$1k speakers / Audio Refinement Complete

Charlie As I write there are elk grazing yards from me in the meadow, snow on the peaks. Not so painful! Seriously, I appreciate the quality feedback. Besides the ARC, the most frequently lauded component in my price range seems to be the Meadowlark Kestrels. At present, I have an offer on a pair of "Hot Rods." While the "listen before you buy" advice is sensible to say the least, it would be a 1000 miles on the odometer to audition just a few of the recos I've received. So, I depend on the honest feedback of y'all. I don't think I'll be disappointed. warren bonners ferry, idaho

I have used Kestrels for the past two years with my complete. It is definately the way to go.

Warren, one can live a long, long time like that! It is also nice to be awed and humbled by nature in its' splendid "sunday clothes." Enjoy, and let us know how everything "settles in." Good luck to you, Charlie Brunswick, Georgia

Idaho, you didn't mention your ROOM! I too tried, and loved, the smooth sound of the ARC, but decided to spend way more on PASS Aleph separates. If I was setting up a second system there's no question I'd select the ARC as a musical, yet forgiving integrated. That part's easy! Recommending an appropriate two-way for you is an entirely riskier matter, however, as the COMBINED spectral tilt of any speaker IN YOUR ROOM cannot be predicted out of context. Sure, you can glean a consensus from the posts as to some favorite monitors, but each one will have been voiced slightly differently ON AXIS, and will exhibit even greater variability OFF-AXIS! If your setup allows you to sit in the nearfield then your risks may be less...especially if you keep the speakers away from sidewalls. But in my experience it has been critical to balance a two-way monitor's off-axis roll-off carefully with your room's sidewall reflections. Many decent monitors are available in your price range, but I'm not sure that you should greatly short-circuit the effort required to demo your picks in your room before purchase. My comments apply predominantly to timbral (voicing) characteristics in the midrange and treble (the speaker's characteristic signature). Then there's another perhaps equally-important issue re bass response and room-matching...! So do yourself a favor (pay the UPS both ways if you have to!), and audition several candidates before you buy. About the only definitive recommendations I'll venture are that the ARC does indeed roll the top octave 1 dB @10k, 3dB @ 20k, so a "dark" monitor may not be synergistic; it's power supply does limit bass slam, so I wouldn't pick speakers with sensitivity below 88-89dB/w, or with impedence mins in the bass below 3-4 ohms, if possible, unless you don't play them loudly. Good luck. Ernie

> About the only definitive recommendations I'll venture > are that the ARC does indeed roll the top octave 1 dB > @10k, 3dB @ 20k, so a "dark" monitor may not be > synergistic I don't agree with this and never have. I do not feel the ARC rolls the top end at all in my view. I firmly believe that the ARC's top end is so well behaved, linear and natural that most people can't sense this because they are so used to electronics that are less accurate on top. Sorry, just my opinion.