Picked up a SGCD and may just pair that with an S300 as the prices out there are very reasonable. This would be for a 2nd system integrated into the first (or at least all on same rack).
Main duties would be TV, Movies, Spotify background etc. Pretty much the bulk of the duty till the main system gets fired up for critical listening or maybe a movie or concert.
I currently run the SGCD over to powered speakers but choices there are limited. With the amp, the possibilities are almost endless - Dyn, EMITs, Focal, Harbeth (never heard those), Monitor, Revel etc etc.
Anyone have suggestions for this dac/amp combo? Maybe 2500 (used is fine) or less.
For background and movies I think you want a speaker that has a bit of low end grunt and plays anything reasonably well. Might be a bit big but a pair of Klipsch Heresys would be my choice. Available for way less than your budget used.
Anthony Gallo Reference Strada (MKII) speakers (eventually with a subwoofer or two of your choice?).
The speakers are about $2,200 brand new and can be had at a better price on the used market. The “[p]atented CDT3 (Cylindrical Diaphragm Transducer) sporting 180° horizontal dispersion from 6kHz to above 20kHz” is really hard to beat for transparency, width and depth of soundstage, and sweet/non-fatiguing highs.
They sound best with a subwoofer or two (I like small RELs with my office system pair) but are really great all-around performers. Their aesthetic is not for everyone, but that180° dispersion and boxless form factor is special in my experience.
I like my Salk Supercharged SongSurrounds. They had been used in a second system which is being replaced. I was swapping stuff around and hooked them up to the AVR just to see how they’d do and liked em well enough to leave them for a month or so. The AVR also serves up background music and the occasional sit down and soak it up moments. In all respects the Songs served well.
Before landing on the Salks I tried a pair of Revel M105 in the same AVR setup and they got lost in the room. Good sounding speaker but much too small. Another pair I also liked real well are Ascend Sierra 2EX. Beautiful and stout bamboo cabinets.
I am using that combination with a pair of ProAc Response 1SC. Sounds wonderful to my, granted aging, ears. Used, they were about 1500 $CN. They are hard to find. The British Audiophile on You Tube still uses them as a reference.
Harry
Thanks again for the responses. VKennedy- new or used is fine. Usually find a lot of value in used. A few of these I have never heard (Wharfedale for instance) but fun to research.
I have plenty room but a pair of smaller speakers that fit in my setup/table would be best vs running them near the mains.
What I’m running now is 5-15/16"W x 9-3/4"H x 7-1/2"D. They are on their sides. So could probably go 12in high and 7.5 wide and deep does not matter. Otherwise they sit outside the table on stands or floor.
Audio Engine make some really good for the (low end) money genuine front ported bookshelf speakers. I bought one of their B2 onesies as a cheap Bluetooth speaker and it works surprisingly well.
KEF LS50 Meta - $1,500 new. Really great speakers. I’m a big Harby fan, so I would certainly suggest hearing those, but I think even the P3ESR XD’s and Compact 7ES3 are now…around $3k.
I see the Metas going for 1400 and 1250 used. Or at least asking. I think I would go new at that price or TMR.
Holy smokes! Since I don’t have speakers yet (bookshelves) I ran the SGCD and the S300 to my YGs. Damn that sounds nice. Makes me wonder what 1200s would sound like with them!
I think they are a ridiculously good speaker at $1,500. Just sold one of my two pairs to my brother for $1,250. Not planning on selling the other pair, sorry.
Significantly better. But there is essentially no end to that mode of thinking. There’s pretty much always something better🤷🏻‍♂️
Having said all of the above, if you like YG’s, you may not like the sound of British monitors/speakers. So if you can, audition rather than taking my word for it either way.
If you don’t have 2-3’ I would look for closed back speakers. I tried the LS50 with 6" to 12" behind them. In my opinion they were boomy and muddy.
Good point. I would say 24 in max and previous were inside the table so to speak on thier sides. However placing them on stands away from the wall is not out of the question.
If I went LS 50, I would need to explore I guess. No point getting a nice speaker and choking it.
Did I mention their “tweeter” has 180° horizontal dispersion and cast an absolutely phenomenal sound stage?
Their box-less and crossover-less design allows for a pretty seamless presentation of mid to high frequencies and allows them to be placed nearer to the front wall to eke out a bit more mid to low frequencies if preferred.
They’re better than the newer version with the “i”