View Full Version : History's best stand mount speakers
I know little about bookshelf speakers having had floor standers for many years. I do know the Kef Reference designs and do like them though they're not the only type of 'sound' I like.
If I were looking to recommend a pair of bookshelf designs to a friend, probably vintage, what would you suggest?
I've seen JBL L40's described as bookshelf speakers...a pair of which I've been re-foaming recently. If your friend values dynamics, clarity, musicality and an explicit, rather than pipe and slippers sound, these could be his last speakers. They're not common in the UK, though they do turn up occasionally.
It would be a biggish sort of bookshelf, though. Times Atlas size rather than paperbacks.
walpurgis
03-05-2015, 18:16
Tannoy System 600. Compact and very nice. The 'Pro' styling may not appeal to everybody though.
A rarity, but very good are the Cura CA5.
Small, fairly common and cheap to buy are the original Mission 780SE. A great little speaker, very dynamic. Wish I still had mine.
Audio Al
03-05-2015, 18:16
JBL L1's rock as well :)
The Barbarian
03-05-2015, 18:47
Heybrook 'HB-1'/'HBS-1'
:sofa:
Standmount and bookself speakers have very little in common at least in my books. So which one we're talking here? Speakers that are meant to be set to bookshelf etc or in freespace with stands as they might be very different ones despite their possibly similar size. And there are also pretty big standmounts there.. :D
walpurgis
03-05-2015, 19:31
There's one candidate I should have thought of as I have a pair right in front of me. The Usher S520.
Beautifully made and quite remarkable sound quality for their price.
http://i62.tinypic.com/2q3c0aa.jpg
On stands rather than right against a wall I meant.
I have jbl l90's and they're very good indeed as are my kef reference 103's.
I know little about stand mounts though generally, certainly not enough to offer someone a definite recommendation.
Audio Advent
03-05-2015, 21:12
Heybrook 'HB-1'/'HBS-1'
:sofa:
The slightly later Trios are good, using the same drivers but with veneered, narrower cabinets rather than the vinyl wrap chipboard. Not so common tho..
Audio Advent
03-05-2015, 21:17
Some love their AR 18s's .. Pick them up for £20 in need of a re-foam, get the refoam kits for £14 and show your love for your friend by doing them up.
The small Celefs are good (Celef is the name prior to ProAc).
B&W DM4s? Audiomaster speakers are good..
337alant
04-05-2015, 14:19
The Mordant Short Pageant Ser 2 are superb stand mount speakers
Alan
dantheman91
04-05-2015, 14:33
Castle Acoustics Durham Speakers
Excellent IMHO
Spectral Morn
04-05-2015, 14:49
Proac Super Tabletes
Proac Extended Bass Tabletes
Sonus Faber Electa Amator
Regards Neil
My Ha-pennyworth and a baker's dozen of some of my all time favourites:
Sonus Faber Extrema: Incredible performance and bass slam from a relatively compact speaker. Heard a pair on the end of a MFA1000 once and that has stuck with me for over 25 years.
Sonus Faber Guarneri Homage: More refined than the above end beautifully made although more polite too.
Proac Tablette Signature 8 Reference: Superb imaging, sublime mid range. Partnered with a decent sub, few come close even today.
Harbeth C7ES3: the definitive neutral sounding mid sized stand mount speaker with superb pedigree and overall engaging performance. Lovely build too.
Yamaha NS1000M: Made by the thousand, still as good sounding today as most new speakers of similar stature and a proper old school 3 way with decent sized woofer. Well engineered to boot. Accurate and engaging.
Epos ES14: A classic design and partnered well, capable of sublime sounds:
Acoustic Energy AE1: The definitive miniature stand mount? Everyone should own a pair just once!
Wharfedale Diamond: A breakthrough at the time in just how good bookshelf speakers could be made to sound, and it's big bold sound belies it's small size. Have miniature speakers got much better? Hmmm...
Harbeth M40: Capable of some of the best sounds you'll hear from a ported box but active versions best and they need a lot of room for a stand mount.
Spendor BC1: All time, all-rounder classic loudspeaker by Spencer Hughes after he left the BBC. Bass could be woolly but they can be forgiven that.
MBL 101d: the first to really perfect omni-directional sound, although somewhat pricey and few used examples exist.
Shahinian Compass loudspeakers: These and the larger Obelisk show just how successful being "different" resulted in, with a nod to omnidirectional sound production they can throw a wide and somewhat convincing sound stage which can in the right room give the aural appearance of "live" -ness better than many directional speakers, much beloved by classical fans, they're not the last word in pin-point imaging but they deliver atmosphere and grandiose in spades. Need beefy amplification to get the best from them despite their modest sensitivity.
