Speaker for denon 3808ci

[catch_avs]

Hi,

I am newbie and bought a denon 3808ci now looking for matching speakers. I would be using it for 50/50 movies/music. Musical preference being rock/pop. I plan to have them in my living room which is 30x16x9ft(LxWxH) and want the speakers to be able to drive/fill them. I plan to get front and centers to start with and get the rest later. I have auditioned these as of now:
1) Monitor Audio RS6 & RS8
2) Martin Logan Preface
3) B&W 683, CM7
4) Definitive Technology BP7004
5) Klipsch Rf-87, RF-67

Please let me know your thought on these. Also should be looking at some others like paradigm/psb.

Also should I buy them new or used? My budget is not to exceed $2500 (for fronts and center)

thx,

[manlystanley]

Hi,

I am newbie and bought a denon 3808ci now looking for matching speakers. I would be using it for 50/50 movies/music. Musical preference being rock/pop. I plan to have them in my living room which is 30x16x9ft(LxWxH) and want the speakers to be able to drive/fill them. I plan to get front and centers to start with and get the rest later. I have auditioned these as of now:
1) Monitor Audio RS6 & RS8
2) Martin Logan Preface
3) B&W 683, CM7
4) Definitive Technology BP7004
5) Klipsch Rf-87, RF-67

Please let me know your thought on these. Also should be looking at some others like paradigm/psb.


Also should I buy them new or used? My budget is not to exceed $2500 (for fronts and center)

thx,

From that list I like the B&W 683's the best. Also, you would have enough power to drive any of the speakers you mentioned.


Please think about if you need a center or not. I know that most everyone says they need one, but my system sounds better for movies without one (although, my center is a cheap older one...).

But, in the long run, it's what you like. Only your ears can tell you whats best.


Finally, if you have the patience to weed through lots of older speakers for high prices, then your best to buy used. All of my stuff I've gotten used.


Best Regards,
Stan

[manlystanley]

I stopped in a a hi fi store and talked to a sales guy last night. He said there was huge difference between the CM7 and the CM9. So, if you can swing $3000, I'd suggest that you add those to your audition list.



Best Regards,
Stan

[blackraven]

I like the B&W's and Monitor Audio's. You will get more bass and pronounce midrange with the MA's and better more detailed sound and treble with the B&W's.

[angelgz]

Hi,
. I have auditioned these as of now:
1) Monitor Audio RS6 & RS8
2) Martin Logan Preface
3) B&W 683, CM7
4) Definitive Technology BP7004
5) Klipsch Rf-87, RF-67

Please let me know your thought on these. Also should be looking at some others like paradigm/psb.

Also should I buy them new or used? My budget is not to exceed $2500 (for fronts and center)

thx,

You should audition Dynaudio. I have not heard any speakers so far better than Dynaudio. Check out their reviews in this sites. You don't see many brands with a 4.5+ star across every model. The Danishes are just known to make really good speakers! For your budget, you can get the audience fronts + the audience center. If you don't mind looking on eBay you might even be able to pick up the Contour line under your budget which normally goes for about $5,000. Now that we have a deep recession, bargaining with your local hi-fi shop is also a good idea!

Martin Logan is way over priced. Also I really don't like the idea of electro-static speakers because the panels are EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE to replace. They are also very directional and hard to find a sweet spot to place.

Regarding your list, except for B&W, I would not consider any other choices since they fall under the "consumer line" which are often over-priced for what it is. If you were to get the B&W, make sure you don't pay MSRP else you got ripped off. Be sure to BARGAIN.

[LeRoy]

It can get very confusing trying to sort out the "best of" especially since auditioning audio of any kind is such a subjective experience and the speaker performance is impacted by the room acoustics, source, and amp. Have said that....you might want to give the Vienna Acoustics Schonberg some audition time. For home theater I recently purchased the Nanosat 5.0 speaker system by Mirage. The Nanosat's replaced the much overrated PSB 4T, PSB 1B, and PBS 8C speakers I had been using for about 8 years. I will eventually get the Mirage Omni S10 subwoofer to match up with the Nanosats. I bought the Nanosats from Vanns.com and only paid $250.00 for all 5 satellites with free shipping and I am very, very pleased with their HT performance. For music...well, lets say they take some getting used to but I don't concern myself with that so much as I have a dedicated 2 channel audio system that I use for music instead. As far as the list of speakers you were considering, I would recommend you keep looking and listening to other speakers till you find the one that meets your needs.

Good luck and happy listening...

LeRoy

[Hyfi]

You should audition Dynaudio. I have not heard any speakers so far better than Dynaudio. Check out their reviews in this sites. You don't see many brands with a 4.5+ star across every model. The Danishes are just known to make really good speakers! For your budget, you can get the audience fronts + the audience center. If you don't mind looking on eBay you might even be able to pick up the Contour line under your budget which normally goes for about $5,000. Now that we have a deep recession, bargaining with your local hi-fi shop is also a good idea!

I would tend to agree with the Dynaudio suggestion since I am biased and own 2 pairs. However, looking at the specs for the receiver, it only lists 130 wpc into 8ohms and does not explicitly list a value for 4 ohms which usually means it can't handle it and may void the warranty. I'm sure you could get away with the Audience 42s or 52s but you would never hear their full potential with a reciever like this.

[blackraven]

The 3808 can handle 4ohms. I just would not pair it with a demanding speaker like Magnepans. The 3000 series Denon's have beefy torroidal power transformers.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=977696