Trying to decide between some used (older) speakers

[RoyRoyRoy]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for a pair of bookshelves for my 5.1 setup, with a Denon AVR-660H. I don't listen at loud volumes as my kids sleep early.
I have a small living room, about 12 feet by 12 feet, with the back of the couch open to the dining room, also the same size. I have some Polk Audio RM201 on speaker stands that are average, but looking to improve as I just got the Definitive Technologies ProCenter 2000 centre speaker for $100 used to replace the RM202 that was cracked and always threw a phase error (same specs as RM201) and it made a big difference for me. I also have a Klipsch Sub-8 subwoofer.

In the used marketplace, I found:

1. Energy Connoisseur C-2 - $125
2. Energy Connoisseur C-3 - $100
3. Energy e:XL-15B - $80
4. Energy AC-300 - $360 (kind of out of my budget)
5. Klipsch R14M - $120
6. Polk Audio RTi-A1 - $175
7. PSB Image B5 - $150

I'm thinking the C-2 or the C-3 or the B5. I'm not loyal to any company, just looking to find something a bit better, at a good price. If anyone has listened to these before, and can offer any preference one way or the other, it would be greatly appreciated! Links are what I could randomly find on the Internet about the speakers.

Thank you!

 

[Beave]

I have a pair of the Energy C-3 that I got used for dirt cheap. I think they're quite good for a 20 year old budget speaker. To me, they have just a touch of muddy bass compared to my best bookshelf speakers. And they don't have very deep bass for their size. Their balance is slightly on the warm side of neutral but mostly neutral.

One thing to look for is the woofer surrounds. I've seen lots of pics of them where the rubber looks aged and has turned greenish. I've seen others - like the ones I bought for $60 - where the rubber surrounds look like the original grey/silver with no signs of aging.

I haven't heard the PSB Image B5, but I did have the PSB Imagine XB, which was the successor and very very similar. Compared to the C-3, it's physically smaller and, to me, had a little bit more of the upper bass muddiness. Otherwise they were pretty similar in the mids and highs. I preferred the C-3 a bit over the Imagine XB, but it is a bigger speaker.

I haven't heard any of the others on your list, but I think the C-3 is a good speaker if it's still in good shape and under $100.

 

[alex-z]

To be honest, none of those options are appealing. A pair of Elac B6.2 are $240 when on sale (including right now), and they perform extremely well for that cost. Neutral frequency response, decent directivity and bass extension.

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair)

Buy ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair) featuring Up to 120W Recommended Amplifier Power, 2-Way Speaker Design, 6.5" Woven Aramid-Fiber Cone Woofer, 1" Cloth Dome Tweeter, 44 Hz to 35 kHz Frequency Range, MDF Cabinet, Designed by Andrew Jones. Review ELAC B6.2

www.bhphotovideo.com

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Speaker Review

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Review

www.erinsaudiocorner.com

There is also the JBL Stage A130 at $200. If the Elac B6.2 wasn't on sale, these would be my main recommendation.

 

[Beave]

To be honest, none of those options are appealing. A pair of Elac B6.2 are $240 when on sale (including right now), and they perform extremely well for that cost. Neutral frequency response, decent directivity and bass extension.

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair)

Buy ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair) featuring Up to 120W Recommended Amplifier Power, 2-Way Speaker Design, 6.5" Woven Aramid-Fiber Cone Woofer, 1" Cloth Dome Tweeter, 44 Hz to 35 kHz Frequency Range, MDF Cabinet, Designed by Andrew Jones. Review ELAC B6.2

www.bhphotovideo.com

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Speaker Review

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Review

www.erinsaudiocorner.com

There is also the JBL Stage A130 at $200. If the Elac B6.2 wasn't on sale, these would be my main recommendation.

Have you heard any of his options?

Energy C-3 measurements from Soundstage/NRC: https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/measurements/energy_connoisseur_c3/

 

[fineMen]

Have you heard any of his options?

Energy C-3 measurements from Soundstage/NRC: https://www.soundstagenetwork.com/measurements/energy_connoisseur_c3/

View attachment 291902View attachment 291904

View attachment 291903

Look suprisingly good! Even distortion is way better than just o/k.

 

[RoyRoyRoy]

Thank you all for your feedback. Didn’t know what to look for in aging speakers. Very helpful!

Please note that I’m in Canada and the conversion rate is not good. All the used prices I noted are in Canadian otherwise, the elacs would be a good deal.

Trying to keep some used equipment going longer.

 

[RoyRoyRoy]

To be honest, none of those options are appealing. A pair of Elac B6.2 are $240 when on sale (including right now), and they perform extremely well for that cost. Neutral frequency response, decent directivity and bass extension.

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair)

Buy ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair) featuring Up to 120W Recommended Amplifier Power, 2-Way Speaker Design, 6.5" Woven Aramid-Fiber Cone Woofer, 1" Cloth Dome Tweeter, 44 Hz to 35 kHz Frequency Range, MDF Cabinet, Designed by Andrew Jones. Review ELAC B6.2

www.bhphotovideo.com

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Speaker Review

ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Review

www.erinsaudiocorner.com

There is also the JBL Stage A130 at $200. If the Elac B6.2 wasn't on sale, these would be my main recommendation.

