Floor speakers for $600 (1 Viewer)

[Bry_DD]

definitely check out the Axiom's M60. I have them match with a denon 3801 and they sound really good.

 

[Shane Martin]

I hear Circuit City is blowing out Polks. IF so that's not a bad option for the amount of money you are going to spend.

Me personally I'd rather try go listening to them than taking a shot at internet speakers. If you don't care for the sound, you would be eating shipping which is lost $$ that you won't be spending on your new speakers. Every dollar counts somedays..

 

[Wayne Ernst]

I hear Circuit City is blowing out Polks.

Actually, Circuit City is clearing out the old Polks to clear room for the new Polks.

In regards to buying the Athena speakers from Best Buy, I guess it would be nice if they were to send some of those 10% off coupons out soon so that purchasers can save a bit more money on these speakers.

 

[Oachalon]

right now i think i have my eye on the axiom m60ti. If i can get those for around $600 ill pick those up. Im happy with the b stock. Is there going to be a big difference between the older polk and the newer ones, or is it basically a cosmetic change.

 

[Michael R Price]

You built the subwoofer... Why not build the other speakers too? Adire is one of many companies that produce good kit designs. I have their Kit281s which cost $450 to build and they sound pretty good. "Pretty" is relative, and $300-500 kits are probably better than most $1k-range tower speakers.

 

[Oachalon]

im thinking about it. We will see. I was also wondering what do you guys think of dcm. I would get their big floorstanders. Didnt sound and vision mag give their theater system a good review?

 

[Mike_Gr]

I want to add a few thoughts:

The M60 is an excellent speaker. Does music and HT equally well. Outstanding value, IMO. Customer service is top notch.

The Athenas are decent; but you can do better for the money.

Try to get yourself into a few local hi-fi shops and do some browsing on your own. Listen to everything you can find within your budget. Don't limit yourself to only Best Buy....you can find gear within your budget at the local hi-fi shops.

One further recommendation: Locate a Wharfedale dealer near you and then audition the Diamond series. Specifically, give the Diamond 8.3 and 8.4 floorstander a listen. These speakers are excellent at their price point.

 

[MikeLi]

Dont let shipping charges influence your decision. Remember your going to have these speakers a long time and your going to want to make sure you got the right ones. I really do get suprised at how many folks complain about a few bucks for shipping when in the end it will probably cost you less even if you have to ship several brands back. Maybe if your thinking of upgrading again soon I can understand but if your into getting a system that will be around for any time at all you owe it to yourself to try some of the internet brands.

 

[John Robert]

Even though BB does a terrible job displaying them, give the Athena as-f2's an in-home listen. I have them in my 2nd system and really like them. You can also get some feedback on them in the current Stereophile "Recommended Components" issue. BB will give you a 30 day return on them and I get 10% off coupons from them all the time. They would be $540+tax with discount...

 

[Michael R Price]

I will offer a comparison to try and sway you towards DIY speakers.

Someone on this form (I forgot exactly who) stated that they prefer the GR A/V-2 ($300-450 depending on options) over PSB Stratus Golds and the Paradigm Studio 100s. Those are very highly rated, $2000 class floorstanding speakers. We know that other DIY kits are of similar quality.

A review of the Kit281 with good measurements can be found here: http://www.adireaudio.com/Files/AX-KIT281Review.pdf

The kits are such good values because you build the cabinet. In addition to profit and overhead the big tower cabinets, especially those made with real wood, make up most of the cost of the speakers. It is a good deal of work, but it's fun and you get wonderful sound for a good price.

 

[Oachalon]

decisons, decisions. The price for shipping back items is no problem if i dont like the speaker. My uncle is in charge of the family business, and he will ship stuff for me for free. He ships everywhere everyday so its no problem for him. Im still looking at all different kind of speakers. I wish there was an axiom dealer by me to listen to them. I went and listened to some paradigm. They are nice. Now im thinking about building some fronts also. I dont know. The only problem with building the speakers is my parents. They dont care that i build them but i usually mess up the garage. When i was building the box for the tempest i had stuff everywhere and i kicked my moms car out of the garage for a couple days. Thats the only part they didnt like. Those adire audio towers look nice, and they would probably match up pretty well with my tempest. I will also check out Wharfedale. Im waiting for an email back from axiom seeing if they have any b stock of the m60ti. I might just have to go a little bit past my budget. Right now i have around $600 cash that i can use towards my speakers. My plan was not to touch my bank account. I have around 1300 in there, so if i have to take out $100 to get the speakers that make me happy i will. It sucks not having a lot of money, lol. I also looked at the boston acoustics, they look nice, but i want to hear them first. Right now im at school waiting for my next class, so im going to search and see if there are some hifi places that carry some equipment.

 

[sheldon M.]

I think the Athenas sound really good. For the money there just isn't anything close. Check out this review http://www.goodsound.com/equipment/athena_asf2.htm

 

[ChrisLazarko]

I'd have to say either Athena or Klipsch. Personally I am a big Klipsch fan myself, I just love there sound, but people say they don't sound as good for music, I don't think anything else comes close to them with music but just take a look around... People will give you advice all day around so just see what you like. Try out all the speakers in your price range you think you might be interested in and listen to them for a short while.

 

[Greg Thomas]

Oachalon,

In addition to the Axiom and Athena speakers, take a look at the
Monitor Audio Bronze B4 floorstanding speakers. I've heard these at Good Guys and they're very good. Cost is $599 pr and good guys has 10% off deals every so often. They're not available online, just in the stores. Not sure where you live so you may have to find a dealer near you.

Here's a review of the B4 floorstanding speaker

If you like Polk Audio our local Circuit City and Fry's have the RTi70 around $360pr and RTi100 roughly $450pr. You might even be able to pick up the RTi150 around $600. They're clearing them out for the new Polk line. I'm sure volume is pretty limited by now.

 

[Oachalon]

Thanks guys for all the help. I think im pretty much set on the axiom m60ti. If i dont like the sound of them i will ship them back. From what i hear about them though i will probably like them. Greg there is no good guys close to me so i wouldnt be able to get those. They look very nice though.

 

[Oachalon]

alright i was looking around and i saw the polk rti150's. How would these compare to the axiom m60ti. I also found the polks for around $600 shipped at a place called brandnamez.com. I know the circuit city by me doesnt have any. Is this a good place and if i purchased the speakers from there would they have a warranty from polk.

 

[Michael R Price]

I know you're looking towards Axioms but... In case you feel like saving money (oh, damn, this is a good price): http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...hreadid=160604

Maybe I forgot to add that those are comparable to well-reviewed $2000 Paradigm and B&W speakers? It's a lot of time to build them, but you can see what the benefit is.

 

[Joe Thompson]

I would have to agree with Stephen with this one.....while I havent heard the other "internet" speakers.....the Swans Diva 4.1 sounds like a great deal at 499. I have the Diva 5.1's & they are incredible for the price....& they look great too....

Joe

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

The Diva 5.1's are also available in the expensive rosewood finish slightly used for $525 on audiogon. Might be worth looking at if you like that look.

 

[Oachalon]

i ordered my axiom m60ti's yesterday. Thats what im going for now. If i dont like them they have a 30 day return, but i have a feeling that i will like them.