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Up to $4000US tower speakers for Jazz and Classical Music

Hello All!

My wife and I are musicians who happen to also love listening to music! Last 3 years we have used a pair of Q acoustics Concept 40 tower speakers powered (now) by and Audiolab 6000A integrated. We listen to 90% of our music on CDs (Audiolab CD transport) or vinyls (Audiotechnica turntable). Mostly jazz and classical music in our roughly 53 square meters (550 sq ft) living room. Some other speakers came and went but we have so far liked the Q acoustics more than any other. We like their honesty with a tinge of warmness, but they are also engaging, open sounding, dynamic, airy! We love how chamber music sounds on them: string quartets, piano trios (jazz or classical), voices, big bands, etc... but we do miss a bit of that lower octave the Q acoustics simply don't have. A friend lent me a pair of Elac Adante AS-61 but did no like them much. lots of transient attack (which was good for percussion instruments) but it somehow changed the color/timbre of other instruments. I work also as a mixing engineer and have a pair of Neumann KH310 monitors in my treated room so I can say I'm picky with sound. Of course we don't want the analytical sound of the Neumanns in our living room (completely different beasts) but we want speakers to still be honest, but engaging, open, dynamic, airy. We are looking for a pair of tower speakers around $4000 that will provide us with a more believable orchestral crescendo, pianissimo, fortissimo, and that lower octave of a double bass the Concept 40s can't provide (by the way, we don't want a sub; tried several and simply did not like the overall presentation). We are looking at possibilities in Crutchfield, Music Direct or Amazon in case we need to return them (we live in the countryside and can't audition any speakers nowhere near!). Our list includes: Klipsch Forte III, Definitive Technology Demand D17, Kef R7, JBL HDI-3800, Dali Opticon 8MK2, Revel F206 and B&W 703 S2 or 704 S2. They will have to be efficient as the Audiolab does not have a ton of power! Any suggestions, greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

langelo68
sailboat
45 posts
 

Magnepans or a great set of Quad ESL's

Sometimes good Quads come up for sale on Audiogon and the other audio site.  

For Jazz and Classical..... you will be stunned.  

most lifelike jazz I have ever played.  I have a several thousand Jazz LP collection. Wife is a true classical enthusiast.  

If you get a chance... you should SERIOUSLY put quads on your list.  Either a set of old school 57's that have been restored properly..  or a set of 2805's or newer.  

Read the thousands of reviews of how great Quads are for Jazz and Classical.  

Magnepans are also quite nice for those genre's

I also have an extensive collection of stringed music; swing, bluegrass, folk, etc.  Voices and instruments are sublime with these speakers.

There is a set of quads for sale right now on audiogon... a bit out of your price range.  but sometimes they come up for less.

And good magneplaners are definitely priced in your range.  your room would work great with these.

imho

sailboat

 

sailboat
45 posts
 

 

audphile1's avatar
audphile1
5,270 posts
 

There are many good speakers in that price range especially if you go used. What you also have to consider, in my opinion, is whether or not the speakers (whatever it is you set your eyes on) are a good match with your current amplifier and what your plans are for upgrading the amp. 
You may have to up your budget a bit. Some speakers to consider on a used market are Sonus Faber Sonetto VIII, Focal Kanta 2. Your amp might just be borderline enough for these. Magnepan are nice but will need a beefier amp than your Audiolab. 
 

langelo68 OP
11 posts
 

Thanks again for the  incredible input! no plans to upgrade the Audiolab as we just upgraded the amp (by the way, we find the synergy between the Audiolab amp and its CD transport to be excellent). We are aware it does not have a lot of power but we are amazed at how good the Q Acoustics sound with the Audiolab. Sooo much better! We will definitely need a pair of efficient (high sensitivity) speakers with the Audiolab, so Magnepans (for what I've read), unfortunately, will not work for us.

jdal
161 posts
 

Take a look at Bache Audio. I have had Quad ESLs and even Shahinian speakers, which are tailor made for classical music. I prefer my Bache Tribeca’s for both Blue Note jazz and Mahler symphonies. 

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