Newbie ?? About "Low Volume" Speakers..is there such a thing?

i just bought an HK AVR 235 receiver..

my condo is built out of cardboard and i just cannot crank up the sound at all

can anyone recommend speakers that go well with the 235 and are especially good at lower volumes for classical music?

is there even such a thing as "low volume" speakers

thanks for any replies

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rubicon

i just bought an HK AVR 235 receiver..

my condo is built out of cardboard and i just cannot crank up the sound at all

can anyone recommend speakers that go well with the 235 and are especially good at lower volumes for classical music?

is there even such a thing as "low volume" speakers

thanks for any replies

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Rubicon either you turn your volume control down or invest in a good pair of headphone .Thats the problem living in apartment ,townhouse ect.I even have to put volume down at home when wife as migraine headhache (cant even play sbwoofer ) Pat.P

yes you can buy speakers that I own or others from them, or try electrostats -- none of it however is particularly cheap -- thus headphones would be a great altenrative -- the Senn 580 is reasonably priced and is an excellent performer -- used in recording studios for classical music to boot. The AKG 1000 headphones would be terrific if you had a tube, better still SE, amplifier.

Go with Kick -Butt Stax electrostatic headphones. Better than many speakers :D

-Flo

thanks all
there seems to be general agreement that headphones are the best choice

i see that the ones mentioned are corded, is it at all possible that wireless headphones can deliver a decent sound (i suspect not) ?

thanks

Im not a big fan of headphones- i dont like the way they feel, sound and you cant share them with anyone. Id rather just try and find speakers that work well in small rooms, and at low listening levels.

Headphones can be comfy and sound to die for. Look into Stax Electrostatic headphones.... :-)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rubicon

i just bought an HK AVR 235 receiver..

my condo is built out of cardboard and i just cannot crank up the sound at all

can anyone recommend speakers that go well with the 235 and are especially good at lower volumes for classical music?

is there even such a thing as "low volume" speakers

thanks for any replies

---

You might look on the net for a pair of the old Kef 104 or 104aB speakers. They did very well at low volumes and they do very well for classical music. The Kef 104 and 104aB are listening window speakers, but the window isn't too narrow, and the response is very flat within that window. They do have useful bass down to about 30 Hz, though, so the neighbors may still hear it. They should have their foam grilles because otherwise the cabinet reflections will affect the image somewhat.

i am going to go with the senn 590

the reviews for sennheiser seem to be unanimously excellent

i looked at the stax but they are a little out of my league
saw one pair for 600 and another for 3000...they must be pretty good

this will tide me over until i face the prospect of buying speakers

i have to say as a total newbie in this field..audiophiles kick videophiles butts

i thought videophiles were into their gear but man!...nothing like i see when i look at high end audio gear...

i guess if you never hear it, you don't know what you are missing

thanks all

They play well loud too. I've had them up to about 50watts using a HK 3380 stereo receiver. Very detailed but not harsh. Surprisingly good bass from such a small speaker too. And the price is right. Regards, Paul.

http://home.stx.rr.com/poneal/word_docs/RS150S-8.doc

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rubicon

i am going to go with the senn 590

the reviews for sennheiser seem to be unanimously excellent

i looked at the stax but they are a little out of my league
saw one pair for 600 and another for 3000...they must be pretty good

this will tide me over until i face the prospect of buying speakers

i have to say as a total newbie in this field..audiophiles kick videophiles butts

i thought videophiles were into their gear but man!...nothing like i see when i look at high end audio gear...

i guess if you never hear it, you don't know what you are missing

thanks all

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If it's not too late consider the 580 over the 590. The 580 is considered in most quarters to be better than the 590. It depends - I find the 590 a little brite. The 580 and 600 are almost the same headphones sonically. I compared the Senn 600 to the Stax Lambda Pro(it's funny because a headphone reviewer on the 600 had the lambda pro for years and felt the same way - coincidence) and I agree that the Senns are a better so you can save money with the Senns anyway and get better sound -- though Stax's top models are better they also cost more than some cars.

The AKG 1000 is really really good if you run a SET amplifier -- the cans really are good at showing up the SS lack of linearity...If I had heard the AKG 1000 with a SET amp the first time around I would have bought it over my HD 600s -- live and learn.

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Originally Posted by RGA

. . . really really good if you run a SET amplifier -- the cans really are good at showing up the SS lack of linearity....

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You really are funny sometimes!

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Originally Posted by Pat D

You really are funny sometimes!

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I thought I was the only who noticed that... :D and I own those headphones but have no SET amplifier. :p

I think we should give RGA the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he could explain what he means by "linearity"...That's normally a term reserved for drivers, but perhaps it's worked its way over to ss amplifiers now too.

It has not worked it's way over -- if one understands the difference in class A amplification circuitry and class B push pull amplification circuitry one will know that class A is linear and class B and class A/B are not. It has been since the beginning of amplifier time.

Interestingly many SS headphone amps are class A as are most SS preamplifiers -- so there's more to it with tubes (not all tubes as many are PP). Which is why I prefer the A21a over most tube amps. In fact I have no idea that this is why it may just be a happy coincidence.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by rubicon

i am going to go with the senn 590

the reviews for sennheiser seem to be unanimously excellent

i looked at the stax but they are a little out of my league
saw one pair for 600 and another for 3000...they must be pretty good

this will tide me over until i face the prospect of buying speakers

i have to say as a total newbie in this field..audiophiles kick videophiles butts

i thought videophiles were into their gear but man!...nothing like i see when i look at high end audio gear...

i guess if you never hear it, you don't know what you are missing

thanks all

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Yeah, were pretty hardcore, arent we?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by RGA

It has not worked it's way over -- if one understands the difference in class A amplification circuitry and class B push pull amplification circuitry one will know that class A is linear and class B and class A/B are not. It has been since the beginning of amplifier time.

Interestingly many SS headphone amps are class A as are most SS preamplifiers -- so there's more to it with tubes (not all tubes as many are PP). Which is why I prefer the A21a over most tube amps. In fact I have no idea that this is why it may just be a happy coincidence.

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In theoretical terms they differ only with respect to crossover distortion, however there are other variables that affect the design and overall sound, I have a WAD tube headphone (similar topology to the AN OTO, pentodes wired in a triode configuration), it sounds nice and all, but my SS amplifier sounds better driving the AKG K1000, for that reason it has not been used for a while.