Just found the prices in Canada. $500 + tax for the Elac and 350 plus tax for the JBL. Hard to find those used.

 

[hnash53]

Might I suggest getting a pair of DevTech bookshelves that are tuned to match your center DevTech?

 

[Head_Unit]

Polk Audio RM201

Never heard any of these, but here are some observations from an engineering point of view. Those have 2 3.5" woofers-that is not much cone area, and the enclosures are small. "Hoffman's Iron Law" states that thus the bass response will be quite limited, probably not really enough to match up to the subwoofer. So you want bigger enclosures and bigger woofers. From a company point of view, Energy and PSB utilized the Canadian national research facilities and had good engineers, none should be a dog.

1. Energy Connoisseur C-2 - $125

@ Oooh this looks good! It's unusual to find bookshelf speakers whose port is tuned as low as 40 Hz. That covers down to the low string on a bass. With a subwoofer, more overlap to make crossover setup hopefully easier.

1. Energy Connoisseur C-3 - $100

@ Probably similar to the above. I'd suppose the C-3 should be "better" given the model numbers?

1. Energy e:XL-15B - $80

@ Smaller enclosure smaller woofer smaller sound...nah.

1. Energy AC-300 - $360 (kind of out of my budget) @ well never mind then...
2. Klipsch R14M - $120

@ Ah tougher to say. While horns are supposedly more efficient, in reality a design like this is limited by the woofer and the box, so the horn output has to be padded down. Some people love Klipsch, others find them harsh, and the sophistication of their horns decreases as you get to older and older models. I'd stick with Energy if I had to make a recommendation.

1. Polk Audio RTi-A1 - $175

@ https://www.stereophile.com/content/polk-rtiii-a1-loudspeaker-measurements
@ Ported at 50 Hz, still OK with a sub I suppose. Polk also has had consistently good engineering. This has a somewhat peaky but beamy treble. I'd vote for the Energy and with the money you save a bigger sub-not for louder lows, but more extension at moderate volumes.
@ Speaking of which have you used the Audyssey function on the Denon?

1. PSB Image B5 - $150

@ Smaller woofer...eh I still prefer larger. Even if a sub is doing the low bass, the main speakers put out mid-bass.

 

[RoyRoyRoy]

Never heard any of these, but here are some observations from an engineering point of view. Those have 2 3.5" woofers-that is not much cone area, and the enclosures are small. "Hoffman's Iron Law" states that thus the bass response will be quite limited, probably not really enough to match up to the subwoofer. So you want bigger enclosures and bigger woofers. From a company point of view, Energy and PSB utilized the Canadian national research facilities and had good engineers, none should be a dog.

1. Energy Connoisseur C-2 - $125

@ Oooh this looks good! It's unusual to find bookshelf speakers whose port is tuned as low as 40 Hz. That covers down to the low string on a bass. With a subwoofer, more overlap to make crossover setup hopefully easier.

1. Energy Connoisseur C-3 - $100

@ Probably similar to the above. I'd suppose the C-3 should be "better" given the model numbers?

1. Energy e:XL-15B - $80

@ Smaller enclosure smaller woofer smaller sound...nah.

1. Energy AC-300 - $360 (kind of out of my budget) @ well never mind then...
2. Klipsch R14M - $120

@ Ah tougher to say. While horns are supposedly more efficient, in reality a design like this is limited by the woofer and the box, so the horn output has to be padded down. Some people love Klipsch, others find them harsh, and the sophistication of their horns decreases as you get to older and older models. I'd stick with Energy if I had to make a recommendation.

1. Polk Audio RTi-A1 - $175

@ https://www.stereophile.com/content/polk-rtiii-a1-loudspeaker-measurements
@ Ported at 50 Hz, still OK with a sub I suppose. Polk also has had consistently good engineering. This has a somewhat peaky but beamy treble. I'd vote for the Energy and with the money you save a bigger sub-not for louder lows, but more extension at moderate volumes.
@ Speaking of which have you used the Audyssey function on the Denon?

1. PSB Image B5 - $150

@ Smaller woofer...eh I still prefer larger. Even if a sub is doing the low bass, the main speakers put out mid-bass.

Thank you for the detailed reply!

 

[Beave]

Look suprisingly good! Even distortion is way better than just o/k.

Yeah, they are some of the better measuring bookshelf speakers from the long list of Soundstage/NRC measurements. Pretty impressive considering their age (about 20 years old) and price (were $600/pair in the US) and now can be found for $100/pair or so on the used market.

 

[Count Dacula]

I paid $250 after tax for NOB walnut KEF Q150

 

[jim1274]

I noticed a lot of mention of Energy in the suggestions. If you could find a pair of Energy 22’s really cheap, you could send the tweeters in for reconditioning to new condition and have one heck of a speaker on the cheap. I still run 2 pairs of the floor standing model, 22 Reference Conns. Those go for more than the 22 monitors, but maybe can still be had cheap. I’d only buy ones on the cheap with blown tweeter(s), because unless the tweeter have at least had ferro-fluid changed recently, you will not get their potential.