Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 Hi guys. I'm looking to get a two channel system in my bedroom. Upgrading from RB-3's. I've narrowed down my choices to these three which are within budget of $1400 USD: 1)Dynaudio Audience 52 SE (Esotec tweeter, and Countour 1.3mkII's mid range bass driver, $1400 USD.) 2)B&W CDM 1NT (Discontinued and discounted to $1100 USD.) 3)B&W 705 (Replaces CDM 1NT, better bass extension, improved drivers etc etc, $1400 USD) Of these three I have heard the 1NT briefly, and the a52se critically. From what I can tell, the 1NT has a lot of what I'm looking for: slightly laid back, not too bright or harsh, airy. The a52 blew me away. They sounded so open and airy. Even at louder volumes, the mid range and high end was not overly forward or harsh. Female vocals were creepy sounding... I mean that in the best possible way. Theears, I am jealous of your C1.1s On a side note, I listened to the special 25's. They were a few thousand dollars over my budget, but I didn't listen for very long because it only made me sad. Opinions appreciated... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBusa Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 How sturdy is your bookshelf? Aren't klipsch hereseys considered bookshelf speakers? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3dzapper Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 Try the dynaudio and b&w forums. You might also want to reshearch what Frank VanAlstine one of the first proponents of B&W has to say about their current product line. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 Nice polite boring speakers. $1400 USD gets you a nice set of RB-75s with a good deal of money left over. Hell, you're only $100 away from a set of RF-5's! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 perhaps I would add the JM Lab Electra 806, slightly used for about those prices, very much like the utopia line, similar drivers and sound. one on audiogon now: http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cl.pl?spkrmoni&1072476152 the others are all respectable speakers (though not my cup of tea). tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Author Share Posted November 25, 2003 Oh come on Deang. Nice, polite, and boring? I'm a Klipsch fan myself. And although I do like the dynamics of Klipsch for HT, I won't go so far to say B&W's are boring. IMO, B&W CDM series sounds better than klipsch reference for music. For HT, it's another story. I know the RF-75s are supposed to sound really good, but better than Dynaudio??? I've heard the RF-7's and own the RF-3's, RB-3's. And the tiny Audience 52 se has a quality I just have not heard before in a klipsch speaker. The soundstage, articulation, and transparency was spoooky. I dunno. I'm no expert. Who else has heard the audience 52 se's and can chime in? Theears? Keep in mind,I have to get a bookshelf for space limitations. So RF-5's are out of the question. Also, I wanted bookshelf because the imaging is better than most floorstanders because of the close proximity of the drivers. So the new question is regardless of price: Dynaudio Audience 52 SE or Klipsch RB-75? Will be driven by cheapy Rotels. I don't care for high volumes. Just good quality sound. My RB-3's regardless of placemetn does not have anywhere near the quality of the dynes. Also, they are pretty harsh for some types of music. Thanks for the feedback guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deang Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 Hmmm. Well yeah, the amplification factor definitely comes into play here. If I was using average solid state, I would go back to ribbons. I sure don't agree with your statement that Reference doesn't sound good with music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 I forgot to ask what components you were planning to use with these speakers...would make a huge difference in certain cases...btw have you seen the new triangle stratos solis? I think these can be had for about $1,250 via discounters...tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
louis Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 Try Von Schweikert vr1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheelman Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 You should check out some odissey audio epiphony. They have a review of them on tnt audio. They are all under a grand and they are in a shoot out with dynaudio and i think the odissey had much more air and soundstage to them they litterally dissapear. And they can play pretty loud. Just check out tnt audio speaker testing. I think they mayby from italy or something but one of them emailed me and said i should check out odissey but read all the reviews so you get an idea of the different comparisons. I am thinking about going two channel in a different room home theater sucks for stereo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Author Share Posted November 25, 2003 Deang, I said I thought the B&W CDM's sounded "BETTER" than Klipsch Reference for music. I didn't say Reference sounded bad with music. Just personal preference I guess. -UP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheelman Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 You may want to check out the odyssey epiphony. They may be way better than dynaudio Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prodj101 Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 I have used the entire bw product range short of the nautilus speaker (the snail one, though i have used the nautilus line extensively) and i do agree with dean that they are pretty tamed and boring sounding. I don't know what kind of amp you listen to your klipsch with but my RF-5's sound very smooth with my Mcintosh/B&K combo, especially with vinyl and SACD. I would give the RB-75's a test IN HOUSE compared to the other options, i think they'd blow anything else in that price range out of the water...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Author Share Posted November 25, 2003 Okay, but seriously, you guys that are recomending the RB-75s, have you listened to the Dynaudio coutours before??? You think the Rb-75s would blow the countour out of the water? Because the Audience 52SE is essentially a countour 1.1 in a cheaper cabinet. Albeit, it may not sound as good as a regular 1.1. But for the money they sound damn good, and like I said, I didn't even think the Rf-7's sounded as airy or transparent as the A52SE. Borings sounding? No F$%king way. Maybe the B&Ws but definitely NOT the dynaudio A52SE. Theears: What do you think? You're the only person I can think of on this board that have listened to both... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Author Share Posted November 25, 2003 And I'm not dismissing the RB-75. I'll give it a serious listen as it was recommended by you guys. I'm just skeptical that they'll blow the dynes out of the water, considering how good the dynes sounded. I will also look into the rest of the recommendations. Thanks guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnysal Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 amp? source? thanks, tony Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Underhanded Penguin Posted November 25, 2003 Author Share Posted November 25, 2003 Hi Tony. The amp will be a Rotel 1070. Source will be some crappy sony cd changer for now. Those are not so important, as I will be switching out the amp and player if need be. I just want to get the speaker part right first. I will do what it takes to mate the rest to the speakers in the future. Thanks. All comments appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wheelman Posted November 25, 2003 Share Posted November 25, 2003 dynaudio and oddysey are night and day the dynaudio or front row center and very revealing and the oddysey are a back hall speaker with a relaxed sound with a huge spacious soundstage something that is difficult for a front row center sounding speaker. http://www.tnt-audio.com/casse/epiphony_e.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted November 26, 2003 Share Posted November 26, 2003 I can only comment on the B&W CDM1 which a friend has. His are rather old - so I dont know how their sound would relate to what you have asked for. He runs them with an ancient Akai SS amp. They are really good for Rock but their performance on Jazz and Classical leaves a lot to be desired. I wouldnt describe them as boring speakers, but, I dont have a high regard for them. I have heard one other B&W bookshelf - the 805 reference or something that did do a much better job. From memory, however, they were rather more expensive. And the best bookshelves I ever heard were.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arj Posted November 26, 2003 Share Posted November 26, 2003 Dynaudios are a great buy and extermely musical...but I believe they present a 4 Ohm load (nominal)...not sure if the Rotel will drive them well. If your AMP is a fixed item then the B&W is a better choice...I have heard that the CDM's are pretty good for music and are well driven by tubes as well Oh..and arent the above speakers Sonus Fabers (Drool Drool !) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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