Speaker Upgrade, advice Needed.

[admin_exported]

Hi,

I currently have a Primare I21 Amp and an Arcam CD72 as a primary music source. My speakers are very old Bose 601 MkIII. They have been great speakers for 15+ years and the time has come to move on and get some modern speakers to match the Amp.

My budget is £600-£800 any thoughts appreciated, and they would be located in the corners of a good sized living room.

Thanks.

 

[d_a_n1979]

It would be handy to know what music you listen to as well as what cabling you use (interconnects and speaker cable)?

Do you know if you're after floorstanding speakers or are you after standmount speakers (if so have you budgeted for speaker stands)?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi.

I have Monster cable which I got with the speakers and listen to a wide range of music but mainly rock/pop and general radio. I already have some speaker stands which I would plan on using with any speakers that needed them, so don't include the stands in the budget.

Thanks Zed.

 

[d_a_n1979]

Another few questions then:

With your budget and system I think it could be worth looking at new cable as well as new speakers. Have you also ever considered changing your CDP?

Even though the Arcam CDP is a good one I feel that it can be better; more so with your current amp in situ!

Do you like your music to have good bass (i.e. are you a bass hound) or do you like good, overall musicality?

A couple of suggestions could be the B&W 685's, Monitor Audio RX2's or the EB Acoustic EB1's.

All of these would suit your music tastes well and would also leave you spare £££ for possibly upgrading the CDP (i.e. sell the Arcam on via eBay etc...) and use that money as well as the left-overs of your budget to maybe upgrade to a Rega Apollo or maybe a Cyrus 6 CDP via eBay etc...

 

[Anonymous]

On the basis of your budget and the need to be able to perform well in the corners of rooms, sounds like a good sealed unit design like ATC SCM11's would be a good place to start.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Zedrider:

Hi,

I currently have a Primare I21 Amp and an Arcam CD72 as a primary music source. My speakers are very old Bose 601 MkIII. They have been great speakers for 15+ years and the time has come to move on and get some modern speakers to match the Amp.

My budget is £600-£800 any thoughts appreciated, and they would be located in the corners of a good sized living room.

Thanks.

Hi zedrider

I will also suggest ATC's SCM11 speakers. They are a closed box design and importantly are flat and honest which will also help with room positioning (without the bass in particular getting itself into a twist).

I believe the SCM11's will be a great match with your I21 and CD72 and their uncoloured, natural and powerful presntation will in the first instance enable your components to breathe.

The SCM11's performance potential will also accomodate many future upgrades that you may wish to make.

Thanks

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Anonymous]

Rick's advise is most prob much better than mine ... With your budget, I (personally) would most prob look for a pair of IMF TLS80 speakers .... used to own a pair and are the best speakers I have ever heard and owned ... a good pair can be bought for approx £600

downside is that they are old, huge, ugly and not 'wife friendly' ... I don't know how they would compare against the newer speakers of the same price range

 

[batonwielder]

I agree with the ATC SCM11 recommendation, but you must take into consideration that these speakers appreciate very sturdy stands to be placed on along with descent cabling.

Also, just the fact that they are sealed speakers don't immediately qualify them as being able to perform well in the corners. They appreciate some space around them as much as any other speaker.

Do audition some Proac's such as the Studio 110 as they are a stunning match for the Primare I21. Hooked up with Proac's own cables, it's a system that you can enjoy for a long period of time.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

batonwielder:

I agree with the ATC SCM11 recommendation, but you must take into consideration that these speakers appreciate very sturdy stands to be placed on along with descent cabling.

Also, just the fact that they are sealed speakers don't immediately qualify them as being able to perform well in the corners. They appreciate some space around them as much as any other speaker.

Do audition some Proac's such as the Studio 110 as they are a stunning match for the Primare I21. Hooked up with Proac's own cables, it's a system that you can enjoy for a long period of time.

Hi batonwielder

The speaker stands that i have used for years with all the ATC standmount monitors are the Soundstyle XS122. They are sturdy and effective. Simple.

The speaker cable that i mostly use/sell with ATC passive monitors is generic, single wire and costs aound £3/m. Job done.

The ATC SCM11's are closed box designs however as i have previously posted earlier on (and on many other threads/posts) they are flat and honest in their presentation which helps with placing them close to walls, corners etc. without the LF in particular getting itself into a twist. From the many, many ATC monitors which i have sold over the years i cannot recall any room which their monitors have have not worked effectively in.

Thanks

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Craig M.]

i agree with Rick and cd, imo atc are less fussy about positioning then anything else i've tried. i think the sealed box and the flat response really helps here, and they certainly sound good in his shop hooked up with pretty cheap speaker cable.

 

[Anonymous]

Rick, Dan & everybody.

Thanks for your advise and suggestions, I will definitely have a listen to the SCM11s and had been considering the ProAc 110s. I thought my Monster cable whilst old was farely good stuff but will think about changing that.

Thanks for being so quick with your replies it's apprciated.

Regards.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Zedrider:

Rick, Dan & everybody.

Thanks for your advise and suggestions, I will definitely have a listen to the SCM11s and had been considering the ProAc 110s. I thought my Monster cable whilst old was farely good stuff but will think about changing that.

Thanks for being so quick with your replies it's apprciated.

Regards.

Hi Zedrider

Your welcome.

I would not concern yourself too much about changing your speaker cable. As i previously said i mostly use/sell a single wire generic speaker cable around £3/m (particularly with ATC monitors) and i am not loosing sleep about it.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft