Best bookshelf for under 200 dollars? (1 Viewer)

[DonH]

Ooh... I just had an idea... Maybe someone can comment on it. I suppose I could keep the S8 sub from the Take 5.2 system I bought, and sell the rest of the set, and then buy the Energy EXL16. I don't know much about the speakers though. Any opinions on them? They are in my range and would likely match up well with the S8 sub.

 

[Saurav]

That's ironic, the Mini Monitor is exactly what I was thinking of I have that speaker, and for $300 I think it's great. I know people have had poor luck with getting Paradigm dealers to go below MSRP, I guess I got lucky with that.
Anyway... ask KeithH about the Energy speaker you mentioned, I believe he has quite a bit of experience with it.

 

[KeithH]

Don, I use the Energy e:XL 16 bookshelf speakers as the mains and surrounds in my home-theater set-up. I also used to use a pair of e:XL 16s for my second stereo system, but I sold that pair to upgrade to Energy e:XL 25 floorstanders. The e:XL 16s that are the mains in my home theater also used to serve as the speakers for my main stereo system until I added a pair of Totem Arro floorstanders a few months ago. So, I am very familiar with the e:XL 16s for music and movies.
The e:XL 16s are good speakers for $250-300. I have read here and elsewhere that the e:XL series is not the best in its price range for music, and some prefer these speakers for home theater over music. For a time, I was happy with the e:XL 16s for stereo music, but after awhile, I decided it was time to upgrade the speakers for both stereo systems. This is not to discount the capabilities of the e:XL 16s because I was looking for better speakers for music than $300 will buy. I didn't find the e:XL 16s to be bright as some say, but they were lacking in the bass department and in overall clarity (soundstaging, imaging, etc.), which is not at all uncommon among bookshelf speakers at that price point.
All in all, I feel the e:XL 16s are a good budget speaker, and they are certainly better than the Take 5.2s, especially for music. I still use the e:XL 16s for home theater and surround-sound music, and they serve me quite well. I would give them a listen if you can, but many others here offered good suggestions too. Among the other speakers suggested, take a look at offerings from B&W and Paradigm. I am a bit leery of the quality of JBL and Polk from my past experiences. This is obviously just my opinion. Good luck.
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KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime

 

[Danny Tse]

I think keeping the S8 sub is a great idea, since it's one of the best compact sub out there. Regarding the EXL16s, I went to my local dealer (Good Guys) two nites ago and check them out. The in-store price was US$230.00/pair and I A/B them with the Polk RT25i. The bass response of both speakers is tremendous....tight and enough bass to interface with the S8. The EXL16s goes lower but to my ears, the RT25i was the better speaker. Very transparent and very "fast", whereas the EXL16 just kind of "slow". Don't know if that make sense. On top of that, the RT25i was US$200.00/pair and comes in real wood veneer. I just could pass up such a deal.
I have owned the JBL S26 (US$200.00/pair at J&R with no shipping) and the HTD Level Three (US$200.00/pair as well), and they are all great speakers. I really don't think you can go wrong with either the JBL, the HTD, the Energy, or the Polks. You just have to choose your flavor.

 

[DonH]

Keith... thanks for your info. One question. Would you suggest I keep the S8 sub that I bought to supplement the EXL16's? Or would that not be worthwhile? Thanks.

 

[DonH]

Danny... thanks. A question for you. If I decide on a speaker other than the Energys, would keeping the S8 sub be a bad idea, since they would not be matched? Thanks.

 

[DonH]

Danny... what is the site for J & R? Thanks.

 

[Saurav]

It's www.jandr.com - one of my favorite online retailers, and they usually have the best (or close to the best) prices among the trustworthy online sites.
I don't think you'll have problems keeping your sub. You might get a better overall deal if you sold the whole package, that's all I would think about. I think any of these bookshelves would go down to the mid 50 Hz region, and any sub should be able to take it from there on down. You really need to get picky about subwoofers if your mains are extremely fast, like electrostatics. Then, a slower plodding sub would probably sound noticably bad. With these speakers, as long as your sub goes low enough and loud enough (in your room, of course) for your liking, integration shouldn't be a problem. Or, to put it more accurately, no sub in your price range would be much better than another in terms of integration issues.
Just IMO, of course.

