View Full Version : B&W?? (Was: Help me choose some decent speakers!)
Hi all,
with the search functionality disabled, its hard to look through the archives for advice on this subject so i'll ask here.
I recently got a Sony DB1070 along with a lot of other people on this forum and now I'm getting ready to purchase a set of speakers to go with it.
I've already got a Digitheatre DTS and whilst its ok, I long for the fuller, punchier sound that some decent speakers (and amp) will provide.
My budget is around £800. I currently had my eye on the Tannoy MX AV4 kit that is really well priced at upgradeheaven however a couple of reviews have pointed out that whilst it scores high, it IS a budget speaker (and hence doesn't compete on a par with higher end speakers) . The pictures i've seen with the silver grille and the light maple finish make me drool, but again, the reviews seem to indicate that the veneer looks rather cheap up close.
So anyway, thats where I am at the moment so any advice would be useful!
KEF KHT 2005, no contest.
Mind you I guess you'll be needing an extra rear speaker as well. Kef may supply an additional one but it'll be a few quid more. However, if you can get them for about £650 (look for recent post) you should come in on budget.
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 11:28
Well the Tannoys will knock the Digitheatre for six.
To be honest - I don't think the Tannoys look any cheaper or better than equivalent Missions and the like. At £800 you are only going to get "budget" kit anyway, so that might be a bit of a red herring. The Tannoys are at least as good as anything else in their price range...
If you like the idea of bix boxes then go Tannoy/Mission/B&W etc, but remember that the mX4's will sound awful in a smallish room. On the other hand, if you're after looks and performance then the new KEF sat/sub set-up is well worth a look. A few forum members have got these and I've demo'd them - top, top kit and exactly £800 retail.....
If you like the idea of bix boxes then go Tannoy/Mission/B&W etc, but remember that the mX4's will sound awful in a smallish room. On the other hand, if you're after looks and performance then the new KEF sat/sub set-up is well worth a look. A few forum members have got these and I've demo'd them - top, top kit and exactly £800 retail.....
What would you define as a 'smallish' room because that may play an important part in my decision...
I'm planning to buy a house in a few months time... Would it be better to wait until I know the full dimensions/acoustics of the intended room before purchasing speakers?
Would the KEF kit perform ok in a smallish room? Would it have more body and punch than the digitheatre? (ie: is my beef with the whole sat/sub system or just with a wussy digitheatre?)
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 11:56
What would you define as a 'smallish' room because that may play an important part in my decision...
anything smaller than, say, 14" by 14"
I'm planning to buy a house in a few months time... Would it be better to wait until I know the full dimensions/acoustics of the intended room before purchasing speakers?
Possibly - the new room may sound very different acoustically - but you'd probably be ok
Would the KEF kit perform ok in a smallish room? Would it have more body and punch than the digitheatre? (ie: is my beef with the whole sat/sub system or just with a wussy digitheatre?)
The KEF's will slaughter the Digitheatre, and they'd be more than ok in a small room. But the only way to know that you'll be happy its to demo them yourself. I thought they were very, very good though.
Originally posted by fatal
Hi all,
with the search functionality disabled, its hard to look through the archives for advice on this subject so i'll ask here.
I recently got a Sony DB1070 along with a lot of other people on this forum and now I'm getting ready to purchase a set of speakers to go with it.
I've already got a Digitheatre DTS and whilst its ok, I long for the fuller, punchier sound that some decent speakers (and amp) will provide.
My budget is around £800. I currently had my eye on the Tannoy MX AV4 kit that is really well priced at upgradeheaven however a couple of reviews have pointed out that whilst it scores high, it IS a budget speaker (and hence doesn't compete on a par with higher end speakers) . The pictures i've seen with the silver grille and the light maple finish make me drool, but again, the reviews seem to indicate that the veneer looks rather cheap up close.
So anyway, thats where I am at the moment so any advice would be useful!
Also consider the tannoy revoultion kit, and the Moudaunt Short packs, which I`m putting together at the minute. If you can get a demo locally first.
Bapapapa
01-11-2001, 13:18
At £800 you are only going to get "budget" kit anyway, so that might be a bit of a red herring.
Hmm.. £800 is not exactly a small budget for a set of speakers. I've got Tannoy Revs R2/R1/RC and they sound great.
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 13:23
Originally posted by Bapapapa
Hmm.. £800 is not exactly a small budget for a set of speakers. I've got Tannoy Revs R2/R1/RC and they sound great.
I'm sure they do Baps - but £800 for 5 speakers is never going to get you "high-end" kit, as Fatal was suggesting in his first post...
;)
Bapapapa
01-11-2001, 13:36
No, no, no.
