Which bookshelf speakers to pair with AU-517?

[Tdogzthmn]

I've been trying to find a nice pair of bookshelf speaker which will make for a good pairing with my AU-517. Mostly looking for used speakers under $500 which would be able to utilize the power of this amp.

I am currently using a pair of Blumenstein Orca's which sound lovely with certain genre's but I can only use the first few steps of gain before they get too loud. It would be nice to have a little more play in the volume knob but still get low distortion.

Also highly interested in DIY speaker kits so if there's a kit that would be easy to build and match nicely that would be ideal!

 

[bryblob]

polk monitor 7's or 10's, nod to the 7's.

 

[rickb119]

Having recently purchased a pair of ADS l-710's, I highly recommend them. Lot's of love here on AK for the ADS brand.

 

[Tdogzthmn]

Thanks for the suggestions!

I'll do some research on these models and see if there are any locally that I can demo.

 

[xero-D-hero]

For me Sansui + JBL = the perfect match.
I know my AU-217/TU-217/SE-80 rig sounds really good with the JBL LX-22 & LXE-330.

So to me it would be a very safe bet to look into that brand of speakers to pair w/a AU-517.

Which specific JBL's ? Well that falls under the "luck of the draw" law of speaker shopping.
I say that as it's hard to predict what'll cross one's path @ any given time while shopping.
Me,I'd probably be looking for thier 8"/10"/12" woofer ~ 3 way offerings for a set-up like this.

JM2¢ ~ YMMV

Also like ADS as well,but have'nt had a chance to try pairing any with the Sansui just yet.
But those pretty much sound great with everything...

FWIW

Bret P.

 

[Vintagear]

I've been trying to find a nice pair of bookshelf speaker which will make for a good pairing with my AU-517. Mostly looking for used speakers under $500 which would be able to utilize the power of this amp.

I am currently using a pair of Blumenstein Orca's which sound lovely with certain genre's but I can only use the first few steps of gain before they get too loud. It would be nice to have a little more play in the volume knob but still get low distortion.

Also highly interested in DIY speaker kits so if there's a kit that would be easy to build and match nicely that would be ideal!

How large is your room?
What type of music and what at volume level (SPL dB) do you usually listen?
Was the 517 restored?

I'm familiar with the 717/517 and I've had several modern bookshelf speakers in here and maybe answers to these questions will help me give you a good suggestion.

 

[JoseHH]

I am currently using a pair of Blumenstein Orca's which sound lovely with certain genre's but I can only use the first few steps of gain before they get too loud. It would be nice to have a little more play in the volume knob but still get low distortion.

Have you considered this:
Your speaker may be efficient (the Orca 3" is 92.5db) and they can handle a 100W amplifier, but I suspect that the root of your concern is that the AU-517 has an input sensitivity of 150mV.
If you connect a CD player to it it will sound very loud because the output of most CD players are 1V or even 2V in some cases. To feed a 1V signal into the aux input of the AU-517 you need to attenuate the signal by a factor of 1000/150, nearly 7 times. There are attenuators you can buy for this. A 6db attenuation will attenuate your signal by a factor of 4, while a 9db attenuator will reduce your signal 8 times.
Edit:
The point is that you may be overloading the input, which will cause distortion when you increase the volume.

 

[usedto]

I have a pair of Klipsch KG2 speakers hooked up to a Sansui 808db that sound superb. Once we get moved, I am going to pair them with my AU/TU417 combo. Should be just as good.


OOPS! Just found out the 417 doesn't like 4 ohm speakers!! Change in plans!!

 

[Tdogzthmn]

Have you considered this:
Your speaker may be efficient (the Orca 3" is 92.5db) and they can handle a 100W amplifier, but I suspect that the root of your concern is that the AU-517 has an input sensitivity of 150mV.
If you connect a CD player to it it will sound very loud because the output of most CD players are 1V or even 2V in some cases. To feed a 1V signal into the aux input of the AU-517 you need to attenuate the signal by a factor of 1000/150, nearly 7 times. There are attenuators you can buy for this. A 6db attenuation will attenuate your signal by a factor of 4, while a 9db attenuator will reduce your signal 8 times.
Edit:
The point is that you may be overloading the input, which will cause distortion when you increase the volume.

Good point.

I actually have two pairs of attenuators I bought previously so I could use this amp with my more sensitive Omega Fullrange speakers. I put my -12 attenuator on the RCA inputs and now I'm able to turn the dial up to -38 dB which is much more useable.

The Orca's really are great little speakers that disappear into the listening space with the AU-517 driving them. Their main shortcoming is the limited bass response from such small drivers. I might also look into getting an active sub to pair with the Orca's.

 

[Tdogzthmn]

How large is your room?
What type of music and what at volume level (SPL dB) do you usually listen?
Was the 517 restored?

I'm familiar with the 717/517 and I've had several modern bookshelf speakers in here and maybe answers to these questions will help me give you a good suggestion.

Room is 20x15.

The amp was restored recently and should be up to spec.

I listen to a wide array of genres so Ideally something that can play low into the 40-45 Hz range.

I listen at moderate levels due to being in an apartment.

 

[59volvo]

Having recently purchased a pair of ADS l-710's, I highly recommend them. Lot's of love here on AK for the ADS brand.

I use these with au-717. also great with alesis monitor one mkI (passive)

 

[Harvestor]

Or

Top ohm model L
Bottom
Ohm Model C2

 

[Hipocrates]

I'm using one with a pair of JBL 4312... and I like it.