View Full Version : Best sounding front port speakers £600
Hi guys,
I'm now looking at sourcing some speakers either new or second hand for around the £600 mark. The speakers need to be sited close to a wall hence concluding that maybe front ported offerings may be better?
I'm looking at replacing my B&w dm603 s2's for a better sound at lower volumes and in general.
Any recommendations to research please.
Cheers
Stu
hifi_dave
03-02-2013, 22:38
Various rega and Naim are designed for close to wall siting.
Dingdong
03-02-2013, 22:59
Audionote AX or AZ.Or the Snells on ebay.
julesd68
03-02-2013, 23:10
Hi Stu,
I was in exactly the same position as you a while back when upgrading my speakers. I got tempted by some rear-ported Charios and took the plunge. Glad I did, I absolutely love them, and somehow they seem to work in my room despite being near back and side walls. I've tried all sorts now, so I have a good reference. So if you see something that is rear-ported but ticks all your other boxes, it could be worth a punt if you buy second-hand like I do. You can always sell them on if they don't perform ...
mine , never ever up for sale
The Grand Wazoo
03-02-2013, 23:24
Not all speakers have ports you know - there's this thing called an infinite baffle (or acoustic suspension) enclosure.....
Ninanina
03-02-2013, 23:36
I've had my side ported Minstrels for about 4 months now and they really are superb
I also own LS 3/5a speakers and a couple of others and I've owned about a dozen other speakers but the Royds are a real eye opener
I paid about £200 for a mint walnut pair and love them dearly
As they are side ported you can trial having the ports pointing inwards or outwards
Highly recommended, and I've owned soooooooo many speakers
During my browsing tonight I have come across a couple I like the look of, monitor audio silver rs6 and Dali ikon 6. A little above my intended budget unless I can find good condition second hand. What are these like positioned close to walls? Both seem to get very good write ups?
Will look at charios and minstrels. Thanks for your inputs. This is excellent!
Stu.
hoopsontoast
04-02-2013, 08:29
Kef 104/2 work well near rear walls, under budget as well. Just watch out for the bass driver inner foam rings and the outer foam surrounds on the later ones.
Kord Tornado if you can find a pair, Rega R7 are great (side firing bass driver) but again, hard to find.
Acoustic Energy AE2's work well near rear walls too.
During my browsing tonight I have come across a couple I like the look of, monitor audio silver rs6 and Dali ikon 6. A little above my intended budget unless I can find good condition second hand. What are these like positioned close to walls? Both seem to get very good write ups?
Will look at charios and minstrels. Thanks for your inputs. This is excellent!
Stu.
MA Silver series are rather 'hard' sounding that I found fatiguing. The Dali Ikon 6 is a good speaker, but again that twin tweeter arrangement is a tad too much for some folks. I had the Dali Ikon 5 and that manifested itself even more with the much small bass units.
As the other Stu has also said, have a good look at the Triangles, plus the Focals are a good choice provided you ignore the myth about them being 'bright' sounding - they are far from it.
Hi Frank,
What do you mean by manifested? Became annoying or not enough bass?
Was the 2.8 suite better than the ikon 5 in your opinion?
Gonna ring some dealers in a mo and see if any one has any sale or ex demo bargains in that I can go listen to. Got a couple days off tomorrow to maybe do some Demo's.
dantheman91
04-02-2013, 16:03
Rogers Ls7
https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSAxZphgI21DOtopaoAzFkeEeLDyXEct aYviE4HgJfis9fUz8Fw
...if you build them yourself. Cornscala. (http://www.critesspeakers.com/cornscala.html)
Rogers LS7 will probably boom too close to rear walls, possibly totally spoiling the rather nice midrange they offer..
Modern MA's that I have heard all have summat funny going on where the mid to treble crossover occurs. Either it's a crossover issue and/or the bass-mid driver is taking off at frequencies the crossover hasn't removed very well and this is interfering with the tweeter, which again may be being asked to go down too low for its comfort. This hard-n-hashy quality really does cause fatigue once the shine has gone from your new (Sevenoaks?) purchase.....
An interesting and possibly rare recent used purchase could be the Naim Ariva's, which sounded really nice in a bright-n-fresh kind of way. Rega RS3's may or may not work jammed tight to a wall though, although the midrange os sublime for the money..
I'm also told by someone who's ears I trust that the current tangerine-waveguide KEF Q series is rather better than previous models and rather good as a result. may be worth a listen at least if you can.
stupinder
04-02-2013, 17:32
Triangles
Can't seem to find triangles for sale any where.
Nearest I can at a price I can afford at the mo and that you guys have mentioned are
dynaudio 3/7?
Focal 726v though one poster on a forum said to keep them well away from walls.
Any one any thoughts on these two?
Hi Frank,
What do you mean by manifested? Became annoying or not enough bass?
Was the 2.8 suite better than the ikon 5 in your opinion?
Gonna ring some dealers in a mo and see if any one has any sale or ex demo bargains in that I can go listen to. Got a couple days off tomorrow to maybe do some Demo's.
The Ikon 5 is a much smaller speaker than the Ikon 6, as a consequence the smalller bass units have a harder job competing with the twin tweeter arrangement found in both speakers, so of the two the Ikon 6 has a better balance to the sound because of that larger bass driver. The Dali Suite 2.8 will easily trounce the Ikon 6 no problem at all.
