2. speakers
  3. 138419-74679

SPEAKERS, SPEAKERS AND MORE SPEAKERS.. BUT NEED BASS.?

Greetings audiophile fans,
I am in a challenging dilemma with SPEAKER selection and need a advice.. Budget 4K and less!!
Currently my setup consists ps audio pair mono amps, Jew Rowland pre and Oracle Delphi turntable..
I am mostly listening records (Jazz, folk....) I honestly prefer not to use sub due to space but prefer ful size tower SPEAKERS with enough bass to satisfy my need.. “IT’S ALL ABOUT THAT BASS” 
Soooo what have you heard and recommend for me??
Thanks and happy listening....
Cheers 

128x128shinemaster
mcreyn
293 posts
 
So here is what we know about the OP:

1) He listens to Jazz and Folk;
2) He may or may not have speakers since he hasn’t bothered to tell us what he has.
3) He likes bass, only cares about the bass, has told us nothing about what he prefers for other characteristics of a speaker.
4) He has a room, it is small, but who knows where his speakers are placed, where he sits, or if there are setup problems.
5) Any speakers with horns are out because as he puts it: " I have a small size room and no I do not want horns!! I am not a huge rock or pop genre listener... all I need is “ENOUGH BASS”".
6) He wants to spend less than $4000.

So given all the amazing information provided, I suggest the following:

1) Cerwin Vega SL-15- "large motor 15" woofer for punchy bass".
2) Polk S60 with "(3) 6.5” low distortion mica-reinforced polypropylene cones with four-layer voice coils for clean, clear bass, better linearity, and dynamic mid-range" and " Exclusive Polk Power Port technology for greater, more impactful bass".
3) Bic Venturi DV-84 with "Two 8" polymer active woofers, two 8" passive radiators".
4) Dayton Audio T652 with " Dual 6-1/2" woofers provide superb bass power and punch" . . . "for unobtrusive yet modern aesthetics and incredibly deep bass."

All of the above meet your stated criteria and should provide, as you put it “ENOUGH BASS”.

" happy listening....
Cheers"
Post removed 
audiokinesis
2,738 posts
 

bdp24 said, "[Duke’s] approach of making speakers that are built to handle the demands of a full-range signal ignores one of the major benefits of high-pass filtering---removing the low frequencies from not just the speaker, but also the amp driving them."

Such was not the case in my experience with the Quads and Gradient subs. The net benefits of not using a highpass filter were greater.

And please note that my approach of making speakers that are built to handle the demands of a fullrange signal gives users the OPTION of using them that way. It is not mandatory. In a situation where the amplifier is the limiting factor, the greatest net benefit may well come from reducing the load on the amp. I’m not unaware of this issue, which is why I specified that I try to build "enough efficiency" into the speakers. An extra 6 dB or so of efficiency arguably makes a greater contribution towards easing the load on the amp.

"Regarding Duke’s finding of reduced transparency as result of high-pass filtering of main speakers, if a 1st-order filter is sufficient, a simple passive one can be installed on the input jacks of the amp powering the speakers, just a single cap usually."

In some situations that can work very well. I used that approach in a system I built back in the mid-80’s. The effects of a first-order highpass filter extend well into the next octave up, which may or may not be a good thing. Again what I do adds an option; it does not remove other options.

soix
9,537 posts
 
@shinemaster -- It would help greatly if you'd tell us what speakers you're using now and what else you've heard so it will give us at least an idea of what's NOT "enough" bass.  And you're simply not going to get the WHOLE aspect without subs, and certainly not for $4k.  ENOUGH really doesn't tell anybody anything except for yourself.  C'mon man, make a little effort here and give us more to go on so we're all not just wasting our time here -- please!

I'll tell you this -- for someone who says "it's all about that bass" but won't consider subs, it tells me you've never heard a system with subs properly integrated.  There are plenty of fantastic roughly 12"-14" cube subwoofs out there that won't take up much space but yet bring a level of quality bass you can't hope for out of floorstanders in your price range.  And the sonic benefits go WAY beyond just bass and extend greatly to overall imaging and soundstage.  My advice -- go listen to a system with some subs dialed in correctly and my guess is you'll be happy to make a little space for one or even two subs in your room if bass really is that important.  Otherwise, at least throw us a bone here and tell us where you'd like to be in the bass region at minus 3dB. Thanks. 
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,816 posts
 

Not Duke, but some people put a "budget" active electronic crossover into their system, and find it to reduce the system's transparency. Lots of people are even using those cheap digital x/o's. Oy! They contain Opamps, IC's and other sound-compromising parts. Plus, who wants to digitize an analog signal?!

There are some real good x/o's available, at varying price points. Marchand's tube x/o's are popular with DIYers, and the First Watt B4 is a real nice little unit. It was unfortunately recently discontinued. Nelson Pass makes a great one, but it's not cheap. People like the Bryston, but it's pretty limited in adjustability.

More to discover