Celestion SL600: A revolution in approach seeking to do away with speaker box colouration long before Q-Acoustics and others claimed this as their strong selling point.
I'd agree with Reffc, the Epos ES-14 are excellent stand mount speakers. I have a pair for sale in the classifieds if you're interested ;)
Gordon Steadman
04-05-2015, 15:45
Wharfedale Diamond: A breakthrough at the time in just how good bookshelf speakers could be made to sound, and it's big bold sound belies it's small size. Have miniature speakers got much better? Hmmm...
I agree but it does depend what you put up them Mr.Mainwaring. As I said elsewhere, a 90 watt RMS amp with both the volume and bass controls on maximum is not the best way to treat these little gems. I'm still fuming at the stupid git that ruined a perfectly good pair of speakers. He bought them, they are his but it still pisses me off a week later. Rant over and apologies for thread crap:(
My Ha-pennyworth and a baker's dozen of some of my all time favourites:
Sonus Faber Extrema: Incredible performance and bass slam from a relatively compact speaker. Heard a pair on the end of a MFA1000 once and that has stuck with me for over 25 years.
Sonus Faber Guarneri Homage: More refined than the above end beautifully made although more polite too.
Proac Tablette Signature 8 Reference: Superb imaging, sublime mid range. Partnered with a decent sub, few come close even today.
Harbeth C7ES3: the definitive neutral sounding mid sized stand mount speaker with superb pedigree and overall engaging performance. Lovely build too.
Yamaha NS1000M: Made by the thousand, still as good sounding today as most new speakers of similar stature and a proper old school 3 way with decent sized woofer. Well engineered to boot. Accurate and engaging.
Epos ES14: A classic design and partnered well, capable of sublime sounds:
Acoustic Energy AE1: The definitive miniature stand mount? Everyone should own a pair just once!
Wharfedale Diamond: A breakthrough at the time in just how good bookshelf speakers could be made to sound, and it's big bold sound belies it's small size. Have miniature speakers got much better? Hmmm...
Harbeth M40: Capable of some of the best sounds you'll hear from a ported box but active versions best and they need a lot of room for a stand mount.
Spendor BC1: All time, all-rounder classic loudspeaker by Spencer Hughes after he left the BBC. Bass could be woolly but they can be forgiven that.
MBL 101d: the first to really perfect omni-directional sound, although somewhat pricey and few used examples exist.
Shahinian Compass loudspeakers: These and the larger Obelisk show just how successful being "different" resulted in, with a nod to omnidirectional sound production they can throw a wide and somewhat convincing sound stage which can in the right room give the aural appearance of "live" -ness better than many directional speakers, much beloved by classical fans, they're not the last word in pin-point imaging but they deliver atmosphere and grandiose in spades. Need beefy amplification to get the best from them despite their modest sensitivity.
Celestion SL600: A revolution in approach seeking to do away with speaker box colouration long before Q-Acoustics and others claimed this as their strong selling point.
Dont see my Kefs in there :eyebrows:
Audio Advent
04-05-2015, 15:47
Haha, think a lot of those suggestions might be a little out of budget for someone who I guess is a non-audiophile!
Oldius, I guess you need some kind of budget in mind..
I agree but it does depend what you put up them Mr.Mainwaring. As I said elsewhere, a 90 watt RMS amp with both the volume and bass controls on maximum is not the best way to treat these little gems. I'm still fuming at the stupid git that ruined a perfectly good pair of speakers. He bought them, they are his but it still pisses me off a week later. Rant over and apologies for thread crap:(
It is annoying when things like that happen Gordon, and an interesting point made about driving speakers in general. Some on that list above can be listened to at moderate volumes where they give their best (like the Diamonds) with very modest amplification whilst some need megawatts up their jacksies to wake them up!
Originally posted by Audio Advent:
Haha, think a lot of those suggestions might be a little out of budget for someone who I guess is a non-audiophile!
Oldius, I guess you need some kind of budget in mind..
Dont see my Kefs in there :eyebrows:
No budget was mentioned though....the OP just suggested the "best" and the above are the ones that have stuck with me as being some of the most memorable I've heard.
No offence to any KEF owners out there, as there are some great KEFs (and very affordable too) but the above have at some point personally tugged on the music emotion strings!
Originally posted by Audio Advent:
No budget was mentioned though....the OP just suggested the "best" and the above are the ones that have stuck with me as being some of the most memorable I've heard.
No offence to any KEF owners out there, as there are some great KEFs (and very affordable too) but the above have at some point personally tugged on the music emotion strings!
twas just a jest Paul ;) I am sure I am the only person that likes them :lol:
LoL...I realise that Grant. I've never actually owned any KEF speakers but heard plenty. I have a lot of time for KEF designs although I do find with some, their very complex crossovers can strangle some of the emotion from music. Later versions are better imho than earlier versions. The new LS50 stand mount is very good indeed.
