What's on your Black Friday / Cyber Monday (audio) list and why?

[Old Listener]

I have one major audio purchase left: new powered speakers for our main system. I've been doing consumer research for several years and I'm ready to buy. However, I'm stuck waiting for reviews and user reports on the JBL 705P which is the leading contender. Here are the alternatives I'm considering:

JBL705P - $ 2000 / pair

Genelec M040 - $ 1800 / pair

Dynaudio LYD 48 - $ 2300 / pair

Focal Shape65 - $ 1800 / pair

KEH LS50w - $ 2200 / pair

The Waveform Mach 17 active speakers I currently use are almost 20 years old. Those 3 way speakers still work and so does the external crossover (made by Bryston). I've gone through three 6 channel amps in in life of the speakers. Lots of wires and complication in this system. Mostly, I want to simplify down to small two active monitors on stands with a dedicated computer and DAC behind one of the speakers.

I'd like to be buying speakers tomorrow but I won't. Instead, I'll be buying camera gear to improve our keepers rate on wildlife photography. We're going to Alaska next summer and probably to Patagonia next winter. I've had that camera gear list ready for months.

Panasonic G85 m43 mirrorless camera - $ 1000

Panasonic 100-300 II lens - $ 650

 

[DonH56]

Went to AK last summer and it was a great trip. I did not take my good camera and lenses, alas, just wasn't room to pack everything they way our luggage worked out. (I would have had I known how they were really handling it; we were told carry-on only for first three days and we had to keep it with us; not true, so I could have packed the big camera and lenses, blah).

Only thing on my audio list is some more music, though I keep toying with the idea of buying or building a server for the media room to replace my SONOS Connect unit (that does not always connect due to network issues). I do need to make some risers for my rear speakers but I'm pretty well set for now after a rash of purchases last summer.

 

[watchnerd]

Still shopping for a new big knob...

Not sure if they'll go on sale, but Grace m900 and JDS Labs Element are still leading candidates.

 

[amirm]

I am eyeing some woodworking equipment right now as I continue to set up my new shop.

 

[Old Listener]

Still shopping for a new big knob...

Not sure if they'll go on sale, but Grace m900 and JDS Labs Element are still leading candidates.

Both those candidates look good to me.

I just went for a $ 60 USB powered, thumb drive-sized DAC/headphone amp so I'm not in the market but the Grace m900 seems very lustworthy to me.

 

[Darwin]

I’ve had the Kefs for about a year which is how long they have been out
They sound great and now have direct from Roon integration.
The software quality is terrible and only now barely passable.
I had one failure and Kef replaced them with brand new ones but the warranty is only a year. Many other people have reported hardware failures and Kef deletes any mention of issues on their Facebook forum. Some people have through two or three sets.
So I’m in the odd position of loving the sound and Roon integration but wondering when they will fail on me next and this time out of warranty

 

[Darwin]

OP I realized everything you list is a studio monitor except the Kefs. How do you plan to use them?

 

[Old Listener]

I’ve had the Kefs for about a year which is how long they have been out
They sound great and now have direct from Roon integration.
The software quality is terrible and only now barely passable.
I had one failure and Kef replaced them with brand new ones but the warranty is only a year. Many other people have reported hardware failures and Kef deletes any mention of issues on their Facebook forum. Some people have through two or three sets.
So I’m in the odd position of loving the sound and Roon integration but wondering when they will fail on me next and this time out of warranty

Darwin, thanks for sharing your experience with the KEF LS50w. I had been following some threads about the speakers on the Steve Hoffman forum and on Computer Audiophile. Your words add quite a bit to what I had read there.

 

[Old Listener]

OP I realized everything you list is a studio monitor except the Kefs. How do you plan to use them?

I plan to use whatever I buy for listening to (mostly classical) music in an ~20 by 15 by 9 foot room. I don't listen at high levels and there is little content in the music below 50-60 Hz. My listening position and my wife's are about 8-9 feet from the speakers.

This folder has 3 pictures of the room and the current speakers.

https://naturelover.smugmug.com/Other/Library-music-system

The current electronics are in a cabinet at the far left corner of the room. Not optimal for an active crossover and 6 channels of amplification. After I get new speakers, there will be no electronics in that cabinet.

