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I am nuts to use these speakers?

I fell into the world of "high end" audio by accident. I've always had mediocre Japanese gear with the exception of a Thorens 125 turntable and Altec Lansing speakers. Then I bought a used ARC Ref1 and an ARC Phono 2, tweaked the 25 year old Thorens with a new Goldring cartridge and it changed everything. I also picked up a used ARC CD1 but vinyl sounded so good that I went off the deep end and bought a VPI TNT 3.5 and replaced the Phono 2 with a ARC Ref Phone Preamp. My power amp is an ARC D130. I am using a pair of JBL 4311 studio monitors for speakers and assorted Cardas Hexlink for cables. I think the system sounds great. The JBL's are sitting on some lead shot filled target stands which also have spikes. My room has a concrete floor and I have separate power outlets run from the fuse box for all the gear. Anyhow I think that the speakers which I paid 300 bucks for from a radio station could probably use an upgrade considering the rest of the system. BUT I think they sound great. Basically if the vinyl is great it sounds great, if it is lousy vinyl the speakers seem unforgiving. ANY SUGGESTIONS on where to start looking? There seem to be a million speaker lines out there so any advice is appreciated.
ntscdan
chazzbo
1,007 posts
 
Not that I think it's end all be all but Stereophile has a recommended components issue twice a year.Fi mag has a much shorter list.If your room is big enough and you have power from the Arc listen to Magnepans,B&W's,Thiels,Audio Physic,Dynaudio,NHT,Vandersteen's,Proac etc.Read reviews bide your time.The speakers you have would fit a system one tenth as good as yours so if you can swing $3-5K or less used you would have some balance.
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,218 posts
 
The older JBL is not a very transparent speaker. You would be doing yourself a big favor to upgrade. I recommend you consider the JBL LSR speaker. Similar in size to the 4311, the LSR is a thoroughly modern design. It's one of the great "unknown" values in high end audio. In a slightly different direction, also consider the Classic Audio Reproduction (CAR) speaker line. They're high efficiency, horn designed speakers. The Avant-Garde Uno or Duo models should also be on your list. From your post, I suspect you value a speaker capable of high volume levels with an upfront, as opposed to the typical audiophile recessed, midrange. Any of the speakers I mentioned will provide these qualities, yet they'll also provide smoother bass, more extended, cleaner highs and more transparency.
ninja
48 posts
 
Two speakers i own Snell C V. The PSB stratis Golds i have seen the golds as cheap as $700.00 on here these are a good start. With the ARC solid state the Snell, Ive heard them with a D100 which is in my closet they were a great match. I was using a CJ PF 2 pre.
abstract7
541 posts
 
It kind of depends on the music you listen to and how you listen. For me, I fell in love with Electrostatics. They are not really very good for listening to rock music--but I don't really listen to rock. They are great for vocals, jazz and classical (particularly with few instruments rather than a full orchestra). A used pair of Martin Logan SL-3 or Requests would be a very good system match--but more importantly you need to determine if they are a good match for you. You do have to be careful with placement of Electrostatics--they can't be back against the wall and the wall behind them needs to be sonically reflective to some degree.
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