 

[KeithH]

Don, I tend to agree with Saurav regarding the subwoofer in that you shouldn't be too concerned about matching the brand of the subwoofer and the bookshelf speakers. I don't think you need to worry about timbre matching a pair of bookshelf speakers with a subwoofer as you would in matching bookshelf speakers and a center channel speaker.
It is possible that you could get a good deal on a subwoofer as part of a package from a dealer when you buy bookshelf speakers. If you were to buy a pair of Polk bookshelf speakers, for example, the dealer may give you a good deal on a Polk subwoofer from the same product line. Of course, you would have to determine if the new subwoofer is better than your Energy e:XL-S8. Frankly, the e:XL-S8 is a good subwoofer, so I see no reason to replace it unless you were upgrading your speakers to something in a significantly higher price range and wanted a subwoofer of a quality to match. The other reason to change subwoofers is if you feel your room is large enough to handle a larger sub than the e:XL-S8. Energy also makes the e:XL-S10 10" and e:XL-S12 12" subwoofers that you could consider in that scenario. In any event, I think the e:XL-S8 will match up with most any $300 pair of bookshelf speakers.
I do have some experience with the e:XL-S8. When I bought my Energy e:XL surround-sound package last year, I decided on the e:XL 16s and the e:XL-C center channel speaker very quickly. The last decision I made, and the one that took awhile, was which subwoofer to get. I went back and forth testing the e:XL-S8 and the e:XL-S10 in the dealer sound room and eventually went with the e:XL-S10. My home-theater room at the time was large enough to accommodate the e:XL-S10, and as a 10" subwoofer, I felt it provided more oomph than did the e:XL-S8. That said, the e:XL-S8 is still a very capable subwoofer.
It is unusual for me to say the following given how often it seems like I upgrade things, but I am still very pleased with my e:XL-S10 after a year-and-a-half. I now have it integrated in my main stereo system in addition to using it in my home-theater system.
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My:
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KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime

 

[Holadem]

It is unusual for me to say the following given how often it seems like I upgrade things

I will nominate this phrase for the Understatement of the year award!

--
Holadem

 

[Saurav]

LOL!!! Agreed completely

 

[KeithH]

Holadem and Saurav, thanks. Hey, I have to say that I have decided not to upgrade my turntable. That said, since August, I still have bought two pairs of floorstanding speakers for my stereo systems, the Sony SCD-C555ES, an Energy Active Crossover box to connect my subwoofer to the stereo amp in my main system, and a pair of BetterCables speaker cables for my Totem Arros. That's all. Now, I still want to biamp the NAD C 370 integrated amp with the NAD C 270 power amp (which will require another pair of BetterCables speaker cables) and replace my Energy e:XL-C center speaker with the e:XL-C2. That's all! Really, I'm O.K. I can stop upgrading anytime I want to.

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My:
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KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime

 

[DonH]

So if I am leaning towards the JBL 38's, would I be smart to pony up a little more money and get the S310 floor standing speakers or a similar set? Sorry for being so wishy washy.

 

[Saurav]

Don,
To put it bluntly - the more money you are willing to spend on this, the less attractive JBL becomes as a speaker choice. They're great at the NSP1 price range, but if you're willing to spend more, there are much better choices for your money.
Also, for what it's worth, I heard the S38 and some of the JBL floorstanders at Best Buy, and IMO the S38 beats the floorstanders easily. I don't remember whether that was the S310 or not, but it sounded muddy and hollow compared to the S38. More bass, certainly, but I have a subwoofer so that's not an issue for me.

 

[DonH]

This always happens to me. I decide what I want to spend on something, and then I realize I can't get exactly what I want for the price I want to play, and I end up spending double what I planned. Assuming I will spend double what I planned... what would you now suggest?

 

[Saurav]

Assuming I will spend double what I planned... what would you now suggest?

