Speakers under £800

[admin_exported]

Hi to all,currently have some 685 b&w's,looking to up grade. My system is a rega apolla cd, nain 5i amp,atacama speaker stands with good cables and mains cables.Listened to neat motive 3 speakers yesterday which i really enjoyed,wondered if any one had listened to proac studio 110, pmc db1i or EB1.Room size is medium speakers will be 6-8 inches from wall.

 

[the record spot]

I'd add Leema's Xero, also the Quadral Pico (if you can find them) to your list. Both rated exceptionally well across several reviews. Both around the £700 mark or so.

 

[Anonymous]

Just a heads up, the dynaudios have shot up in price and are now in the reigon of £1150

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for advice will look into those speakers also.

 

[JoelSim]

You should also listen to ProAc Tablette Reference 8 Signatures, very very musical.

 

[Frank Harvey]

ash111:Hi to all,currently have some 685 b&w's,looking to up grade. My system is a rega apolla cd, nain 5i amp,atacama speaker stands with good cables and mains cables.Listened to neat motive 3 speakers yesterday which i really enjoyed,wondered if any one had listened to proac studio 110, pmc db1i or EB1.Room size is medium speakers will be 6-8 inches from wall.Depends what you're after. The Studios will give you the sort of bass you've been used to, only better, but the Tablette's, as Joel recommends, will be a far better ser overall. And they're also a far better performer than the DB1i and Leema when wall placement is a must. The only other one I'd recommend for close wall placement is the ATC SCM11's.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys for help this is a massive decision, will have a listen to the tablettes and ATC.Has any one got any neat motive 3 and if so are they a great speaker.

 

[Anonymous]

also try the totem dreamcatchers and totem mite their meant to go very well with naim amps

 

[chebby]

Rega RS3's at £684 happen to work very well with a Nait 5i and are not too fussy about placement.

They can be used near a rear wall. (Keep them at least 18 inches away from corners though).

This will save you a little cash because they are floorstanders (although relatively compact ones).

All the stand-mount suggestions so far would mean having to replace your existing Atacama Nexus stands for something better. (Partington Trophy or Dreadnought at a minimum of £150 up unless you get very lucky on ebay.)

Using the same logic - if I were you - I would think of getting Neat Motive 2 floorstanders (rather than the 3's). They cost £985 rather than £755 but will give a little more bass weight and you won't need to budget for new stands.

According to the WHF review the EB1's are excellent - and only cost £470 - but their website is warning of 6 week delays due to demand.

 

[gbhsi1]

Hi ash111,

Neat motive speakers are known for their synergy with naim- so you will not go wrong. As you have said, you listened to them & they were great! there is your answer 🙂

 

[crusaderlord]

Neat Motive 3 was my choice from a few hour demo session. They are also well known to work superbly with Naim.

Clearly i think they are great speakers with a decent bass punch (better than most i demod) and a smoother sound than say Proac - they certainly became even better on good stands such as partington superdreadnaught.

I have them 8 inches from the wall and there is no boom or bass problems at all - the other option is to go for the Neat Motive 2 small floorstander but i havent tried these as i liked standmounts.

Here is my post of the demo from what i though was a few months ago but is actually way over a year - wow
http://community.whathifi.com/forums/t/123242.aspx

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys for feedback...feels like its a mine field..my heads going to explode..i heard motive 3 and motive 2,thought both very good.motive 2's sounded a little to much bass for me (unfortunately not detached so cant play music how i like).so if i were to go for motive 3 would i need new stands (god more problems)

Regards Ashley

 

[Anonymous]

Just read about your day out...EXCELLENT...unbiased.. its what i was looking forward some one with no commercial ties ....VERY GOOD ...Off shopping saturday... Thanks Ashley.

 

[Anonymous]

If you still like the B&W sound, you can try with the CM 5 ,very good speakers.

 

[crusaderlord]

In terms of stands with Neat Motive 3 - when i bought them i had Soundstyle Z2's and the speakers still sounded great. However when i eventually saved and added Partington Superdreadnaught there was a worthwhile level of improvement.

If you settle on the speakers i would get them first then worry or save up for stands - i have seen the Partingtons go for less than £100 on ebay and would recommend them.

Let us know how you get on and good luck.

 

[Anonymous]

Hows it going crusaderord (where did you get that name from) ?,Well took the plunge today listened to the neat motives 2 and 3 spent over 1hour listening to tracks and eventually decided on the motives 2 in oak.It was a hard decision as they are both excellent.I paid £850 which i thought was a good price pick them up next week...eager beaver to get my hands on them....Whats your onpion on clearer audio copper line mains????does it make a big differnce if so do you have one on cd and amp or just 1.

Regards Ash

 

[crusaderlord]

i will trade you some information as i would like to know what you thought were the key differences between the Neat 2 and 3. I went for 3 because i was used to standmounts and like their presentation and also listen from 3 metres away so i thought these would work best - but i would like to hear the Neat 2's now after a year of using the 3's just to see.

ok now the Clearer Audio Copperline Mains. i will start though with the Tacima which i found really added in some openness to the music i got and this is a cheap initial upgrade. The Copperline is c£100 and i have one. I tried it on both the CD and Amp and with both it made quite a difference.

Against more popular opinion i prefer it on the amplifier. It opens up the sound and makes it far more spacious and a little more cleaner. I also benefit from any source in this regard. When i tried it on the CD i got a more vibrant sound and a bigger soundstage and mid range vocals were slightly smoother but i also lost some punch in the bass which i didnt really like. So the better balance was the amplifier - this may have something to do with the space i listen in and my ears. Anyway i never felt the need to add the 2nd cable - but the one i got was definately a benefit.

If you can afford it try one on 30 day trial and see. The company are very friendly and did say my CD may be better off with the Silverline which is more money and maybe i will try this eventually as well. For now though i am building the Wadia / Dac set up alongside the CD instead.

I may just give the Neat 2's a demo though one day soon.

 

[plastic penguin]

Wondered whether you've listened to PMC DB1s? These also match really well with Naim and Arcam and the detail is sublime. Actually, as a mid-range speaker there's very little to fault, except if you're using them with a DVD as a two-channel, virtual surround sound - or a complete bass head!

 

[crusaderlord]

i listened to the DB1i directly alongside the Neat Motive 3's - i rated these two speakers the two best of the ones i have heard at this price range but for me the Neat's were a little better, being slightly smoother overall but both do bass pretty well indeed for standmounts.

 

[Anonymous]

It was a very hard decision as both neats were excellent but i learnt towards the 2's as i thought the bass seemed tighter and slightly deeper without sounding over exaggerated and overall the music seemed expansive and sparkled a little bit more.. they also look so sexy and look like a piece of furniture which appeals to me ...BUT.. it did come down to the music .

I pick them mid of next week so will feed back, as sending time in a shop is total different then getting them home and putting them through their paces.

Was going to try a clearer audio copperline mains ,wanted to get speakers sorted to see if it was going to be vast improvment and worth forking out £100.

Speak soon Ash