Ceiling / Wall Speakers for TAG

[Tantalus]

I've been down this route before.. but now it's getting to the "get rid of those speakers or I find my own house...." stage. So to keep my wife happy I am looking at an in-wall / ceiling solution to an existing TAG set-up (see my signature) to replace my much beloved but bulky Dynaudio setup. I was put off this before because the TAG gear was just too high spec for the likes of B&W in ceiling / wall. But now I am considering again.

Any of you guys have any experience of hearing good inwall / ceiling kit powered by TAG systems? I am thinking here of perhaps B&W range or M&K inwall fronts and inceilings. I'm at a loss as to what to buy. But I need to get rid of these floorstanders and stand mounters.

Any suggestions / opinions for suitable speakers for TAG?

Mark

PS 5.1 system required though I have 7.1. Dont listen to 2 ch music anymore.

 

[cuscus]

I had the same problem as you, only my problem was with my standmount M&K rears.

I really didn't even want to consider changing them but i had my strict orders.

Anyway, i plumped for the M&K SW95 inwalls & to be honest it was the such a relief when i fired them up as they sound fantastic, look superb & pretty much a talking point when people come round & see them.

Have a demo if possible, but i genuinly wish i'd gone the inwall route a long time ago.

I'm running them via my Tag DP & a Parasound 2205 amp.

 

[Tantalus]

I guess a sub is mandatory for an inwall / in ceiling set up ?

 

[alexs2]

Would you possibly consider selling the 100x5 and moving to something like the Meridian in-wall active speakers...the DSP420 and M420 may well fit your requirements for something of suitable quality.

 

[Tantalus]

Thanks - can't find a link for a UK price list.... any ideas?
They might be a little too deep and low powered for my requirements though...

 

[alexs2]

Thanks - can't find a link for a UK price list.... any ideas?

Plenty of weblinks here from Meridian's dealer list,which may help.

http://www.meridian-audio.com/m_ukd.htm

You could try Holburn HiFi which looks local to you in Aberdeen.

 

[alexs2]

Do also bear in mind that being active,you have none of the losses associated with a traditional crossover,which may be up to 35% of the incoming power according to some.

I certainly found that active systems are a lot more efficient in those terms than passive systems,so you may well find that 85W for the bass driver,and 65W for the treble in those systems is more than adequate....certainly more than your current TAG can offer.

 

[Tantalus]

Thanks I will check it out. Not keen to lose my 100x5R though .

 

[bushy30]

Hi Tantalus,

I expect there would be a long queue to buy it if you did decide to sell................... could I be at the front


Bushy

 

[cuscus]

I guess a sub is mandatory for an inwall / in ceiling set up ?

It is with M&K speakers as they are classed as a sub sat system, i personally wouldn't run a HC system without a sub anyway, whether i had full range speakers or not though.

 

[sijones]

Hi Mark,

I use seven M&K SW-150s in-wall speakers in my TAG system. These are the in-wall version of the popular S-150 speaker. Providing they are built in correctly they can sound just as good as the cabinet version and also benefit from not being so directional as the S-150. They also benefit from having metal grills which makes them kid proof!

It would be useful to know what your budget is in order to recommend any alternatives.

Regards,

Steve

 

[PhilCTTE]

One of my best moves I've made was to purchase 3 of the B&W 800NT in wall speakers. I built a false wall / chimney breast to accomodate them, but it was well worth it. The bass is pretty decent as well . In fact I sold my 2 B&W subs. For the rears I use M&K tripoles and to the sides B&W FPM's. The 800NT's are a bit pricey at £1500 each, but they sound superb. I replaced a pair of ageing KEF 105/3's and the KEF 200C center. I think once you hear them there is no turning back. The main problem with in walls is the imagery, so to be completely sure, try and compare the 805 signatures with these to make sure your happy. A bit like placing your stand mounts to close to the wall. B&W engineers have done their job with these tho !!

 

[cuscus]

Hi Mark,

I use seven M&K SW-150s in-wall speakers in my TAG system. These are the in-wall version of the popular S-150 speaker. Providing they are built in correctly they can sound just as good as the cabinet version and also benefit from not being so directional as the S-150. They also benefit from having metal grills which makes them kid proof!

It would be useful to know what your budget is in order to recommend any alternatives.

Regards,

Steve

How lucky are you??

I so wish i had the room for 7 of those beauties & the finances of course

 

[lenny]

Another option, not very used in UK, is to use the Thiel in wall solution: http://thielaudio.com/THIEL_Site05/Pages/models/Model_Intro/modelintro.html . Another very good company is Avalon : http://www.avalonacoustics.com/multi_frameset.html
In US they are very well know brands.

Finally, but in a lower range of the previous two there are the products of Focal Jmlab http://www.focal.tm.fr/home/en/cache/400serie/index.htm.

I'm surprised you dislike the B&W and the Kef solutions.

You may need a good sub to fit the low frequencies.

Regards,

Lenny

 

[alexs2]

It is with M&K speakers as they are classed as a sub sat system, i personally wouldn't run a HC system without a sub anyway, whether i had full range speakers or not though.

Very few speaker systems(even those billed as full range) are anything like full range,i.e. from below 20Hz to above 20kHZ within +/- 2dB,and the few that really do meet that sort of spec are usually expensive,as in things like the Linn Komri/Wilson Audio System 7 etc price ranges.

I couldn't think of any in-wall system that would get close to that without significant problems.

 

[Tantalus]

Not averse to BW or Kef but the quality (with a sub) has to be as good or close to my dynaudio set up. Have about 2-3k.

 

[caleb]

I've been down this route before.. but now it's getting to the "get rid of those speakers or I find my own house...." stage.
Any suggestions / opinions for suitable speakers for TAG?

Mark

QUOTE]

Just a thought - why not keep your lovely sound setup and put the wife in the wall??