What utter pish that the Focals need to be away from rear walls :eek: They are front ported generally and front ports go well with being close to rear walls. I did say that a lot of mythology surrounds Focal speakers all of which isn't true and being said by folks who have never owned any - except at shows which isn't the best environment to audition anyway. I have a pair of Focal standmounts myself at the moment and they are fabulous :)
stupinder
04-02-2013, 18:07
Can't seem to find triangles for sale any where.
Nearest I can at a price I can afford at the mo and that you guys have mentioned are
dynaudio 3/7?
Focal 726v though one poster on a forum said to keep them well away from walls.
Any one any thoughts on these two?
http://www.bigearsaudio.org.uk/speakers/triangle.html
Looked at the rega rs range. They look really rectangular in pictures? They look a bit long for what I want.
The only triangle ones I can afford in my price range are the colour ones. They look ok. Think the focals are leading at the moment. The moor expensive floor standing triangles looks much nicer.
No one heard the dynaudio 3/7's? Am told dynaudio are a very good make and used in a lot of studios etc?
Haven't discounted the ikon 6. I like the look of them as well and a mate swears by Danish stuff hence dynaudio recommended.
julesd68
04-02-2013, 19:29
Near half-price brand new Ushers -
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Usher-V602-Speakers-Mahogany-Brand-New-boxed-retails-at-800-/251165049826?pt=UK_AudioVideoElectronics_HomeAudio HiFi_HiFiSpeakers&hash=item3a7a9a83e2
walpurgis
04-02-2013, 19:31
Tannoys!
If you want something for low listening i'd go early to mid 90db.
No one heard the dynaudio 3/7's? Am told dynaudio are a very good make and used in a lot of studios etc?
Haven't discounted the ikon 6. I like the look of them as well and a mate swears by Danish stuff hence dynaudio recommended.
Dynaudio are superb speakers it's true, BUT they need some muscular amps with good control to get the best out of them as they absorb power like a sponge. By all means go for the Dynaudios but I suspect another amp could be on the shopping list soon afterwards too as the Mira may not have the required drive capabilities to do the Dyns justice.
The more I read and look at the focal range the more I like the look of them.
I think the 716v and or 726v maybe the ones I will look to get. Do you think they may drop in price or there may be so be sales soon in these? I see the new versions are due for release over the next two months after being shown at ces.
Fingers crossed. I don't think the new square versions look as nice as the old v series now.
My room is approximately 8m by 6m. Think those would fit the bill. Nice pair Scotland way at £650 on eBay. I can't find a dealer of focal stuff anywhere down south here.
They are available from Focal Direct UK who are I believe in Southampton with a showroom so you can hear them in action, although it is by appointment :eyebrows:
http://www.focaldirect.co.uk/products/chorus-700/
My Mum just bought herself a pair of Dali Zensor 7s and they are surprisingly good sounding.
Hi stu,
Where in dorset are you?
I've got a pair of ruark talismans 2's that I swear by ( they are quite sensitive so work well at low volumes too). They are front ported and pretty cheap on the 2nd hand market. I've tried over the years to replace them when I get that itch but imho they're totally underrated. I've tried speakers from spendor, neat, rega, linn, Piega and I also have a pair of royd minstrels but always end up going back to the ruarks.
In terms of sound quality you might also look at the sonos end of things in terms of trying to improve things, just replacing the speakers might not give you the improvement you are after. It would be very easy to spend £600 on a pair of 2nd hand spkrs which might sound different but not necessarily better - one idea might be to pick up an older cheaper pair and invest the rest in a decent dac or better front end.
Anyway, hope that helps!!
My vote goes for Klipsch RB 81 mk 2. 97db, 8ohm sound wonderful backed up against the wall and they work well with my SE KT88 valve amp.
Audio Al
11-02-2013, 12:02
If you are into Classic speakers
How about some B&W DM2a mine sound very good and you will have a lot of change
I paid £100 for the pair , best £100 I have spent on speakers ;)
Only a suggestion if you have the room for them :)
MikeMusic
11-02-2013, 12:44
Slightly biased cos I love them
Linn Isobariks
ports100
12-02-2013, 20:45
Stu,worth looking at Neat Motive 1 or 2,s. Not front ported but bottom ported and can be placed near to a wall. Small and good looking floor standers with a great sound,plenty of controlled bass at low and loud levels.
Dingdong
13-02-2013, 09:06
If you are into Classic speakers
How about some B&W DM2a mine sound very good and you will have a lot of change
I paid £100 for the pair , best £100 I have spent on speakers ;)
Only a suggestion if you have the room for them :)
This is a very good post.
hoopsontoast
14-02-2013, 18:02
Some Rega RS7 for £700 over on PF, absolute bargain if the previous R7 are anything to go by!
Think the rega's are too big. They look huge!
Have had to have a rethink due to hitting a deer in my car and the insurance company writing it off.
I really think the focal 726v look great for what I can afford. Think they will be the ones when my finances recover from the purchase of the new car.
Cheers for all the responses.
hoopsontoast
18-02-2013, 13:19
Think the rega's are too big. They look huge!
Have had to have a rethink due to hitting a deer in my car and the insurance company writing it off.
I really think the focal 726v look great for what I can afford. Think they will be the ones when my finances recover from the purchase of the new car.
Cheers for all the responses.
The RS7 are smaller.....
H-988mm x W-246mm (inc Plinth) D-346mm (Inc Plinth)
Focal 726v
H-990mm X W-222mm X D-375mm.
:)
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