The Official Energy Speakers Thread

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by DerrellB

Being a former Kef owner, they do have big sound and very detailed. They image like no ones business. I always had mines powered by external amplification and never heard them on a receiver. They aren't power hogs with a decent sensitivity. I kind of miss them now that I talk about them.

Yeah they do image like champs but One thing I came to realize ho is that they IQ were extremely flat paired with an Onkyo 807 receiver. They sounded great on an HK 3600, I have to say pairing is important, Regardless of the power sometimes the sound is not what you expect when you hook it up to a different gear.

[callas01]

yeah, I heards the Kefs iQs on a Denon and the XQs on a pioneer Elite, I prefered the XQs refinement and detail, but with the Elite it was just too forward. The iQs were nice and more toned down due to the receiver pairing. the XQ40 blew the iQ9 away

But still, Kefs have that unique sound of theirs and its just not me overall.

[DerrellB]

Big Al and Callas,

I agree with you both about pairing. Even using an elite as a prepro was too foward for me with those speakers. Thats why I sold the elite and went with marantz. I will say that I also had an HK 254 as a prepro and that was by far the best combination for those kefs. It tamed some of the brightness and gave them a very warm and musical sound. I would suggest HK or Marantz to any kef owner or maybe a denon. Something that has some warmness to them would pair well with the kefs. I want the XQ series, but I want to get my ears on them before buying them.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by DerrellB

Big Al and Callas,

I agree with you both about pairing. Even using an elite as a prepro was too foward for me with those speakers. Thats why I sold the elite and went with marantz. I will say that I also had an HK 254 as a prepro and that was by far the best combination for those kefs. It tamed some of the brightness and gave them a very warm and musical sound. I would suggest HK or Marantz to any kef owner or maybe a denon. Something that has some warmness to them would pair well with the kefs. I want the XQ series, but I want to get my ears on them before buying them.

No kidding they sounded great with the 3600

[PaulWog]

Well the Pioneer 1325-K receiver is going on sale at Futureshop for $750 on boxing day (leaked prices from redflags). The minimum store stock is over 6 per store, so hopefully our store will have them in. We might not have the gift cards at that time, but I think the purchase will be worth it at that awesome price.

Unfortunately my subwoofer (RPW-10) is going on sale for $200... bleh! Oh well $100 lost, no biggy. Funny thing is look at this: http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/9746/photo0194j.jpg. I don't trust Klipsch at all. They have a typo on their own damned subwoofer's lowpass dial LOL! Where it reads 100Hz, it should actually be 90Hz. It's useful for filling my room with bass (I set it just to supplement my speakers minimally)... but setting it loudly, it suffers in musicality a lot of the time (you hear the box rather than the music). It's still an improvement over the Energy subwoofer (sadly), but I don't mind having it since at a low setting you do hear the musicality (and that's what I mainly use it at). It's just when the subwoofer gets louder that one hears its shortcomings.

They're selling the RC-70's for $1000 for a pair on Boxing Day at Futureshop, which is an AMAZING price for in Canada. Though since there's no available center speaker to match them, we'll be sticking with the Kef setup.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by PaulWog

Well the Pioneer 1325-K receiver is going on sale at Futureshop for $750 on boxing day (leaked prices from redflags). The minimum store stock is over 6 per store, so hopefully our store will have them in. We might not have the gift cards at that time, but I think the purchase will be worth it at that awesome price.

Unfortunately my subwoofer (RPW-10) is going on sale for $200... bleh! Oh well $100 lost, no biggy. Funny thing is look at this: http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/9746/photo0194j.jpg. I don't trust Klipsch at all. They have a typo on their own damned subwoofer's lowpass dial LOL! Where it reads 100Hz, it should actually be 90Hz. It's useful for filling my room with bass (I set it just to supplement my speakers minimally)... but setting it loudly, it suffers in musicality a lot of the time (you hear the box rather than the music). It's still an improvement over the Energy subwoofer (sadly), but I don't mind having it since at a low setting you do hear the musicality (and that's what I mainly use it at). It's just when the subwoofer gets louder that one hears its shortcomings.

They're selling the RC-70's for $1000 for a pair on Boxing Day at Futureshop, which is an AMAZING price for in Canada. Though since there's no available center speaker to match them, we'll be sticking with the Kef setup.

