cheap but decent tower speakers? (1 Viewer)

[eddieZEN]

> For room filling capability, the 902 and 904 are going to be very similar, and possibly not sufficient for that size room, however since this is for surrounds, it may not be as critical. One thing you have to note though, even with the included spikes, the 904s are short, so they may not work well as surrounds.

Actually I was looking at the 904s as mains; I would then move my MS05s into the back as surrounds. Right now they're okay as mains except at volumes above -10.

So you think that having a third driver on the towers makes a big difference? That's where I'm leaning towards right now, though looks like it's going to push me into the $400-600 range. That's why I'm thinking of just putting the MS05s onto stands as a temporary tie-over.

I'm located in Houston.

 

[John Garcia]

I've compared dual mid to single mid speakers a number of times, always with the same result - the speaker with the additional driver filled the room better. I've compared Paradigm Mini Monitors to Monitor 5s (v2 both drivers were identical), 20s vs 40s (v2 and v3), and my current speakers GR Research A/V-2s and A/V-1s, which use identical drivers except the 2s have dual 5-1/4 mids.

For the MS-05s, I'd just get whatever stand that cost the least and looks like it won't fall over and be done with it then.

 

[eddieZEN]

OK, that's what I was leaning towards too.

 

[Greg Thomas]

Eddie,

The AS-F1 is has one 8 inch woofer while the AS-F2 has two 8 inch woofers. http://athenaspeakers.com/modelASF2.htm

Many great reviews on these speakers. Originally they were $599/pr but Best Buy has been lowering the price and then Audio Advisor lowered the price to $399pr incl shipping. I've read that others have been getting him as low as $359pr from them. http://audioadvisor.com/. Might be able to negotiate a lower price on the phone.

http://www.stereophile.com//loudspea...645/index.html

http://www.goodsound.com/equipment/athena_asf2.htm

I'm hoping to find some incredible clearance price at a Best Buy but every store I've visited doesn't carry them anymore. I might have missed out.

 

[eddieZEN]

Greg,

Yeah, those Athenas are very appealing. One thing I can't seem to figure out though is whether they are bi-wireable. The owner's manual I downloaded seemed to show only 2 posts and no mention of bi-wiring, which surprised me considering that this is supposed to be Athena's flagship speaker.

The bi-wiring makes a big improvement in sound, I've been told.

 

[John Garcia]

Bi-wiring won't make a huge difference. The 904s and 902s are biwirable. I've done it with the 902s, and while there was a difference, it wasn't anything earth shattering.

 

[Max F]

Man, don't worry about bi-wiring. Much more important things to worry about, like how they sound, cost, etc.

There's plenty of threads on bi-wiring. Most of the more rational (i.e., engineer) types think that bi-wiring is a waste of time. Bi-amping is a different story.

 

[eddieZEN]

> There's plenty of threads on bi-wiring. Most of the more rational (i.e., engineer) types think that bi-wiring is a waste of time. Bi-amping is a different story

Whoa. I'm a little confused here; I thought bi-wiring and bi-amping were the same thing?

My Onkyo has a second room capability, and what I was thinking was to use the room "B" speaker outputs to run say the woofer and the standard "A" output to run the midrange and tweeter.

Thought this might make a difference since Onkyo is known for overstating its power ratings; my 601 is listed at 85wpc but closer to 60-65 might be more accurate in multichannel.

 

[John Garcia]

Using A-B speaker outputs would be bi-wiring because they are run off the same amp, meaning you would effectively not be increasing the amount of available power to the speaker, just essentially increasing the gauge of wire to that speaker.

Bi-amping means having separate, dedicated amp channels for each driver.

 

[eddieZEN]

> Using A-B speaker outputs would be bi-wiring because they are run off the same amp,

Huh? I thought that a 6.1 receiver has 6 individual amps, and the extra room capability is basically an extra amp? Or am I a sucker for believing the "six discreet amplifiers" description/blurb on my receiver?

 

[John Garcia]

Some receivers with A-B capability are simply using one amp channel - meaning A&B are not discrete from each other. This is how my PM7000 integrated works. Some older, pro-logic receivers actually did this for the surrounds as well. Some newer receivers allow you to "reasign" unused surround channels to a different zone, but I thought the 601 did not support a powered second room, only passing signal via a set of preamp outputs (I'll check the manual). In any case, with a 6.1 receiver, you would still not be able to use a single channel to power both the R&L speaker in stereo, you would need 7 (assuming you run a center channel in a 5.1 config).

