The Official Energy Speakers Thread

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

Another thing is with the $700 price tag on a pair of the RC-50s it would be hard to resist..... thats $900 off...

You can actually get them for $630 shipped from WWStereo with a coupon code. It's pretty much impossible for brick and mortar dealers to compete.

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

You can actually get them for $630 shipped from WWStereo with a coupon code. It's pretty much impossible for brick and mortar dealers to compete.

Justin

$630 HOLY CRAP................ Its almost august, I wonder if we will hear an announcement about them being updated.............. I know we are supposed to hear about the Veritas line being reintroduced, so there may be a lot coming up here shortly.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

$630 HOLY CRAP................ Its almost august, I wonder if we will hear an announcement about them being updated.............. I know we are supposed to hear about the Veritas line being reintroduced, so there may be a lot coming up here shortly.

My thoughts exactly. Now you can see why I'm so torn between getting a pair of RC-50s (or waiting for the inevitable drop on the 70s) or spending at least twice as much on Totem, Dyn, Focal or something else that only gets me an additional 5-10% increase in SQ.

Knowing myself like I do, chances are I'll go for the latter option.

Also, do you have any idea what a fair price for a used (less than 2 years old) Anthem A2 would be? Retail is $1500 and I can get it for less than a third of that. Unit is local (I haven't seen it yet) and seems to be in good shape. It was used to power a passive sub.

Justin

[patwrightjr]

Originally Posted by callas01

I have to say that hearing the Paradigm Monitors and the Energy CF, I liked the Energys better. And I say that not because I have Energys, but because I really didn't find the Monitor 11s very good.

I would suggest listening to the CF-70s and the PSB T5s also. I think between the 3 these are the 2 best.

While I understand there was nothinh overly special about the CF-50s, its their flat frequency response, their linear design and overall balance of sound is what sets them apart. The balance of sound is awesome. This is the way an audiophile speaker is supposed to be made..... trust me the B&W 802Ds are very balanced too... and they cost over $10k.

The more I hear, meaning the more speakers I hear, the less I want to upgrade the Energys I have, unless I really step up to Totems or Dynaudios. That is me being 100% honest.

ive never heard the Paradigm v4's or v'5 but i auditioned the v6 monitor serier. The atom had some amazing huge sound, and was very surprized such a small speakers could play so loud and clear with bass that blew me away and made much more punch than my RC-10, a great sounding speaker IMO. The Mini Monitor was on a very low shelf and crowded in a corner so i could give it a fair listen too. The Titan had a very warm sound but still retaining some crisp dynamics that i had missed from my linear rc's, and man they produced huge sound and bass just like a large tower would.....I give the Monitor v6 series a huge thumbs up...too bad the dealer wanted just under $900 for a pair of Titans, but you could get the mini monitors for under $400 and the Atoms for under $350

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

My thoughts exactly. Now you can see why I'm so torn between getting a pair of RC-50s (or waiting for the inevitable drop on the 70s) or spending at least twice as much on Totem, Dyn, Focal or something else that only gets me an additional 5-10% increase in SQ.

Knowing myself like I do, chances are I'll go for the latter option.

Also, do you have any idea what a fair price for a used (less than 2 years old) Anthem A2 would be? Retail is $1500 and I can get it for less than a third of that. Unit is local (I haven't seen it yet) and seems to be in good shape. It was used to power a passive sub.

Justin

The Rainmaker is not exactly twice the price and just wait until you hear them

BTW Justin in my case i'm considering the MCA 30 for my front sound stage but in your case why not give the MCA20 a try?

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

The Rainmaker is not exactly twice the price and just wait until you hear them

I will certainly do that. As much as you and Steve have praised them, I'm extremely excited to listen to them. They can be had for $700-$800 from an authorized dealer too.

BTW Justin in my case i'm considering the MCA 30 for my front sound stage but in your case why not give the MCA20 a try?

Depending on which speakers I get and my budget when I purchase, I might get the front 3 at once. In which case I would be looking for a 3-channel amp. I was just curious if it was a good price.

Are the Statement amps worth the premium in your opinion? They appear to have very similar specs. Also, do you know what the MSRP and typical street price are for the MCA 20 and 30?

Justin

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

I will certainly do that. As much as you and Steve have praised them, I'm extremely excited to listen to them. They can be had for $700-$800 from an authorized dealer too.



Depending on which speakers I get and my budget when I purchase, I might get the front 3 at once. In which case I would be looking for a 3-channel amp. I was just curious if it was a good price.

Are the Statement amps worth the premium in your opinion? They appear to have very similar specs. Also, do you know what the MSRP and typical street price are for the MCA 20 and 30?

Justin

Canadian price for the MCA30 is 2000$ MSRP so Canadian price for the MCA200 would price at around 1700$ MSRP I would say. Now I'm sure you can find a MCA20 in the US for around 1600 MSRP but you sure can slash down that price to 1400$ maybe.

Yeah the Major difference is the Damping factor between the 2 which is not a huge thing driving smaller fast accurate drivers since they have great mechanical damping. The other thing is the THD rated at 100 watts on the MCA vs 200watts for the A series.

