Speakers

[This post is too long.] As you may know, one of my Quad 12L actives died. RIP. I have a pair of Audioengine A5 actives to use for now and maybe they will be good enough (I don't use speakers very much - usually headphones) for my limited desktop use. I was thinking that I wanted to get a pair of Adam A3X and I think this is probably what I might get if I went the studio monitor route. Then I remembered how much I liked the Ascend CMT-340 when I owned them (which I only sold because they were way too big and loud for nearfield listening). So I was thinking of going Parasound Zamp + Ascend CBM-170SE instead. (The Parasound ZDAC, Zamp and GS-1 would make a nic…

Thought I'd start a thread to discuss these fine (and other solid state) amps. I'm interested in some 100 watt or greater amps. I love reading the Pass DIY forums and seeing all the cool stuff Nelson comes up with. Unfortunately I have a love affair with pain in the butt to drive speakers so I am left with mostly their commercial offerings. My first question is what would be the big difference between an Aleph 2 and XA100.5 as far as sound goes? And about the XS150, has anyone heard them or have insights into their design? Do you think any of the Aleph or XA.5 amps can provide adequate voltage for V hungry electrostatic speakers, especially on very dynamic music?…

I'm still in the market for a good, powerful amp. I snoozed on that Bel Canto, and I haven't seen a Musical Fidelity A300CR power amp (not the integrated) in a while when I was liquid (ain't liquid right now). But looking ahead, anyone heard a Pathos amp? It seems to combine power with tube preamplification; so, theoretically, the best of both worlds. Is it? And it needs high frequency extension, that's one thing the MF had in spades -- air. Nice air. Effortless air. And nice extended deep bass. Anyone heard any of the new breed of digital amps with the ICEpower modules? The new Cary, AudioSource, B&O, bunch o' others have that technology. Are they any good?

There's a pair turned up just down the road from me, in full working order but the woofers have had the original carbon composite cones replaced with polypropylene. Price good and less than the going rate for a pair of the midrange drivers or tweeters inside them. Internet opinion seems positive all-over. It will be the first piece of audio gear in 2010 I'll buy which will cost more than 3 pints of lager and a packet of peanuts. I need someone here to tell me to do it. So I can diffuse my self-indulgent guilt.

I have a rather cramped situation that requires somewhat creative furniture placement, by using a single room as a bedroom, electronic workshop, and listening room. As it is now, things are fairly good and the speakers (Maggie 1.6) sound wonderful. However I want to build a new workbench that is significantly larger, and it would require getting rid of a set of shelves and making the room too cramped, or rearranging furniture to make better use of the middle of the room rather than everything against the wall. Moving the listening position near the middle (by setting the desk in the middle so I could listen from there) is a no go, because there is a massive bass null a…

I was looking at building a pair of speakers and was thinking about doing something a bit wacky... has anyone heard the planars they sell on parts express? those Bohlender Graebener ones... either the smaller ones or the insanely large ones? ex. Parts-Express.com - Search Results i found a few projects online using the smaller Neo-8 in both single and line-array configurations... and then all sorts of insane projects using the RD75 75" planar driver with line arrays of larger drivers next to them etc... anyone ever actually listen to any of these things? lol thanks

These should go well with my Arcam C31/P1 monoblocs... pity about the price, though. I'm currently running Acoustic Energy Aegis Two floorstanders. http://www.pmc-speakers.com/products/consumer/twenty/twenty26 I heard the older FB1i at a dealer paired with Arcam electronics and it was a great match. Initial reports from the Bristol show last weekend seem to be enthusiastic. I'll take mine in Amarone.

