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Passive Bookshelf Speakers ~$3k (Desk)

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concorde1

concorde1

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So I'd pick Arendals for best spin, but at a price premium.
Or to save some money, JBL LSR6332 would be my 2nd pick, with decent quality spin.
I'm curious why you suggest the Arendal spin is better? The JBL spin looks quite a bit better to me.

I can get the JBL's locally for about 2100 USD a pair :)

Arendal's - likely 4000 USD a pair.

March's - likely 5000 USD a pair - unless Australian tax is deducted given that I pay NZ tax
 

Holmz

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I'm curious why you suggest the Arendal spin is better? The JBL spin looks quite a bit better to me.

I can get the JBL's locally for about 2100 USD a pair :)

Arendal's - likely 4000 USD a pair.

March's - likely 5000 USD a pair - unless Australian tax is deducted given that I pay NZ tax

I have not heard the first 2 speakers.
Always a hard decision with cost involved. If it was not involved it would be easy.

Happy ANZAC weekend Cuzzy-Bro. ;)
 

Astrozombie

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I noticed Salk sound has some bookies around that price, yet I never hear anyone talk about them. Great finish to them also .
 

jonfitch

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I noticed Salk sound has some bookies around that price, yet I never hear anyone talk about them. Great finish to them also .

Domes and especially ribbons usually don't perform very well near-field compared to coaxials due to vertical axis issues. Although if you can get the tweeters to ear-level I suppose that would alleviate those concerns.
 

AlexanderM

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If you're looking in that $2500 range, my list is as follows:

Buchardt S400 MKII
Arendal 1723 Monitor
Selah Purezza (RIP)
PSB Synchrony B600
LXsirius

Up to $3k:
JBL 705P
Paradigm Founder 40B

Also, the Kali Audio IN-8v2.

Your OP says you listen "at a meter or two". Is it one meter or two? That makes a big difference with waveguided speakers. In fact, most of these I would not consider at 1 meter, some not even at 2. If you're really that close I would consider KEF LS50 Meta.
I was just going to suggest he might also check out the Paradigm Founder's and there they are.

Also, the Monitor Audio Gold 100's probably come in just below $3K pair in the US.

I don't know this company, so check it out first.
 
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Valentin R

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jbl 4309
 

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lowkeyoperations

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Still, for a desk, I think it's the Metas, Genelecs, or iLoud MTM. Something with less space between tweeter and woofer.
Over in the hiss thread, reports are that the Genelecs are on the high side. You will really want to make sure that hiss is not going to be too annoying for you. Some people can ignore it. I can’t and end up agitated by the constant noise.

I found my Neumann KH120s were quiet enough that I couldn’t hear the hiss at arms length when set to the lowest input gain.

I could never use my Dynaudio XD20s on my desk as the hiss is way too loud.

My passive Amphion One15s, driven by a Cyrus Power amp and an SSL Audio Interface are very quiet. Even with my ear right up the the tweeter.

That’s one of the real benefits of passive monitors in nearfield use IMO. Plus and EQ dip switches on active speakers can easily be replicated in software on your computer with way more precision.

But hiss on active speakers 75cm from your ears can be a real pain that can’t be removed.
 

Penelinfi

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I am still waiting for my March Sointuva's to be shipped :(
Part of me wishes I'd gone for the Arendal 1723 Monitor THX's.
Did you finally end up getting them? I'm considering these, and then there's also the Arendal/Buchardt speakers, though I kind of want to go with the "extreme" woofers and tweeters
 
OP
concorde1

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Did you finally end up getting them? I'm considering these, and then there's also the Arendal/Buchardt speakers, though I kind of want to go with the "extreme" woofers and tweeters
Yes they did eventually arrive. The Sointuva's sound amazing. I'm still keen to try a pair of JBL LSR6332 though. Or the Arendal's if they're measured more comprehensively.
 
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