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New member Username: StratquackNear Philly Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-09 | Hello everyone, I'm new here, but I wanted to join up after reading some threads that revealed the knowledgeable commentary present here. I'm not an "audiophile" ...at least I don't think I am, but I'm a very discerning musician and artist, so I really notice the "little" things. I'm on a budget, and can't afford the really high end stuff, but I do what I can. I recently replaced an old 70's Sansui solid state receiver with a Cambridge Audio Azure 640a that I purchased on sale at Millersounds in Montgomeryville, PA (he is a speaker re-builder who carries Cambridge products) I test drove the the amp through some Martin Logan speakers he had repaired, and was blown away. I got the amp home and I'm still blown away, but I can really hear the limitations of my 12 year old Technics SB L70 budget floor standing speakers ($170 per pair). The Sansui needed the extra attack in the upper mids to cut through the mud, but it gets to be fatiguing with the Cambridge after a CD or two. Any suggestions for a reasonably priced (for me, under $700 for the pair) pairings for this Cambridge amp? I'm looking for deep well defined base, nice extended highs that are smooth and airy, perhaps a tad warm, and mids that are accurate....and naturally, a great soundstage. Music tastes range from Brahms, Led Zeppelin, C. Mingus, Bill Monroe, Prince, Shostakovich, Stones, to Sinatra and Dinah Washington ...pretty much anything but Rap Thanks!!! |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2338 Registered: Feb-07 | I've heard the 640A a few times with Energy speakers. They sounded like a good match. |
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Platinum Member Username: NuckPost Number: 11907 Registered: Dec-04 | Energy RC10 and RC20 standmounts can be had for a good price if you watch out for them. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 13431 Registered: May-04 | . The current issue of Stereophile is their Recommended Components issue, so check it out. You would find recommended speakers in your price range from Usher, Paradigm, Epos, PSB and a handful of other nationally marketed lines. I would also suggest you consider a few of the on line only retailers such as NSM, Role or, for something completely different, Omega. Also consider Bob Brines' version of the Fostex systems. Contact Tim Forman, a forum member from years past, and ask what he's got going for a value oriented design. I would also suggest you look into a trial pair of Magneplanar MGM's. Pair any of the above with the baseline Hsu subwoofer and you'll have everything you've asked for in at least one of those combinations. http://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=slv8-hptb5&p=magneplanar%20mmg&type= http://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=slv8-hptb5&p=omega%20loudspeakers%20a udio&type= http://www.geocities.com/rbrines1/ http://www.timaliforman.com/4.html http://www.nsmaudio.com/ http://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=slv8-hptb5&p=role%20loudspeakers&type = . |
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New member Username: StratquackNear Philly Post Number: 2 Registered: Mar-09 | You see - I say to myself - it pays to ask for help when you need it. Thank you all so very much for your assistance. You've passed on some brand names I've never heard of before! I'll do some more research with your tips as time allows. I must ask you Jan, how durable are the Magnepan Planar MMG speakers? They look so delicate, and I'm wondering if they would stand up to an errant cat paw? Otherwise, I'm highly interested. The energy speakers mentioned, look like a excellent choice as well. While I'm posting, does anyone have an opinion about Cambridge Audio Azure 540P Phono Preamp? I've been without vinyl for about a month now since the Sansui died, and I'm starting to freak out a bit..need my fix soon. LOL |
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Platinum Member Username: NuckPost Number: 11910 Registered: Dec-04 | JC, the MMG's have been fairly sucessful with on-wall mounting as well, although I am not certain of the effect on them. The mag design is equal sounding front and rear (thus placement issues with bigger ones) but the MMG is different somehow. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 13432 Registered: May-04 | . I suppose it depends on just how errant your cat's paws tend to get. The panel is behind a grill cloth so it would take a repeatedly errant strike to do severe damage. Call Magneplanar and ask for their advice. The panels are light enough to be moved in and out of position if that would make any difference to your cat. I bet the same could be said of your cat. . |
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Gold Member Username: StryvnWisconsin Post Number: 1037 Registered: Dec-06 | tastes like chicken |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2341 Registered: Feb-07 | LOL. Now that I think of it, the Maggies do look like giant scratching posts. |
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Platinum Member Username: NuckPost Number: 11911 Registered: Dec-04 | hehehe |
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Gold Member Username: ArtkAlbany, Oregon USA Post Number: 9244 Registered: Feb-05 | Cats are one of the most frequent causes of Magnepan death. If you have cats and they scratch...scratch the Maggies off of your list. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittIrvington, New York USA Post Number: 3219 Registered: May-05 | Even if I loved Maggies and they'd work in my room, I wouldn't own them because of my cats. Those things look like huge scratching panels. Not to mention that they're electrified. Philly should have a good number of hifi shops. Check out what they have. Being a musician, I'm sure you're looking for very specific things in your music. We may be able to help you avoid a bad speaker, but I doubt we'll really be able to recommend something that'll be exactly what you're looking for. Listen to as many speakers as you can. They all sound different. Just stay away from the big box stores and the brands they carry - Sony, Bose, and so on. They're crap compared to what the hifi stores carry for the same or less money, but hopefully you've found that out already. A few more brands to look into are Focal, Totem, and Paradigm. There are tons more, these are just a few that haven't been mentioned that I like. The 540P is a very good phono stage for them money, the 640P is a lot better for not a ton of money. Definitely worth the extra cash IMO. These will sound better than anything else for the money in your system IMO. And they're outright better than the competition. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 13433 Registered: May-04 | . "Not to mention that they're electrified." Electrified? No more than any conventional cone driver. The cat would receive no more of a shock than if he/she chewed through a speaker cable while music was playing. I think you're confusing the technology of an elctrostatic system with the technology of a magnetic planar system. The magnetic planar driver can be thought of as not much more than a cone drive flattened out with the "voice coil" unwound and attached to the entire surface of the driver. There are no high voltages in the magnetic planar system. Electrostatics on the other hand can be lethal. . |
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New member Username: StratquackNear Philly Post Number: 3 Registered: Mar-09 | Thanks again for your suggestions!!! I've got a lot of research to do now, but now I have direction. Our cats are actually really good about not scratching at the grill cloth of the Technics we have, but I had to ask. We do keep scratch posts in that room, but hey their cats! better safe than sorry. I'll consider the other options with greater focus just in case. I noticed no one mentioned Klipsch. Are they on pare with Bose and Sony these days? |
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Platinum Member Username: NuckPost Number: 11915 Registered: Dec-04 | kinda...but louder. That was offhand, JC. No recent experience with them. |
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Platinum Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 13435 Registered: May-04 | . I think you almost always find Klipsch being sold in the same shops that sell Bose and Sony. That doesn't necessarilly make any of those products bad just due to their dealer networking but, if you're listening to a pair of Klipsch through nothing better than a Sony receiver, then you probably can't tell which product is the worse off for the pairing. . |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2345 Registered: Feb-07 | Klipsch and Sony. The horror... |
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Gold Member Username: DmitchellOttawa, Ontario Canada Post Number: 2346 Registered: Feb-07 | In the past I owned a pair of Klipsch Synergy F2s that actually weren't too bad at all. They weren't paired with a Sony receiver, though. |
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Gold Member Username: Stu_pittIrvington, New York USA Post Number: 3221 Registered: May-05 | "I think you're confusing the technology of an elctrostatic system with the technology of a magnetic planar system." Yes I was. My mistake. |