Well I finally completed my new HT rig today and figured I'd share some pics of it with you guys: Overview shot: The centerpiece Sony KDS-55A2000: Audio Rack: (from top to bottom - Marantz SR-7001, Rotel RMB-1075, Motorola HD-DVR, Samson S1000 (sub amp), Monster HTS-2600) TV Stand w/ center channel and Oppo 981HD (bottom left) and Toshiba HD-A2 (bottom right): Quad 22L (piano birdseye maple): Custom sub (1 15" Styke AV-15, 2 18" Passive Radiators): Close-up's of the gorgeous piano birdseye maple finish: Overview from an angle:

I got back one of my C-22 preamps and my MC-75 monoblock from the repair shop yesterday. I've had these things for a decade, and I'm just now getting around to dealing with them properly. I haven't plugged the MC-75 into anything but the AC outlet so far, but I did just spend half an hour futzing around taking pictures of it: The case could use a good cleaning, but I'm not sure what cleaning product one uses on vintage tube amps. The repair tech tested all the tubes and said they did quite well. I understand the power tubes used the MC-75 are quite spendy to replace. I don't have any pitures of the C-22 preamp yet. I'm going to try to integrate it as a phon…

My original plan for intro speakers was to just get active ones like the Audioengine A5s. However, I got a good deal on some floorstanding Wharfedales from someone about an hour away and jumped on it. Sadly, when I went to pick them up, he wasn't there to give them to me. Communication error on my part most likely Now that I look at my situation I'm thinking bookshelf speakers are the way to go anyways so... I'm out gas money but that's not a big deal. The question I have now is which route to take...Should I use the integrated amp I have (NAD 320BEE) and get some <$200 bookshelf speakers or go with something like the Audioengine A5s. Thanks in advance.

I'd like some recommendations for a pre-amp. Not really concerned if its tube or ss though I would prefer tube. Only real requirement is to keep it under $2k and it must have a remote volume control (remote source selection would be nice as well). So far these two have caught my eye a bit: http://diyhifisupply.com/diyhs_basie.htm and amb's beta22 if I can find someone to build one for me .

Ok so I have finally scored the DNA 1 rev A of Audiogon and partnered with my Alon 1s it sounds great. I have been using the pre outs from the Berendsen IPA-80 as well as an Luminous Audio passive volume control partnered with a Moth Audio switchbox. I am starting to set my sites on a preamp and have a few candidates: Bent Audio TAP (a bit out of range atm but still obtainable) Placette Audio passive preamp from what I have read may be tops in the transparency dept in this price range McCormacj Audio RLD preamp, these show up used for $700ish on Agon and Steve McCormack offers upgrades to them. There are three levels of upgrades 700/1100/1400, I'd probably go gusto…

So after 3 months, I'm getting bit tired of needing to get up each time I want to change the volume. Assuming some unexpected expenses don't come up, I've been thinking about Adcom GFP-750, maybe in a month or two. Are there anything else I should be looking for? Also, anyone know anything about PS Audio's P-200?

Well Mikhail told me I would have some kind of balanced preamp as a loaner if my Maestro was not done before turkey-day. I get home today and here's a box with the Transparency SS balanced preamp in it. It detroys the Musical Fidelity cold out of the box. just so much more of everything. Not on the level of my Ayre K-1xe, but close. Not quite the detail or air in the top end. Better bass, and midrange is a little fuller with the SP. Overall a very smooth and relaxed preamp. A little soft on top, awesome midrange, and great bass. I can live with this until my Maestro gets here. Some photos in system and the mandatory vinyl shot. Photos attached of: The current system..…

Hi everyone. One of my tweeters for my 400i PSB speakers is blown out. I was wondering where a good place would be to try and find a replacement tweeter. I honestly never did try and find a replacement tweeter before so this is new territory for me. I sent an email to PSB in hopes of purchasing one from them if they have one, which seems unlikely after doing some research on the net. I put a WTB ad in audiokarma as well. It seems that a website called Madisound Speaker Components | Assisting speaker builders for more than 25 years. used to sell the replacement, but they don't offer it anymore. I will try and call my local authorized PSB dealer to see if they do…

Hey Speaker Kids: Don't I remember reading that the *L2 series of Quad speakers got worse reviews then their previous L series? Reason I ask is there are these demos for sale on Audiogon: http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrmoni&1206234899 I could put this on my desk next to my monitor, and power them off the other speaker outs on my 840A. But if my memory serves me, I'd be better off waiting for a regular 11L (or 12L if I want to go active).