Paul I hope this deal works out for ya the 1325 should be a significant improvement over your Dads receiver and the 1019 shoud serve you better than your 520, for sure more fleixible on setup.

[PaulWog]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Paul I hope this deal works out for ya the 1325 should be a significant improvement over your Dads receiver and the 1019 shoud serve you better than your 520, for sure more fleixible on setup.

Thanks. I hope so as well.

I may be getting the CF-50's for $0-$200 (as far as luck/charitability goes), so it makes me feel good about the amount I've invested into my system. Otherwise I'd probably be biting my tongue over the upcoming two RC-70's for $1000 deal. The more I listen to my CF-30 speakers, the more I'm loving them though. Their one and almost only shortcoming is that they sometimes hide an instrument enough in the sound that one would be wishing for a bit more separation. Maybe that's just part of the intended sound though? The unfortunate side-effect is there's a couple songs I enjoy listening to on the RC-Minis, but on the CF speakers those certain songs just don't come to life; that said, the CF's actually have some songs they handle much much better as well.

Anyways, I haven't had time enough to listen to the CF-50's, so I don't even know how much better they will be over the CF-30's as fronts. But soon I'll find out. Same with the switch to the 1019. If I'm lucky that'll add some punch and slightly better control to the whole setup.

I guess I should soon be including pictures of everything on my account.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by PaulWog

Thanks. I hope so as well.

I may be getting the CF-50's for $0-$200 (as far as luck/charitability goes), so it makes me feel good about the amount I've invested into my system. Otherwise I'd probably be biting my tongue over the upcoming two RC-70's for $1000 deal. The more I listen to my CF-30 speakers, the more I'm loving them though. Their one and almost only shortcoming is that they sometimes hide an instrument enough in the sound that one would be wishing for a bit more separation. Maybe that's just part of the intended sound though? The unfortunate side-effect is there's a couple songs I enjoy listening to on the RC-Minis, but on the CF speakers those certain songs just don't come to life; that said, the CF's actually have some songs they handle much much better as well.

Anyways, I haven't had time enough to listen to the CF-50's, so I don't even know how much better they will be over the CF-30's as fronts. But soon I'll find out. Same with the switch to the 1019. If I'm lucky that'll add some punch and slightly better control to the whole setup.

I guess I should soon be including pictures of everything on my account.

Paul the RC-mini defenately reveal more details given the line of the Speaker, I mean they are reference but you get more punch with the CF-30 but I would say this if you ever come across an Integrated Amplifier like Arcam A18 for 900$ that would be Awesome with those Energy, I mean it's 50 watts per channel and it's a 2 channel amp dedicated for music but you would get more seperation for sure compare to your Pioneer. Controlled bass refers to what we call damping factor, It can be achived in 2 different ways, either mechanical or electrical damping. The mechanical is within the speakeer fabrication and the Electrical is achived by the Amplifer.

The Damping Factor is important but if it's to high on an amp it can remove some musicality to a speaker that already has high mechanical damping, For instance High damping Amps are usually found with D class amps often used for Subs since they are big drivers and hard to move but may make speakers like Dynaudio or Totem using Dynaidio and Totem Torrent drivers sound to mechanical per say. Anyhow good compromise is a must and also we have to realize that pairing is important.

[PaulWog]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Paul the RC-mini defenately reveal more details given the line of the Speaker, I mean they are reference but you get more punch with the CF-30 but I would say this if you ever come across an Integrated Amplifier like Arcam A18 for 900$ that would be Awesome with those Energy, I mean it's 50 watts per channel and it's a 2 channel amp dedicated for music but you would get more seperation for sure compare to your Pioneer. Controlled bass refers to what we call damping factor, It can be achived in 2 different ways, either mechanical or electrical damping. The mechanical is within the speakeer fabrication and the Electrical is achived by the Amplifer.

The Damping Factor is important but if it's to high on an amp it can remove some musicality to a speaker that already has high mechanical damping, For instance High damping Amps are usually found with D class amps often used for Subs since they are big drivers and hard to move but may make speakers like Dynaudio or Totem using Dynaidio and Totem Torrent drivers sound to mechanical per say. Anyhow good compromise is a must and also we have to realize that pairing is important.

