Help choosing floorstanders!

[superams]

Hi all, hope maybe a few on here can help with a few speaker choices that I’m looking at, any help and advice is greatly appreciated in advance!

Currently got a marantz Pm 5005 amp with Q acoustics 3050 speakers which is used for Tv watching and music streaming, had this for about 8 years and been great but just wanted to freshen things up a little. My room size is approx 6x4m.

I’ve purchased a Cambridge Audio CXA81 mk2 and want some new speakers to pair with them for the same Tv & music etc.

Ideally I’d have gone somewhere to listen to different ones paired with the amp but places im trying have only got one or two to try.

So my choices currently are new,
Wharfedale evo 4.4 or 5.4
Q acoustics 5050
Pyne audio P501e

Or maybe used
Pyne audio P501 (are these better than P501e)?
Pyne audio P502 (would these be too big)
Or any others.

Hope someone can help.

 

[daytona600]

Q Acoustics 5040 / 5050
Elipson Prestige Facet II 14F
Goldenear BRX

 

[Al ears]

You should certainly try to audition them yourself.
The Wharfedale mentioned are very good.
I haven't even heard of those Pyne audio speakers, not very common in UK, where are you in the world?

 

[Al ears]

Q Acoustics 5040 / 5050
Elipson Prestige Facet II 14F
Goldenear BRX

And there was me thinking the Goldenear were standmounts....... 😎

 

[superams]

You should certainly try to audition them yourself.
The Wharfedale mentioned are very good.
I haven't even heard of those Pyne audio speakers, not very common in UK, where are you in the world?

Hi, I’m in the UK near Derby.
Like you say I need to try them first but can’t seem to find somewhere there has at least 3 in to try.

 

[Al ears]

Hi, I’m in the UK near Derby.
Like you say I need to try them first but can’t seem to find somewhere there has at least 3 in to try.

In that case just try whatever you can

 

[SenseiKofi]

Hi, I’m in the UK near Derby.
Like you say I need to try them first but can’t seem to find somewhere there has at least 3 in to try.

go try ELAC, Revel, KEF, Emotiva and many more at the various brick and mortar audio shops that are an easy find in the UK

 

[nopiano]

I’m only decently familiar with the QA models, and I know that the 50xx range are much more brightly voiced than the earlier 30xx range. If you like the sound of your current pair, be careful with the newer models. However, if you want more exciting, then that’s what you’ll be getting.

Vital to see and hear a few before deciding. Plenty of good hifi shops in your area!

 

[manicm]

Look a bit leftfield - the excellent new AE309 Mk2, if your budget allows.

 

[superams]

Look a bit leftfield - the excellent new AE309 Mk2, if your budget allows.

Thanks, I’ll take a look.

 

[Stuart83]

Please don't think im being obnoxious but there's it's a common thing to ask advice on choosing speakers etc and while it's always polite to indulge onto you our personal opinions, what must come with that is the realisation that you need to pick your speakers within your own preferences and with your own ears, it would be a fools errand to not pick from what you can get to demo for yourself, and good call on taking your amp with you as that small inconvenience can make the difference between a marriage of kit or a pending divorce.

Although I don't know your circumstances It would be my advice when spending your hard earned to try and remove any obstacles that are preventing you from demoing a few more options, what's a train ride or long car journey when it's to avoid a very expensive mistake and instead bring you yrs of happiness.
It's hard to point importance and obviousness of picking a speaker on how they sound without sounding inadvertently irritating or thoughtlessly insensitive which be assured none are my intention, on the contrary I'm trying to get you to what you want without the mistakes of having to convincing yourself you've chosen the right speaker every time it fails to impress.