My second sentence was not really related to the first. :p I'm not saying my Revs are high-end at all, just that £800 would buy you far more than 'budget' speakers. 'Budget' speakers to me are like the Eltax kits - £200 all in. :p
It's certainly not worth sticking high-end £5k speakers with a Sony 1070 anyway. :D
Bapapapa
01-11-2001, 13:42
Originally posted by fatal
My budget is around £800. I currently had my eye on the Tannoy MX AV4 kit that is really well priced at upgradeheaven however a couple of reviews have pointed out that whilst it scores high, it IS a budget speaker (and hence doesn't compete on a par with higher end speakers) . The pictures i've seen with the silver grille and the light maple finish make me drool, but again, the reviews seem to indicate that the veneer looks rather cheap up close.
It's not veneer on them mate, it's a vinyl wrap giving a wood grain effect. The Revs have real wood veneer, though.
If you want IMPACT from your speakers, then I suggest you demo them beforehand because if my Revs were any more laid back they'd fall over. :p By all accounts the MX's are better in this respect, but it all depends on how you like it.
/me hugs my R2s. :D
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 14:20
Originally posted by Bapapapa
No, no, no.
My second sentence was not really related to the first. :p I'm not saying my Revs are high-end at all, just that £800 would buy you far more than 'budget' speakers. 'Budget' speakers to me are like the Eltax kits - £200 all in. :p
It's certainly not worth sticking high-end £5k speakers with a Sony 1070 anyway. :D
Ahh - can't argue with that then
;)
You're also right about the R2's being more laid-back than the mX's - but not by that much.
Anyway - I'd get the KEF's and be done with it
:D
Resource
01-11-2001, 14:29
I'm worried now
I was going to get the Tannoy MX4 set for my bedroom coupled with the Pioneer VXD859RDS. But my bedroom is only 13 x 10'.....Wouldn't be moving out for afew years yet either.
Those Mordant Short speakers look more appealing all the time......
Regards
Gary Ambrose
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 14:37
Originally posted by Resource
I'm worried now
I was going to get the Tannoy MX4 set for my bedroom coupled with the Pioneer VXD859RDS. But my bedroom is only 13 x 10'.....Wouldn't be moving out for afew years yet either.
Those Mordant Short speakers look more appealing all the time......
Regards
Gary Ambrose
I'd suggest that the mX4's wouldn't be at their best in that size room.....
Originally posted by Bapapapa
No, no, no.
My second sentence was not really related to the first. :p I'm not saying my Revs are high-end at all, just that £800 would buy you far more than 'budget' speakers. 'Budget' speakers to me are like the Eltax kits - £200 all in. :p
It's certainly not worth sticking high-end £5k speakers with a Sony 1070 anyway. :D
sorry, I didn't mean to imply that I was expecting to get 'High End' speakers for £800, merely 'HIGHER' end than the Digitheatre or the Eltax kit! ;)
Bapapapa
01-11-2001, 16:43
sorry, I didn't mean to imply that I was expecting to get 'High End' speakers for £800, merely 'HIGHER' end than the Digitheatre or the Eltax kit!
No, no, no.
I was replying to Radiohead. :D
Go read my previous reply to the one you've quoted.
:D
Originally posted by Resource
I'm worried now
I was going to get the Tannoy MX4 set for my bedroom coupled with the Pioneer VXD859RDS. But my bedroom is only 13 x 10'.....Wouldn't be moving out for afew years yet either.
Those Mordant Short speakers look more appealing all the time......
Regards
Gary Ambrose
I've got MX4's in my bedroom (11' x 10') and I think they sound great:)
They look better in black ash IMHO.
Radiohead
01-11-2001, 17:27
Originally posted by Lee S
....they look better in black ash IMHO.
noooooooo
surely not
:o
Originally posted by Radiohead
noooooooo
surely not
:o
:D
Got the black ash ones to match my other Tannoy speakers.
Don't really like maple finishes on speakers,each to their own i suppose :)
Russtavo
01-11-2001, 20:22
Originally posted by fatal
Hi all,
with the search functionality disabled, its hard to look through the archives for advice on this subject so i'll ask here.
I recently got a Sony DB1070 along with a lot of other people on this forum and now I'm getting ready to purchase a set of speakers to go with it.
I've already got a Digitheatre DTS and whilst its ok, I long for the fuller, punchier sound that some decent speakers (and amp) will provide.
My budget is around £800. I currently had my eye on the Tannoy MX AV4 kit that is really well priced at upgradeheaven however a couple of reviews have pointed out that whilst it scores high, it IS a budget speaker (and hence doesn't compete on a par with higher end speakers) . The pictures i've seen with the silver grille and the light maple finish make me drool, but again, the reviews seem to indicate that the veneer looks rather cheap up close.
So anyway, thats where I am at the moment so any advice would be useful!
Try and demo as many speakers as you can. I recently heard a speaker package called "Energy Take 5". £600ish. I was v.impressed with the sound at that price.
Does anybody know any places in the West Midlands where I can go and get some demonstrations of different speakers in action (namely Tannoy, KEF and perhaps B&W)?
I'm from Australia and so don't know many places over here that would be able to assist me!
Ok well after going to a local hifi store and demo'ing the KEFs and the B&W series 600 speakers, I have just about decided that the B&W are the speakers for me.
The KEFs sounded pretty good for their size but i enjoyed the muscle and presence of the B&W speakers.
