questions for the Dynausticly inclined

[nusiclover]

ok, so the invented word may be cheesy, but my question is aything but. I purchased last week a piar of 52se's. But, they are on their way from denamark and for the time being i was lent a pair of 52. Priorly I decided on the 52se over the bw 705. Anyways, i have been unimpressed by the 52's most of last week. but, then i moved them closed to the wall, further from my ear and found the base and soundfield was better. But, my gf still thinks we could have more bass. I dont disagree, especially on movies. (Music is my number ONE priority though.) So, staying at the $1400 range, are there other speakers i should i consider? What about say the audience 62,72. and, WHAT are the main differences between a two way (52se) a 2.5 way (62) and a three way (72). THis will be helpful. Thanks a lot.

thanks for helping. also, what center can i use with the 52se since the tweeter is somewhat different.

[NickWH]

...It is cheesy.

What are you using for amplification? For source? Cables? Speaker Stands? The 52SE should sound better than anything in the Audience lineup except maybe the 82. The components in the SE are borrowed from higher-end models. None of this is going to mean anything to you unless the rest of your system is up to snuff.

[nusiclover]

...It is cheesy.

What are you using for amplification? For source? Cables? Speaker Stands? The 52SE should sound better than anything in the Audience lineup except maybe the 82. The components in the SE are borrowed from higher-end models. None of this is going to mean anything to you unless the rest of your system is up to snuff.

thanks for responding. Ok, i have a Marantz6400 av receiver (100wattX6, 8ohm) The source (for now) is a cheapo toshiba dvd. All cables are TARA LABS. Also, I am convinced that the 52SE are the best in Audience line up after my visit to my dealer today. However, now they have a used pair of Contour T2.5 on sale for $2,400 and it seems like for a thousand bucks more i am getting 4 times the speaker. I dont know what to do. Can you help??? Btw, thanks for your opinions.

[NickWH]

I hate to break this to you, but using these speakers with a mid-fi AV receiver is a waste. You will never realize the full potential of the loudspeakers with these electronics. What I don't understand is the price differential between your gear and your speakers. Why spend so much on the speakers?

This is all moot of course unless you plan on upgrading your receiver (already sounds like you are upgrading the source). But if you intend to drive 6 Dynaudio speakers with this receiver, I think you are going to be dissappointed. The low impedence of the speakers, the lack of current from the amps in the receiver, will likely result in lackluster sound at best, and an overheating, shutdown situation from the Marantz at worst.

You may be thinking you are not prepared to spend a lot of money on electronics right now. You could try to return/cancel your order, or sell the speakers for minimal loss on Audiogon. There are plenty of excellent speakers that will excel when paired with the Marantz (it's not a bad receiver by any means, but it's all relative...). Good matches with the Maranz include any of the mid/entry level speakers from: KEF, Mission, Epos, NHT, Monitor Audio, and the list goes on.

If you have your heart set on the Dynaudio's, I would suggest seperates if you are serious about HT. If you are mainly interested in two-channel, a high quality integrated amp will fit the bill. I went down this road last year, when I tried Dynaudio speakers with an H/K receiver. I never got past the two channels. The receiver sounded OK, but I knew I could do much better. My focus was on the music (rarely watch DVD's), so I wanted to try the high end out and purchased an intregrated. To sum up, I don't miss HT at all.

Let me know if you have anymore questions.

[nusiclover]

I hate to break this to you, but using these speakers with a mid-fi AV receiver is a waste. You will never realize the full potential of the loudspeakers with these electronics. What I don't understand is the price differential between your gear and your speakers. Why spend so much on the speakers?

This is all moot of course unless you plan on upgrading your receiver (already sounds like you are upgrading the source). But if you intend to drive 6 Dynaudio speakers with this receiver, I think you are going to be dissappointed. The low impedence of the speakers, the lack of current from the amps in the receiver, will likely result in lackluster sound at best, and an overheating, shutdown situation from the Marantz at worst.

You may be thinking you are not prepared to spend a lot of money on electronics right now. You could try to return/cancel your order, or sell the speakers for minimal loss on Audiogon. There are plenty of excellent speakers that will excel when paired with the Marantz (it's not a bad receiver by any means, but it's all relative...). Good matches with the Maranz include any of the mid/entry level speakers from: KEF, Mission, Epos, NHT, Monitor Audio, and the list goes on.