Are you really going to drive 4 ohms speakers at 300 Watts full power fi you what i'm saying I mean distortion is so low anyways and Anthem underate teir products.

Honestly I will give the MCA line a try specially if I buy Rainmakers or Sttaf.
Or Dyns Audience 72 SE or again Excites.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by patwrightjr

ive never heard the Paradigm v4's or v'5 but i auditioned the v6 monitor serier. The atom had some amazing huge sound, and was very surprized such a small speakers could play so loud and clear with bass that blew me away and made much more punch than my RC-10, a great sounding speaker IMO. The Mini Monitor was on a very low shelf and crowded in a corner so i could give it a fair listen too. The Titan had a very warm sound but still retaining some crisp dynamics that i had missed from my linear rc's, and man they produced huge sound and bass just like a large tower would.....I give the Monitor v6 series a huge thumbs up...too bad the dealer wanted just under $900 for a pair of Titans, but you could get the mini monitors for under $400 and the Atoms for under $350

I heard the v.4 Titan monitors, and they were not bad, then I heard the v.5 Monitor 11s and they really were dark sounding.... Maybe they are not good with tube amps... IDK, but even the v.4 Studios sounded dark and kinda laidback.

Where did you hear your v.6s because I go out to OC often and would like to hear them again... I cannot believe they are that dark sounding..

What are you listening to that isn't getting you enough bass and dynamics? Perhaps you could come over to my place and hear my speakers, we could also connect yours to see whats up, if you want....

I mean, are you looking for super deep bass? or somehting nice and tight and solid? If you want deep bass, try the Monitor Audio RX2s, they are about $700, and the Totem Mites are about the same and the Rainmakers are about $1050

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by callas01

I heard the v.4 Titan monitors, and they were not bad, then I heard the v.5 Monitor 11s and they really were dark sounding.... Maybe they are not good with tube amps... IDK, but even the v.4 Studios sounded dark and kinda laidback.

Where did you hear your v.6s because I go out to OC often and would like to hear them again... I cannot believe they are that dark sounding..

What are you listening to that isn't getting you enough bass and dynamics? Perhaps you could come over to my place and hear my speakers, we could also connect yours to see whats up, if you want....

I mean, are you looking for super deep bass? or somehting nice and tight and solid? If you want deep bass, try the Monitor Audio RX2s, they are about $700, and the Totem Mites are about the same and the Rainmakers are about $1050

Rainmaker are seriously dynamic speakers and drive just as much bass as the Sttaf. Almost impossible to tell which goes lower without looking at the specs as there is only 3 hz difference at the bottom end. Steve you heard the Staff so you get the picture here. The Mites are nice but does not go as low it goes as low as the RC-10 but more dynamic sounding of course.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Canadian price for the MCA30 is 2000$ MSRP so Canadian price for the MCA200 would price at around 1700$ MSRP I would say. Now I'm sure you can find a MCA20 in the US for around 1600 MSRP but you sure can slash down that price to 1400$ maybe.

Yeah the Major difference is the Damping factor between the 2 which is not a huge thing driving smaller fast accurate drivers since they have great mechanical damping. The other thing is the THD rated at 100 watts on the MCA vs 200watts for the A series.

Are you really going to drive 4 ohms speakers at 300 Watts full power fi you what i'm saying I mean distortion is so low anyways and Anthem underate teir products.

Honestly I will give the MCA line a try specially if I buy Rainmakers or Sttaf.
Or Dyns Audience 72 SE or again Excites.

The differences between the MCA line and the Statement line seem negligible in the real world. I guess it comes down to whether I want the (IMO) better looking (and cheaper) used A2 or the warranty a new MCA would come with.

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Canadian price for the MCA30 is 2000$ MSRP so Canadian price for the MCA200 would price at around 1700$ MSRP I would say. Now I'm sure you can find a MCA20 in the US for around 1600 MSRP but you sure can slash down that price to 1400$ maybe.

Yeah the Major difference is the Damping factor between the 2 which is not a huge thing driving smaller fast accurate drivers since they have great mechanical damping. The other thing is the THD rated at 100 watts on the MCA vs 200watts for the A series.

Are you really going to drive 4 ohms speakers at 300 Watts full power fi you what i'm saying I mean distortion is so low anyways and Anthem underate teir products.

Honestly I will give the MCA line a try specially if I buy Rainmakers or Sttaf.
Or Dyns Audience 72 SE or again Excites.

the Audience will need an Amp. they have a hugh magnet and voice coil that is hard to drive.
The Excites can be driven by a receiver, there is a review where the reviewer used a Marantz 6003 to run the Excites. they are listed at 4 ohms, but really their impedance curve is quite linear and they are closer to 6 ohms then 4.

This is why I am getting a 4 ohm stable receiver....

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

the Audience will need an Amp. they have a hugh magnet and voice coil that is hard to drive.
The Excites can be driven by a receiver, there is a review where the reviewer used a Marantz 6003 to run the Excites. they are listed at 4 ohms, but really their impedance curve is quite linear and they are closer to 6 ohms then 4.

