Help me pick a £800 2.0 set up - Bookshelf Speaker and Stereo Amp (with optical)

fredzio

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Hi everyone,

After some deliberation, I have decided that Bookshelf speakers would best suit my situation and budget compared to floor standing speakers.

I am requesting some advice on which Bookshelf speakers and Stereo amp would work well together and fit within my £800 budget. I am hopeful there will be some boxing day deals this year; fingers crossed I will be able to pick something up.

Context:
I sit about 9ft away from my TV which is an LG 65" C1 OLED - My split is heavily favoured towards Movies over Music. I would say 75% Movies 25% Music, so will need a speaker that is good at dynamics and have some nice bass as I will not be using a subwoofer.
I also game (PS5) meaning I am in favour of using the Optical output on my TV which the Stereo amp will have to facilitate.

Speakers - So far from a speaker line up I am considering the following:
MA Bronze 100
MA Silver 100 (Currently £500)
MA Radius 90
Wharfedale 12.2
Wharfedale Evo 4.1
B&W 606 S2
Triangle Borea BR03
Elac Uni-Fi 2.0 UB52

I don't think I necessarily need to have the speakers front-ported as I can have them away from the wall to get the best out of them. I've heard mixed reviews on a lot of these speakers mentioned so It would be great to get some advice on which would best support my weighting of Movies:Music usage.

Amp:
I have not done much digging on which amp would suit me best and I am open to buying an older used model if they are not stocked anymore.
The only Amp that came to my attention is the CA AXR100.

Although I have mentioned I'd like to run a Optical output I could also use headphone jack to RCA if required to bring the cost down to fit within the £800 budget.

If possible, please also mention items (speaker & Amp) if they do slightly go over the £800 mark I have set as they may come down after xmas and I may also have a little wriggle room to extend the budget I have set out.

If you require any more information please let me know.

Thanks a lot for reading.
 
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Found it!
 
Tough decisions...

Sound is subjective! So audition some speakers, amplifiers first. My speakers of choice would be the Silver 100 with either Marantz, Denon.

Marantz PM6007. Denon PMA800NE. Both this amplifiers have optical. It could be the speakers crave more power. Only you can tell. Still I think this amplifiers should work nicely.

There’s the Rega Brio. Not necessarily more powerful, but more drive, attack in the sound. It’s pure analog amplifier, so you need to buy an external DAC then. All this amplifier supports head phone listing.

I’d skip the B&W speakers. To bright sounding, at least for me. Wharfdale is warmer. However the Silver 100 is more detailed without sounding harsh. In fact they are quite warm sounding too.

The other speakers I haven’t heard, sadly.

Try and google amplifier in your price class,then talk to some local audio shops. I’m sure they’ll help you.

Other members probably soon we’ll also help.

Again, it could be wise to buy used.
 
The Monitor Audio voicing is described above. But I see you are considering getting the MA Radius 90, MA Bronze 100. The Bronze have an eight inch bass driver, same as the Silver 100. If I’m not mistaken.

I think the Silver 100 is going to be more refined in the tweeter. Whereas the Bronze 100 is not as refined.

The Wharfdale speakers looks nice also. Triangle is supposed to be on the bright side of neutral. From what I’ve read online. Elac more neutral without sounding harsh.

Check each speakers. See how low they go in the bass etc. Although this may be misleading as every speaker sounds different in each room.

When it comes to power, more is better! But an amplifier from 50 watts and up to 70 watts is enough.

Speaking of rear ported speakers. Monitor Audio can be placed 20-30 to the back walls, without any issues. This is because of their bass reflex technology.
 
🤔. It seems you have another tread where you are considering floor standing speakers. If not I’m mistaken, sorry if I am.

My recommendation would be the Monitor Audio Silver 300 then. They can be bought for half the price now, since the new 7 G is on the market.

Still am not sure you can find them for half the price where you live. If not the Dali Oberon 5 is nice choice.

Also consider slim floor standing speakers like the Dali Oberon 5, also the Monitor Audio Silver 200 takes up the the same space as stand mounted speakers, on speaker stands.

If bass is must, then the Dali Oberon 7 are fine speakers. A bit boomy in the bass for my taste.

Remember the stand mounted speakers you are mentioning in this tread, also have floor standing speakers. Wharfdale floor standing speakers sure looks nice.

It could be if you go for this options, you need to raise the budget up to Rotel Tribute etc.

Ps, the KEF LS50 with subwoofer. Could be an alternative. Anyway good luck.

Edit, it appears stand mounted speakers seems the way you have decided to go.
 
🤔. It seems you have another tread where you are considering floor standing speakers. If not I’m mistaken, sorry if I am.

My recommendation would be the Monitor Audio Silver 300 then. They can be bought for half the price now, since the new 7 G is on the market.

Still am not sure you can find them for half the price where you live. If not the Dali Oberon 5 is nice choice.

Also consider slim floor standing speakers like the Dali Oberon 5, also the Monitor Audio Silver 200 takes up the the same space as stand mounted speakers, on speaker stands.

If bass is must, then the Dali Oberon 7 are fine speakers. A bit boomy in the bass for my taste.

Remember the stand mounted speakers you are mentioning in this tread, also have floor standing speakers. Wharfdale floor standing speakers sure looks nice.

It could be if you go for this options, you need to raise the budget up to Rotel Tribute etc.

Ps, the KEF LS50 with subwoofer. Could be an alternative. Anyway good luck.

Edit, it appears stand mounted speakers seems the way you have decided to go.
First of all, thank you so much for taking the time out to respond to my query. You have definitely provided a lot of great information and advice for me to consider. Currently I don't have any speakers but I did previously want floorstanding but after some consideration, I don't think they will be utilised properly and standmount speakers will do a great job at filling the room and will also cost me less.

