Elac Loudspeakers?

oohh, that sounds like fun. That is a great lineup. The thing with Elac is they can change a lot depending on what else is in the system. The same can be said about a lot of speaker lines, but IMO with Elac, that effect is more so. Hopefully the dealer knows how to optimize the Elac's at with other gear in your price range. I would imagine your Valve Audio Pred. should be very good with everything.

I drove my Amphion with a Cayin KT-88 Integrated. Great sound, there was no reason to get rid of that setup other then I just like to try new things and see what happens.

I drive my Elac 247s with the Musical Fidelity AMS35i and find that the pure class A AMS perfectly matches the 247s--clean, airy highs and punchy bass with reasonable mids.. Upgrading to the 249BE cos the 249BE is just better than the 247 in every department.. Wider, deeper soundstage and more full body mids and vocals. Better dynamics and the sound is less forward, makes for better long hour listening.. I listen mainly to classical, operas and vocals..

I tried the beryllium tweeter speakers and found that they lack the airiness and transience of the jet III..

The 249 Black Edition is VERY good. I have not heard and don't know the price, but have you looked into the new 400 Series from Elac? Looks interesting, I wonder how much of a step up it is from the 249BE's?

Kclone.. My local dealer was telling me that if I ran two speaker cables to the speaker, that is, in his words--the true bi wiring.. The speakers will sound even better!!! Dun know how true that is.. Going to test listen next tue.. Will update here after I auditioned..:-)

I was thinking of the 409 or the 507 too.. Thing is, they are not available where I am yet cos they are so new.. Anyone had tried them? I would be very interested to know how they sound compared to the 249BE...

Well, since you brought it up, I have the 507s on order. But I have not heard it. The North American dealer has them in stock. So I will should be able to tell you how they sound compared to the 249BE.

As for the 400 Series, HiFi Statement magazine has a very good review of the 407. HiFi+ also has an excellent review of the 407s.