I've found it best to procure a shortlist of what you think you would like using reviews, advice and past experience then track down what's actually available to demo and see what your ears pick using amp in hand

My history here started with the similar almost generic questions we all rightly seem to ask at first, in which Id discovered quickly from prior ventures never to buy blind/deaf on others advice simply because of one common denominator, were all different 😲.
However that said I totally understand the problem when looking into a vast sea of choices and not knowing where to look always thinking your mo ney might spend better on something else, but if the above are your only choices to actually demo then wouldn't it be prudent to let your ears do the picking.
A case in point would be the Wharfdale 4.4 Evo in which I demoed amongst others from a shortlist of popular recommendations etc which I wrote about at the time found within my post history, shock h orror they where my least favourite despite being told to purchase blind by a friend, I found them flat and lifeless (despite the regulars knowing I must write it's only in my opinion) in comparison to the B&W 603 and all lacked the massive musically of the speakers I came home with

That said then I shouldn't really say this but if I had to recommend any of them it would be the QA's which I have heard a few times, they fill a room very well but are on the bright side, again that's my opinion you may find them irritating

 

[matthewpianist]

Audio Affair, at Custard Factory in Birmingham, is only a train ride from Derby - around half an hour. They have a good range, and demo facilities.

Closer to home, there is Musicraft on London Road (not far from FN Hospital), but I think the range is more high-end (I've only walked past and not been in, but from Rick's posts on here, I get the impression he's mostly focused on brands like ATC and Naim).

 

[matthewpianist]

Oh, and don't leave the Dali Oberon 5s out.

 

[Stuart83]

The Fyne audio F501's are what impressed me the most in the small floorstanders category lately, that much I ended demoing then coming home with their bigger brother after they sparked my interest, if you could get a demo of them I find they live up to their various acclaim and then some.

Home review

A thrillingly accomplished debut from a brand-new speaker brand.

www.whathifi.com

If you can get to Richer Sounds at Nottingham they offer a good deal on them and are excellent to deal with

 

[superams]

I’m quite interested in the Fyne audio F502 but not sure if the Cambridge audio cxa81 mk 2 is upto it, can anyone advise if it would be upto the job?

 

[Stuart83]

I’m quite interested in the Fyne audio F502 but not sure if the Cambridge audio cxa81 mk 2 is upto it, can anyone advise if it would be upto the job?

Well I can tell you that I've had a few Cambridge audio amps over the yrs but none twinned to the large Fynes.

I was going to write a more detailed passage on the 4 amps I've had hooked up to mine so far, but it sprang straight to mind the blunders people have made getting speakers they haven't heard/demoed before hand on this forum.

I will say this though although the CX is in spec with the large Fynes (I've had a lot of speakers and they are large) they dwarf my QA floorstanders and do need a good bit of power and headroom to shine, otherwise they sound flat as I found with 60w amp that performs admirably with smaller speakers across the board and a 45w mission amp a friend brought round that sounds simply lovely 😘 with my QA's that just couldn't get them to impress at all especially with as the regulars know the volumes I listen at 🔊

Watts are a contentious subject on forums as many have had and have, me included low wattage gear perform well, I simply sit in awe at my 33yr old pioneer A400 but it can't be sidelined that when a higher wattage is needed it's needed, djaying taught me that very early on irrespective of opinions and the sketchy sensitivity ratings of some speakers.

I upgraded to a Hegal H190 only recently which is famed for driving those low ohm hard to drive speakers we all love with ease, and it's huge damping factor being able to throw a speaker cone around with vigor to find it's the best partnering I've had with most gear recently, and a one I'm keeping hold of which coincidentally and predictably as I've found is the most powerful inline with my findings throughout that they like a good kick up the arse to impress.

😁 Ive left the most important bit until last 😁

I can't stress this enough you absolutely need to hear them together before purchasing, they could as do mine sound amongst other things both powerful and so musical genuine feelings of frission fill your body or they could as I've found with 2 amps, sound flat and almost muddy as speakers often do when left wanting for power.

 

[JDl]

You should certainly try to audition them yourself.
The Wharfedale mentioned are very good.
I haven't even heard of those Pyne audio speakers, not very common in UK, where are you in the world?

Fyne Audio F501 and F502, I think.