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Speaker guidance for reggae fanatic

Marco72

Marco72

New Member
Been listening to (dub)reggae for decades, just love the flow.
But, silly me, the last 10 years mostly on pc speakers (with active bass) or on my Marshall Kilburn bluetooth.
For my upcoming study at our new house, this bad behaviour should stop.
So I'm looking for affordable stereo speakers that would be perfect for (dub)reggae.
Here in Holland I've come across some possible options, or not.

B&W DM 220 or 330
Wharfedale Laser 80
Wharfedale E50
Wharfedale Valdus 400 (but these are bad I think)
Kef C80 (but maybe not for bass heavy reggae?)
Cerwin Vega E-715 (or is that brand a no-go for dub?)
Sansui SU-570
Polk Audio RTi10 (but to expensive)

There are many more speakers of course, so guidance is welcome for an affordable, reggae suited speaker.

There are so many different options, good-and-bad 'building years', ohm's to choose, etc.
And after this quest, the next one is a suitable amplifier. But that'll be a separate thread :)

Groeten uit Holland!
 
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I'm not familiar with any of those models. The CVs should have a ton of bass, the KEF, not so much. I had a pair of the C60 and they sounded good with a sub, which was needed for the bottom end.
Go and listen to as many as you can. Let your ears decide. You can always add a subwoofer or two, or...
 
I too listen to a ton of reggae. I build my own speakers, but I'd happily put a pair of Vegas to work on everything from 60's roots to current dub.
 
Out of the speakers listed the Vegas will likely have the most bass but I'd expect the B&Ws to have better sound quality for almost any genre. You can always add a sub later. The bass on the 220s or 330s isn't lacking, it just won't be exaggerated.

Those are my preferences though. Lots of Vega fan out there and they always sound big and exciting. I just find they lack a lot of refinement.
 
Well,,,w/o spending a ton of $$$ some CV's were my first thought,,,if one spends a bit more some bigger JBL's would do the trick as well...

But that's just me,,,YMMV...

Bret P.
 
For reggae I would simply buy modern bookshelf speakers in the $300 range, Sub if you feel you really need it.

Wharfedale, Pioneer, Klipsh, Dayton, Yamaha etc. all offer good modern options.

Eric
 
So if the (bookshelf) speakers would not be enough 'woosh', a sub would be an option.
I have a sub from Harman Kardon, but that is one that came with a surround system.
I suppose that would not do the trick?
And what about its amplifier, the HK AVR135, might that be functional? The specs are:
  • Output Power / Channel 40 Watt, 50 Watt
  • Output Impedance / Channel 8 Ohm
  • Frequency Response 20 - 20000 Hz
 
There is no reason at all why you couldn't use the HK amp and sub with two good bookshelf speakers and It most likely would sound fine.

Just hook up the speakers from the Front L - R terminals and run the sub from it's dedicated output.

Eric
 
If you want to be jammin' I'd pick the Cerwin Vegas. But I'm not familiar with the E-715s. CVs are not "audiophile" grade, but if you want to have fun at loud levels, they are easy to listen too. I really like the Cerwin Vega AT models and I've had the AT-12s and AT-15. The smaller At-10s can still kick a punch. If you can, go listen to your choices. Good luck!
 
I have the E-715's little brother the E-712 and IMHO they're one of the better CV's ever made.
The E series has some stuff other CV's dont,soft dome tweeters,mid & high controls,yadda,yadda,yadda.

I'd be willing to be that a lotta folks that are'nt fans of the CV brand would have to do a 180° if they actually heard a pair E series CV when hooked to a proper system.
And by a "proper system" I dont mean an AVR or lower wpc 2ch receiver,ask me the minimum wpc for those E-715 would be 100-150 wpc & even better @ twice that.
Ask me that's how CV got the "party speaker" rep,by being pushed into clipping due to being grossly under-powered by gear like that.

As an example I push my E-712 w/a 200wpc Adcom GFA-555 MkI,and I would'nt hesitate for a moment to use even more wpc with them.

Dont let their high sensitivity specs fool you,most all CV's like big amps as they can "soak up" a bunch of power no problemo.

JMO ~ YMMV

Bret P.
 
xero-D-hero said:
I have the E-715's little brother the E-712 and IMHO they're one of the better CV's ever made.
The E series has some stuff other CV's dont,soft dome tweeters,mid & high controls,yadda,yadda,yadda.

I'd be willing to be that a lotta folks that are'nt fans of the CV brand would have to do a 180° if they actually heard a pair E series CV when hooked to a proper system.
And by a "proper system" I dont mean an AVR or lower wpc 2ch receiver,ask me the minimum wpc for those E-715 would be 100-150 wpc & even better @ twice that.
Ask me that's how CV got the "party speaker" rep,by being pushed into clipping due to being grossly under-powered by gear like that.

As an example I push my E-712 w/a 200wpc Adcom GFA-555 MkI,and I would'nt hesitate for a moment to use even more wpc with them.

Dont let their high sensitivity specs fool you,most all CV's like big amps as they can "soak up" a bunch of power no problemo.

JMO ~ YMMV

Bret P.
Click to expand...

Not knowing the size of the OP's new Study, I would think a 150w+ based CV setup might not be the most efficient gear for the task.

