What speaker could safely be ordered without hearing it first?


Hi everyone,

I’m in the midst of my speaker search and curious about something.......as noted above. There are some brands I would be interested in based on reputation, reviews, looks etc but may never be able to hear first.

I’m curious what the collective group thinks would be a safe choice having never heard them first. I know there are variables as in size of room, current gear etc. Just want to see what people would suggest. The one I would note based on what I have read is Joseph Audio. I’d also be curious if people would say the same about Borresen.

So it may be a frivolous exercise but I’ll ask the question anyway. Let me know your thoughts.

128x128mtbiker29

The B&W805 D2. Or newer D3. There’s a but.. The Lyngdorf TDI2170 was the only amplifier that could make them sing. Every other analog amplifier around 2500 Euro in store made a dull mess in comparison with the Lyngdorf. I still can’t figure out why that is.

The very cheap Adam T5V active little studio monitors. Again there’s a but.. You do need a small subwoofer to help the low end come alive.

The even less expensive JBL104 desktop speakers. Also active with a built in amplifier. Very different sound signature than the two above. Only a step down in detail than the T5V but a satisfying low budget sound to me. But needs help in some frequencies especially low-end. But not a big miss if you enjoy up close.

Then there’s room. I know everyone B about room until I found out myself.

 

I like to know what room treatment others have bought and could recommend to buy blindly. And won’t cost hundreds of Euros.

 

And here’s a small list of speakers which I can safely say to NEVER buy:

Audio Engine A2+ (wireless). Looks amazing on your desk. But the sound is one of the worst I ever heard. Even a 25 Euro JBL Go 2 sounds better.

KRK Rokit RP-5 G3. As with the AE A2+ there’s no treble in these things. And the Mids and Lows are a big mess (just like the A2+). Just never buy. They also look cuter in pictures and look a a bit bigger in real life.

 

First, let me state that listening to speakers has been a hobby of mine for decades. Moreover, once upon a time, I was a part-owner of a speaker company that failed. 

That said, my criteria for suggesting a speaker manufacturer in my response is that I have heard more than one model (if said company makes multiple models) and every time I  have been delighted/amazed by the overall quality of the sound reproduced. So, here goes — in alphabetical order: Clarisys Audio; Dutch & Dutch; and Rockport Technologies. They are all radically different from each other, and none will disappoint. Unfortunately, none are cheap,  but ut the price to value ratio of Dutch & Dutch are noteworthy. 

I would recommend Axiom M5HP as an absolutely phenomenal choice of speakers without listening first. I actually ordered them as such and been amazed since. I have expereince with a long list of speakers (make/model/type) and must say Axiom's M5HPs are outstanding. I can share far more but will stop here to not create too much noise. Best greetings to all friends on this fantastic forum !

Go for fun. Go for less power money needed. Go Klipsch… hear more of/in the songs you’ve listened to all your life. Now “new”!

OK well this thread has been very well received, thanks again to everyone for the feedback.  Some further comments and answers to questions below:  

@mbmi Yes, I intend to check out Next Level and the X3 sometime soon!  

@hysteve I hope you are loving the Magico's.....did really like them this time around and am intrigued.  I would very much like to stay with my current integrated, and the word is they are very hungry speakers.  

@arthur1260 there is an older Kef Reference for me for sale for a fraction of new, very tempting.  Also a decent pair of the current version.  One of my best ever hifi experiences in college was with a set of Kef's.

@audioman58 my system is in my profile, would hope to not have to upgrade my amp in an ideal world.  

@kymanor1 10-30K high side.  I don't have a ton of room which is why while I really enjoyed the Wilson Sasha DAW for example, it's low on the list for size reasons.  Assume ML has similar constraints.

@moose89 @tjjunk I did just bring home a clean pair of quartets on Friday night to play around with.  I'm targeting them upstairs but plan to do a rotation into my main rig to see how they sound.  So far the word that comes to mind is "fun".  They are a hoot with tubes and classic rock.  

@sudnh My system is viewable in my profile and budget is 10 to as high as 30k if i'm really compelled by something.

@helomech not me, i'm the original owner of my MA's.  They are so cheap used I'd likely keep them as spares.  My wife not to happy with my speaker collecting of late, LOL.  

@desktopguy good advice.  Take a look at my system but I have roughly 2' to back wall and 2' to side, so reasonable space with a smaller tower.  A giant Wilson (for example) would eat up a good bit of that.  

@jpwarren58 so true on WAF.  I do run them all by her, and have been pleasantly surprised on some of them.  She's down for most everything reasonable.  Loved the KEF I showed her. SF should be the clear winner here! 

@giantsalami Yeah I'm getting there on the extra speakers (see above).  I think you are spot on in that the room is sorted, and as long as I don't make a drastic change I should be fine.  Problem is dealer demo rooms are not always sorted, leaving me underwhelmed at times.  

@firberger KEF coming up again.  I really do need to find my way to the local dealer with the Reference models.  

@bassdude another vote for Legacy.  Right after I bought the Klipsch noted above a really interesting pair of bookshelf/monitors from them came online.  Tempting still if for no other reason than to try them out.  

Thanks all, will keep you posted as search progresses.