which will be a good start if he likes their sound. Definitely matches what your application appears to be and might make you think twice about subwoofers.

http://www.avguide.com/review/legacy-focus-se-loudspeaker-tas-215

Legacy Whispers might even be better if you can find a good deal on them.

Here is a used pair of EgglestonWorks Andra mkI. Two 12" woofers in a transmission line config. All the Bass he will ever need. No subwoofer needed.

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrfull&1322863746&/Eggleston-Works-Andra-original

I'm not being funny -- I've worked in this field before, and provides and alternative way of approaching this... - I used to know one of the members of Black Uhuru 

"...likin da beeg BAAAAASS maan" 

We ended up tri-amping with active 3rd generation crossovers - using (in his house) JBL "W" cabs and Electrovoice mid-tops

suffice it to say, it wasnt a Hi-fi system ....it was a concert rig in "da crib maan" ....and I could see the glass flexing on his patio doors 

This type of stuff 

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FoarybPaslw/TIy1-xarMrI/AAAAAAAABt0/9V443dIyFy0/s1600/ETA2.jpg

psustud4331 wrote:

Hi everyone,
This is my first ever post so please pardon the lack of details in my profile.

Since I am a bit of a novice audiophile my (very blessed) uncle has asked that I come up with a very high end stereo system for him to use in his Atlanta home.

The budget is $25-$35k.

I have a few very good ideas (some very different from others), but I'm looking for suggestions.

Let's keep it simple and go with suggestions for a pair of $9-$15,000 speakers to base the system around.  No need for suggestions on electronics just yet.

It's VERY important to realize who this guy his.  He is NOT an audiophile and does NOT listen to classical, vocal, chamber nor any other immaculately engineered live audio.

He listens mostly to Motown, easy listening, and modern (quality) pop and R&B.
Favorite artists: Stevie Wonder, Al Green, Quincy Jones, Steely Dan, Grand Funk Rail Road, EARTH WIND AND FIRE, Boyz 2 Men, Robin Thicke, Mark Ronson... ect.

He likes it LOUD and able to ROCK OUT... NO overly clinical "revealing" stuff for him.

Think Cerwin Vega, pull it out of the dorm/basement bring it up to middle age with very deep pockets and still kick it up 10 notches... (think Klipsch +10 too)

Though he would not site the following as characteristic of himself, I know he likes BASS.  If he were to demo a pair of $14k speakers and the bass was "accurate" (ie, not enough for him) he'd think they weren't worth it, though he wouldn't likely site bass as the issue.  
He's used to the exaggerated bass in his wife's (Bose... ekk!) Audi A8 and his own Porshe 911... think bass at these levels and kick the SQ up quite a bit.

...I'm thinking pressurized room (wall shaking) will have him giddy.

What I already have in mind:
(let's face it, we'll be matching these with something along the lines of a pair of JL F112 subs no matter what)

Revel's Ultima Studio 2
Totem Acoustic's Wind
Wilson Audio's Sophia
Avalon Acoustics' Indra
Paradigm's Signature S8's (before you knock it, remember what I've said about his taste)

The suggestions that I have that are the most left field are:
1.) Meridian Audio - DSP5200 ($15,000 but requires no amp nor pre-amp)
2.) Meridian Audio - DSP7200... heard these, fell in love and thought THIS IS WHAT HE'D WANT
1 problem.. they're $35k.... but again, they hardly need ANY external electronics outside of the source so I tossed them in.

DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY OTHER GOOD (KNOCK YOUR SOCKS OFF) SUGGESTIONS???

(not looking for B&W, Vienna Acoustics nor Sonus Faber)

THANKS!!!

Cecil

Cecil,

It is important to your objective to consider the room you are working in. You need to provide speaker placement, volume, entryways, and room dimensions including ceiling heights because you need to know volume when you are considering pressurizing a room. Do you want to really blow him away with DVDA or SACD? In that case, you will be looking at more than just 2 speakers and a possible sub or two.

