mrbadhabits
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need help - great front port bookshelf speakers (l/r and c), primarily for 7.1 music in large room
bierfeldt
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They are remarkably musical.  The models to look at would be the CRS - 3C, the CRM - 2 and the CRM-2BIP.  These would only run around $5000 for 5 speakers, Center, Front and Sides.  For a small speaker, they are very musical.  I am a big fan of both Sunfire and B&W and I own both.  May not be your ultimate choice but worth a listen. 

One note, to really drive them you need a lot of power.  These are not efficient and they call for up to 400w at 8ohms.  For a room your size, you will likely need it.  I have the HRS line and in a 10 x 20 space, 170w at 6ohms is barely enough as I watch most movies and listen to audio with the power at 75 on a scale of 0 to 100.   

mrbadhabits
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Many thanks. Reading the Sunfire website these speakers seem very interesting. As I look at the room I'm wondering if the l/r speakers would produce an effective soundstage if the distance between them is 10 feet or so. (There are reasons why this placement is necessary.) The B&W 805d sounded good off-axis, and I'd go with them but they seemed very "polite" if I can use a term that seems to fit. There are times when my wife is gone that I will want to crank the volume up. I like what I've heard from Dali but the rear port bothers me.

bierfeldt
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And they sounded extraordinary but were about 6' apart.  They do not behave or sound like bookshelf/satelite speakers.  The dealer I went to also sells KEF and these were warmer and clearer than a  pair of KEF floor standers in their XQ series.  My personal tastes lean toward B&W and Sunfire so you might hear it and feel differently. 

The one thing I would note is that the Sunfires are a touch more efficient than the 805's at 90dB vs. 88dB and you can send more than 3x the power.  If you can deliver 300w to 400w I think the Sunfires will be less "polite" than the B&Ws. 

The thing that is throwing me on this is the front port or sealed enclosure.  The speaker I would gravitate to is Acoustic Zen's Adagio Junior but it is rear ported and also may not generate the appropriate volume for your space.  KEF's Reference Series is great but will likely not generate the volume you are looking for and will be similar to the 805's. 

This is a difficult one.  I would be very interested in finding out what you ultimately settle on. 

mrbadhabits
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Big issue here. Listened to Sonus Faber yesterday, priced about 5K, they were very quick and I could listen to them all day. Not polite when the music called for otherwise. But the listening room was about 1/4 size of mine, and placement was pretty ideal, so what can you expect? This will take awhile - thanks for your interest.

bierfeldt
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The McIntosh XR50 and the LCR80 center. Might be worth a listen.

commsysman
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I suggest that you listen to the KEF R300 speakers; they are only $1800/pair and are very very good.

Another good one is the Aerial Acoustics 5B, whci runs about $2400/pair. These are sealed and have no ports, so they need 60 watts p/c min.

Another good one is the Triangle Comet EX, which runs only $1400.

Audiovision San Francisco has the Triangle and KEF speakers, and also a LOT of other good stuff, so that might be a good place to audition at.

 

mrbadhabits wrote:

Big issue here. Listened to Sonus Faber yesterday, priced about 5K, they were very quick and I could listen to them all day. Not polite when the music called for otherwise. But the listening room was about 1/4 size of mine, and placement was pretty ideal, so what can you expect? This will take awhile - thanks for your interest.

mrbadhabits
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McIntosh LCR80 looks good, but I've always wondered about the surround sound approach, how the intent of this can be the same as speakers designed to create a spatial effect/soundstage that isn't engineered to emphasize spoken voice, explosions, etc. All this is to provide audio that accompanies video/film, instead of audio being the only show in the room. I'll have a listen to all of these. HoM is in SOMA, and I'm scheduling an appt with Audiovision sometime in next week. Many thanks.

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