An audiophile here ?

[alexo]

They need to be at least 5 feet from the rear walls to work their best, otherwise you are wasting your money. I owned the 1.6's for a while. Plus they need at least 200 watts per channel to really sing. They do not have much bass either.

I owned the 0.5 (the model later improved into the 1.2) and while they needed to be away from the wall, they sang beautifully with a mere 20 watts tube amp. The bass was nice as well from such small 2 way speaker.

The model I recommended is not a normal Magnepan dipole that sends sound waves back. They managed to block the back wave so the need to move the speaker away from the wall is no longer an issue.

You can achieve a similar effect by damping the wall behind the speakers.

 

[Kouros]

So?

The OP is on a budget.

 

[mdevine]

I looked at the link for the Magnepans and what a great set for $299. If I upgrade my home theater system, these will be the first speakers I look at. I love the Magnepan sound. They have a fantastic midrange and the imaging and soundstage are hard to beat.

 

[stevebu56]

I have a set of PSB floor standing speakers that I bought used for $375. They sound great. Dunno how high on the audiophile scale they are but probably within your price range.

 

[mouscacha]

Love PSBs. Try looking at this website as a starting point.

http://www.hometheatermag.com/

If you're more into budget type speakers, and don't like the PSB alphas, you can try looking at hsuresearch. Great speaker package. It utilizes old cone technology, but great speaker none-the-less.

 

[tempestivo]

this is quite a bit of info already ,I really appreciate every one that took the time to make a suggestion or two I am looking at the Magnepan and they look pretty interesting. The other suggestions don't look bad either so I will work with what you guys gave thus far and see where things go.

Thanks again

 

[Kouros]

Magnepans are great but they have no "slam", if that matters to you.

 

[tempestivo]

what you mean by 'slam' ? Are the Magnepans less intruding then the other standing speakers or am I wrong? That 5 feet from the wall though kinda breaks the deal.

 

[closer]

There are tons of good speaker brands, where you can get bookshelf speakers in the $400/pr range. PSB, Paradigm are a couple of options to look at. You can combine those with a center and satellites for a 5-speaker setup. Best Buy / Magnolia has a Mirage Nanosat system for about $549, you can add a subwoofer such as MFW-15 from av123.com (they have an open box for $399). Cables and interconnects can be had from monoprice.com. I second the recommendation to search audiogon for used equipment, you can get bigger speakers that will fill your space better.

 

[malocchio]

what's your budget ? how much bass do you need ? what size speakers will fit in your listening room ?

 

[Kouros]

what you mean by 'slam' ? Are the Magnepans less intruding then the other standing speakers or am I wrong? That 5 feet from the wall though kinda breaks the deal.

They do not have the typical bass you are accustomed to from a box speaker. Some music like classical and vocals are breathtaking, others like rock and jazz can be disappointing. I think they need a subwoofer. They must be moved well out into the room to get the full holographic effect. Also, the sweet spot for listening is very small. You have to be an equal distance from the speakers to get optimum benefits. I enjoyed them when I owned them but much prefer a traditional box speaker. To each his own.

 

[bob.e]

Bring some of your favorite music to a reputable audio dealer explain your budget and let your ears make the decision. You don't need to be an audiophile to pick good speakers, just take the time to listen and remember if a speaker jumps out at you right away it's probably not what you want. Spend some serious time listening because the speaker that jumps out at you at first is often the speaker that will fatigue your ears quickly and take the pleasure out of your music and the unassuming speaker that disappears as you listen to it will satisfy you for years to come.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Another audiophile here. Magnepan and PSB make wonderful speakers. I've heard Maggies a few times and love them and got my parents a pair of PSBs for their TV that sound wonderful.

Personally, I think that 5.1 is overrated. I get really wonderful sound from two channels and find that it's all I need to enjoy a movie. YMMV, but don't rule out two channel just because it isn't 5.1.

I also think Audiogon is a terrific place to buy secondhand gear. Aside from DIY (which I also strongly recommend, if you're inclined) it's the least expensive way into a quality setup. The best part is that audiophiles tend to baby their gear. When you buy secondhand, you're not getting someone's broken junk. 99% of the time, audiophiles sell because they're upgrading or they're getting rid of something that's been sitting in the garage for awhile. Most of what you'll find used is in excellent condition.

Personally, I'm running a pair of Quad ESL-63 loudspeakers. Just wonderful. However, I've got the driver and a lot of parts for the Linkwitz Orion+ loudspeakers. If I get some free time this year, I'll put them together and expect the upgrade bug to permanently die with them.

 

[DS/B MCS]

Lots of good advice in this thread. Take your music and decide if you want a forward (in your face) sound or something more laid back. Since you listen to rock and need something for home theater, I'd recommend Klipsch speakers. Take a look at the RB's or WB's if you are interested in book shelf speakers. They are more of a forward sound (great for rock n roll) and are very efficient speakers. This will allow them to achieve good HT volumes with your receiver. Since you like bass, I'd look at SVS, HSU, Epik, and Rythmik Audio subs. Any of these subs will do the trick.

 

[ouch]

Magnepans are great but they have no "slam", if that matters to you.

Admit it- you have one of those trucks with the one note bass you can hear from two blocks away.

 

[Greybeard]

what you mean by 'slam' ? Are the Magnepans less intruding then the other standing speakers or am I wrong? That 5 feet from the wall though kinda breaks the deal.

"Slam"= feeling the bass. You almost expect to feel the impact of sonic vibration and air movement from the driver.
With Maggies you can hear and identify the bass notes but don't feel them (unless you have Tympanis).

 

[tempestivo]

what if I wanted to get everything separate what would I need ? Pre=amp+amp+speakers? That it ?

 

[Greybeard]

what if I wanted to get everything separate what would I need ? Pre=amp+amp+speakers? That it ?

Source/sources > Preamp > Amp > Speakers.
Separates is the most expensive route with less compromise.
I'm not sure I understand what you're looking for. You said in your original post that you're looking for a Home Theater setup. That's a multi-channel configuration and not the best if what you're primarily interested in is music reproduction. Music is 2 channel and best reproduced in stereo with 2 channel electronics.
If you also want to use it for dvd's and tv broadcasts then you will have to compromise since multi-channel electronics are not optimised for stereo reproduction.

 

[tempestivo]

I know this is confusing to me hence the post Basically I will use it for music and video mostly movies though ,i don't have a TV ,I use a projector. A 2 channel set up would work for me . Why does the separates come with less compromise? By sources you mean a music source,right? Would a separate system allow me to connect say , a Turntable+Ipod dock+roku box (or any similar video/audio )?

 

[Greybeard]

I know this is confusing to me hence the post Basically I will use it for music and video mostly movies though ,i don't have a TV ,I use a projector. A 2 channel set up would work for me . Why does the separates come with less compromise? By sources you mean a music source,right? Would a separate system allow me to connect say , a Turntable+Ipod dock+roku box (or any similar video/audio )?

A receiver combines 3 components (usually tuner, preamp and amp) on the same chassis, sharing the same power supply. There's little shielding between components and the routing of the internal wiring is not optimal.
An integrated amplifier combines 2 components (preamp and amp) on one chassis. Separates are, obviously, separate.

Any of the above should allow you to connect multiple sources to the preamp/ preamp section. More than likely you will have to purchase a separate phono preamp for your turntable since most newer preamps don't have phono preamps built in. Also most built in phono preamps are not as good as a separate phono preamp.