When I think of a Study, I picture a 12' x 16' space or so.

Eric
 
Dub isn't one of my listening pleasures, but I tried my 15" Cerwins with some Tara Putra - Saddhus Of Dub, The Best of Sly & Robbie In Dub, and Very Best Of Bandulu Dub it sounds very good.
 
Invest in a sub. I predict you'll not get the bass you want from your main speakers. Pretty easy to build too, and cost effective. This way you can focus on good sounding speakers without concern for lowest-end output.
 
loudnoises said:
Invest in a sub. I predict you'll not get the bass you want from your main speakers. Pretty easy to build too, and cost effective. This way you can focus on good sounding speakers without concern for lowest-end output.
Click to expand...
Have you ever heard Cerwin Vega 15s? My neighbors don't even need a sub if we're listening to the same station.
 
E.Auer said:
Not knowing the size of the OP's new Study, I would think a 150w+ based CV setup might not be the most efficient gear for the task.

When I think of a Study, I picture a 12' x 16' space or so.

Eric
Click to expand...
All the various speakers the OP listed are relatively large floorstanding/standmount speakers,so I must've thought that was what he's interested in.
I dunno,I guess I tend to just listen to what someone has to say,and then I go ahead and work with what that.

But just because one has big wpc and some big 'ol CV's does'nt mean one has to have it cranked to 11 all the time.

Case in point:
My friends system with 500wpc Bryston mono-blocks and CV CLS-215's sounds superb @ any listening volume,even when low enough to allow conversation.
No loudness -or- subwoofers needed for low volume listening either...

Addendum:
Anyhow I can see your point as well,more info never hurts when trying to give solid advice.
If I were gonna do a sub w/smaller speakers in a small'ish room I'd give some consideration to using two smaller subs for better bass distribution/integration.
That would be pretty easy to do,especially with subs that have speaker level connections.

FWIW

Bret P.
 
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teal'c said:
Have you ever heard Cerwin Vega 15s? My neighbors don't even need a sub if we're listening to the same station.
Click to expand...

Plenty of times. But i dislike the new CVs, the pair i heard sounded muddy, nothing like the glory days.
 
loudnoises said:
Plenty of times. But i dislike the new CVs, the pair i heard sounded muddy, nothing like the glory days.
Click to expand...
It's entirely possible/plausible that was a clear sign that they were being under-powered.
Too many see the high sensitivity specs for CV's and think "hey I can drive these with XXwpc" and BINGO that's one of the more common results.
Well that -and- some serious harshness once they get "cranked up" and the XXwpc amp is quickly pushed into clipping.

Like I said,that's almost certainly how the whole CV "rep" became what it is now.

Folks,,,friends dont let friends under-power their CV's,,,LOL...

Placement can also play into that dynamic as well,a lot of CV's are rear ported so they should'nt be pushed back against a wall or shoved into a corner or such.
And trust me the ports on a CV NEED to breathe for best results,as those things pump a LOT of air.

But I digress...

FWIW

Bret P.
 
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Thanks for all your replies, wow!

My study will be 3,5 by 3,5 meter, so not that big. The speakers will placed close to a wall, next to a sofa. Maybe my list of possible speakers is to influenced by dub parties with their walls of speakers.
It would be nice if at a lower volume the bass would still be there and at higher volume the windows would still (partly :) be there.
Maybe the B&W DM 220 with a sub -> the Harman that came with my surround set? Or will that not be suited?
 
Marco72 said:
My study will be 3,5 by 3,5 meter, so not that big.
Click to expand...
Well,then yeah no doubt the CV E-715 aint the hot ticket here. o_O:oops:

Marco72 said:
The speakers will placed close to a wall, next to a sofa
Click to expand...
Then that's double no-go for the CV's...

I'd absolutely avoid rear ported speakers in this case.so I'd be looking for front ported or acoustic suspension speakers as SOP.
I'd probably stick with a speaker with 6.5" - 8" woofers (2way -or- 3way) and some subs (yes plural) with 8" - 10" woofers.
And I'd definitely look for front firing (sealed or front ported) subs as well.
So yeah I'd defintely avoid down firing -or- passive radiator equipped subs in this situation.
I would also try to get the subs wpc appx. twice that of the unit driving the mains as a good target wpc.

I'd still want some wpc for the mains though,heck I've got 100 wpc going to my Canton GL-260 and they sound superb (amp is an EV 7100).
The sub for the system with those GL-260 speakers is 100-150wpc (it's a Canton AS85-SC).

My JBL LX-22 are getting 60wpc from an Adcom GFA-535 (Mk1) and they could easily handle more wpc as well.
Also keep in mind the fact that Adcom GFA-535 amp is known to put out closer to 80 wpc as SOP than it's rated 60 wpc.
Those LX-22 are being supported by a Celestion S20 sub that's 150 wpc as well.

And keep in mind both ^^^^ those ^^^^ systems are in an appx. 10' x 12' room.

Small rooms are a real challenge,especially w/regards to getting good bass response.
And placement constraints just makes it even tougher yet.

But I could easily clear out a bunch of stuff and set-up my E-712 in here and get those to work as well.
Though it just would'nt be the most practical thing to do,and I'm all about being practical.

Lotta different ways to get to the same end goals.

Bret P.
 
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