# Great Speakers for the money



## Dream Theater (Sep 14, 2014)

I personally love Klipsch and Polk , but often these speakers can be pricey. I would love to hear about brands that you all have used that didn't cost you an arm and a leg. Let me know how they sound and what your using.


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## GranteedEV (Aug 8, 2010)

Dream Theater said:


> I personally love Klipsch and Polk , but often these speakers can be pricey. I would love to hear about brands that you all have used that didn't cost you an arm and a leg. Let me know how they sound and what your using.


I've got three suggestions:

Affordable Accuracy by Philharmonic Audio
JBL LSR305
Wavecrest Audio


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Hi DT, definitely lots of great brands with affordable lines that offer great performance. Klipsch,quintet, pioneer's Andrew jones line,etc. my system uses JBL studio II's. S312/Scenter/S38/S26. To my ears, they are pretty transparent,and revealing. The titanium tweeters are clean and not harsh. Fairly sensitive with good sized drivers(12",8",6",5-3/4)make for a dynamic system. IMO, they're underrated.


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

Btw, are you Mike Portnoy? Lol


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## Tonto (Jun 30, 2007)

Chane is one of our sponsors & will fit your bill nicely. Very nice speakers at bargin prices. I vouch for them.

http://www.chanemusiccinema.com/


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

Many people love the pioneer speakers made by Andrew Jones.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speakers/Home+Theater+Speakers
Amazing sounds for the money, the sub is not so great but can't beat the quality of the speakers.


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## jbrown15 (Dec 7, 2011)

What's your budget and what price range to you consider expensive?


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## zieglj01 (Jun 20, 2011)

JBL Studio 530 speakers
http://www.jbl.com/estore/jbl/us/pr...earchMode=regularProductOnly&sCatId=cat140013

For a tight budget - the AAL speakers
http://philharmonicaudio.com/aa.html


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## Dream Theater (Sep 14, 2014)

Have you purchased or heard the AAL speakers. They do look physically appealing. Thanks


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## whitey019 (Feb 2, 2013)

I don't own nor have I heard these, but they seem to be held in high regard.

http://emptek.com/impseries.php


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## jamesfrazier (Jul 24, 2011)

I just picked up a pair of Boston acoustic Rs 260 book shelves for my living rooms tv/music. They retail at 799 I believe and I got mine for 320( a pair).

To me they sound amazing. They mids are great and the treble is so smooth. No harshness what so ever. I can compare them to my older Polk monitor 60 towers that had three 5.5" drivers my current speakers one 6.5" and the bostons get louder and sound better doing so. They keep composure even at very high levels. I often have get togethers at my house and I can easily crank them to where no one in the room can hear each other, and they still sound perfect. Would easily recommend them as a nicer budget speakers for any use. They have a nice black piano finish and magnetic grills too.


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## zieglj01 (Jun 20, 2011)

Dream Theater said:


> Have you purchased or heard the AAL speakers. They do look physically appealing. Thanks


I demoed the prototype AAL bookshelf speaker and reviewed it - they are a class above the 
Pioneer speakers. They tend to favor the NHT sound signature. > They have good detail and 
definition, and some nice tight and controlled bass response for their size.

The AAL bookshelf will hold their own and then some - with speakers that cost around $350
a pair, regular price. Also, the word on the towers has been real good.

Dennis is well respected for his crossover work and designs - and he is easy to deal with.

I would for sure check them out.


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## alatham (Jan 9, 2014)

I have the emptek and the pioneer SP-BS21 and really like both.


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## jbrown15 (Dec 7, 2011)

Dream Theater said:


> I personally love Klipsch and Polk , but often these speakers can be pricey. I would love to hear about brands that you all have used that didn't cost you an arm and a leg. Let me know how they sound and what your using.


What do you consider an "arm and a leg"? What's the price per speaker that your consider expensive?


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Have you thought about buying used speakers? I picked up 3 La Scalas for $950 off of Craigslist a while back. Used speakers can be a real bargain. :T


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## Lulimet (Apr 4, 2014)

The Boston Acoustics M series which are selling for less than half msrp at accessories4less are a good deal.

The M250 towers http://www.accessories4less.com/mak...5-way-floorstanding-speaker-each-black/1.html

or the M25 bookshelves http://www.accessories4less.com/mak...way-5-1/4-bookshelf-speaker-black-each/1.html


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Chane.


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## newbeatz (Sep 12, 2014)

I would second the Boston Acoustics M25 bookshelves.
Beautiful open sound, non fatiguing, not harsh at all.
You will need a sub though....mid/bas sdrivers are only 5.25 inch.