 

[Darwin]

Darwin, thanks for sharing your experience with the KEF LS50w. I had been following some threads about the speakers on the Steve Hoffman forum and on Computer Audiophile. Your words add quite a bit to what I had read there.

Darwin, thanks for sharing your experience with the KEF LS50w. I had been following some threads about the speakers on the Steve Hoffman forum and on Computer Audiophile. Your words add quite a bit to what I had read there.

Check the Roon forum too. Lots of information there.
Yes I wish it was better news to report.

 

[watchnerd]

Both those candidates look good to me.

I just went for a $ 60 USB powered, thumb drive-sized DAC/headphone amp so I'm not in the market but the Grace m900 seems very lustworthy to me.

And quirky! Humorous review:

 

[Old Listener]

watchnerd, I didn't have the patience to get too the quirky part of the video review.

My enthusiasm for the m900 comes from reading reviews of other Grace products.

 

[Old Listener]

Check the Roon forum too. Lots of information there.
Yes I wish it was better news to report.

Thanks, Darwin. I'll keep following what you and others report until I'm ready to make a decision.

 

[watchnerd]

I plan to use whatever I buy for listening to (mostly classical) music in an ~20 by 15 by 9 foot room. I don't listen at high levels and there is little content in the music below 50-60 Hz. My listening position and my wife's are about 8-9 feet from the speakers.

This folder has 3 pictures of the room and the current speakers.

https://naturelover.smugmug.com/Other/Library-music-system

The current electronics are in a cabinet at the far left corner of the room. Not optimal for an active crossover and 6 channels of amplification. After I get new speakers, there will be no electronics in that cabinet.

At that room size / distance, you seem right between the 705P and 708P (distance would lead me to 705P, but room size the 708P).

Do you plan to also use a sub?

Also, curious as to what upstream components are.

 

[oivavoi]

@Old Listener : Is your price point set?
My initial hunch is that you would need a larger woofer and more spl power to really fill a room of that size, compared with what the JBL705P can offer. But then again, the JBL708P is quite a bit more expensive. (edit: my experience is that "filling a room" is about more than playing loud. don't know whether that's correct or what the technical explanation may be, though)

In general, I would advise to listen to any speakers before you purchase them (even though I don't always follow that advice myself). As an example, I wasn't completely enamored by the Dynaudio Lyd 8, even though I assumed it would sound very good. Same thing with the Kii Threes, which had something about them that didn't win me 100 percent over.

If by any chance you could be able to stretch your budget quite a bit, it could be worth it to wait for a chance to audition the new 8C monitors from Dutch & Dutch. Haven't heard them yet, but I have very high hopes for them. If you use Roon for streaming, you won't need any more boxes with them at all since you can stream directly to them, so you save some bucks and boxes there.

Another option is to buy used high end main or midfield monitors from some years back. In most cases they should still sound good, if they were the top of the line at the time they were made. I had a chance to buy the largish Dynaudio Air 25 for almost nothing some months ago. I still don't understand why I let that opportunity slip past me... Here's a good deal on some monitors from Westlake for example: http://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649381019-westlake-bbsm10s-with-diy-stands/
EDIT: Discovered that those westlakes are not actives! Not a good suggestion then! Another main/mid monitor I've heard very good things about from a lot of people is the Neumann KH 310A. Can be found second hand from time to time.

(hope this doesn't make you more confused!)

 

[Old Listener]

At that room size / distance, you seem right between the 705P and 708P (distance would lead me to 705P, but room size the 708P).

Do you plan to also use a sub?

Also, curious as to what upstream components are.

If the 708P were priced at roughly $ 2000 / pair, I'd be considering them.

No plans for a sub. I am aware of the benefits of using (multiple) subs placed to to flatten low frequency response but I would very much prefer not to use subs at all. I have been moving toward simplicity for years and feel very comfortable with that direction. When we remodeled in 1996, the library was the one room where we had a free hand. We arfe very happy with the functionality for storing books, CDs and jigsaw puzzles and the way the room looks. It is not a man cave where looks don't matter.

current upstream components:

Win 10 laptop --> Audioengine D3 DAC --> NHT volume control --> active crossover --> speakers


This is a single input system. No preamp functionality at all.

Music is stored in a QNAP NAS in my home office as Flac files with tags filled out as I want them. The laptop uses a WiFi connection to access the music files. I have not had a problem with dropouts.

