Aspect Posted March 18, 2007 Author Share Posted March 18, 2007 Well, back on topic... I started my speaker demo's this weekend. This was just a preliminary look at what's out there, and who sells what. I went to Clef Hifi on Friday, and demo'd a few, including the Krix Neuphonics, which I did like. The sales guy there was showing me an amp - Integra. I'd never heard of them before. What are people's thoughts on these receivers? The guy there made a valid point, that the Denon amp (3806) probably won't have enough oomph to push speakers like the Krix. What are other people's thoughts? Saturday I demo'd the Whatmough Performance series, and I really liked them. Great sound. Yesterday I went to Carlton AV. Had a great chat with Troy who was fantastically helpfull. I wasn't blown away by the speakers I demo'd there - Legend, Aaron and Monitor. I am yet to go back to all these stores, as well as Audio trends with my own disks, but for the moment, I love the Whatmough's and Krix, but I think the Krix will blow my budget, especially as by the time I'm ready to buy, it'll be "end of financial year sale" time, and I'd expect the Whatmough's for low $4k. Cheers, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glennb Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 What did CAV have to drive their demo speakers? I found when demo'ing speakers in there shop that the sound varies quite a bit with the power being used. If you can, get them to use an Arcam AVR and see if you like the speakers. Also, Clef Hifi have all there speakers going through a large switch system, and the layout downstairs is a bit misleading as the speakers can be a long way apart. The switch system also adds a bit to the system. I listened to the Neuphonix at both Clef and CAV and they sounded different at each place, although I liked them quite a lot. In the end I went with the MA RS-8's as a straight A-B comparison of them against the Neuphonix at CAV revealed more of the sound that I was looking for, but amplification made a big difference on this. Sounds like you are taking a very similar trip to what I did last year, and enjoy the listening. One more thing, a speaker that made my list but I never bothered to listen closely to was the Orpheus Aurora's which I heard that a new model is being released. These are a very nice sounding speaker in your price range and if you can find some, have a listen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 19, 2007 Author Share Posted March 19, 2007 Ok, great, thanks Wacko! I'll add them to my list. CAV were demoing the speakers throught the Denon 3806 and the Marantz 7001, which is what I wanted because I'll probably buy one of those 2. Unfortunately, CAV don't do Krix anymore. I was kinda disapointed in that, cos I wanted to hear them in another environment. The RS-8's are definately a very "detailed" speaker, but there was just something that didn't sound right to me, but were up there, no doubt. They sounded much better than the RS-6's - a lot "fuller". Also, I was demoing without sub. Also, Troy at CAV told me the Home Audio show is coming up in a couple of weeks, so I'll head along to that too. At least then I can probably check out the VAF's. Cheers, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marcusd1503561159 Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 If HT is your primary consideration concentrate on finding a centre speaker that has outstanding dialogue intelligibility If you can get your hands on a copy of 'We Were Soldiers' Mel Gibson, there is a scene near the beginning where Mel Gibson and his SGT Major have a dicussion and smoke a cigar. This is a real torture test of dialogue intelligibility. A good system will let you resolve all of the dialogue clear as a bell and at any listening level. The whole movie is an excellent speaker test. Try listening to Atlantic Technology speakers. 2200, 4200 speaker packages should be in your budget Also consider mulitple smaller subs rather than one large one. Will give you more even bass distribution if positioned at centre points along each wall Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glennb Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 I don't think the speaker has been made yet that can make Mel Gibson sound intelligible And yes, the MA's are quite detailed and wouldn't be my first choice for 2 channel listening, but for HT, the package (RS-LCR and rears) gives a great surround sound and is very good value. I have the RS8's and a SVS PB12+ sub, so bottom end is taken care of My first choice was actually going to be the PMC GB1's, but they are much more expensive than others. Then again, if I had a bigger budget, there are a lot more options that would be better than the MA's. The Denon & Marantz AVR's are quite good and would match with your choices pretty well. With the MA's, they sounded a lot better when the Arcam AVR was used compared to the Denon, and when I listened to them upstairs with an Arcam power amp, they were twice as good as what they sounded like downstairs at CAV. This was my final demo before I decided and it was definetly worth it, as you can really give the speakers "what for!" and see what they are capable of. So whatever you think makes the short list, get Troy to carry them upstairs and power them with something beefy and see how they sound. The home audio show (or HES) is where i heard the Orpheus speakers and was very impressed, but I never bothered to follow up with an instore demo. I got a bit impatient after 6 months of demo'ing and had to make a decision before the missus had second thoughts about letting me spend that much There is also a Dynaudio Focus range which is apparently quite good, but more $$$ compared to others. Maybe you could pick up a runout discount on the older models? