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Cary SLI-80 Speakers Recommendation

Hi, Thanks in advance for your opinions.

I am a newbie to tubes, I am in the process of building a tube system. I am considering the sli-80 due to very good reviews and owners comments. Need your suggestions in term of which pair of bookshelf speakers and speaker cables mate well with the sli-80.
Previously, we have the N802 driven by rotel 1095, 1066, rega 2K. We listen to mostly female vocals; jones, krall, monheit, choi kam, lily chen. We liked it alot; but we need to downsize, the new system will be in your bedroom/smaller room. We originally have the N805, we also liked them quite a bit too.

Your suggestions/recommendations will be greatly appreciated.

Ken
keny
the_kid's avatar
the_kid
465 posts
 
First off, congrats on your selection. I currently own an SLI-80 and have for quite some time. It is a wonderful integrated. I would highly suggest you take a serious look at the Merlin TSM-M's and the Reference 3A DeCapos current model. I believe it is the i. I used the Audience Cables and have had great success. Good luck to you.

Respectfully,

Chris
jaybo
4,478 posts
 
it is always wise to start with the speakers you think you can live with and work backwards. they will have the greatest impact(aside from your room) in regard to your listening.
keny OP
13 posts
 
Chris/jaybo, thanks for the comments.

Chris - just curious if you have experience with the 300sei also, I plan to keep the system for a while, just want to consider all the options. Great reviews and comments on the sei over the sli. I will definitely look into doing a demo with either the Merlin or the decapos i. In terms of the cable, I am assuming you biwired your speaker cables. I plan to use au24 ic btw the source and the amp and au24 biwire speaker cables.

Jabo - in terms of speakers, besides the b&w n805 and the n802 which we both liked, we never audition other speakers. Any particular speakers you recommend to start the search?

Ken
jaybo
4,478 posts
 
proac, b&w, castle
bojack
650 posts
 
You also owe it to yourself to try to audition the Spendor Classic series (SP 2/3, 1/2, etc.) If you like a nice smooth sound, this might be a great combination.
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