ive been reading some reviews about the jbl e series loudspeakers. im just wondering if the e100's are alot better than the e90's is spending the extra for the e100's worth it...
well i can afford about $650 or so. i can afford either set. ive seen the e90s for $234 each and the e100s for $287 each.
reciever - pioneer VSX-D514-S (100x5) room size - small-medium music/ht - 70/30 music types - rock rap sub - jbl e150p
main thing i wonder is if the dual 10s on the e100s will be overbearing for an apartment or if the 8s on the e90s will do just fine. but my neighbors are pretty understanding and work opposite schedules of me.
Ouch, a Pioneer 514...I would be worried about it having sufficient power to make such large floorstanders like the e90s and e100s sound their best. I know it's RATED at 100wpc on paper but the reality is probably a lot less and the wpc doesn't tell half the story anyway---quality power is more about current available to handle the maximum bursts of musical peaks, and you are very unlikely to get that at the 514's price range.
When I was shopping around for speakers, one of the reasons I personally ruled out such large floorstanders is because I A/B'ed how they sounded playing off a $300 receiver versus a $1000 receiver in stores. HUGE difference, much more drastic than bookshelves which don't require as much quality juice.
What are you using right now for your front speakers?
Looking at your system, my guess is that your desire for such huge floorstanders comes from the weak and muddy bass coming from the e150 subwoofer. I know, because I own an e150, and it's one purchase that I've never stopped kicking myself for from day one.
In a "small-medium" room, I'd bet that if you have decent fronts you'd be WAY happier if you upgraded to a better SVS, Hsu, or Outlaw subwoofer around $400 or so.
im using some POLK RT400's as fronts which i bought used. they are two way with only a 7in woofer. the tweeters r starting to go on them. thats 1 reason in looking for new fronts.
my system before this was a ht in a box so im only comparing the e150p to the crap one in the ht in a box. lol
you think my reciver would make the e90s/e100s sound awful?
Yeah, I think a $200 receiver like the 514 would probably end up making big speakers like that sound thin and bright. You'd be better off investing on some high quality bookshelves, esp. Internet direct ones if you want the best bang for your buck. Ascend, Axiom, Aperion, Onix Rockets, to name a few.
I'm very partial to Ascends (a pair of their CBM-170s would run $340 shipped) and leave you $300-400 to get a better subwoofer (Hsu STF-1 or STF2, SVS PB10, Outlaw LFM-1) which would provide much better bass than the JBL towers anyway, and the Ascends' midrange and treble will easily blow away the JBLs regardless of your receiver/amp. Google them and you'll find a massive paper trail of rave reviews from consumers and pros alike, the CBM-170 is probably the best reviewed speaker I've ever seen, Internet or retail.
Or you can see if your local Best Buy still has any stock on the Athena B2s that are being discontinued, these should be in the $200/pair range.
Very close call, the SVS goes lower which is better for HT but the Hsu is said to be better for music.
However if you order the 170s you can get the Hsu bundled into it and save a little money. Also since the Hsu is downward firing it should be a little easier to place in your room.