumably high-end speakers. If they would have to charge $6k instead of $5k while putting better drivers in there, that would be fine with me. Another reason to have fewer but higher quality drivers. And please no 50 cents capacitors and $1 per ten miles wires.
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