I've got a lot to learn about the wattage ratings still I'm guessing. So that Arcam A18 (as a future possible upgrade) would be used by sending preouts from my receiver to it, and it would amplify my right/left towers? Is that correct? It looks pretty nice from a quick google. The only upgrade I'll be doing to my speakers once I've gotten my whole thing set up is possibly get something like an external amp like (I think) you're suggesting (unless if I don't understand what that really is). In 2-4 years from now (depending on how fast my 3rd and 4th year at University plus my practicum takes), I'll be looking at a newer superior sound system for more careful listening (and this one will be shifted into functioning elsewhere).

Thanks for mentioning the damping factor. I've got some reading to do on that. I didn't even really know how things are categorized there. A definite point of interest.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by PaulWog

I've got a lot to learn about the wattage ratings still I'm guessing. So that Arcam A18 (as a future possible upgrade) would be used by sending preouts from my receiver to it, and it would amplify my right/left towers? Is that correct? It looks pretty nice from a quick google. The only upgrade I'll be doing to my speakers once I've gotten my whole thing set up is possibly get something like an external amp like (I think) you're suggesting (unless if I don't understand what that really is). In 2-4 years from now (depending on how fast my 3rd and 4th year at University plus my practicum takes), I'll be looking at a newer superior sound system for more careful listening (and this one will be shifted into functioning elsewhere).

Thanks for mentioning the damping factor. I've got some reading to do on that. I didn't even really know how things are categorized there. A definite point of interest.

Paul,

much easier said, is that a very entry level receiver like the Pioneer 520/1019 and so on do not have the ability to bring out the seperation you are looking for. Perhaps something like a Marantz receiver which is more musical and better served to do what your looking at would be better for you.

Another thing you have to consider is the equipment that you heard the Kefs on. Just because at the dealer they sound awesome on a Parasound Pre-amp and Mark Levinson power amps, doesn't mean when you get them home they will still sound the same and have the detail and seperation you heard in the store.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by PaulWog

I've got a lot to learn about the wattage ratings still I'm guessing. So that Arcam A18 (as a future possible upgrade) would be used by sending preouts from my receiver to it, and it would amplify my right/left towers? Is that correct? It looks pretty nice from a quick google. The only upgrade I'll be doing to my speakers once I've gotten my whole thing set up is possibly get something like an external amp like (I think) you're suggesting (unless if I don't understand what that really is). In 2-4 years from now (depending on how fast my 3rd and 4th year at University plus my practicum takes), I'll be looking at a newer superior sound system for more careful listening (and this one will be shifted into functioning elsewhere).

Thanks for mentioning the damping factor. I've got some reading to do on that. I didn't even really know how things are categorized there. A definite point of interest.

In fact yeah and you could connect your cd player directly to it and you would not have to turn on the receiver to listen to music.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by callas01

Paul,

much easier said, is that a very entry level receiver like the Pioneer 520/1019 and so on do not have the ability to bring out the seperation you are looking for. Perhaps something like a Marantz receiver which is more musical and better served to do what your looking at would be better for you.

Another thing you have to consider is the equipment that you heard the Kefs on. Just because at the dealer they sound awesome on a Parasound Pre-amp and Mark Levinson power amps, doesn't mean when you get them home they will still sound the same and have the detail and seperation you heard in the store.

Well said Steve, Altho I feel Kef do have nicely controlled bass but they can sound boring on some receivers and as Darell said the best combo he had with Kef was an HK 254 wait a minute I own one.

I'm sure they can sound even better on a really nice integrated amp.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Well said Steve, Altho I feel Kef do have nicely controlled bass but they can sound boring on some receivers and as Darell said the best combo he had with Kef was an HK 254 wait a minute I own one.

I'm sure they can sound even better on a really nice integrated amp.

yeah, Im just saying that all his discussion about seperation needs to take into account what gear they were demo'ed on also. Demoing them on $10-30K woth of equipment and then taking them home to play on $700 receiver will never provide the same results.

[PaulWog]

Awesome advice. Your help in this thread has helped me much more than anywhere else.