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetherock Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 This is a foreign website, but there is a review I wrote on the Marantz SR 8001 with the MA RS 6, LCR and 1. They make a very decent HT system. The 8001 costs Aus 1200 or less, RS 6 1000 etc in Singapore prices. Maybe you can use them to bargain with CAV. http://www.xtremeplace.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=43565.0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 19, 2007 Author Share Posted March 19, 2007 Hmmm, buying in Australia, I don't think the 8001 will be anywhere near $1200, since the 7001 is closer to the $2500 RRP. I actually don't see the point in demoing speakers on amps I won't buy. It'll just make me want to spend more in that department!! I will definately check out the MA's again, when I go with my own "standardised" set of dvd's. The incredibles was playing, and of course I haven't heard the Incredicles on any other system... Cheers, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glennb Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 I actually don't see the point in demoing speakers on amps I won't buy. It'll just make me want to spend more in that department!! Same goes with listening to speakers you can't afford My system actually sounds worse at home than it did in the demo (even with the Denon AVR), as i'm only using an old Yamaha AVR at the moment. But at least I know that when I do upgrade the AVR, the speakers will get better rather than worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 19, 2007 Author Share Posted March 19, 2007 Same goes with listening to speakers you can't afford You said it brother! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petetherock Posted March 19, 2007 Share Posted March 19, 2007 I know what you mean... But consider that you are about to spend close to the SRP of the 7001. You can even fly there and buy the 8001 plus change and enough for a Singapore Sling Anyway, point is the Marantz 7 or 8 001 ones make a nice partner to the MA RS series. Cheers P This is a foreign website, but there is a review I wrote on the Marantz SR 8001 with the MA RS 6, LCR and 1. They make a very decent HT system.The 8001 costs Aus 1200 or less, RS 6 1000 etc in Singapore prices. Maybe you can use them to bargain with CAV. http://www.xtremeplace.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=43565.0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 23, 2007 Author Share Posted March 23, 2007 Has anyone ever looked at Osborne speakers? They get great reviews. I'm gunna audition them next week, but I just wondered if anyone had any experience dealing with Greg Osborne or checked out the speakers? Cheers, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cooksta59 Posted March 23, 2007 Share Posted March 23, 2007 Has anyone ever looked at Osborne speakers?They get great reviews. I'm gunna audition them next week, but I just wondered if anyone had any experience dealing with Greg Osborne or checked out the speakers? Cheers, Chris Hi Chris, check out an interview with Greg Osbourne on the stereo net forum (was Planet Audio) http://www.stereo.net.au/forum/index.php?showtopic=2334 Regards Cooksta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 24, 2007 Author Share Posted March 24, 2007 Thanks Cooksta, an enjoyable read. I'll probably head out and look at his gear next weekend, as I've chatted to him via email in the last couple of days. Cheers, Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LukeF1503559517 Posted March 24, 2007 Share Posted March 24, 2007 Curious Dr Teal, DX-X Centres? Tell me more please! Im very interested to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CCRider Posted March 26, 2007 Share Posted March 26, 2007 Curious Dr Teal, DX-X Centres? Tell me more please! Im very interested to know. sorry for the late reply lukef. This subject moves like the wind. The VAF DCX gen4 centre from VAF is a special order. ie the standard centre is the dc6. The centre has a dimension of 1000(W)x 250(H)x415(D). It has the same drivers as the DCX's however as you can appreciate the configuration is to suit a centre speaker. It looks and sounds absolutely awesome. Vocals are extremely clear and accurate. And music sounds "live". It is the best centre speaker that I have heard to date. The price assembled is $1600. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aspect Posted March 27, 2007 Author Share Posted March 27, 2007 sorry for the late reply lukef. This subject moves like the wind.The VAF DCX gen4 centre from VAF is a special order. ie the standard centre is the dc6. The centre has a dimension of 1000(W)x 250(H)x415(D). It has the same drivers as the DCX's however as you can appreciate the configuration is to suit a centre speaker. It looks and sounds absolutely awesome. Vocals are extremely clear and accurate. And music sounds "live". It is the best centre speaker that I have heard to date. The price assembled is $1600. That's actually a pretty good price, considering the Krix Epicentrix is more than that RRP... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts