fwiw I have here the SMSL AO200, it’s amplification is much better than its internal DAC… depending on your expectations and requirements it can easily be beaten with a more money or with external DACs etc (I’m assuming it is similar performance to what you’re looking at).
What’s the budget and is this more casual use case? the micca’s are 83db sensitive right? what’s the room size and how loud do you listen? this will probably remove options like the cheap schiit amps etc
That’s why I mentioned the Sprout.
My budget is about $200 USD. The a300 to me presented a decent choice dude to it having a remote. With RCA and USB input. 165w per channel will be more than enough. It’s going into a medium sized untreated room beside a tv. It’s just to upgrade the TV sound cause at the moment we’re using the TVs internal speakers which isn’t great
What output are you using from the tv? Did you consider a wiim amp? I have one of those and I’d take it over a smsl for the interface, sound quality and room correction through the app. A little over your budget maybe
Was planning to use RCA and USB through my PC. Wiim amp is out of my budget but the lack of reliability complaints may be worth spending extra on the remote probably less shitty than the a300 as well. Ooh the amount of inputs is nice actually I’ve been planning to get a record player for the living room for a while. I could connect my TV through optical as well. 120wx 2 at 4 ohms will be plenty for the rb 42s as well. My is birthday coming up and I just got a $75 Amazon gift card from work so I think I might as well splurge
Deleted my previous post on here And cancelled Sony sscs5 order. I forgot how bright that speaker is and kinda forgot how bad the bass performance was. I am doing a lot of speaker research probably gonna do an actual upgrade probably gonna save up a bit. I have been staring at the kef q150 since its on sale going for roughly 400 CAD for a while now. This is going to be a hybrid home theater 2.1 channel set up I already have a old edifier t5 I had around im going to use as a sub going to be powered by the wiim amp. I would love some suggestions budget trying to keep under $500 CAD for the pair any options I should consider?
Been meaning to share this. It’s a gauge I use so I can fine tune speaker placement and not just eyeball changes. A must of toe setup.
@dB_Cooper can you please show a photo of the tool in use ? I’m not visualizing how I would set the angle relative to the speaker and your method may be easier than laser levels and tape measures.
Just got a set of Kali IN-8 V2, to upgrade from my HSU HB-1 MK2. The bass on these is MASSIVELY strong(8": F3=44Hz, F10=36Hz), while the bass on the HSU was lacking(6.5": F3=~70Hz, F10=~45Hz). I will get a mic setup to test what FR my room is outputting, and attempt some speaker EQ and room treatment(~15’x15’x8’). But maybe 8" is still overkill for a basic studio apartment room.
I’m wondering about speakers that might offer an alternative, contrasting sound, around the same price. Something sweet, fatigue-free, engaging and detailed enough. I have an Emotiva BasX A-100 amp, but she’s an old, dirty dog, not worth bragging about, but passive speakers are certainly my primary/ideal focus. I’ve heard that these Kali’s sound dark, but perhaps that’s just the nature of such a clean, neutral, studio tuning? I find the imaging, general accuracy, and bass power to be amazing. Perhaps smoother, more effortless treble would be better. I’m not sure yet how I feel about the tonality of these speakers, to say if I would like something more natural/organic or not. They could be spot-on, except for maybe lacking some lower mid-bass warmth. Piano sounds incredible, but maybe a pinch hot.
I would love a ribbon tweeter(I think), for maximum treble/detail quality and effortlessness, and I suppose bass that’s between the HSU and the Kali. I tested Kali LP-UNF, and thought the sound was nicely accurate and impressive, but of course it barely had any bass/power. Some potentials:
I like how the Sierra FR looks, with MUCH calmer treble, relaxed bass, but only having a 5.25" woofer is maybe concerning. Does Ascend ever have sales?
OK, decided to order Sierra-1 V2 and Philharmonic BMR Monitor to compete with the Kali. That will give me +2 different tweeter flavors(RAAL and metal(?) dome), +2 different woofer sizes(5.25", 6"), and +2 different bass profiles to try out. Gonna use the Emotiva amp for now, see how things sound in general, then maybe upgrade to the stellar looking WiiM Amp Pro. Performance-wise, the WiiM will be a huge upgrade in literally every area, for less than double the Emotiva’s MSRP.
BMR Monitor is in. Very nice clarity, resolution and effortlessness(gorgeous upper treble!), but too light & pillowy bass. The Kali and BMR are 2 very different sounding speakers… And I’m really hoping the Sierra(or Ceramic Mini) will be the middle ground speaker(s) that has the best traits of both of these. 
The BMR sounds effortless, highly detailed & refined, and very expansive, but vague with imaging and missing some weight/power. I hear a lot of sound width, but there doesn’t seem to be much depth of sound into/behind the speaker. The Kali is very precise, but not very natural or effortless, especially with the treble too bright. They both look weird, too lol. The BMR looks pretty nice with grill, however.
So now, I’m thinking return the BMR & Kali, and order DBR62 and Ceramic Mini, as the final options for this potential upgrade test. Then I will have DBR62, CM, and Sierra-1 V2 to choose from. I think Kali MM-6/IN-5 could be a great option worth trying, also… A smaller, lighter woofer than this 8" monster. But then again, the hiss from these active speakers gets annoying real quickly. After looking again, the treble on the DBR62 tilts UP after 3.5KHz, so I think I will scratch it out. 
