Hello,

I bought a stereo last year and already I want to upgrade. I need some guidance though. I'm 21 yrs. old and a big fan of Hifi. I read the magazines every month and just love listening to music. I listen to R&B, Hip-Hop and Reggae

I'll start with my current setup:

Focal JMLab Chorus 707 "S" Bookshelf Speakers
Roksan Kandy MkIII Integrated Amplifier
PS Audio Prelude Speaker wire
Black Rhodium Interconenct

Now the source is an external soundcard for my laptop (Xitel Hifi link PRO). I know that this is not great, but it's really convinent (I live off Napster, the music download service)

Here is where the problem lies:

Though I am throughly satisfied with my speakers, I know they don't have the resolution and clarity of some slighty more expensive speakers. However, they have a big 7" cone and really have a great grip on the lower frequencies. In light of the music I listen to, I NEED those low end dynamics.

I listened to a great pair of speakers last year when I was shopping, (Epos M5) and was blown away by the sheer amounts of detail on offer. However these were relatively small speakers, and did not offer the bass I required.

Which of the following should I do?

-Buy a new pair of better bookshelves that offer a sufficient amount of bass.

-Buy new bookshelves that may not necessairly have all the bass I need (but offer better detail, resolution, and soundstaging than current speakers), but also purchase a subwoofer (I understand that REL acoustics make good, MUSICAL subwoofers, though I do like the small form factor of some of their american counterparts, I.E. Definitive Technologies SuperCube series and Bob Carvers Sunfire Series)

As far as price goes, I wouldn't want to spend more than 1000 CDN on the upgrade. (plus the money for the sale of my JMLabs.)

Finally, if you suggest option 2, which combination subwoofer/speakers would you recommend?

Sorry for the long post, I just wanted to be through.
I noticed that there is a similar post (Bookshelves of Floorstanders) but I NEED bookshelves. I look forward to hearing your suggestions, cgII