I recently installed the 601 with the 904s, 905c and 903 surrounds for a customer and it sounded very good.

 

[eddieZEN]

I looked at my 601 manual and it does support a powered second room but only in stereo, so I'd get the bi-amp benefit only with stereo mode for the mains. What I am not clear on is how to have the zone2 volume synchronize with the zone1 (main) volume. The manual doesn't seem to have any instructions on bi-amping.

> I recently installed the 601 with the 904s, 905c and 903 surrounds for a customer and it sounded very good.

So would you say that the MS-904 at $230/pr. shipped is as good or better than the Infinity Primus 360 ($410/pr. shipped) especially for as large a space as mine?

Have you ever worked with the Wharfedale Diamond 8.3 or 8.4? The 8.3 is about the same price as the 904, the 8.4 is about the same price as the Primus 360.

Since I have a Wharfedale center I keep getting told that I should stick to the same manufacturer or fork out still more dough for the same make center as whatever mains I buy...I'm wondering if that's the kind of thing that only an audiophile would notice or if it really makes a noticeable difference even to a plebe like me. What do you think?

 

[John Garcia]

I say match the front three at least, so if you've heard them and like them, that would be the way to go. For music I'd say it's a given, but even for movies, it's worth it to me. I use 3 identical speakers up front.

I just noticed that both the 8.3 and 8.4 are a rather low 86dB sensitivity, that might be a reason for concern.

 

[Muhammed]

Eddie i've got the Onkyo 600, maybe it was just my ears, but when I A/B'd some speakers a while back, whatever was on the B set of speakers would sound worse. Bi-wiring won't get you much, but b-amping might.

I'd second the recommendation for the Athenas. They're made by the same company that makes Mirage and Energy, although the Athena are much less expensive. My understanding is that the speakers are designed by the same company, but they use an offshore manufacturing facility to cut the costs. For the money they make great floorstanders.

I'd also look at Polk, since they have several affordable floorstanders, personally, i'd lean a bit towards the Athenas. See if Best Buy still has any, so that you can listen to them, and then listen to the Polks, and anything else you're considering. In the end, whatever sounds best to you is most important.

 

[Nick Bum]

I listened to a set of Athinas at electronic express when i was browsing for a christmas gift for my dad and they did not sound too bad. And i have noticed on my reciever as well that the b ch does not sound as good as A. They are both full surround on both ch but a sounds a lot better than b.

 

[eddieZEN]

Muhammed & Nick,

I was looking at my 601 manual and it did say that the B channel only gets an analog not digital signal, maybe that makes a difference if your components are using digital instead of analog connections.

I still have the RCA plugs, haven't gotten around to figuring out and buying what digital cables to get yet! Not sure how much of a sound difference they'd really make, considering my el cheapo system and primitive ears, LOL.

 

[AzeemE]

Hi Eddy,
I think your assumption about the advertising in these magazines is definitely spot on. It's a huge factor, because it would mean free advertising to a company that pays nothing to them. I would hope there are still magazines out there with true home theater enthusiasm, but even so, I doubt they would randomly just select Fluance for inclusion in their home theater bout. Fact of the matter is that Fluance speakers are not actively marketed, and while there are a select few in internet-land that are aware of what Fluance offers and its quality, it's still an obscure product.

I want to direct you to a couple links I had of reviews, but I'm not able to do until I've made 15 posts!

subzero.com and audioreview.com both have some amateurish reviews of the SX-HTB package.

 

[eddieZEN]

I've read the audioreview stuff before, it's like reading Amazon.com and especially Circuit City reviews, you have no idea if they're written by real consumers or by the marketing department of the manufacturer.

If Fluance were really such a great product especially at their shockingly low prices, I have a very hard time believing that they would go so totally unnoticed in the professional hi-fi and home theater magazines like that.

As for subzero.com I couldn't find anything about Fluance, it looks like a kitchen appliance website.

 

[Jeremy_R]

Use this code: HT12950 at audioadvisor.com to get a pair of the Athena AS-F2s for $349.99 delivered.

They have a 30 day satisfaction guarantee too.

 

[dan-0]

Lots of talk about new speakers at Best Buy. Not that this isn't a good way to go, but there are a lot options at the $350 price range in the used speaker market as well.

Consider for instance a pair of NHT Super Two's. Can be had for $300-$350 used here, ebay, and the 'gon.

Before rushing to Best Buy I think you need to consider your options in the used speaker market.

just IMO