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Small room, "budget priced" speaker advice, please

Hi,

I recently sold my dearly beloved, old Vandersteen 2C's here on Audiogon (and I hope SgtPeppers is loving them at this moment!) :-) I did this because in our remodeled house, my new listening room (which will double as a guest room) is just too small for the 2C's. The Spousal Acceptance Factor was just too low. ;-)

I have a PS Audio Elite-Plus integrated amp for power (around 70 W/Ch) and a soon-to-be-shipped-off-for-a-refurb Sota Sapphire for an analog front end (I have "miles" of vinyl)! I will also get a CD player at some point.

For now, I need to find a pair of best-of-breed, truly "budget" speakers. By "budget," I'm talking upper limit of $850/pair. (Gone are my free-spending, single days... I'm a dad now...) :-)

Listening habits: lots of 60's and 70's folk and rock, some jazz, Donald Fagen/Steely Dan, a little classical. Listening volume: not too loud. Sonic preferences: I value transparency and imaging/soundstage. Bass should be accurate above all, as opposed to chest-pounding powerful.

I've looked at Paradigms, which I know are highly regarded at lower price points. Trouble is, our one, local dealer is primarily a TV/home theater outfit, so you're trying to hear them in a showroom crammed with other stuff... you know the drill. I've also hit a high end shop. Listened to a pair of PSB small towers and disliked them; they sounded muddy and veiled to me. Listened to a pair of the smallest Rega's and liked them quite a bit, but would want to go back to listen again. I even wrote to PS Audio for advice; they recommended the "baby" Epos monitors, but they're out of my price range.

Thanks if you've read this far. Knowing how subjective all this is, I'd still welcome any advice you have to offer about what I should try to audition.
rebbi
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knownothing
1,298 posts
 
Quad 21L version 1 are wonderful speakers and great bargain for the money in terms of sound quality and construction details. I have not heard but have read that the version two is even better than the version one in terms of improved detail, neutrality and stereo imaging. I recommend these speakers without reservation, particularly if the price is below $1000 (better hurry).

One note: they are not that tall but are 8" wide by 10" deep floor standing speakers if that matters for your application. One reason I mentioned the Arros is that they are a narrower tower. Both speakers are really fantastic - can't go wrong...
rebbi OP
1,319 posts
 
Well, I may very go with the Arro's, then. There are several pairs currently on sale on A'gon for well under $1000, already broken in, no less, and the diminutive size should go down well with my significant other. :-)
rebbi OP
1,319 posts
 
One concern,

While the overall consensus after doing a bunch of research here on Audiogon is that the Arro's are remarkable speakers for a very fair price (especially in the transparency/imaging/soundstage arena) I have also read posts suggesting that they are overly bright and rather bass-shy, and may also be hard to drive. So I'm wondering if any of that is likely to be a problem for me with that PS Audio Elite Plus integrated amp at 70 watts/channel.

Thanks for any insights!
tvad
9,467 posts
 
I have also read posts suggesting that they are overly bright and rather bass-shy, and may also be hard to drive.
Rebbi (Threads)
IMO, that sounds like the author had heard them with an amp that was not a good match, i.e. one that did not double power output as impedance was halved. This would result in lower volume in the bass frequencies, which would in turn emphasize the highs.

If the PS Audio Elite Plus doubles its power output into 4 ohms then you should have no problem. If it doesn't, then perhaps you should look for a different speaker with a flatter impedance curve.
mapman's avatar
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mapman
15,679 posts
 
Good advise from Tvad.
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