If you had $600 to spend on a pair of bookshelf speakers? (1 Viewer)

[Ennsio]

Jag, welcome to the forum. You should start a new thread with these requests as that will increase the likelihood of getting noticed and getting responses.

 

[Dingiswayo]

NHT Classic 3 An acoustic-suspension design, which integrates better with subs vs. similar-sized ported designs when using the standard THX 80Hz crossover -->

Hey Lance, do you actually know of a seller that offers 2 NHT Classic 3s for $600? I looked and it's looking like $900.

-Matt

 

[LanceJ]

^ J&R Music used to sell them for that much, but checking their site it looks like they have stopped selling *all* NHTs, and now only have some Classic 4 models on clearance. :frowning:

Quirky companies seem to be a having a hard time getting their products out nowadays.

 

[Michael-Loki]

Polk Audio LSi 7's or LSi 9's. (some prefer one over the other) The both fit into the sound that I like.

Paradigm is very nice as well, but a different sound. I would say both are detailed, but the LSi's are more laid back and the Paradigm's a little brighter.

Both would sound great with the correct electronics, but with the same electronics one would definately sound better than the other. (depending on what electronics (amp and preamp) were used)

Michael

 

[Dingiswayo]

Hifidelitystore.com has the NHT Classic 3 for $319 each but I've never heard of this store before and I can't seem to find any reviews either.

 

[Philip Hamm]

If B&W still makes a speaker comparable to the old 602s that I have, I'd give those a listen. I've had my main DM602 front three for going on 10 years now, and have absolutely no desire to "upgrade" them, ever. They sound just as amazing to me today as they did the day I brought them home.

 

[JeremyErwin]

It's called the DM685, now.

 

[Mark Dill]

I just checked out B&W's site and wow! There are no current speakers comparable to the old 602's. Like Philip, I have the original 602's (not s2 or s3 - bought in '96) and I am blown away by how great they sound every day. They no longer offer a large bookshelf speaker in the 600 range.

The 685 looks similar to the old 601, which was nice for a small speaker, but paled in comparison to the 602 for room-fulling sound. The 684 looks similar to the 603, also an excellent speaker. The 684 would be the sweet spot of the range then, but I'm guessing it is more than the $550 the 602's used to sell for. I think the 603's sold for around $850.

 

[John Garcia]

I've owned the LSi7s and they just don't cut the mustard for me. They got the tweeter right, but the midrange is no better than their lower speakers to my ears, and that was disappointing for the MSRP price. Great cabinets though.

 

[JeremyErwin]

You're right, the 601 and 685 have 165 mm cones. The 602 had a 180 mm cone. They also got rid of the 602.5.

 

[Philip Hamm]

It's possible that they got rid of the large bookshelf with the same drivers as the tower because it sounded just as good as the tower. When I auditioned the 602 I was actually willing to pay more, but the 602 sounded better than the 603 and at least as good as the 604 to my ears. Mids and low-mids sounded more focused in my auditions on the 602 than the 603 and 604. Same great sound for half the price? Where do I sign up? If one was shopping with their ears and planning on using a sub, the tower models offered little or no advantage for substantially higher price. And the 602s work great crossed over at 80Hz because they're such a large box and have larger drivers. I love 'em every day I hear them.

I'm sure the new 685 sounds fantastic also, I'd recommend giving them an audition if they are in the price range you're looking for. I had a set of 601s as rears for a while, and they were great also. My brother actually uses a set of 601s as home studio monitors. I am a B&W lover. Actually my favorite speakers are Theil but those are out of my budget and B&W sounds close.

 

[Dingiswayo]

In case anyone was still looking for the NHT Classic 3 for around $600 I finally found them. Legacy Audio Video has them for $624. I checked NHT's website and they are authorized dealers. Also their shipping to SF, CA was really cheap. Here's the sale link:

http://www.legacyaudiovideo.com/nhtaude.html

 

[Bigdaddy038]

the 685's replaced the 602's with B&W I've looked at them for a while. Don't go by cone size. they are way better than the 601's the 683 is the top of the 68X series speakers and sound fantastic. They run a little more than a grand for a pair($1,400 I think) but you can always get a dealer to give a little on that price. The 684's are nice and they are $1,000 bucks a pair.