I'll be checking into what receiver/amplifier they were using at Visions. Most likely they would be using a receiver they were demoing for sale (the highest model they have is the Onkyo TXNR3008B). I don't know if they were using any amplifiers, but the highest level amplifier they have is the Cambridge Audio Azur AZUR650A. But it's possible they were using better stuff that they don't have for sale.

Side-note: I am getting some Beats Studio headphones (I know they aren't the greatest headphones out there but I'm getting them on airmiles points just as decent noise cancellation headphones). I'm wondering if running them through my receiver will provide better audio than running them through a 3.5mm jack? And whether it makes a decent difference. Just a general headphone question if you know anything about that.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by PaulWog

Awesome advice. Your help in this thread has helped me much more than anywhere else.

I'll be checking into what receiver/amplifier they were using at Visions. Most likely they would be using a receiver they were demoing for sale (the highest model they have is the Onkyo TXNR3008B). I don't know if they were using any amplifiers, but the highest level amplifier they have is the Cambridge Audio Azur AZUR650A. But it's possible they were using better stuff that they don't have for sale.

Side-note: I am getting some Beats Studio headphones (I know they aren't the greatest headphones out there but I'm getting them on airmiles points just as decent noise cancellation headphones). I'm wondering if running them through my receiver will provide better audio than running them through a 3.5mm jack? And whether it makes a decent difference. Just a general headphone question if you know anything about that.

An Azur 650 Integrated amp would be nice too.

[Mpeake]

Hello all and Merry Christmas!
I am contemplating an upgrade to my Center. I currently have the center from the Take Classics and am wondering how much better my front sound stage would be if I were to get a RC-Mini CC to pair with my RC-10's. I see that they are roughly the same size (the mini is a bit bigger) and I should be able to place the Mini in the position I currently have my Take Center. I would love to get a RC-LCR but it is too large for the WAF... Any feedback would be great! Thanks.

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Mpeake

Hello all and Merry Christmas!
I am contemplating an upgrade to my Center. I currently have the center from the Take Classics and am wondering how much better my front sound stage would be if I were to get a RC-Mini CC to pair with my RC-10's. I see that they are roughly the same size (the mini is a bit bigger) and I should be able to place the Mini in the position I currently have my Take Center. I would love to get a RC-LCR but it is too large for the WAF... Any feedback would be great! Thanks.

I do believe the RC-Mini center has a larger driver 4" vs 3.5" and it will give you a more seemless transition and should integrate very with the RC-10, Only down side is it's X-over point but it's alright use 100hz and 80hz on the L/R RC-10 if your receiver allow you to do it, if not then you are stuck at 100hz but it will improve your front sond stage significantly.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by bigal87

i do believe the rc-mini center has a larger driver 4" vs 3.5" and it will give you a more seemless transition and should integrate very with the rc-10, only down side is it's x-over point but it's alright use 100hz and 80hz on the l/r rc-10 if your receiver allow you to do it, if not then you are stuck at 100hz but it will improve your front sond stage significantly.

+1

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

I do believe the RC-Mini center has a larger driver 4" vs 3.5" and it will give you a more seemless transition and should integrate very with the RC-10, Only down side is it's X-over point but it's alright use 100hz and 80hz on the L/R RC-10 if your receiver allow you to do it, if not then you are stuck at 100hz but it will improve your front sond stage significantly.

Actually it happens that my friend has the same Receiver and it will allow you to use separate X-over if I remeber correctly, Steve will the 2400es allow to use different X-Over for center and L/R, How's your STR-DG920 working on that part?

If I'm not mistaken it allow X-over for Center, L/R and all 4 surrounds use the same X-over. My HK is slightly more flexible as I can break it down in the surrounds also. Surrounds and Back Surrounds but you run 5.1 anyways and truly I use the same X-over for all 4 surrounds.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

Actually it happens that my friend has the same Receiver and it will allow you to use separate X-over if I remeber correctly, Steve will the 2400es allow to use different X-Over for center and L/R, How's your STR-DG920 working on that part?

If I'm not mistaken it allow X-over for Center, L/R and all 4 surrounds use the same X-over. My HK is slightly more flexible as I can break it down in the surrounds also. Surrounds and Back Surrounds but you run 5.1 anyways and truly I use the same X-over for all 4 surrounds.

yea, each group of speakers can be crossed over independently.