If you have your heart set on the Dynaudio's, I would suggest seperates if you are serious about HT. If you are mainly interested in two-channel, a high quality integrated amp will fit the bill. I went down this road last year, when I tried Dynaudio speakers with an H/K receiver. I never got past the two channels. The receiver sounded OK, but I knew I could do much better. My focus was on the music (rarely watch DVD's), so I wanted to try the high end out and purchased an intregrated. To sum up, I don't miss HT at all.

Let me know if you have anymore questions.

Yeah, ive thought about this plenty. And i have two solutions, either i will start with the marantz (which i got for 560) then sell it a year from now and go into separates, or i will get a Rotel 1066 now. But im not even so sure that the rotel will make a huge difference since i am still considering av receivers. What do you think? Also, what do you think about adding a power amp to my Marantz 6400? And, back to my prior question, what do you know of the Contour T2.5 Like you i also prioritize music, but i do like to watch movies, but my HT setup is more for the films score.
Again, thanks

[NickWH]

Well, the way I see it you have 3 options. You could keep your Marantz and use the pre-outs to add external amplifiers to "beef" it up. The downside is that you are still limited sound quality-wise by the pre-amp in the receiver. Or, you could upgrade to the most brutish of all HT receivers, a B&K AVR 507 or 707. This would probably be your best cost/performance ratio. Last, you could ditch it all and go straight seperates with a pre/pro and amp combination (Plinius, Simaudio come to mind in the amp dept.). Obviously, this would be the most costly but would yield the most sonic reward along with the ultimate in upgrade flexibility.

I wouldn't waste my time with the Rotel (or NAD or Arcam for that matter). It's a nice receiver for sure, but not a worthwhile upgrade in your situation. As for the Contour series, again you are biting off more speaker than your system can chew. Speakers are considered by many to be the most critical in the audio chain, however, I think you are taking this a bit too far. Source and amplification equipment all play their part. I would suggest you quit while your ahead. Dynaudio speakers in particular, are low-sensivity, current hungry, low-impedence speakers that like to be played loudly and perform best when out away from walls and corners. The tweeters will put your downstream components under a microscope, and while not as bad as a metal dome tweeter, can bring out all the weaknesses that you couldn't hear before.

When you put together a nice complete system which synergizes well you hopefully won't be looking to upgrade anymore. That, in a nutshell, is what defines a successful hobbyist. I would decide on a stable pre/amp situation first (the foundation of your system), then concern yourself with the other pieces.

[nusiclover]

Well, the way I see it you have 3 options. You could keep your Marantz and use the pre-outs to add external amplifiers to "beef" it up. The downside is that you are still limited sound quality-wise by the pre-amp in the receiver. Or, you could upgrade to the most brutish of all HT receivers, a B&K AVR 507 or 707. This would probably be your best cost/performance ratio. Last, you could ditch it all and go straight seperates with a pre/pro and amp combination (Plinius, Simaudio come to mind in the amp dept.). Obviously, this would be the most costly but would yield the most sonic reward along with the ultimate in upgrade flexibility.

I wouldn't waste my time with the Rotel (or NAD or Arcam for that matter). It's a nice receiver for sure, but not a worthwhile upgrade in your situation. As for the Contour series, again you are biting off more speaker than your system can chew. Speakers are considered by many to be the most critical in the audio chain, however, I think you are taking this a bit too far. Source and amplification equipment all play their part. I would suggest you quit while your ahead. Dynaudio speakers in particular, are low-sensivity, current hungry, low-impedence speakers that like to be played loudly and perform best when out away from walls and corners. The tweeters will put your downstream components under a microscope, and while not as bad as a metal dome tweeter, can bring out all the weaknesses that you couldn't hear before.

When you put together a nice complete system which synergizes well you hopefully won't be looking to upgrade anymore. That, in a nutshell, is what defines a successful hobbyist. I would decide on a stable pre/amp situation first (the foundation of your system), then concern yourself with the other pieces.

WOW. thanks so much for your input. ok, what do you think about rotel separates then (im trying to stick with what mny dealer stocks since we have a consistent relationship) Also, i dont really listen to music all that loud. I like music, yes, but its hard to crank it up in an apartment. Would B&W 705 save my position. I know they are not as sensitive as Dyns and run at 8ohm. And, the metal tweeter may be good in low volume situations. Although id prefer to stay with dynaudio from what ive heard. But, i may consider using the $1000 difference in the 2.5 and stick with the 52se and use the moeny for separates (ie. returnin the marantz and applying a total of $1,560 towards separates). Perhaps this will be my best audio decision. Although i am impressed with the build of the T2.5 although i havent listened to them because i dont want to know what im missing. Again, your inputs would be most appreciated. thanks.

