Modestly priced bookshelf speakers for cabin.


I have a small cabin in the country where I spend weekends.

Current system is a 1980's Toshiba 25wpc receiver I got in high school. Bose 2.2 bookshelf speakers that are about 28 years old. They actually sound okay to me most of the time. $14 Sony DVD/CD player from Goodwill.

Even though this 'system' is sufficient most of the time, I've got the hi-fi bug since getting my home system and I've started thinking about slowly upgrading the cabin system on the lowest budget I can.....since I can't really justify doing it at all. ;-)

Rarely do I do any serious listening down there but would like to be able to when I have the chance.

So my first step is to replace the Bose speakers. Looking to spend no more than $350 or so. Is it possible to significantly improve on the Bose at that price? (I'm assuming yes).

The only thing I've even considered is the Klipsch RB-61 IIs or RP 160Ms. Why Klipsch? Back in the 70's my eccentric uncle used to have a massive pair of them that I thought were cool. Open to other options and advice.

Thanks for any advice.


n80
I love Klipsch and have a few pairs of them, but in general their strong suit is big speakers for big spaces.  You might be able to find some used Heresy speakers at your budget. 

I suggest checking out Canton speakers.  I have a couple of pairs of the Vento series (which are out of your price range) and they are great sounding well made speakers.  They are German made and not as well known in the US, but worth looking at.  You can find them heavily discounted on the web with a number of models in your price range.
As a Klipsch Heritage fanatic, I am not crazy about the low end Klipsch. I actually think the lower end Polks are much better, and are always on sale on ebay. If you want, you can also get a small powered sub to supplement the Bose. Considering your source, that is what I would do. Enjoy ! MrD.
Small Wharfedales are worth checking out for what you need them for. They have a few smaller/cheaper models that play well. Canton, as mentioned above, is another frequently overlooked manufacturer of such speakers.
Okay, here is a dumb question: How do you hook a powered sub to a 1980's era receiver? It has 'record out' via RCA and it has two banks (A/B) of speaker connections. There is no other line out. No Sub out of course.
I do not have an answer to sub question but, the way it seems from here, you will be replacing that Toshiba receiver much sooner than you now think.