TV Speakers - recommendations please

[JJinPDX]

The story is this: we moved. I get to have my system not do double duty as both music and TV speakers. So now the TV lacks good sound for movies and the occasional music video or live streaming symphony.

 

Quest: find speakers that do a decent job for around $500. I have a spare amp and DAC I can use. And an acceptable sub.

 

Thoughts? Personal success stories?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

JJ

[17629v2]

The Pioneer's they sell at Best Buy are very good for the money. I have a pair of the small ones on my computer and can't complain. You should have no problem getting what you need for less than $500.

[Paul R]

I have to admit, while a pair of good speakers can do wonders for TV sound,mI have not found a $500 set that really does it justice, and younreally need an AVR to feed it and the video if you have more than one source. (I.e. Bluray, AppleTv, Roku, Cable/Sat, etc.)

 

For $699 you can put a Sonos SoundBar there and it will do an excellent job for television. There are other choices of course, but it turns out Sonos is pretty wife friendly, and the cost is reasonable. Takes all of 10 mins to install too.

[JJinPDX]

The Pioneer's they sell at Best Buy are very good for the money. I have a pair of the small ones on my computer and can't complain. You should have no problem getting what you need for less than $500.

 

The Andrew Jones developed speakers across a variety of brands do quite well for the money. Some of my local audiophile friends have also suggested the Pioneers. Thanks. I'll have a look.

[JJinPDX]

I have to admit, while a pair of good speakers can do wonders for TV sound,mI have not found a $500 set that really does it justice, and younreally need an AVR to feed it and the video if you have more than one source. (I.e. Bluray, AppleTv, Roku, Cable/Sat, etc.)

 

For $699 you can put a Sonos SoundBar there and it will do an excellent job for television. There are other choices of course, but it turns out Sonos is pretty wife friendly, and the cost is reasonable. Takes all of 10 mins to install too.

 

In our old house, my pride and joy music system was mostly used for the TV. Pretty darned good for the occasional movies we watched. I do miss the high quality it brought, but TV to this household is not the focus, so I'm trying not spend a whole bunch, but still get decent sound for movies and the like.

 

The speaker market in the $250 - $750 range is quite cluttered. Lots of players, so I thought I'd throw out this query to see if anyone could help me wade through the plethora of choices.

 

I will look at the sound bar, although I've not really given them much thought. Until you mentioned it, I'd not thought of the possibility of mounting the TV on the wall, with a sound bar beneath or above it. Thanks for the suggestion!

[Sal1950]

Hsu Research 2.1 Value system, just a hair over your budget at $609

I own the 5.2 (w/2 STF subs) and they offer incredible sound for the money.

Been doing business with Dr Hsu since 1991 and he is a dedicated engineer,

very hands on. I've had him answer the phone personally and he's also very

active with help on his forum. Can't ask for more than that from a manufacturer.

Value 2 Packages

HSU HB1 Mk2 Speaker Review

PS, A pair of HB1's without the sub in beautiful Rosenut can be purchased for $390

http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/hb-1.html

[Paul R]

In our old house, my pride and joy music system was mostly used for the TV. Pretty darned good for the occasional movies we watched. I do miss the high quality it brought, but TV to this household is not the focus, so I'm trying not spend a whole bunch, but still get decent sound for movies and the like.

 

The speaker market in the $250 - $750 range is quite cluttered. Lots of players, so I thought I'd throw out this query to see if anyone could help me wade through the plethora of choices.

 

I will look at the sound bar, although I've not really given them much thought. Until you mentioned it, I'd not thought of the possibility of mounting the TV on the wall, with a sound bar beneath or above it. Thanks for the suggestion!

 

You can also also just set that particular sound bar on the TV stand in front of the TV, if the stand is wide enough.

 

I have our TV and that exact sounder mounted above our fireplace. Works great for the room, though I admit to adding the matching sub in to get a bit more bass. The sub actually sits all the way across the room, behind the couch.

[ericuco]

I have been using a Martin Logan sound bar for several years now and been happy with it. It is triple your budget but comes with speakers and amps in the unit. Just run a TOSLINK cable from your cable box and you are ready to go.

 

MartinLogan Motion® Vision X - Premium Wireless Powered Sound Bar Speaker System

 

Audio Advisor has "factory refreshed models" for $699. That was the route I took and have never had an issue.

 

MartinLogan Vision Ultimate Single Speaker Surround-Audio Advisor

[Neil C]

I have a ZVOX sound base that sits underneath the TV pedestal. It works very well and takes optical or coax digital out from the TV.

[chilledbongo]

Audioengine speakers. Powered. Small size. Great sound. Well under 500. Klipsch also has great powered monitors. Would do very well for TV. Add a center channel later. Avoid soundbars. Definitely not audiophile, if you care.

 

Sent from my SM-T810 using Computer Audiophile mobile app

[Paul R]

Also, Audio Advisor is selling some pretty decent little floor standers at a "blow out" price right now.