I definitely agree that MA Silver 100 would be a good speaker to go with but I will have to take the amp into consideration and see if I can keep both items within my budget.

When I was considering floorstanding speakers I was very close to buying the Q Acoustic Concept 40s, the Concept 20s are now only £229 which I think is very good and I could get the matching stands for under 200 coming to around £400 total (cheaper if I get different/nonbranded stands but may not look as nice). I will do some research on how these perform with movies but from reviews on the concept 40s they seem like the right sound I am after. unfortunately, I wont be able to demo them now that they are out of stock but do you think these are also good speakers? Q Acoustics Concept 20 Speakers

If I can't stretch to the MA Silver 100 when including an amp I think my final list would be:
MA Bronze 100
Dali Spektor 2
Q Acoustic Concept 20

Out of these 3 which would you recommend mainly for movies but also for a range of different genre music?
 
You have listed many fine speakers already. The one concrete advice I can give is to audition all the speakers you are mentioning.

Many shops have 14-30 trial/return right with your money back if you are not happy.

Good luck.
 
They are exceptional speakers for the money. You will need a sub with them for your movies though (as I do in my set-up)
Thanks a lot for the reply. I actually ended up going for the Monitor Audio Silver 200 6G as I was able to get a good deal on them with richer sounds seen as they are now a discontinued model. Still looking around to see what the best amp to get is. I’m looking at either the Sony DN1080 or Marantz NR1510. I will in the future be looking at adding a sub to my system as well just not straight away
 
Thanks a lot for the reply. I actually ended up going for the Monitor Audio Silver 200 6G as I was able to get a good deal on them with richer sounds seen as they are now a discontinued model. Still looking around to see what the best amp to get is. I’m looking at either the Sony DN1080 or Marantz NR1510. I will in the future be looking at adding a sub to my system as well just not straight away
Are you planning to run surround setup, or 2 channel setup?
 
Are you planning to run surround setup, or 2 channel setup?
Having assessed everything surround is the end goal but it will happen gradually. The next move is to get an amp. Then a sub then a centre speaker forming a 3.1 set up. Eventually I will then get rear speakers but this is dependant on whether I move house within the next 2-4 years. So it may stay as a 3.1 set up for a while. Which with the Marantz amp would make it easier to house both amp and speaker in my tv stand. The DN1080(standard size AVRs) I may have to limit myself to smaller centre speakers like the Monitor Audio apex for example.

Open to suggestions on amps I just know this will be a long/slow moving process for me and it seems the DN1089 may future proof that for me with the 8k and atmos features
 
Hi @fredzio

My 2 pence as it were: Don't get the Sony DN1080 or any Sony imo - It's an aging amp which has very poor room correction and subwoofer EQ imo.

There are certainly better AVR's out there from the likes of Denon & Marantz. Both these brands are actually made by the same company (Sound United) and share the same parts in the main. Of the 2 Marantz are generally more musical vs the Denon equivalent model, but the comparable spec'd Denons are cheaper.

I'd look at a Denon 2700 - good solid performer with 8k etc. It can even do 7 channels, so a basic Dolby Atmos configuration with 2 front atmos speakers is a possible future upgrade. Imo the sweet spot in the range is the Denon 3700 - but it is quite a jump in price. Does offer better Audessey room correction and adds a further 2 atmos channels for front & rear atmos speakers: This site gives a great comparison of the features between models:


Just enter the model name for each AVR.

Slimline receivers are great, but the centre speaker is the most important speaker in a 5.1 system. Around 70% of the audio in films is portrayed/conveyed through it. Therefore, I recommend not skimong on the centre speaker. I'd also recommend not placing it in an AV cabinet (as it will not perform/ sound great). On the cabinet or wall mounted under the TV is the preferred position. The matching centre speaker to your Silver 200's is the Silver C150. It's recommended to brand/range match the centre to your left & right front speakers. This is to ensure tonal synergy when audio pans across the front stage (left to right).

Hope this helps!
 
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Hi @fredzio

My 2 pence as it were: Don't get the Sony DN1080 or any Sony imo - It's an aging amp which has very poor room correction and subwoofer EQ imo.

There are certainly better AVR's out there from the likes of Denon & Marantz. Both these brands are actually made by the same company (Sound United) and share the same parts in the main. Of the 2 Marantz are generally more musical vs the Denon equivalent model, but the comparable spec'd Denons are cheaper.

I'd look at a Denon 2700 - good solid performer with 8k etc. It can even do 7 channels, so a basic Dolby Atmos configuration with 2 front atmos speakers is a possible future upgrade. Imo the sweet spot in the range is the Denon 3700 - but it is quite a jump in price. Does offer better Audessey room correction and adds a further 2 atmos channels for front & rear atmos speakers: This site gives a great comparison of the features between models:


Just enter the model name for each AVR.

Slimline receivers are great, but the centre speaker is the most important speaker in a 5.1 system. Around 70% of the audio in films is portrayed/conveyed through it. Therefore, I recommend not skimong on the centre speaker. I'd also recommend not placing it in an AV cabinet (as it will not perform/ sound great). On the cabinet or wall mounted under the TV is the preferred position. The matching centre speaker to your Silver 200's is the Silver C150. It's recommended to brand/range match the centre to your left & right front speakers. This is to ensure tonal synergy when audio pans across the front stage (left to right).

Hope this helps!
Thanks a lot for all this. It’s definitely very helpful! I’ll look into those receivers you mentioned and good tips on the centre speaker range match and placement.

I don’t have my tv wall mounted so I may shop around for something I can have on the tv stand that can prop it up and give enough clearance to have the centre speaker on top of the tv stand.

May be a novice question but are there any specific banana plugs you’d recommend? Not sure if that’s a thing to much thought into
 

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