sirelio

probably a receiver

I was wondering if anyone could reccomend a good (cheap - preferably under $200) amplifier to go with my rb-5 bookshelves?? Right now I have a horrible JVC-RX212.....Any suggestions welcome

The RB-5 were at our local DC metro area audio store (Soundworks) where the salesmen seemed to be Martin Logan people and not Klipsch forum. We asked to audition the SB-3 and RB-5. They had the RB-5 but said we would have to buy the SB-3 at $450 in order to listen. The RB-5s were biwired to a NAD 514 CD player and NAD C740 stereo receiver, neither of which seemed to be very high-end (or warm-sounding either). We tested it with rock music (Nine Days), a classical symphony piece, and various assorted MP3s. The speakers had great impact, and an 'exciting' sound. Bass seemed reasonably tight though without any deep 'oomph'. When we tried the Stereophile warble test tones the speakers seemed to have obvious dropoff starting at 80-100Hz. Also, at high volumes the loud segments of the orchestra, especially very high-pitch instruments had a bit of harsh, earsplitting tone. This problem disappeared when the speakers were not pointed directly at you. Though this is a minor nitpick, voices didn't seem to be entirely crystal clear and smooth as I expected. What I am wondering is if these small 'problems' were not caused by defects in the speakers, but in the fact that they had not really 'broken in' and that the problems would disappear over time if I actually purchased them.

A few friends and I went to the local hi-end audio store and tried out some RB-5s. We tested classical and rock, and some other stuff. When we played some of the classical the sound was a little harsh when we turned it up really loud. Also, we used a stereofile test cd, and the bass stated to drop off around 60 Hz. Do these disappear after the speakers are 'broken in,' or are they typical?

I'm looking to update some old speakers and I have an ok JVC amp. Right now, I usually use my sound system to play mp3s off my computer. Most of these are about half the quality of cds. I don't know I should spend the extra money for refrence speakers so that they will play every single flaw in the mp3s, or sb-3s to muffle it a little bit to see.........