Upgrade from old B&Ws

[admin_exported]

I have two sets of old B&W speakers, driven by a low-end Arcam amplifier.The DM14s (ca 1980) sound a bit harsh and mushy at the higher end.The CM1s (ca 1998) are so laid back at the higher end it's hard to characterise them. What is odd is that all the online reviews I have read for both speakers are fulsome in their praise for their clarity etc etc.

What stand-mounted upgrade would you recommend? Budget up to around £500. My tastes are mostly classical, and I'm not into high-end tizz, but neither of the sets I have are satisfactory for different reasons. They sound confused and harsh in one case, and veiled in the other. Mind you, I suppose the problem could be the amplifier, but I used to have an A&R A60 which performed similarly.

Any views?

Thanks.

Tim

 

[Anonymous]

i would try an amp upgrade to something with a bit more excitement.

cambridge is a good starting point

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, try listening to some other amps first - NAD, Marantz, Rega and the CA as suggested. You should be able to borrow them for the weekend. Alternatively take your speakers down to a dealer and listen there. Not as good as a home demo, but should tell you whether it's the amp or the speakers.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys. Yes I have this suspicion that the amplifier might be as much part of the problem as the speakers. It's tempting to rush out and spend money just because the speakers are more than 10 years old and nearly 30 years old respectively. With both sets I suspect part of the problem is that they are better at high volumes in large rooms than at normal/low domestic levels. I think either would be much more impressive better reinforcing sound in a concert hall!

I think they both have B&W's overload protection. I read somewhere that disconnecting that actually improves the sound, but I would guess that would affect the main unit rather than the tweeter (where the issue seems to be in both cases). Anybody have experience of that?

Tim