D3sign3r wrote:

I'm not being funny -- I've worked in this field before, and provides and alternative way of approaching this... - I used to know one of the members of Black Uhuru 

"...likin da beeg BAAAAASS maan" 

We ended up tri-amping with active 3rd generation crossovers - using (in his house) JBL "W" cabs and Electrovoice mid-tops

suffice it to say, it wasnt a Hi-fi system ....it was a concert rig in "da crib maan" ....and I could see the glass flexing on his patio doors 

This type of stuff 

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_FoarybPaslw/TIy1-xarMrI/AAAAAAAABt0/9V443dIyFy0/s1600/ETA2.jpg

holy Woodstock Batman!...that set-up would have made Phil Spector go back to the drawing board. If it were only possible run my Fender Strat through this...I would never leave the house.

soulful.terrain wrote:

holy Woodstock Batman!...that set-up would have made Phil Spector go back to the drawing board. If it were only possible run my Fender Strat through this...I would never leave the house.

Hi Soulful..

You can interface your Fender to this sort of tech with the right DI equipment

It is'nt high precision but will make you as loud as Gilmour in Vienna

The Vandersteen Quattros , at around 10 grand, would be a good place to start. The built-in subwoofers and bass amps will give him all the bass he wants, and the speaker will let you adjust the bass to suit the room acoustics. The fact that the heavy lifting is already built into the speakers also means that your main amp does not have to be very big, since the bass is what sucks power and the Vandersteens have that taken care of already (250W bass amp in each speaker).

From there, you definitely want the Ayre C-5xe CD/SACD player...THE one that blows the others all away; 6 grand. No substitutions allowed here.

For the preamp, an Audio Research LS-27 is, at 6 grand, the best you can buy without going to their Reference model at twice as much money. With the LS-27 you have no layout problems, becuse it is all-balanced, meaning your connections can be 50 feet long if you want with no problems at all (amp to pre, pre to CD, etc.). There is no preamp I know of that sounds this good at any comparable price.

For an amp, the Bryston 3B-SST will do the job nicely, and it's just about bulletproof and will play anything you want louder than you want through those speakers. About 4 grand.

I assume he will want a turntable? The Music Hall 5 or 7 series with a Musical Fidelity phono amp will give all the sound he wants for 2 or 3 grand, depending on cartridge. I love the Benz cartridge that sells for around $700; I forget the model name. Look at The Music Direct website.

So....10K + 6K + 6K + 4K + 3K = $29k...that's about right, huh?

Build that system and you can boogie all night or put that Michigan State marching band in your living room, or bring in the Berlin Philharmonic for Beethoven's 9th at row 3 volume. Or you can put on Ry Cooder or Lightning Hopkins and love that bass line.

I second the vote for the Legacy Focus SE speakers ($10k). They will give him what he likes in terms of SQ, Bass and SPL. Even the most ham fisted owner can turn them up and blow their hair back before reaching the limits with proper amplification. For Amp I would go for a nice Pass Labs x250.5. Fill in the rest of the blanks with an Audio Research DAC8 and a Logitech Transporter to bring him into the 21 century. Don't forget the power conditioning and quality cabling.

I've been thinking about the Meridian way of doing things ever since hearing a fellow club members DSP7200 and 800.3 Preamp/CD player/ DAC  at his summer house a few months back . I would probably move on it but I've invested the price of a small house already and know I would take a shellacing on the trade up , or over , depending how you look at it . The Meridian gear is not for the tweeky geeky crowd , but seems to be for people that just want great music without the toil .

                                                                                                                                                                                      Tim

D3sign3r wrote:

soulful.terrain wrote:

holy Woodstock Batman!...that set-up would have made Phil Spector go back to the drawing board. If it were only possible run my Fender Strat through this...I would never leave the house.

Hi Soulful..

You can interface your Fender to this sort of tech with the right DI equipment

It is'nt high precision but will make you as loud as Gilmour in Vienna

COOL!  Thanks D3sign3r. When I got rid of my Marshall solid state and went with the Hiwatt 100, I didn't think it could get any louder. lol! We did a pool party about 4 months ago, and to think if I had that kind of volume level would have been killer.

The Legacy Focus SEs MAY give you good bass IF you have the right kind of room, the right kind of VERY high power amplifier, and IF you spend a huge amount of time getting the placement just right; on the other hand, some users will NEVER get great bass out of them if the room acoustics or layout is an issue.

With the Vandersteen Quattros, YOU WILL get great bass in virtually any room because of the way they are designed, with their integral subwoofer amplifiers and setup options; they can be made to work really well in a lot of environments that will prevent the Legacys from performing well.

Recommending the Legacy Focus SE is a crapshoot, in my opinion.

Read the Anthony Cordesman review of these speakers from The Absolute Sound, and you will see what I am talking about; it is available online through the Legacy website.