Which used speakers in the 5K range?


Hi,
I have four little kids running around the living room, where my system is, and I'm starting to be too worried about my Alto Utopias and/or any other relatively expensive speakers I might have.
In the past I've owned a few Vintage speakers: Kef 104/2, Celestion Ditton 66, JBL 250 Ti originals, etc and the memories of all of them are very positive.
I'm thinking to maybe go back down the vintage aisle for a more modestly priced pair but can that still play good music.
Would anyone have any thoughts or recommendations where to head, may it be a vintage pair or a more modestly priced modern unit?

I currently have Jadis JA80 to power my speakers.
Room size is about 5x8x3.5 meters and listening point is about half way through the long side of the room.
Speakers are located about 1m from the back wall.

Thanks a lot for your advice.
amuseb
IMHO, Tannoy is the only speaker to buy in any price range. Look at the new Definition DC8T, for instance. Or better yet, look for a used pair of 215 DMT II professional studio final playback monitors.
Why do you feel that the Alto Utopias can't be around your kids? They weigh 167 lbs. each and would be very hard to tip. They are also tall enough that smaller kids wouldn't be able to reach the tweeters to poke dents in them (though that changes quickly enough).

Back when my first kid was born (1987) I bought a pair of speakers pretty well suited to toddlers and young kids: ADS L1090 columns. They were sealed enclosures, so there was no tempting port to stuff toys in, the midrange and tweeter were flexible domes, and the grills--difficult for little fingers to remove--were perforated metal, completely protecting the drivers behind. The columns had a narrow footprint, but I got the optional plinth bases to widen the stance, and these days you can get outriggers for nearly anything.

I'm not actually advocating for ADS speakers, though a pair of M12s or M15s might work for you. My point is that if you want speakers that are safe against little kids, they should be difficult to tip, not have ports visible and accessible, and the drivers need to be protected by something better than stretchy cloth.
Thanks all for the recommendations so far. Looking forward to more, if anyone has them.

Johnnyb53, my third daughter, that is just now turning 3, has poked the tweeters three (yes, three) times and I'm not sure she'd had enough... my fourth, a son, is now 6 months old and I'm not tempted to test if he takes after his sister or chooses to let the tweeters alone.
The issue with poked tweeters is not just their substantial cost but also the hassle it takes to fix them.
I'm also not looking forward to day when I walk into the living room and there's a smiley face drawn on both mediums.

Thanks again.
You need to find something with hard-to-remove perforated metal grilles. That's what's great about many ADS loudspeakers including the M12s and M15s, but they're long out of production and it could get problematic if you do have to replace the tweeters.

I know there are current production speakers with perforated metal driver protectors, but don't know who they are offhand.
I don't have much to contribute on your question. I was just happy to see someone else that owned Celestion Ditton 66 speakers. I still have mine in use at our summer home.

Best of luck in your search.

Jim Perry