Best sub £1000 bookshelf speakers

Stevie,

Try and listen to a pair of Linn Katans with their dedicated stands. They work really well with Naim amps.

Simon

Persoanlly I beleive that spending a grand on speakers would be too demanding on the front end.

I prefer Alex's suggestion of a second hand Hi-cap or a flatcap followed with a new pair of speakers.

A second hand hi-cap would leave £500 to £600 for a decent pair of speakers.

Regards

NB

Hi

Is that new or old hicap. I have found a flat cap 2 for £329 (exdem) or a old style hi for £500

Thanks

Stevie

Alex

The Hicap was manufactured in 1995 so I guess a service would be in order. The dealer did not know when/if it was done last.

Stevie

Stevie

Ask Naim if they know if its been serviced. If not then its worth considering. Maybe I am tight but £500 for an 8 year old hi-cap sounds expensive!


Regards


NB

No need to spend a grand......£485 will get you a pair of ATC SCM7's in cherry veneer...

Paul.

quote:

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Originally posted by alexgerrard:
Stevie

NB is wise

If you can get the serial number of the hicap, then give Naim a call, they will be able to tell you if/when it has been serviced. £500 for an unserviced 8 yr. old Hicap is extremely expensive, IMHO.

Alex

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I'm afraid it was all a lie. When I called the dealer for the serial number they claimed that the never had one. Although around 11 this morning the guy could see it from where he was! Strange!

Stevie

Sounds like someone can not tell the difference between a HiCap and a similar sized Naim Amp. They must be looking at the front face only.

That sounds about right. All he said was that it was olive and could see it

Stevie

I don't think that a £1000 speaker package is wrong in this scenario. I fail to understand why floorstanders aren't an option given that they take up the same space (or less if talking Totem Arros) as standmounts when they're on stands. Are you placing the speakers on shelves? I hope not.

I've heard very good things about the new B&W 705. Allegedly it's a fine speaker for the money. Also consider:

Dynaudio Audience 52 in wood finish
AVI ProNine+

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

I agree with Paul, don't spend £1000 just because you've got it.

I doubt i will ever go back to ported speakers after getting my Kan's and i can't imagine any speaker, what ever it costs could give me so much enjoyment.
I,ve heard the linn katans don't sound ported, so may be worth a listen and they look a lot better than the Kan's

If i was going to buy a ported speaker the Home studio monitor from Wilmslow audio would be at the top of my audition list.

I've owned Dynaudio speakers and absolutly hated them but my local dealer loves them and so do many people, so it just goes to show how much sound is a personal thing.

Dynaudio Contour 1.1's would be a good listen,will work well with Naim &take an upgrade or 3!!They have recently been discontinued so you may find a nice ex-dem deal.

Moz

Recommend you check out Monitor Audio Gold Reference 10 (a.k.a. GR10) standmounts at £800. This would leave you £200 for some decent stands.

It's also worth noting, however, that GR10's crop up ex-dem from time to time for around £600 which is a great price for these excellent (IMO) standmounts.

Matt.

My CDX/82/250 drives Kans.
So far I've not found a compelling reason to upgrade them. Every time I've thought about it I've ended up upgrading elsewhere and sat back with a big smile on my face.

Paul Rowlands

quote:

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Originaly posted by Mathew Farley
If i was going to buy a ported speaker the Home studio monitor from Wilmslow audio would be at the top of my audition list.

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Mathew, Have you heard these speakers with Naim Amps?
I heard them many years ago in a round earth CD system and still recall how good they sounded.

Paul

Paul,
I've got to admit i hav'nt heard them at all but after doing lots of searching on the diy audio forums not only on the speakers themselfs but on the individual drivers used, crossovers ect, they seem well worth an audition.

I'm planning on making some speakers useing Fostex FX200 full range drivers.
After reading lots of tales of doom and gloom about passive crossovers and the benefits of going active I think a good full range driver with the cable soldered to the back of the speaker without any joins going straight to the amp could sound very good.
They don't produce huge amounts of bass and the frequency response graph does'nt look very flat, but my Kan's arn't good in that respect either and i love them!

All i have to do next is find a good carpenter

Matt

quote:

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Originally posted by prowla:
My CDX/82/250 drives Kans.
So far I've not found a compelling reason to upgrade them. Every time I've thought about it I've ended up upgrading elsewhere and sat back with a big smile on my face.

Paul Rowlands

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Paul

How would you rate the Kans V's the 602S3's. I can see that they are in a similar price bracket so they are somthing worth looking into.

Stevie

Hi, Stevie
I haven't heard the B&W speakers - they may be good.
Whatever you go for, I'd suggest that you see if you can try at home before buying.
Buying s/h (eg. Kans - if you were to listen to them and like it) would leave you budget for other upgrades.
Were you thinking of putting them on a bookshelf () or on decent wall brackets?

Paul Rowlands

Paul

I have the sounstyle XS122's I quite like the look of them and they suit the B&W's. My main reason for not wanting floorstanders is that in my small room they will be too 'imposing' compared to more subtle stand mounts

My CDX/82/250 drives Kans.
So far I've not found a compelling reason to upgrade them. Every time I've thought about it I've ended up upgrading elsewhere and sat back with a big smile on my face.

Paul Rowlands

Paul

I really must bring my spare Kabers round.....

Mike

On the Yellow Brick Road and happy

Hi, Mike - wondered when you'd chip in!
(Just house hunting at the moment, so equipment purchases probably not good politic.)

Paul Rowlands

Hello James,

Do You mean these?
Rehdeko

I'd say they are definatly a try before you buy speaker after reading that review.

Do you think it would be possible to build a two way standmount speaker that sounds like a Kan but with more bass depth?

Stevie,

A pair of Totem Arro's would not impose. People often discount Arros just because they're so small. Then they come out with this incredible scale. Excellent little floorstander. Also consider the Dynaudio Audience 62 - again, a relatively small floorstander, but larger than the Arro's. Can go quite near a wall so still discreet.

I forgot to mention the Totem Mite. This is a very decent little bookshelf speaker.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

"I have the sounstyle XS122's I quite like the look of them" steve

The ATC SCM-7's are 160mm wide and 205mm deep. If the top spikes on your stand are in a bit from the edges like they appear to be in the picture, the above speakers should fit nicely. They work nicely close to the wall and put out a nice full-range sound for their size. They are also one of the few infinite baffle designs out there.

My dealer who has been a Linn dealer for many years rates them much better than Katans, Ninka's. For the money, I think they're hard to beat.

quote:

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Originally posted by John Gilleran:

The ATC SCM-7's are 160mm wide and 205mm deep. If the top spikes on your stand are in a bit from the edges like they appear to be in the picture, the above speakers should fit nicely. http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-9/410012/PICT0117.JPG

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John

The top spikes are indeed slightly in on the top base. Maybe 5mm in.


Paul, when you mention the Kans speakers am I right in thinking that the ones you mention retail for about 330 of the queens finest pounds. If so, they seem (by word of mouth) to be a v. good speaker for the money

Stevie