I also have a JRiver Id computer (Atom based Intel NUC running a buttoned down Linux OS and JRiver for Linux) which can serve as the source.

 

[Old Listener]

@Old Listener : Is your price point set?
My initial hunch is that you would need a larger woofer and more spl power to really fill a room of that size, compared with what the JBL705P can offer. But then again, the JBL708P is quite a bit more expensive. (edit: my experience is that "filling a room" is about more than playing loud. don't know whether that's correct or what the technical explanation may be, though)

In general, I would advise to listen to any speakers before you purchase them (even though I don't always follow that advice myself). As an example, I wasn't completely enamored by the Dynaudio Lyd 8, even though I assumed it would sound very good. Same thing with the Kii Threes, which had something about them that didn't win me 100 percent over.

If by any chance you could be able to stretch your budget quite a bit, it could be worth it to wait for a chance to audition the new 8C monitors from Dutch & Dutch. Haven't heard them yet, but I have very high hopes for them. If you use Roon for streaming, you won't need any more boxes with them at all since you can stream directly to them, so you save some bucks and boxes there.

Another option is to buy used high end main or midfield monitors from some years back. In most cases they should still sound good, if they were the top of the line at the time they were made. I had a chance to buy the largish Dynaudio Air 25 for almost nothing some months ago. I still don't understand why I let that opportunity slip past me... Here's a good deal on some monitors from Westlake for example: http://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649381019-westlake-bbsm10s-with-diy-stands/
EDIT: Discovered that those westlakes are not actives! Not a good suggestion then! Another main/mid monitor I've heard very good things about from a lot of people is the Neumann KH 310A. Can be found second hand from time to time.

(hope this doesn't make you more confused!)

I've been considering replacing the current speakers for several years. During that time, I've tried to do pretty thorough consumer research.

I've been listening to music in the main system room since 1996. My current speakers are certainly capable of "filling the room" but I rarely need that capability. I set up my Audioengine HD6 speakers with 5-5.5" woofers in that room as an experiment to see how a small speaker would work and was not disappointed.

I've had 20+ years of near field listening in my home office. I really like near field listening and would probably benefit from shortening the listening distajnce in the main system room.

Zero chance that I will stretch to $ 8-10 K speakers.

I don't use Roon and don't plan to.

It is my impression that the current generation of studio monitors which use DSP deliver real improvements compared to designs from 6 or more years ago. I expect to buy a pair of monitors and live with them for ~ 10 years. I'm looking forward rather than backward.

Yes, the Neumann KH310A gets praise from some users. So does the KH120A. I listened to those a few years ago and wasn't impressed. Of course, listening in a dealer's facility isn't the same as listening in my own room.

I did a bit of online work yesterday to find local Pro audio shops where I could listen to monitors that I an interested in. Now that I have a well defined set of candidates, I'll try to hear them.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and suggestions.

 

[oivavoi]

Cool. Sounds like you have a fairly good hunch about what you're after then!

Let me add to the list the monitors I've liked the most of the ones I've auditioned around your price point: The EVE Audio SC208. These have been among the most engaging and "musical" - yet accurate - studio monitors I've heard. If any of the dealers in your area has them, it could be worth it to check them out as well. They are not very much known among audiophiles, but have a devoted following among some studio guys. DSP-based crossover.

Good luck!

 

[watchnerd]

Cool. Sounds like you have a fairly good hunch about what you're after then!

Let me add to the list the monitors I've liked the most of the ones I've auditioned around your price point: The EVE Audio SC208. These have been among the most engaging and "musical" - yet accurate - studio monitors I've heard. If any of the dealers in your area has them, it could be worth it to check them out as well. They are not very much known among audiophiles, but have a devoted following among some studio guys. DSP-based crossover.

Good luck!

I have a lot of respect for Eve's engineering (although personally prefer myion Dynaudio) -- any company that is willing to post polar graphs and distortion charts for all their speakers gets my nod.

 

[oivavoi]

I have a lot of respect for Eve's engineering (although personally prefer myion Dynaudio) -- any company that is willing to post polar graphs and distortion charts for all their speakers gets my nod.

Agreed. Eve seems to be one of the most transparent manufacturers out there, with a no-nonsense approach I like. Seems to me that they also price their monitors rather favorably, compared to some of the competitors at least.