 

Cambridge Audio Aero 6 Floorstanding Speaker in Black Finish

Regular $549.50, Our Price $199.99 Each

 

Cambridge Audio Aero 6 Floorstanding Speaker in Dark Cherry Finish

Regular $549.50, Our Price $249.99 Each

 

(No affiliation, financial or otherwise, save as an occasional customer. -Paul )

[GregWormald]

I have the AudioEngine 2s and they do a great job of improving my video watching on the computer. Very neutral sound and got great reviews in Stereophile.

For major TV watching I'd be looking into a pair of their larger models.

 

Greg

[Ajax]

The story is this: we moved. I get to have my system not do double duty as both music and TV speakers. So now the TV lacks good sound for movies and the occasional music video or live streaming symphony.

 

Quest: find speakers that do a decent job for around $500. I have a spare amp and DAC I can use. And an acceptable sub.

 

Thoughts? Personal success stories?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

JJ

 

Powered speakers as suggested above are an excellent option, however, if you really want to get the best bang for your buck then make use of your existing amp, and DAC and sub, and do some research into high quality book shelf speakers ...... go searching on US or Canadian Audio Mart and eBay etc for a bargain.

 

e.g. a pair of the excellent English Spendor S3/5R speakers are being offered "new" for only $650 on US Audio Mart .... these originally retailed for over $1,100. You may be able to negotiate the seller down to your price but if not these are truly excellent speakers. At an efficiency of only 84db the power of your amp and its ability to drive them will come into play. Also their minimum frequency is only 75hz so you will need the sub if playing in a largest room.

 

These speakers are classics and have been around for 20 years having undergone significant upgrades over that time so you will need to double check which version you are buying, however, the pictures in the advert show them still in their original cartons so you may be getting an absolute bargain with a more recent version. The Stereophile review below is for the S3/5R2.

 

Review: Spendor S3/5R2 loudspeaker | Stereophile.com

 

Seller: http://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649285930-spendor-s35r/

 

Just one example of what is available if you are prepared to do modest amount of leg work.

 

All the best,

 

 

Ajax

[anji12305]

Does your TV have Toslink or HDMI passthrough for audio? Many current receivers could ably handle this.

 

Monoprice powered subs are about $150. The well received Pioneer bookshelf entries are $129.

 

https://www.worldwidestereo.com/products/pioneer-sp-bs22-lr-andrew-jones-designed-bookshelf-speakers-pair-black?sku=156661&CAWELAID=120216570000000704&CAGPSPN=pla&CAAGID=26302326121&CATCI=pla-202428341521&catargetid=120216570000004611&cadevice=m&gclid=CNrlm7O62M4CFZdZhgodrUcKUQ

 

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[bobbmd]

JJinPDX----Cambridge Soundworks(if they still exist) has outstanding set of speakers (4) small solid book shelf type 2 mains and 2 sats they are Henry Kloss's old company-better yet try and find the originals or second generation at a high end second hand shop or online ebay amazon with the passive subwoofers great sound still have mine along with towers and powered subwoofer and center channel originals date for 1990's others from 2005 or so great value great sound-slide mostly under the radar back then-mine still work and sound wonderful

[JJinPDX]

Erg!

 

I got busy on other things, and while I have been checking in with CA, I forgot about this thread!!! That's terrible, since I was the one asking for help. Let me read through the replies and get back to everyone. In the meantime, thanks for the suggestions!

 

JJ

[esldude]

Erg!

 

I got busy on other things, and while I have been checking in with CA, I forgot about this thread!!! That's terrible, since I was the one asking for help. Let me read through the replies and get back to everyone. In the meantime, thanks for the suggestions!

 

JJ

 

Since you are still considering this I have a suggestion.

 

Revel Concerta F12 loudspeaker | Stereophile.com

 

Some of these used via ebay or audiogon or audiomart. These are really, really good speakers. Second hand they can go from around $450 to $600. The good thing is they are quite sensitive and need little power to perform well. They are smaller than they look in the picture. You could use them without a sub without losing much.

 

You also might look for these second hand.

Revel Concerta M12 Bookshelf Speaker Reviewed

 

I have not heard these (I have heard the F12s), and they need a sub (which you said you have). They are available for less money.

 

Both of these speakers were made from 2006 to 2014 so you still see them around second hand.

[Blake]

If you prefer a "soundbar" style setup, I've been happy with my Revel Concerta LCR8, which is a passive design with left, right and center channels. Not as good as speaker separates, but if your space is limited then it is a nice solution.

[witchdoctor]

The story is this: we moved. I get to have my system not do double duty as both music and TV speakers. So now the TV lacks good sound for movies and the occasional music video or live streaming symphony.

 

Quest: find speakers that do a decent job for around $500. I have a spare amp and DAC I can use. And an acceptable sub.

 

Thoughts? Personal success stories?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

JJ

 

Are you using a sub? Do you prefer towers, bookshelfs, or on walls?

 

If you are not using a sub I would consider Deftech Studio Monitor 45, if you are using a sub I think you would really like JBL 230's. You can find reviews online and on you tube Zeos had a nice review of the JBL 230.