I know exactly how that goes
OK, so now we're talking $600, right? Some questions for you:
* Is this for music or HT? If both, what's the relative percentage of both?
* What amplification are you currently using? Would this be upgraded in the near future?
* What kind of music do you listen to? What kind of sound do you like from your speakers? Within reasonable limits, would you prefer bright and exciting, or mellow and laid-back?
* Could you describe your room - you mentioned concrete floors, what are the dimensions, how far into the room can you pull out your speakers (i.e., is there an S.O. who would object, or something like that)? Any wall hangings/area rugs/stuffed furniture?
* How much is bass important to you? Again, this goes back to the music vs. HT question and your musical tastes question. Are you a rap/hip-hop kind of a guy, a rock kind of a guy, an organ music kind of a guy? Or do you prefer acoustic music - jazz, etc.?
Oops, gotta go for a meeting!

 

[Danny Tse]

Saurav answered all your questions, Don!
I have to agree with accessment of the JBL S38. Very nice speakers, especially when you can pick them up at about $300.00/pair. In the JBL Studio Series, the S26 and the S38 have it all over the floor-standing models.

 

[John Garcia]

I know people have had poor luck with getting Paradigm dealers to go below MSRP, I guess I got lucky with that.

Search around. I found the minis for $285 for a short period from my local dealer. At an average price of $350, the Mini monitor would still be one of my top choices. Keep in mind the trade in policy for Paradigms... Titans and even Atoms are excellent speakers also. Atoms lack a bit of bass, but they are more tight sounding than the Titan. I still went with Titans though.
I am personally not a fan of the sound of Energy speakers either. Polks are fine, but I feel the Paradigms are a better speaker for the price, with the exception that you can easily get the Polks shipped. I would definitely take the Polks over JBLs also.
Let me throw in another one: NHT. Can be a bit pricey, but with the right sub, these are very impressive little speakers.

 

[DonH]

Well... I guess I would be willing to go up to about 500 if I really had to. Jeeez... I am not a wealthy man. To answer your questions...
* Is this for music or HT? If both, what's the relative percentage of both?
Probably 60% music/40% DVD watching.
* What amplification are you currently using? Would this be upgraded in the near future?
I have a very lame, very cheap, JVC RX-884V that I have had for 3 years and can't afford to get rid of right now. Obviously I am not quite up to audiophile status.
* What kind of music do you listen to? What kind of sound do you like from your speakers? Within reasonable limits, would you prefer bright and exciting, or mellow and laid-back?
I listen to anything from what in my opinion would be hard rock/alternative to easy listening sort of stuff like Enya. I like clear acoustic guitar sounds. Would not mind listening to some bluegrass on them.
* Could you describe your room - you mentioned concrete floors, what are the dimensions, how far into the room can you pull out your speakers (i.e., is there an S.O. who would object, or something like that)? Any wall hangings/area rugs/stuffed furniture?
The room I am in is about 550 square feet with concrete floors, and 10 foot ceilings which are also concrete. Regular drywall on 3 walls, with floor to ceiling glass running along the 4th. Stuffed couch and 2 chairs. Significant other would not be too cool on having the speakers away from the walls really.
* How much is bass important to you? Again, this goes back to the music vs. HT question and your musical tastes question. Are you a rap/hip-hop kind of a guy, a rock kind of a guy, an organ music kind of a guy? Or do you prefer acoustic music - jazz, etc.?
I do like bass, but it is not the most important sound to me in music. Peter Gabriel has a few bassy songs that I like to listen to, but I am not pumping out NWA's Straight Outta Compton too often... although once in a while a little Beastie Boys bass does me nicely.
Thanks for your input.

 

[Mike Voigt]

There have been some outstanding recommendations in this thread, really. The Monitors are excellent speakers.
I have a matched set of NHT SuperOnes - at $175, they are a bargain, IMHO. Matched with a good sub (I use an SVS 16-46CS powered by a Samson S700 - pretty decent

) they are imperceptible when they need to be - and there with authority when they need to be.
What I like about them - and this is of course purely personal preference - is that they are so damn neutral across the spectrum (variance less than 1dB across 57Hz - 20kHz, ergo no coloration) that I get to hear what was recorded. It has made some of my CDs and LPs sing - and others sound like total junk. But I like that - it allows me to pick and choose excellent recordings.
I understand the nOrh speakers are equal if not better in performance - especially when teamed with an SVS. They would be speakers I would look at if I were to replace mine.
Mike