Speaker Recommendation Needed


Hi,

I just bought a Peachtree Nova 125se and am now looking for a good speaker match for me. I live in a small town so won't have an opportunity to audition anything. The speakers will go in my living room which is about mid-sized and opens up into the kitchen. I listen mostly to folk, soul and rock. I own a REL T5 sub which I can pair with a bookshelf to augment the bass but I also like the idea of small floorstanders. I usually turn up the treble a few notches but the Peachtree does not have tone controls so I would like to find a bright sounding speaker with a forward midrange as well. Here are some speakers i am considering:

1. Wharfedale Jade 3
2. KEF LS50
3. Dynaudio Excite X14
4. Monitor Audio Silver 6
5. Zu Audio Soul

What do you audio people think?

Thanks,

Brian


128x128brimel1974
Brimel1974, you shouldn't overlook the Salk Song Tower. A small floor stander with glowing reviews. FWIW, an Absolute Sound Editor's Choice for 6 years running. In your price range and you can customize the finish. 

http://www.salksound.com/model.php?model=SongTower

Terry

I also found the LS50's to be a bit overly bright sounding, so maybe that's your ticket.  The only other speakers on the list I have heard are the Monitor Audios and other Zu Audio models.  I was pleasantly surprised by the Monitor Audios, and they were being run off a modest system.  The Zu's that I have heard do what they do very well, but what they do is not for everyone, and it's not for me.  I find the highs on the Zu's to be a bit bright, and peaky, and the midrage to be a congested sounding, if very fast and clean.  What you should be careful about is mistaking an uneven, peaky midrange and treble for an overall forward sound in these ranges.  A smooth tilt up in the power response as you go higher in frequency may be pleasing to you, but I would expect you would find a peaky frequency response to be fatiguing.


The best advice I can give you is to try to audition any speakers you're seriously considering in your own home, with your own gear and your own music.  A good Brick & Mortar dealer will make that possible for you.

To answer a previous question the speaker's I am using are a pair of Wharfedale 10.1s paired with a Rel T5 sub. I am using a cheap Denon AV/Receiver to power them. Before and after the sub I turned the treble up to +4.

I just got the Peachtree Nova 125se in the mail this week and have not hooked it up.

I am not even sure I need to fill up a large room. I just want to be able to turn it up occasionally so it plays into the kitchen.

I have space in the living room for either bookshelf speakers and a sub or smallish tower speakers.