Home Speakers

[AJPM44]

So we recently acquired a Pioneer turntable and a Harman Kardon receiver. We were looking for smaller speakers than the ones we got with it. Any recommendations for a REASONABLY priced speaker system? It is for a smallish room, and we have young children, so it mostly to drown them out with Joe Strummer and Shane MacGowan.

Have at it.

[Crashburn]

In the audio world their definition of "reasonably priced" may not jibe with yours. If you're buying new the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR is the flavor of the month and is cheap at $130 per pair. Haven't heard them so I've no idea if they live up to the hype.
I had some Audio Engine A2 computer speakers that I really liked and apparently their passive model is even better and won't shred your wallet at $249.
As always, this should be the first rule when considering a buying stereo gear, you should peruse Audiogon. I'd take a look at speakers from PSB, KEF, Paradigm and B&W. I know there are other brands but those that come to mind immediately.

[Applesauce]

Build your own LS3/5a. You'll never find a pre-built with similar quality for anywhere near the price.

[Crashburn]

Build your own LS3/5a. You'll never find a pre-built with similar quality for anywhere near the price.

Does that price include the tools you may need to buy to assemble the cabinets?

[Cookietruck]

do a little research on old models and you might find some nice used on yr local craigslist for a nice price
was just messing around the other night and found 2 different pairs of old polk audio (mid 80s to early 90s, monitor 10, monitor 11T, sda2 type stuff...) that i could pick up for ~$120
so tempting for me but i'm keeping my brothers klipsch RF3 II in my spare room and built some speakers my self similar to some larger klipsch speakers...
btw on those homebuilt i got the drivers/horn/corssover board for $200 and i think i must still have atleast $400 in them...

[one60]

Usher Audio 520s are really well-designed bookshelf speakers with a beautiful piano lacquer finish.You'll be amazed at the weight of these little boxes! The sound from this small unit is to my ears wonderful. They can handle rock & a fair amount of bass but really excel at replicating the position of the players (the soundstage in audio jargon) & bringing vocals to life. They are front ported which really makes sense in a bookshelf speaker. These run around $300-400 pair. Top of the line Ushers can run $1200+

[rec head]

Saying reasonably priced speakers is like saying reasonably priced bike. That range can be from $150 - $5000 depending who you ask. I was happy with my PSBs until I started building kits. I would like to hear those Pioneers because they do get raved about for the price.

[jitahs]

The Pioneers mentioned above, the Andrew Jones-designed ones, are extremely good for the coin. I could go on and on about "auditions" and "comparos" (personal ones, not ones I've read about) but bottom line just get them.

You can. Not. Get these dirt cheap speakers w/o kicking in for the dirt cheap sub, which I have and love. It'll do your nwa and toothless shane equally well at all volumes.

Here's a freebie, on this Christmas week: Shane MacGowan: My family values | Life and style | The Guardian

[suzyj]

Build your own LS3/5a. You'll never find a pre-built with similar quality for anywhere near the price.

Agree 100%. Years ago I built a lovely little pair of bookshelf speakers with Vifa P13 mid-woofers and 25mm dome tweeters. They sound superb. Much better than the plasticky rubbish that i could have bought with the money I shelled out.

[Zimmermanbicycle]

Have a listen to the Bowers & Wilkins CM1 speakers,they are small and sound like a much larger speaker,new they are $1000. but I've seen tons on ebay and craigslist for half that much.
-Eric

[Applesauce]

Does that price include the tools you may need to buy to assemble the cabinets?

My local quality lumber store charges $1/cut. If you have a mitre saw, all you need is someone to handle the big cuts. Shit, you could do the short cuts with a router. You're still looking at a stupendous pair of speakers for not all that much money, and the emotional investment might pay dividends...unless you're just not into doing things yourself. Which is cool, man. That's cool.

[davids]

do a little research on old models and you might find some nice used on yr local craigslist for a nice price
was just messing around the other night and found 2 different pairs of old polk audio (mid 80s to early 90s, monitor 10, monitor 11T, sda2 type stuff...) that i could pick up for ~$120
so tempting for me but i'm keeping my brothers klipsch RF3 II in my spare room and built some speakers my self similar to some larger klipsch speakers...
btw on those homebuilt i got the drivers/horn/corssover board for $200 and i think i must still have atleast $400 in them...

My favorite small speakers, all time, are the Spica TC-50s. Marvelously coherent where most of the music is. Soft bass, can't play them super-loud, but basically magical.

They were $450 new in the 80s, God knows what you'll pay if you can find a pair now. (I know of one pair which will someday be available, but they're not leaving my family.)

[Crashburn]

My local quality lumber store charges $1/cut. If you have a mitre saw, all you need is someone to handle the big cuts. Shit, you could do the short cuts with a router. You're still looking at a stupendous pair of speakers for not all that much money, and the emotional investment might pay dividends...unless you're just not into doing things yourself. Which is cool, man. That's cool.

Got no problems doing things myself but replacing the starter on a VW GTI, a job where I already had the necessary tools that I use frequently and was fundamentally no different from working on bikes just with heavier components, is different from carpentry. If the cabinet for that kit is just a box with no internal bracing then it's not that big a deal but if it's more complicated and one hasn't done much woodworking then odds are you could spend a lot of time and waste a lot of wood making speakers that sound worse than prebuilts.

[sailor]

I have a pair of NHT absolute zeros that sound quite nice but lack bass (like all small speakers). NHT also has a couple of cheaper options
Absolute Zero (black) | Bookshelf Speakers | Premium Audio Equipment

[randonneur]

I've been really happy with Paradigm speakers (Atoms and Titans). Great value and sound from a north american based company. Some university classmates of mine worked for them as well, so it made the decision to support the company that much easier.

[C.Dyer]

A couple of years ago when I was speaker shopping, I was really impressed by the Epos Epic 2--really rich big sound for a bookshelf, and possibly reasonably priced (depending on your criteria) at roughly 7 bills for the set. Looks like they can be found cheaper here and there.

Having said that, I ended up going a different direction, instead getting a used pair of Klipsch Forte floor speakers. I've been real happy with them.

[jitahs]

Just for the sake of convo in the spirit of the season, many of the nice speakers/kits listed don't take into account efficiency or modernity. In other words cone and driver tech advancement in the last 5 years has pushed many of what I thought of as "great" into the "really?" category.

Get what you want, but the Pioneers were designed with max $ into the components, wave interaction and lack of deflection and to be efficient, what the vast majority of people need for modestly-powered systems (50w clean). They're around $100 on sale and will blow the doors off older "high end" systems in a double blind test.*

*ref to a home comparo i promised not to mention.