I could potentially score a pair within this week, so I just wanted people who have heard/owned the 12L active monitors to speak out about their experiences. To be honest I don't expect optimal performances out of them in my room, because my room is not that great: somewhat thick dry-walls with wooden floors, and I would pretty much have to place them right up against the long wall due to space constraints. And every time I clap my hands, I hear a slight echo in the room. But given all of that, it's a potentially good deal, so I just wanted some opinions on everything from whether it's even worth it for me to get them or how they sound. It's really open-ended. …

Could be a decent Audioengine A5 alternative, but I'm really not sure about those finish options! Purple lilac?

Looks like my long-serving Quads have decided to stop working. I haven’t tried to disassemble the offending one. But there’s definitely been an intermittent issue where it wouldn’t play without power cycling, and that has appeared to turn fatal and now it won’t turn on. I was only able to enjoy these because of the deal I got on them from Todd. So I didn’t know what people have for experience with some of these newer brands/models. I have a pair of Audioengine A2s at work, which needless to say, are several steps below. But with the market flooded with lots of reasonably priced options, does anyone have any recommendations for active monitors? I don’t know that …

Hey, TheSloth, did you see that they revamped the Quad site? Looks like they've reintroduced the active series, and they're introducing an upgrade on the L series, the L2 series. I wonder if they're going to do away with the L series? I hope not...

So my parents are looking to upgrade the entertainment room (still using an old 32" tube tv). They've settled on the Samsung 52" A650 model and they asked me to look up what budget receiver to buy. I'm thinking something around $300 (??) would be fine for them. Do you guys have any suggestions? They don't need all the bells and whistles. They just need something simple that works. I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking about, especially when it comes to parents who have a hard time managing 2-3 remote controls (2 cable boxes and tv). And yes, I'm going to be buying them a Harmony remote.

hi , can anyone recommend me an used excellent speaker for pc(my sound card has xlr balance, rca analog,...)? so far i only know the quad 12l active is good for pc(for the qual 12l2 , i think it won't let me use with pc). can anyone recommend me some speakers which are above level of quad 12l active? my budget for speaker pc will be around 1.5k for a used one thanks

I'm looking for speaker amps for a pair of 92 dB, 8-12 ohm speakers, AudioKinesis Jazz Modules. So far what I've been looking at has been anywhere from 8 to ~50 watts, although I guess I'm shooting for the 16-30 watt range. I'd like to get your guys' recommendations on brands/amps to look into. Right now, any price range is fine- I'll narrow it down later. This is for a home system for next year, but I'm antsy and like planning ahead. In particular, I'm interested in any cool-running amps in this range. All I've come up with so far are the Red Wine stuff and Resolution S30 (part of the Opus system). I don't know what livable heat output levels would be, and want a back…

OK I want to venture into full speakers utilizing my Alamarro A205AmkII that I currently use with my K1000. At the dealer I purchased the Almarro, he was demonstrating it with Zu Druids (?) with tremendous effect. But I need something smaller, suitable for SET amps (technically the Almarro is a 5 wpc single-ended pentode). From my feeble google effort, I find Coincident Triumphs and Zu Cradenza Credanza/Tone, but are there others I should consider??

Hey guys, Well I am trying to start my research into speakers...again. Last time I went into it kind of half assed, and it actually didn't turn so bad last time. Picked up some moth cicadas that mated with my old moth s2a3 and I thought they were pretty great for the price and the fact they were single drivers - very coherent, beautiful midrange, nice full tone, but obviously lacking the low end registers. I would say down to 50 it was pretty solid. the omega hemps had the bass but they were somewhat sharp on the high end and had nowhere near the midrange magic of the cicadas. Budget is probably under a $1000 (unfortunately). Maybe I could swing a littler highe…