[NickWH]

I think that Rotel seperates are a definite step-up from the Marantz receiver. I also think that when you close your eyes, you aren't going to miss much listening to the 52 SE versus the Contour 2.5T. I think you are getting too wrapped up in how the speakers look.

The B&W speakers are very nice. However, if you like the Dynaudio house sound you may not like the B&W's. You will have to make this determination. I can say that (and most will agree) Rotel and B&W make a great combination sonically. The B&W's are higher sensivity (which = more volume per watt) and will likely sound better at low volumes. The front ported design will likely be more "apartment friendly" where space is a concern. They are rated for 8 ohms but the impedence does swing down around 4 ohms at certain frequencies, so take that rating with a grain of salt. I would audition this combination critically.

If you go back to the Dynaudio system, see what else your dealer has to offer in seperates. Rotel will cut the mustard but will not be the last word in powering these speakers. If you drop any names here I will try to help (if I have any experience with them).

Good luck.

[Worf101]

ok, so the invented word may be cheesy, but my question is aything but. I purchased last week a piar of 52se's. But, they are on their way from denamark and for the time being i was lent a pair of 52. Priorly I decided on the 52se over the bw 705. Anyways, i have been unimpressed by the 52's most of last week. but, then i moved them closed to the wall, further from my ear and found the base and soundfield was better. But, my gf still thinks we could have more bass. I dont disagree, especially on movies. (Music is my number ONE priority though.) So, staying at the $1400 range, are there other speakers i should i consider? What about say the audience 62,72. and, WHAT are the main differences between a two way (52se) a 2.5 way (62) and a three way (72). THis will be helpful. Thanks a lot.

thanks for helping. also, what center can i use with the 52se since the tweeter is somewhat different.

There's this new thing they've invented, it's called a subwoofer.. perhaps this might be an inexpensive stop-gap till you can upgrade your amp and sources... I've never known Dane's to be big on the bass end anyway.. more smooth than anything else...

Da Worfster

[nusiclover]

what do you know of Sunfire electronics?

[NickWH]

Sorry, can't help you there.

[nusiclover]

Musical Fidelity? or, how about recommending a few separates that i can search for used or new integrated since i cant spend more than $1600.
Thank you for helping me aspire to have a good sounding system.

[NickWH]

Used integrateds I would look for:

Plinius 8100 or or 8200 (MkI or MkII) (recently discontinued models)
Simaudio Moon I-3 or I-5
Classe CAP-101 or CAP-151 (CAP-100 or CAP-150, older models)
Musical Fidelity A300 or A3.2
Arcam DIVA A85, A80 or A75
NAD S300 (a high-end NAD)

Likewise, seperates from any of these companies should do well by you. If you will be satisfied with 2-channel, don't be afraid of integrateds, they are an excellent value for the money. For seperates, you could easily spend that amount on the preamp/processor alone. You could look at Parasound, Adcom, and Outlaw Audio for an idea on the monetary "barriers to entry."

[F1]

There's this new thing they've invented, it's called a subwoofer.. perhaps this might be an inexpensive stop-gap till you can upgrade your amp and sources... I've never known Dane's to be big on the bass end anyway.. more smooth than anything else...

Da Worfster

Yes I second this one. The problem is in the bass department and a subwoofer will fit the bill nicely. Another thing, before you even think about upgrading your amp or your speaker you better check your room first. If your room is problematic or too 'live' you better cure it first. Upgrading to the best speaker/electronics won't solve the problem.

[Jack]

what do you know of Sunfire electronics?

nusiclover....I just upgraded from a NAD integrated amp to the Sunfire Symphonic Reference amp/pre-amp (250 watts/ch), and am quite happy with the sound. Check out underwoodhifi.com, Walter's got this combo for $1380. Separately, the components would cost you $2800-3500. I got my local dealer to match the price and jumped on it. I actually have very little knowledge of mid-fi/hi-fi, but after doing alot of listening, reading, and asking questions here and elsewhere, I'm quite happy with my setup. That being said, I'd recommend at least doing a little research on the Sunfire lineup. Good luck....Jack