This is why I am getting a 4 ohm stable receiver....

Have you looked at the new receiver from Cambridge Audio? I think it's stable into 4 ohms. It's priced comparably to the Anthem MRX 500 too.

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Rainmaker are seriously dynamic speakers and drive just as much bass as the Sttaf. Almost impossible to tell which goes lower without looking at the specs as there is only 3 hz difference at the bottom end. Steve you heard the Staff so you get the picture here. The Mites are nice but does not go as low it goes as low as the RC-10 but more dynamic sounding of course.

I agree, but I think if he isn't happy with the RC-10s that the mites should give him better dynamics. Maybe not as deep as the rainmakers or sttafs, but it may work for him.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

Have you looked at the new receiver from Cambridge Audio? I think it's stable into 4 ohms. It's priced comparably to the Anthem MRX 500 too.

Justin

I was talking to Dennis (db01) and he sells hi-end audio, and said that between the Integra, NAD and Anthem, the Anthem would be the best one to look into, waiting on a professional review also.. I won't be buying until about March next year anyways, so I have plenty of time to figure it out.

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

I was talking to Dennis (db01) and he sells hi-end audio, and said that between the Integra, NAD and Anthem, the Anthem would be the best one to look into, waiting on a professional review also.. I won't be buying until about March next year anyways, so I have plenty of time to figure it out.

I still need to listen to both Anthem and NAD. I'm interested in the MRX series as well, but like you, I'm waiting on reviews. I'm really interested in the ARC software that Anthem uses.

The only negatives I can think of are lack of 5.1/7.1 multichannel inputs (minor complaint) and a lack of DSD decoding (though I believe my SACD player will decode the DSD without converting to PCM, so again, a non-issue). I would also be happy with more HDMI inputs, but I only need 4 at the moment and HDMI switchers are pretty cheap anyway.

Ideally I'd like one of their pre/pro's, but the budget is not there for one.

Justin

[callas01]

Originally Posted by callas01

I was talking to Dennis (db01) and he sells hi-end audio, and said that between the Integra, NAD and Anthem, the Anthem would be the best one to look into, waiting on a professional review also.. I won't be buying until about March next year anyways, so I have plenty of time to figure it out.

I dont see anything that says the Cambridge 650 is 4 ohm stable.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Jwilly019

I still need to listen to both Anthem and NAD. I'm interested in the MRX series as well, but like you, I'm waiting on reviews. I'm really interested in the ARC software that Anthem uses.

The only negatives I can think of are lack of 5.1/7.1 multichannel inputs (minor complaint) and a lack of DSD decoding (though I believe my SACD player will decode the DSD without converting to PCM, so again, a non-issue). I would also be happy with more HDMI inputs, but I only need 4 at the moment and HDMI switchers are pretty cheap anyway.

Ideally I'd like one of their pre/pro's, but the budget is not there for one.

Justin

yeah, I am hoping to get an Oppo 80 and an Anthem and TV stand this coming spring, then later I will get speakers.

Here is what dennis wrote me.

Hey Buddy! I know all three lines well, Anthem has the best processing available, NAD is a very good product, but doesn't measure up to Anthem. Integra is Onkyo's higher end line, very good, but given Onkyo's track record, would choose Anthem as the better choice. Have worked with all three companies regarding beta-testing, etc., and found Anthem to be the superior product line. Hope this helps My Friend! D

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

I dont see anything that says the Cambridge 650 is 4 ohm stable.

I just did some searching and couldn't find anything myself. I must have been mistaken, my apologies.

Justin

[Jwilly019]

Originally Posted by callas01

yeah, I am hoping to get an Oppo 80 and an Anthem and TV stand this coming spring, then later I will get speakers.

Here is what dennis wrote me.

The most important thing I'm after (besides my must have features of course) is sound quality. I will be using HD sources the majority of the time, so I don't need any sort of high-end video scalar, pass through is fine with me.

Give me pre-outs, decoding of the HD audio codecs, room correction, 4 or more HDMI inputs, 7.1 (though I'll most likely only use 5.1 for the time being), the ability to independently set crossover points (80hz for the mains and 100hz for the center for example) and great sound quality and I'll be happy.

Justin

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by callas01

the Audience will need an Amp. they have a hugh magnet and voice coil that is hard to drive.
The Excites can be driven by a receiver, there is a review where the reviewer used a Marantz 6003 to run the Excites. they are listed at 4 ohms, but really their impedance curve is quite linear and they are closer to 6 ohms then 4.

This is why I am getting a 4 ohm stable receiver....

Regardless I have to get an Amp so to me it does not matter wether it's a huget Magnet or not I know the Voice coil is 3 inches on the Dynaudio drivers it's the same on the Forrest with the ATI driver, Could you imagine the Wind even the 5.5 inches Dyns drivers have a 3 inch voice coil on the Wind plus you have to drive 8.5 inches woofer, man this thing can take alot of power.