Speaker Recomendations for Pioneer SA-8100

[dryce]

Speaker Recomendations

Hello everyone,

I am getting a Pioneer SA-8100 and matching tuner here shortly and have been checking on bookshelf speakers to use with it. I've found a few that seemed nice and was hoping to grab opinions from a few of you knowledgeable folks. I'm trying to keep it to bookshelf speakers and avoid the potential cost of shipping the larger ones as there doesn't seem to be a lot of quality gear locally. The ones I've considered so far are:

Acoustic Research AR-18s
JBL J216
B&W DM100
JENSEN MODEL LS - 2B
Realistic Minimus 20
JBL 2500

My father has Jensen floor standing speakers that sound great, but other than that I haven't heard a great deal of the vintage offerings. I use a pair of Polk Monitor 60s in my home theater setup and have also considered using a set of Polk Monitor 40s with the Pioneer. The Realistic Minimus are beautiful speakers, but I wasn't sure about their sound quality in general. Feel free to add to the above if you have another suggestion. Thanks for the advice.

 

[dryce]

Hmm. Maybe I went about this the wrong way? Okay, the Pioneer aside, has anyone heard any of the speakers or maybe even a similar set? I know it's probably a little difficult to answer and the best suggestion is probably to listen and compare. Unfortunately, it isn't possible at my current location, so I'm willing to take a chance and make a slightly less informed purchase.

 

[poorman]

I own the Pioneer SA-8100/TX-8100 combo. I use a pair of KLH 17s with them, and enjoy that system very much. I listen to classical and jazz most of the time.

I bet the AR 18s would sound nice with this combo, too. You should also consider KLH 24s and 32s, Advent/3s, and even the Cambridge Soundworks Model 6s.

Best of luck. You've got a nice pair of vintage separates.

 

[speakernut]

I have a set of B&W DM110 which I believe is the next model up from what you have listed (B&W DM100). for the $20 I paid I was quite impressed with them. But I suppose what your looking for depends on what you would like to get out of the speakers such as easy listening or just completely rocking out. Hopefully someone with more bookshelf experience will chime in soon, but maybe this will set you on the right path to what you are looking for.

 

[moinau]

I own a pair of AR18 and they are matched with an SA-8800 Pioneer Amp, so I suppose they would be a great match with your SA-8100 which has, I believe, 40Watts of power, plenty to drive these AR.
The AR 7, 16, and 17 would also be a good match.
The Realistic have also a good following on this forum, but not being familiar with their sounds, I can't comment.
AR, Jensen, KLH, Advent, and EPI are good brands of speakers to have.

Other members will certainly comments on the JBL, and the B&W.

 

[dryce]

I own the Pioneer SA-8100/TX-8100 combo. I use a pair of KLH 17s with them, and enjoy that system very much. I listen to classical and jazz most of the time.

I bet the AR 18s would sound nice with this combo, too. You should also consider KLH 24s and 32s, Advent/3s, and even the Cambridge Soundworks Model 6s.

Best of luck. You've got a nice pair of vintage separates.

I have a set of B&W DM110 which I believe is the next model up from what you have listed (B&W DM100). for the $20 I paid I was quite impressed with them. But I suppose what your looking for depends on what you would like to get out of the speakers such as easy listening or just completely rocking out. Hopefully someone with more bookshelf experience will chime in soon, but maybe this will set you on the right path to what you are looking for.

I own a pair of AR18 and they are matched with an SA-8800 Pioneer Amp, so I suppose they would be a great match with your SA-8100 which has, I believe, 40Watts of power, plenty to drive these AR.
The AR 7, 16, and 17 would also be a good match.
The Realistic have also a good following on this forum, but not being familiar with their sounds, I can't comment.
AR, Jensen, KLH, Advent, and EPI are good brands of speakers to have.

Other members will certainly comments on the JBL, and the B&W.

Thanks so much for all the input. I listen to a little of everything really. So I suppose I would hope to find something to do well in multiple areas musically. There were also a pair of Advent Minis that popped up, but they looked to be more the size of smaller satellites. It could have been the pictures though. Sometimes they can be a little deceiving.

 

[mhardy6647]

http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=306784

 

[Dr. Mordo]

I have a SA-9500II, and to my ears it is a neutral sounding amp that works very well with just about any speaker. I currently have JBL L150s hooked up, and it is just a magical combination. It doesn't reproduce music so much as emanate it.

So, I guess my point is that your amp will be up to the challenge, no matter what you hook to it.

 

[lunchmeat]

When I had my SA-8100, I ran a pair of JBL L26s and was very happy. This was many years ago but it is the one set-up I wish I had never sold. Just my two cents or less........

 

[dryce]

When I had my SA-8100, I ran a pair of JBL L26s and was very happy. This was many years ago but it is the one set-up I wish I had never sold. Just my two cents or less........

Thanks. The JBLs are definitely a set I want to try. I've heard some of their stuff sounds great. I found a pair of Acoustic Research AR-18b speakers on ebay that were in excellent condition and had already been refoamed. After reading a bit about them here and on a few other boards, I'm hoping they'll be pretty good with the Pioneer. I'll be moving in about a year to a much bigger place and hopefully I'll be able to setup another system in the office area of that house. So I'm sure the ARs won't be the last speaker purchase for me. It was a tough choice though. There were a set of KLH 24s and 17s up that looked good too. I've been watching the bidding so far and they look like they may not go for much. Then again, I'm not sure how much they're worth to begin with lol. I'm still kinda researching the whole vintage speaker thing.

 

[kydog]

A nice match that I’m enjoying and was actually made to combo with the SA 8100 is a set of Pioneer CS R700 Speakers. Horn loaded Mid/ Tweets with rear L-Pads & 12” woofer. The features on the 8100 allows you to taper the sound to produce a wonderful listening experience. A perfect match IMHO

 

[sax6]

Sealed cabinet speakers...

KEF Chorale, Monitor audio ma5, Ess LS5. EPI 200C ( with a passive) Celestion Ditton 22.

 

[Drugolf]

I've had great results using my SA9100 with Allison Ones, Dahlquist M series, KLH Five, AR2ax, ADS 710, etc.