The salesperson demo'd the B&W speakers with the Mission Bipolar (77ds i think) as rears and I think it sounded pretty good.
What are peoples impressions of bi-polar or di-polar vs standard speakers for surrounds?
sideshowbob
04-11-2001, 08:58
Hello ... I'm a bit of a B&W addict (all my speakers ... bar the sub ... are B&W) and would certainly recommend their 600 series speakers. In fact (here comes the soft sell) if you wanted you could have a pair of DM601s for a bargain price ... my thread is here (http://www.thedvdforums.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=26454&goto=newpost)
Dipoles / bipoles / monopoles (standard speaker) all have strengths and weaknesses. If placed well, a standard speaker will perform well as a surround ... the Dolby site has more info on speaker placement here (http://www.dolby.com/ht/sound). I also read on the B&W site that standard speakers are actually preferable for multi-channel music (DVD-A and SACD) ... as these formats aim for directional surround sound, rather than the more diffuse sound that bipoles and dipoles give. So, if SACD / DVD-A is on the menu, you might want to stick with standard speakers.
Anyway, happy shopping. :)
Move house / rob a bank and buy two pairs of B&W CDM 9NT ' s!
I have and they sound truly amazing!:D
britboy1979
04-11-2001, 21:44
I'd go for Mordaunt Short MS 908's for the fronts (£500 but with built in subs), MS 902's for the rears (£150) and a MS 905c for the centre (another £150) that's £800 for some amazing stuff...both sonically and visually.
Or get the premier package for £500
Originally posted by Resource
I'm worried now
I was going to get the Tannoy MX4 set for my bedroom coupled with the Pioneer VXD859RDS. But my bedroom is only 13 x 10'.....Wouldn't be moving out for afew years yet either.
Those Mordant Short speakers look more appealing all the time......
Regards
Gary Ambrose
I`d say get a demo of the premiers, you`ll be amazed just HOW good those little boxes sound. they sound like something twice the price!
Originally posted by fatal
Hi all,
with the search functionality disabled, its hard to look through the archives for advice on this subject so i'll ask here.
I recently got a Sony DB1070 along with a lot of other people on this forum and now I'm getting ready to purchase a set of speakers to go with it.
I've already got a Digitheatre DTS and whilst its ok, I long for the fuller, punchier sound that some decent speakers (and amp) will provide.
My budget is around £800. I currently had my eye on the Tannoy MX AV4 kit that is really well priced at upgradeheaven however a couple of reviews have pointed out that whilst it scores high, it IS a budget speaker (and hence doesn't compete on a par with higher end speakers) . The pictures i've seen with the silver grille and the light maple finish make me drool, but again, the reviews seem to indicate that the veneer looks rather cheap up close.
So anyway, thats where I am at the moment so any advice would be useful!
Fatal
The problem with small rooms and big speakers, is bass boom.
Many floorstanding speakers are rear ported, which means that
they should be placed away from a back wall to allow the port
to breathe. Placing such speakers against a wall, often causes
the bass to become boomy.
You can alleviate this to some extent by placing foam bungs in the ports but it's better to select front ported speakers (designed to be placed against a rear wall) in the first place.
Assuming you aren't putting the system in a box room, the Tannoy MX3, is such a speaker.
Coupled with a pair of MX1 for the rear, and an MXC for centre, you'd have a very good match for your Sony receiver. Add a MXSUB10 if you want a sub for extra deep bass with movies - the MX3 is fine on it's own for stereo music. Including the sub, it should set you back around £520 all in. Budget for some reasonable cable too (but I wouldn't spend more than £2.50/m myself)
Other alternatives are
(from Richers)
Mission 702e/700/70c1/Paradigm PDR10 sub - c.£350 all in (this is probably the best value budget speaker set of this type available at the moment IMO). That's in black, add another £20 or so for beech (but I don't think the centre is available in beech if that's important)
Or Wharfedale Diamond 8.3/8.1/Centre, with either a Tannoy or Paradigm sub - around £450 all in.
These are available in black or cherry (the cherry looks good)
I've got no problem with B&W speakers as such, they are very good, but they are expensive for what you get IMO - it's simply that there's better available for the same money, or just as good for a lot less.
Granted, the Mission setup I suggested above are heavily discounted (less than half RRP) as they are now discontinued, but they sound great regardless. They were Mission's direct competitor to the B&W 600 series and Tannoy M series (the MX predecessor), amongst many others, and can be considered about on a par in quality terms. They'll all sound a bit different, but it's down to personal taste in the end.
If you really want better quality than these, then you really need to up your budget, probably to around £1200 or more - however it's debatable whether you'd really appreciate the difference
with the Sony receiver to be honest.
The sub is perhaps one area where you would - if spending more on the setup, it's here I'd spend it first. REL have a new sub out, the Q150E at around £500 (you could even get this anyway and the the Mission speakers and still come in under your £800 budget). Good as the Tannoy and Paradigm units are for the money, they aren't really in the same class.
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