Audio Advent
04-05-2015, 16:07
Which KEFs, your Caras? Talking of KEFs of the past, C60s were good.
Thread title and the actual OP are completely different, so you're forgiven for listing your alltime favourites, cost no object! It makes for a more interesting thread...
B&W Matrix 805s are very good, to think of my favourites, along with some Acoustic Energy AE2s I've heard.
I like the old KEF Coda III but I'm probably alone on that.
The recommendation is for a longstanding audio lover but one who has limited experience. He has just purchased a superb Kenwood L1000C/L1000M amplifier combination that will drive pretty much anything. Budget up to £1k used. 14' x 14' room.
I have helped him out recently with some recommendations that have transformed the quality of his system but I have limited knowledge of stand mounted speakers.
. Budget up to £1k used.
.
Forget the KEF Coda III then ;)
For a budget of up to £1000 and the brief more fully explained, I'd certainly shortlist these as good used buys:
Harbeth C7ES3 (can just come in at budget with shopping around the used markets)
Yamaha NS1000M (still plenty about under a grand)
Quad ESLs (especially if a classical music buff)
The Epos ES14's in the private classifieds!
Mission 780SE (inexpensive and if a pair can be found in good nick, surprisingly decent sounding)
Oh...and if a rock fan, the JBL 4311 has to be in there too ;-)
Tannoy Cheviots for that budget deserve a mention. With a little fettling they can sound exceptionally good.
Thanks Paul.
He has quite wide ranging tastes but especially jazz and electronica.
Cheviots & Yamahas from the above list stand out as the better choices then Geoff and for Jazz, the ESLs (63s) would be great too.
I am not a Tannoy fan atall but it's his system so I will pass on the recommendations.
The Black Adder
04-05-2015, 17:05
The Harbeth SHL5's are very nice too.
The Harbeth SHL5's are very nice too.
I agree Jo - back 30 years ago I was going to buy the predecessor to the SHL5 but just a bit too big for my room so ended up with Spender SP2's. They still sound fantastic today with superb midrange and amazing transparency. Bass not great but enough in my room. Would find it hard to replace this speaker with any modern equivalent.
I love my Spendor S3/5R2 (http://www.spendoraudio.com/HTML/S35R2_main.html) speakers:
Consider the S3/5R as your final exam in hi-fi. If you have the right room and the maturity to look past the flashy presentation of many speakers, this could be the last loudspeaker you will ever buy. Even if you 'fail' this exam, and choose more immediately exciting speakers, remember that S3/5R's will still be waiting for you to grow up
On a tight budget, I have to agree with Andre that Heybrook HB1 are a good bet. I bought mine for a fiver, though then spent about £150 on new base drivers. But once that was done, the results were excellent. They now grace my home office system.
Rogers LS3/5a's are one of the classics and the LS 7s as well.
Gale GS 301 and Kef 104 ab speakers should also be included.
walpurgis
08-05-2015, 08:54
Gale GS 301 and Kef 104 ab speakers should also be included.
The KEF, yes. Not sure about the 301. It was nice enough, but nothing magical in my opinion. You could buy an old pair of Ruark Swordsman II very cheaply and have just about the same sound.
Here is where I toss a hand grenade into the thread...
...Linn Kan mk1.
The end. Topic finished.
technobear
15-05-2015, 20:43
Rogers LS3/5a's are one of the classics and the LS 7s as well.
Funny how the Rogers LS4a seems to get overlooked in favour of those two. I think it is better than either of them and far more affordable. They seem to be going for around £110 - £120 at the moment. They were £240 new back in the late '80s and highly recommended at the time.
The Dynaudio Contour 1.1 also stands out as a great standmount.
The ProAc Response 1SC also.
Ronksley
15-05-2015, 21:18
I have had a pair of Rogers Ls4a from new and love em when I got them nothing in the price range came close
and more recently i have had a pair of old Castle Warwicks which are about the same size sound more natural on the top end but lack a bit of wellie lower down
Also have Nad 8225, Mordaunt Short MS20i and Ruark Epilogue which are all really great speakers not really had the chance to listen to the last two pairs enough
Ninanina
15-05-2015, 21:44
Rogers LS3/5a's are one of the classics and the LS 7s as well.
I would agree with the LS3/5a's but I have had extended listens, over many years, to the LS7's and find them far too bass heavy and rather coarse sounding speakers, however a pair of 7's are very cheap to buy if one wanted to try some
I would also add in Ruark Sabre's as a very nice sounding stand mount...very sweet sounding and very well built as well..
I could also include my latest speakers, the Tannoy System 800's, which are growing on me the more I listen to them..
Hope that helps some ;)
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