fronts and centre, for onkyo amp max £350

[mrhandley84]

hi all, i recently got an ankyo 5.1 package with a htr380 receiver and am looking to replace the front two speakers and centre for a max budget of £350 , however id rather not spend all of that!

i have been reading that its best to get bookshelf speakers over floorstanding is this correct? i would like the front speakers to be clear and not overly bothered about the base. it will naturally be used with 5.1 but id also like it to produce a half decent stereo sound.

i have been looking at the following:
Q ACOUSTICS 1020i (£80)
WHARFEDALE DIAMOND 10.1 (£200)
Mordaunt-Short Avant 902i (£150)

(floor) Q ACOUSTICS 1030i (£120)
(floor) TANNOY F3 CUSTOM (£170)

i heard the 902i i really nice but matching with amps is a pain and have read that it doesnt go well with onkyo amps.....
so that leaves the q acoustics or wharfedale - is the 10.1 worth the £200 or should i just get the 1020i, or would a 1030i be better?

loads of questions i know but just looking at getting a rough idea of what would work and what wouldnt.

 

[Passingbat]

I've not heard the 1030is but they get excellent feedback on the forums and are often paired with onkyo amps. Floorstanders also have the advantage of not requiring the extra expense of stands.

You problem may be getting a matching 1000iC centre speaker, although there are some still around

The tannoy F4s are very highly regarded and would work well with the Onkyo ---- I think i would lean towards those.


The wharfdale 10.1s are good speakers and if you go the standmount route, I think they would be a better choice over the 1020is. The 10.1s are almost twice the price of the 1020is replacment, the 2020s and i think that would be reflected in the sound quality.

The MS 902is are good speakers but are bright and not the 'natural' pairing with the bright sounding onkyo. Having said that, people do and as we all have different sound preferences and hear things differently, they would be worth demoing if you get the chance in combination with a Onkyo amp.

 

[mrhandley84]

thanks for the advice, still cant make my mid up lol..guess will have to demo a few and see..