B&W on the cheap?

[ckvorni]

My system is a Yamaha RX-1700 receiver, a Panasonic BD-55 Blu-ray, a Slimdevices (Logitech) Squeezebox and a set of B&W 705's. I am mainly a stereo guy, but I'd like to upgrade to 5.1.

Since the obvious choice (a full B&W 700-series 5.1 set-up) is beyond my budget, are there any suggestions for cheaper upgrades to 5.1?

 

[Big Chris]

The surrounds don't work half as hard as the fronts do, so you could always go for a set of M1s. If you wanted to keep full size speakers for the rears, you could perhaps look at something from the 600 range, the 686s perhaps, or from the previous generation the 600 S3/601 S3.

The centre is a different matter. You really should try to get the matching centre for your 705s. But again, if that's never gonna happen, I'd say the centre from the 600 range would be the best bet.

The sub is the least important of all the speakers when it comes to matching the rest. The B&W ASW610 is an award winner at £400. If your room is on the smaller side, the ASW608 may be acceptable. Many here praise BK subs as a superior, but comparably priced alternative to the B&Ws.