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New Speakers for $2000

Hello, new to the forums and wanted to ask your guys' advice for my next step up. My system right now is Lossless Files -> Benchmark DAC1 USB -> Cambridge Audio 650A -> Jamo 707 (Speakers from the early 90s I think).

I have about $2000 maybe up to $2200 MAX to spend on speakers. My sound preferences as you can tell from my set up is fairly neutral.

I went to the local hi-fi shop recent and listened to MartinLogan Electromotion. I found that they both lack bass extension which wouldn't really be a problem but also that they have a really lax midrange (too lazy for metal).

My wants in order of preference are:
-Resolution
-Neurality
-Imaging
-Sound stage width
-Good highs
-Not so slow mids that it'd make listening to heavier music unenjoyable
-A decent amount of bass or even slightly weak on punch is fine

Any recommendations are welcome and thanks in advance.
ninjasquirt
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 


My wants in order of preference are:
-Resolution
-Neurality
-Imaging
-Sound stage width
-Good highs
-Not so slow mids that it'd make listening to heavier music unenjoyable
-A decent amount of bass or even slightly weak on punch is fine
I should have paid more attention to this set of requirements. Given these plus your narrow listening area, I think Nola Boxers would be the way to go. A mini is going to be easier to place given the narrow room boundaries than a tower. You can use the $500 saved for stands and cables, or toward a powered sub if desired.

I did, however, remember one more $2K speaker worth checking out, the Atlantic Technology AT-1. Available at $2K/pair, it's a tower with an MTM (D'Appolito) array backed by Atlantic's own H-PAS bass loading system that produces meaningful bass down into the 20s. Stereophile's review and measurements indicated an unusually flat response overall. The MTM array helps keep ceiling and floor reflections out of the image that reaches your ears. Review excerpts here, third-party measured response curves here.
loomisjohnson
1,962 posts
 
respectfully, your 75w/ch amp may not be enough juice for magnepan or revel. in your budget i'd look at the ohms, von schweikert vr2 (huge soundstage and low end) or energy veritas; vanns is also selling mirage omd28 for $1400--they're extremely room-filling.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 

01-11-12: Loomisjohnson
respectfully, your 75w/ch amp may not be enough juice for magnepan or revel. in your budget i'd look at the ohms, von schweikert vr2 (huge soundstage and low end) or energy veritas; vanns is also selling mirage omd28 for $1400--they're extremely room-filling.

The Vann's price for the OMD-28 is $1400 each, so that would be $2800 a pair. That's still a bargain given that they retailed at $7500/pair and were very competitive at that price. However, the OMD28's little brother, the OMD-15, is also available at Vanns at $1K/pair down from an original $2.5K/pair. They're plenty competitive at their original price and with a sensitivity of around 91dB, will match well with that Cambridge 650A. I've been living with my OMD-15s for 3-1/2 years in an open architecture cathedral-ceiling living space. They definitely fill the space well.

Also, with the money you save you could pick up one or two decent powered subs and then you would have a true full-range system and you could dial in the bass energy for the program material and your listening space.
vortrex
273 posts
 
Salk SongTowers!
dayglow
1,969 posts
 
Revel F12 new $1500? With the $700 left over sell your Cambridge and get a new Bada Purer 3.3se. This will give you power/current-dynamics and bass extension needed for hard rock/metal.
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