Infinity Speakers (1 Viewer)

[ChipD]

I recently demoed the Infinity Alpha 50 speakers along with an Alpha 37C center and Alpha surrounds (don't have the product numbers with me for the surrounds). I thought they sounded great, but I haven't read too much about Infinity. Also, I am just beginning to demo speakers (I'm a first time buyer) so I don't have much to compare them to (I also listened to definitive and klipsch). Any thoughts on Infinity, good or bad? If I like these, what else would I be interested in? I am planning to listen to B&W and NHT too. My price range is about $2000 (for 5.1), and I will listen to music and movies.

Also, does anyone have any recommendations for a sub? The salesman recommended a Sunfire sub (about $1000). This sub was very small and wouldn't take up much space. Any input would help.

Thanks!

 

[Ted Lee]

it sounds to me like you're doing the most critical thing when buying speakers. namely, that you're auditioning as many brands as you can. imo, that is a *key* issue that most people do not do.

would you buy your new car by test driving only one model? would you buy the very first house you toured? of course not...the same rule should apply to speakers.

listen to as many as you can...even if it's out of your price range. that way, you'll have an idea of what's available and will be able to make an informed decision.

also, please remember that the only person whose opinion matters is YOURS! if it sounds good to you, then that is all that matters.

all the speakers you named are good speakers. you should have no issues with any of them...

 

[JohnnyG]

Infinity is very well-known brand actually. If you like their sound, you might want to check out Polk Audio speakers as well.

 

[Justin]

Infinity *drools

I was at a stereo store the other day testing out speakers, I listened to some BOSE JBL INFINITY and YAMAHA. The infinity sets i looked at were very low priced and the sound coming from the "12 sub was totally mindblowing for the price range, I have heard My fathers audiophile friends comment on sunfire subwoofers In a very possitive way. Although I think if you are looking for a subwoofer, The best one i have listened to for roughly $1000 CDN was a Paradigm 12" 300watt Sub, Im not sure of the model name But it might be worth looking into If you can't find anything else to satisfy your 20hz cravings. All the luck to you man, The setup you mentioned will leave most others in dust. Enjoy

 

[Rory Buszka]

Sunfires are known for relatively sloppy, boomy bass. The Infinity sub you heard is probably a more decent reference for what a subwoofer should sound like. Bose speakers are very, very dumb and very, very overpriced. There should be laws that would make them very, very illegal because what the company does to promote the speakers with the public is very, very unethical, even if it is very, very effective.

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Hi Chip.

Asking which of X, Y, Z speakers is better is like asking which brand of beer or flavor of ice-cream is better. We each have our own taste. It's the same way with speakers. They each have a "flavor" and once I am used to mine, I wont like yours.

My best advice is to grab a favorite DVD movie and a favorite CD and use these for auditions. Listen to AM radio on the way to the auditions and listen to both your DVD and music on each speaker. Take notes and leave. Go back another day and audition again. The speaker for you is the one that impresses you on 2 separate trips, not just one.

And if there is a tie between some speakers, use the CD as the tie-breaker. DVD soundtracks are highly compressed and dont drive speakers the way music will. Music will show you things about a speaker that most DVD movies will not.

I have some opinions on the brands which I will share.

Klipsch - very good sound with a in-your-face flavor. They work well for Rock, Metal and action movies. Not as good for Jazz, Clasical mellow sounds.

Infinity - Not as agressive as Klipsch, but not likely to cause ear-fatigue over long periods.

NHT - Getting into audiophile quality here. But these speakers need some extra power to make them sit up and sing. If you get these, plan on getting a receiver/amp at the higher-end of the scale.

The Canadian speakers like Paradigm, Energy, B&W are all great speaker lines. Twice I have sent people to audition Paradigm speakers, warning them to just audition, and they came back having purchased a set. (Either the speakers are very, very good or the local dealer is very good.) I'm not up on prices so I dont know if these would work for your budget, but they are worth a listen.

There are 2 notible sub manufacturers that have gotten a lot of press. One is SVS subs (look at the top of the Speakers and Subwoofers fourm for the link). These subs are not small, but do wonderful things with smooth, tight bass for about $650. The other is HSU Research another internet-only sub company.

Unlike regular speakers, you dont have to worry about blending the sub to the speakers. They DO take some adjustment, but you would never really swap between a $600 SVS and a $600 HSU unless you had very particular tastes. And then the difference would be nuance.

I own a SVS and think it's great. But HSU has a great reputation as well so I would not feel disapointed to put one of these in my room either.

Go to the Speakers fourm and search for "SVS" and "HSU". Be prepared for a LOT of positive responses for both.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

 

[RichD Davis]

Not to hijack this thread, but I was about to post something similar. Perhaps the reply would be beneficial to Chip as well.

I have a HK 630 on order and am looking to get my first set of surrounds, and I will be using them 60/40 classical music/HT.

Now I hear that particular speakers work well in combination with certain receivers, but not so with others. Any suggestions how I can overcome this, or if it is a real issue? Circuit City is listed by HK as the local store in my area, and I believe their selection is limited.

BTW, the limit is about 3k.

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Now I hear that particular speakers work well in combination with certain receivers, but not so with others

This is a bit of a myth. Some people have claimed some combinations are bad, but other issues are sometimes to blame.

The note above about NHT speakers is one type of problem. Someone gets NHT speakers and connects it up to a low-mid level receiver and it does not work so well. Then he buys a mid-high end receiver and notices a dramatic difference. So he blames the brand of the first receiver for the problem not realizing the power difference is the real issue.

Now there IS also a bit of truth. Many receivers will roll-off the higher frequency sounds that pass through them, just a bit at the higher ends. This is to avoid being called "Shrill" or "fatiguing". Yamaha receivers claim to have "Natural Sound" where they DONT roll off the higher frequencies and Yamaha now has a reputation of being a 'bright' receiver.

So one of the few bad combinations would be a Yamaha receiver, Klipsch speakers in a large room with bare-wood floors so it is very reflective. All 3 items are really bright so they add up.

I dont know of any issues with the HK line. My guess is you should find speakers that do well with classical/jazz music and just enjoy. Find a local dealer and get a 30 day return policy. Speakers always sound different in your home and good speaker stores know this and encourage the 30-day trial.

 

[Jack Briggs]

When you're asking for advice about a specific brand of speaker, please post in the Speakers/Subwoofers area. The Basics are is what the name suggests: asking the most basic of questions (i.e., "What's a subwoofer?").