The Ceramic has a pumpin’ bass boost, but I’m thinking this(or Sierra) will be the winner, with the supposedly very smooth sounding ceramic tweeter, and hefty, nimble bass:
Update: The Sierra-1 V2 is here. I can’t believe how good these are… I’m stunned. Every sound coming out of these things is absolutely addictive. The bass is clean, tight, punchy, and perfect. The treble is super clean, clear, detailed, natural, and effortless(like the RAAL, but not VAGUE, and even more detailed). The imaging is very deep and impressive, but not quite as wide as the Kali(less “center ghost” channel). Now I need to find out what Sierra-LX and Sierra-2EX V2 sound like. This tweeter is straight. epic. magic. It’s very detailed and clear, but doesn’t make bad recordings murder the enjoyment of the music.
These have the best traits of the Kali and BMR Monitor, as I had hoped, but EVEN BETTER… Just. Wow. 
(The finish is way nicer, and more natural/genuine, than the goofy BMR, too.) I feel like Santa just flew by, and crash landed on my house. 
Between the LX and 2EX V2 FR’s, I can’t tell which one I might like better. No matter; I’ll have to try them both!
I definitely like this speaker more without the spinorama EQ. It seems to dull up and die inside a little, with this EQ.
Adding acoustic feet really works. Sound feels more focused. Bass is more authoritative. Separation inside the stage is cleaner too. The desk shakes more with bass heavy stuff as a bonus.
But how is this working? Is it less energy being wasted?
Great update. Happy you found something you liked!
Who/which vendor allowed so much flexibility in returning speakers if i may ask?
Let’s get this conversation moved over to a More appropriate thread so it can be better referenced in the future.
@Camus @ericrosenfield
Apologies for not moving it sooner
I will suggest doing some research into single vs. multi full range driver designs. This article may be a good primer to get the gist of pros and cons, there are some embedded videos on both sides of the argument worth a view:
https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/opinion/1872-in-defense-of-doing-things-the-wrong-way
When I used the term raw, was simply referring to no crossover in the signal path. Think of it as no filter and allowing everything to flow without any guard rails.
This is a great article, thanks for sharing it. (Surprised the author hasn’t heard more tube amps. Definitely appreciate the whole “the point of this stuff is to sound good to us” attitude. At least in my experience, tube amps sound so obviously and demonstrably better than solid state there’s nothing strange or exotic about it.)
Watching the two videos referenced in the article, the thing that strikes me most is just how sure both people sound that their position is absolutely correct and the other position is completely wrong. and, as the article points out, they’re talking past each other in a lot of ways. Like the anti-single-driver guy talks almost entirely about frequency response (though he also mentions cone breakup distortion), but he doesn’t address at all the other guy’s claims about the loss of dynamics. (And I will say the Ogy’s had an immediacy and presence and, I don’t know, tactility? that other speakers I’ve heard didn’t have, so it seems like there is something going on there.) Like in other words it seems like they’re both making good points but (like a lot of people in audio I find) are completely dismissive and intolerant of any position that doesn’t correspond with their own and lacking even the slightest sense that there might be, you know, nuance to anything.
Anyway, very interesting stuff. At some point I need to get to a speaker show so I can hear just lots of different types of things that you don’t typically see at local dealers.
Speaking of Omega speakers, it looks like they have Outlaw two-way speakers on sale not but I can’t find any reviews of them or much discussion at all. Anyone know anything about them? They look nice.
Edit: moved this question here: Ωmega (Omega) thread, 3 / 7 / 8 / Alnico - #55 by ericrosenfield
So, its been years and im still not a 2ch fellow, for the last 6 years Ive been collecting headphones and its gear.
For 5 years ive had klipsch rp600m for comfort and practicticity, I ADORE THEM, Never even femt the need to replace/upgrade them (using with exogal comet+ and powerdac). Im a Headphone Collector first and foremost.
Heres the deal: my mom dropped one by accident and I dropped the other one (ToT)
They look a nit scuffed not to bad and work 93% as intended (the left woofer needs fixing, when theres heavy subbass the woofer crackles).
…
I live in Mexico and like 80% speaker models are unavailable, and the other 20% usually costs twice or more the USA MSRP.
A friend of mine wants the klipsch to repair and use, and is paying fairly.
I wann try FOCAL this time around since Ive heard the Chora 816 many times which I love, and theres Brand New Focal Theva No.1 bookshelf Pair for $900 which I find quite fair considering its Mexico and there SO FEW options. What’cha think?
Im really craving those Focal but ill try to see what else’s available Maybe theres smt better but just as an example Polk and Elac cant be gotten here among many others.
They’re completely different speakers but given your lack of options, sounds like there’s little to lose by just getting them and seeing how they work out. 2-CH is first and foremost about speaker placement, so if you think you’re going to be able to place the Chora’s appropriately, your amp has enough wattage to drive them. Just know that they’re not going to sound anything like the high efficiency horn dispersion that the Klipsh were.
Yes exactly! Its for a chnage of pace, I have plenty of room to make a custom setup and I also plan to change the subs to better match this experiment.
Worst case scenario I just buy another pair of Klipsch and go back.
I love klipsch and it absolutely sucks that the best ones they sell here are rp600mII and RF-8000 II (I much prefer bookshelves).
Ill take a look at JBL to see if theres anything worthwhile.
Ill make another post with every available option that seems worthwhile (including price) and that is on my budget, that way y’all can probably help me make a smarter choice
