Good BASS for floorstanders <$500 (1 Viewer)

I would like to purchase a pair of floorstanding speakers with very good, hard hitting bass and totalling no more than $500. They will be used 95% for music and I would like to do this without the addition of a seperate subwoofer. I will be using a 100 watt/channel stereo reciever to drive them untill i get a few more dollars to invest in a better reciever. I found a place selling JBL E-100's for $500 /pair. Anyone know anything about that speaker or have any reccomendations?

Also I would prefer to purchase a speaker that i can listen to in a store somewhere (Maryland) rather than just purchasing something offline based on numbers.

Thanks alot

Andrew

This could do. ,or these i would imagine that a 12" or 15" woofer would do the trick although they aren't the most asteticly pleasing they would probably do the trick.

I bought 5 new E100s last year just because of the JBL name and was never so dissapointed in my life. They are horrible, at least compared to older JBLs.

I also bought their C35 center. . .same crap. . . It took me about 6 months to get rid of it. Finally I moved to vintage JBLs (L-56 fronts/ L-46 rear and center)and my great JBL sound came back. . .

PSB Image 45's or possibly Image 55's.

Based on the small chance of getting a good "read" on a speaker in a store where they might carry $500 floorstanders (Best Buy, etc.), I might be more confident in numbers.
Better to buy from a place with a liberal return policy and take advantage of that if needed.

If you are looking for loud mainly--I would second the cerwin vegas or any of the large traditional style floorstanders for that matter. You can get a 12 or 15" woofer. These things are capable of some seriously loud output--even with the amp you have.

You might wanna take a look at these http://ayselectronics.com/index.php?...oducts_id=1464

Or, for a little more these http://ayselectronics.com/index.php?...oducts_id=1465
With 2-8" kevlar woofers you are gonna get some nice extension.

Even the old 8.4's are still a bargain too http://ayselectronics.com/index.php?...roducts_id=959

There are some great reviews on the new 9's.

I think vegas are a good option for loud bass. If that is what you really want the guy across the hall form me had a pair of vegas with 15" woofers and my bed would migrate across the floor if I wasnt sitting on it when he turned it up. We are talking cement floors here with the doors closed. They were decent sounding speakers but you could do better for the money if you were willing to sacrifice some bass.

I also second the Cerwin-Vegas, particularly their "E" series. The E series will proably be a bit less refined than their Classic series but the Es are capable of some very scary amounts of clean/tight bass, the kind that punches you in the chest. The 10", 12", 15" models also have individual level controls for their midranges & tweeters to help match them to the room their in (basically a passive EQ system).

Circuit City used to sell the previous version of these a couple years ago (only the woofers were a different color):

DCM "Full Time 10"

DCM "Full Time 12"

IMO not built quite as good as the Cerwins but still O.K. (this new 12" version has a MSRP of only $220 each, so....)Their sound was a slightly less powerful version of Cerwin's though that's relative: they were still very punchy/loud. Their high end was a bit "veiled", but not harsh. For such large speakers, IMO they looked pretty nice due to their tall-ish proportions. A true 100 watt/channel receiver (one *not* rated starting only at 40Hz) is plenty for either these in the normal living room.

Unfortunately, large speakers like these have become very difficult to find in the big-box brick-n-mortar stores. Actually, right now those stores are having a hard time selling any size of home loudspeaker, much less these biggies. Too bad. Mom and pop type stores still might sell them though (that's where I found Sherwood's Newcastle series of components).

It seems everytime I read a post that asks advice for a specific price,someone always recommends something more expensive. So here I go. For $600 listen to the Def Tech BP6 . You may like the look and sound better than than than C.V. 's and with respect I think they would be money much better spent.

I listened to the Def Tech BP6's and some of their higher BP models and decided that their bass without powered drivers is lacking. The Super Towers, however, had excellent bass and I was very impressed, however those are a bit out of my price range.

However I do appreciate you recognition of the usual reccomendations of items out of the requested price range and I thank you for your input.

-Andrew