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## Dream Theater (Sep 14, 2014)

newbeatz said:


> I would second the Boston Acoustics M25 bookshelves. Beautiful open sound, non fatiguing, not harsh at all. You will need a sub though....mid/bas sdrivers are only 5.25 inch.


Do you believe the book shelf speakers will be enough for my fronts ?


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## NBPk402 (Feb 21, 2012)

Dream Theater said:


> Do you believe the book shelf speakers will be enough for my fronts ?


Bookshelf speakers are fine as long as you have a good sub to match them.


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## GranteedEV (Aug 8, 2010)

Dream Theater said:


> Do you believe the book shelf speakers will be enough for my fronts ?


Depends on your distance & intended max SPL, We need some context.


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## chashint (Jan 12, 2011)

Dream Theater said:


> I personally love Klipsch and Polk , but often these speakers can be pricey. I would love to hear about brands that you all have used that didn't cost you an arm and a leg. Let me know how they sound and what your using.


How much do you have to spend and how many speakers do you need?
Do you also need a sub?
One person's arm might be worth $1000 and another person's leg might be worth $100 so "cost an arm and a leg" is all relative.
If you are near a Fry's the Polk speakers go on sale very regularly, Newegg runs pretty good sales on Polk and some of the Klipsch speakers.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

The AAL Pioneers or the Chane M1 are the value leaders, IMO.


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## Tonto (Jun 30, 2007)

I have not heard the Chane M1's, but Craig does speak highly of them. At that price, it is worth a call to just talk to him about them.


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## tesseract (Aug 9, 2010)

I've heard them, and can't think of anything else at the price that can compare.

The new SVS Prime Satellite comes close, dunno if those got a mention in this thread.


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## Tonto (Jun 30, 2007)

Price wise, those are out of his range. I would think the M1's would be the speaker of choice for him. Do I remember that Craig offers a 30 day in home trial? I can't remember if he includes return shipping.


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## Saturn94 (Jun 8, 2013)

A couple of my favorites for serious bang for the buck are Philharmonic Audio and Soundfield Audio.


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## Dream Theater (Sep 14, 2014)

Saturn94 said:


> A couple of my favorites for serious bang for the buck are Philharmonic Audio and Soundfield Audio.


Have you had personal experience with the Philharmonic Audio speakers ?


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## Saturn94 (Jun 8, 2013)

Dream Theater said:


> Have you had personal experience with the Philharmonic Audio speakers ?


I auditioned a late prototype of the Phil 2 at Dennis Murphy's house and heard the Phil 3 at CAF.

When speaker shopping in 2010, I had narrowed my choices down to the Phil 2 and Salk HT2-TL. Both sounded great, but I couldn't get past the footprint and cosmetics of the Phil 2, so I bought the Salk (even though it was twice the price of the Phil 2  ). If performance alone was the deciding factor, I would have snatched up a pair of Phill 2s. 

Some time later I bought the Soundfield Audio Monitor 1 and eventually sold the Salks.


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## Dream Theater (Sep 14, 2014)

My room is 24 x13 and I am considering using monitors for my fronts instead of floor standing speakers in my home theater , but I'm concerned because I've read that monitors should only be used in close proximity to the listeners. My first row of seating is at 16' and the next right behind. Could you as many opinions as possible and also monitor suggestions. Thanks


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## jamesfrazier (Jul 24, 2011)

Dream Theater said:


> My room is 24 x13 and I am considering using monitors for my fronts instead of floor standing speakers in my home theater , but I'm concerned because I've read that monitors should only be used in close proximity to the listeners. My first row of seating is at 16' and the next right behind. Could you as many opinions as possible and also monitor suggestions. Thanks


Reaction audio CX-10s are extremely impressive speakers. Made from extremely high quality drivers and a new company, their prices are great and the customer service is amazing. I currently own one of their subs and auditioned the CX-10s. Go run through the official forum over at AVS.


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## DaveCarrera4S (May 27, 2013)

There is a lot of buzz about these, and had I not selected Pioneer Andrew Jones floor and bookshelves as front height, rear surround and surrounds, I'd be tempted to try them. http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=109&cp_id=10906&cs_id=1090601&p_id=10565&seq=1&format=2
I bet this would be a good budget bass as well, http://www.monoprice.com/Product?c_id=109&cp_id=10906&cs_id=1090602&p_id=9723&seq=1&format=2


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