Speaker recommendation

J

jadedavid

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west Michigan
My brother called me yesterday looking for a recommendation for a pair of speakers.
He doesn't want to spend more than $1000. New or used OK. Front ported or sealed. No subs. Max size
24"X14X14. They are to fit in a built in bookcase. Amplifier is a vintage Solid State Harmon Kardon.
He listens to mostly classic rock and Blues/Jazz so a somewhat warmer speaker would be desirable.
I'm at a loss in that price range. I was thinking a used pair of Harbeth 7"s would fit the bill but he won't spend that much.
Any suggestions?
 
I would definitely look for front port if placed in a bookshelf. With that said I saw KEF LS50 was supposed to be on sale somewhere for $899 a pair.00.

Vintage HK had the current to drive most speakers within reason.

Elac has become a go to speaker for value. Maybe a Monitor Audio Silver stand mount.

A used Dynaudio Audience 52 or 42 would be great, they come with port plugs but who knows if a seller would still have them. I'm not up on current Dyn, they may have a stand mount for under $1k new.
 
Zu Audio Dirty Weekend is hard to beat for $1K. If someone is not interested in the audiophile hobby but just wants to enjoy great music and rock out, there's nothing out there that competes with Zu Dirty Weekend.

That's what I had my brother get a few years ago, and he thanks me every time I speak to him.

No brainer, really. https://www.zuaudio.com/loudspeakers/omen-dirty-weekend-2
 
Have a pair and yes they are worth the fare. Have the big Def IVs in the basement but with some warm tubes the Omens actually sound pretty good.
 
I don't think Zu has anything to meet the 24 inch criteria and they need the feet to keep the bottom firing port free., probably not ideal for a bookshelf designation.
 
David,

What are your brothers speakers currently?...or that he's had that he loved or disliked?

Here are some vintage suggestions that I believe fit the size requirements and can sound quite good in a bookshelf role.

Dynaco A25
JBL L96
JBL 4313
Dahlquist M905
 
Any of the later ADS bookshelf speakers will do the trick as they are sealed and on the warmer side. The two "classics" the L710 and L810 would be to tall and hard to find but there are others from that era that will work and are on the warmer side. I owned the L810's for many years and my son still has them. A personal favorite which fits the bill is the L570/2. I have two pairs in near mint condition. One pair rotates through my Home Office system and the other pair is boxed up. They are 19"x12"x10". Here is a group of photos of a pair that were for sale several years back.

https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649026855-ads_l570_2/images/500983/
 
Mr Peabody said:
I don't think Zu has anything to meet the 24 inch criteria and they need the feet to keep the bottom firing port free., probably not ideal for a bookshelf designation.
Click to expand...

Hi,
I believe Zu actually does have a couple of smaller speakers. It's on their website
 
Dentdog said:
Have a pair and yes they are worth the fare. Have the big Def IVs in the basement but with some warm tubes the Omens actually sound pretty good.
Click to expand...

My brother runs his with solid state integrated from Rogue, the Sphinx (class D, actually, with a tubed preamp stage). It's like a grand, or a few hundred dollars more in US dollars. He uses a modest chord dac. He also streams hi-rez from Amazon. He's a big fan of 60s jazz and rock/ blues rock of Stevie Ray Vaughan, Clapton, Phish, Dead, Floyd, etc.. Badly recorded classic rock really comes to life. Big, dynamic, fast, tonally rich sound. He has been working from home for several years and has his system on 10 hours a day.

But guys who listen to 0:39 of track 6 here and 2:54 of another track instead of taking in the music would really scoff at the Zu sound.
 
MikeCh said:
David,

What are your brothers speakers currently?...or that he's had that he loved or disliked?

In his previous larger home he had Klipsch La Scala's. And in a second room he had PhaseTech or Phase?? something (they are physically too large for this space).

Many good suggestions, thanks to all. Will look into them and pass on the recommendations.
Click to expand...
 
Look at Tekton Design, they have The “Mini-Lore” for $595, and what look to be a stellar pair of speakers that just fit the size required the “Dynamite” for a bit over budget, $1500.

I could not tell whether there is a rear port or not.

With enough power, I would second the KEF recommendations.
 
Klipsch RP600M's are only about $500, and sound oh so good with my Belles Aria integrated. Very sensitive, and esp. good for classic rock, at low or high volume.
 
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