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Speaker and Cable Suggestions Please

Greetings, some time ago (maybe over a year ago) I asked for some advice as to what tube integrated amp to buy. It was to be my first tube amp and I needed a lot of help. After a long search and much study, I decided on an ARC VSi75. Now I need your help again. I currently have a pair of Focal Aria 926. My listening room is small, 15'7" x 11'7" (4.75m x 3.5m).

I'm looking for a speaker for a near-field situation that extends into the upper mids and high frequencies. Since my amp puts out 75 watts of output, I need something with decent sensitivity, say at least 91db. I also need new speaker cables. I'm using circa 1980s Monster Cable now.

One more consideration, I have lost some hearing due to a neurological autoimmune condition. Yet, when I auditioned Paradigm Persona Bs recently through an ARC, I could here all the sound that I remember hearing when I was a teenager. The point being, I know that upper range I'm chasing is possible I just don't know if it's achievable on my budget. I have about $4,000 to spend on speakers and cables. I was thinking about DH Lab Q-10 for cables and the rest for speakers. What do you guys think? I don't mind buying used. Thank you.

diminishedchord
ghdprentice
6,957 posts
 

@curiousjim

😊👍

 

My speakers are 90db efficient. I am running my ARC 160 in triode mode… so 70wpc. I could blow my ears out ( I had some youngsters over here that wanted to see if they could damage their ears).

 

I would think 60wpc would be plenty. Your room is not huge so maybe less. Tubes do not suffer / benefit with too little / much power like solid state.

fritzspeaks
43 posts
 
A solid state amp delivers the power equally across impedance variations.  A tube amp will put out more power at varying higher impedances resulting in a uneven frequency response similar to if you used an equalizer to boost the mids and highs up or down.
 
With a tube amp, sensitivity or efficiency of the speakers isn't the only thing to consider.  BTW- your ARC amp is very powerful!
 
I have 11 different tube amps ranging in power up to 80 watts with KT 88, 6L6, 6550, EL 34, 300B and EL 84 tubes.  Even the 2.3 watt per channel EL 84 Decware amp drives all of my 87-88 dB speakers in my 14 x 22 ft room well.
 
Loudspeakers which have series crossovers typically have a gradually rising impedance curve and a straight phase curve. unlike most loudspeakers with conventional parallel crossovers.  Series crossovers use far fewer and much small components that don't suck up a lot of power and good sound.
 
Google any loudspeaker and see if they have a Stereophile review. Go to the measurement page & check out the impedance & phase curves. They will look like mountain ranges with peaks & dips. No other speakers will have smooth curves unless they use series crossovers.
 
Attached below is a graph of one of my loudspeakers with series crossovers.  Thanks, Fritz
 
zarf
32 posts
 

PM sent to OP.

I have a set of the monster cables from the 80s. You might enjoy something to compare to those speaker cables as a first step. There's good advice above for both cables and speakers and such. I think that you might be pleasantly surprised with an inexpensive speaker cable swap.

I've heard the Persona Bs, and recently the Dynaudio Heritage Specials. I own a pair of the Founder 40b, and have used them for small and medium room listening..

kennymacc
389 posts
 

All I can tell you is this, if you can get your hands on a good pair of pre-owned JPS Audio Superconductor 3 speaker cables, you'll be done with speaker cables for life.  I've owned my Superconductor 3 cables for over 15 years and have found them to be some of the best speaker cables regardless of price.  Over the years, I've changed all my cabling except for the Superconductor 3s.  They were pretty expensive when they were being produced new, and I'm not sure what they're currently go for on the used market.  But, I can assure you, they are well worth every penny.       

lous's avatar
lous
203 posts
 

@diminishedchord 

 

With high frequency hearing loss, I think that the Dynaudio 40 is a great recommendation based upon what I have heard about Dynaudio having the best tweeters. GR Research has an upgrade for it that will take it to a much improved level. Speakers, often insanely expensive ones, frequency use really horrid components in their crossovers. So, if you can solder, that's probably a great way to go. He sells speaker cables too, but I have never heard them. Another consideration is to get bright speakers. I know a guy who has hf loss, and his system would drive most out of the room, but he loves it. There's no shame in designing the system for you, just don't try to impress others with it! 😉 All listening is personal. Some like systems so muddy that you can't hear differences in cables. They love their systems, I'd have listening fatigue in a minute, but they'll listen for hours. It's tough since most stores don't really focus on audio anymore. I think that TMS, The Music Store may work with you as long as no damage is done, and you'll pay shipping and perhaps a restocking fee, but I can't tell you that authoritatively, I think I read it somewhere. Hope you find what pleases you!

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