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SX-5560 Speaker Recommendations?

B

BingoRingo

New Member
New to all of this, AK and vintage receivers/speakers. I have read a handful of threads on here to get pointing in the right direction, but I know nothing so I apologize in advance. Really excited about getting a good setup.

Based on what I have read, I understand there are several factors for speaker selection. I will do my best to describe my preferences. Any suggestions or links would be greatly appreciated.

I only have one piece of this puzzle. I purchased a Pioneer SX-5560 from a friendly neighbor two days ago. I have yet to purchase a turntable either. Nearly a clean slate for opinions.

From a music perspective, I will mostly listen to Jazz, blues, and classical. Doubt I will play rock music, but wouldn’t be surprised if I threw some Eddie Vedder into the mix from time to time. Midrange will be 80% of it. Room is a living area about 15x15.

Yes, someone will say find what sounds best to me. Easier said than done when you have no reference for comparison. I am looking for pointers as to where to start and what to consider. Definitely prefer speakers that are vintage, likely something I find on CL or FB Market. Being in the DFW area, I have a lot of options. Setting my speaker budget at $400.

Posted this in the speaker section, but I have a feeling the Pioneer fans might be more helpful for this one. Thanks in advance and Hello AK!
 
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Recheck your Model # on the SX. Could it be quite possibly the SX5580???? Which would be a SX-1050. A SX-5590 would be the SX-1250.
 
You are going to get lots of opinion as speaker choices are numerous. In many cases it comes down to personnel preferences in the sound they produce. In your case with a high power amp it will probably be suitable for any speaker. The problem with old speakers is potential surround foam wrought amongst other time related wearout so be cautious and inspect the drivers
 
rcs16 said:
You are going to get lots of opinion as speaker choices are numerous. In many cases it comes down to personnel preferences in the sound they produce. In your case with a high power amp it will probably be suitable for any speaker. The problem with old speakers is potential surround foam wrought amongst other time related wearout so be cautious and inspect the drivers
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Yeah and that’s what makes it exponentially harder for someone new. Sure, I can read about a speaker independently, but it’s the pairing of the receiver, room, and music that is nearly impossible for me to figure out. Hoping someone with similar taste can give me a couple options since I don’t I the luxury of comparing speakers side by side.

For a little reference here are a few that are available. Prices are provided for comparison…several are outside of my price range unfortunately. I would splurge on something if it was a steal.

Pioneer S-710 ($300)
Pioneer CS-88. ($200)
Pioneer CS-99 ($300)
Pioneer CS-99a ($650)
Pioneer HPM-60 ($325)
Pioneer HPM-100 ($900)
Norman Lab 10 ($300)
Klipsch KG4.2 ($600)
Klipsch Heresy ($800)
Klipsch Heresy II ($900)
Advent Large ($375)

Would any of these make a better pairing for me?
 
I certainly would not comment on speakers that I have never heard before. I like large 15” woofers in sealed cabinets, morel dome midrange and tweeters. I have a pair of altec Lansing model 9’s.
Some go nuts for electrostatics, mosfet Amos, too many choices and opinions
 
BingoRingo said:
Yeah and that’s what makes it exponentially harder for someone new. Sure, I can read about a speaker independently, but it’s the pairing of the receiver, room, and music that is nearly impossible for me to figure out. Hoping someone with similar taste can give me a couple options since I don’t I the luxury of comparing speakers side by side.

For a little reference here are a few that are available. Prices are provided for comparison…several are outside of my price range unfortunately. I would splurge on something if it was a steal.

Pioneer S-710 ($300)
Pioneer CS-88. ($200)
Pioneer CS-99 ($300)
Pioneer CS-99a ($650)
Pioneer HPM-60 ($325)
Pioneer HPM-100 ($900)
Norman Lab 10 ($300)
Klipsch KG4.2 ($600)
Klipsch Heresy ($800)
Klipsch Heresy II ($900)
Advent Large ($375)

Would any of these make a better pairing for me?
Click to expand...
CS-99a !! I still have mine from 1974 and ran them for 30 years with a Pioneer SX 727. If you get a good digital copy of the opening theme to 2001 A Space Odyssey (Thus Sprach Zarathustra) they will reproduce the low 20hz base note - without a sub woofer.
 
Pairing speakers with an amp I find is not a point worth considering. Start with a good pair of speakers. They'll show you the differences in the amplifier designs. Certain speakers don't sound good on a specific amplifier. Some "pairs" will sound good together. Why? Possibly the techs at the in house design department have added an in circuit EQ to the amplifier to make the speakers sound better than they are - ie - just like you turning the Treble and Bass to say+2 and +3.

Finding a good speaker is the hardest part. In my limited experience, I've found that bass driver size is important - but the enclosure itself has to be made of something acoustically dead or as dead as possible, like MDF for example. Then the cabinet needs to be braced internally.

Two pairs I like, B&W DM2 Series 2. - I find that they have good bass, the mid range is in a critically damped chamber of its own in the cabinet to stop interference between the woofer and mid range cones. The Tweeter is a 1" dome tweeter and sounds good to me.

Second pair is Tannoy DC3000. In these the tweeter and midrange are within one cone so the theory goes that all the sound comes from one single point, improving the accuracy of the sound stage I think. Then, they have a second 8" woofer for the bass. These cabinets are cross-braced inside and the drivers themselves are braced from the rear of the cabinet. The cabinet is also quite heavy and has a compartment that can be loaded with sand to make them more acoustically dead and less likely to self resonate - colouring the audio.

People might disagree with me. But I know these two sound good and when you open them up, to me it starts to seem obvious why. TLDR: Choose a speaker and cabinet that has been engineered to some point with bracing etc - not just a square box full of cones.

My opinion of course, I hope it helps.
 
ChiefStu said:
CS-99a !! I still have mine from 1974 and ran them for 30 years with a Pioneer SX 727. If you get a good digital copy of the opening theme to 2001 A Space Odyssey (Thus Sprach Zarathustra) they will reproduce the low 20hz base note - without a sub woofer.
Click to expand...

It seems these are vintage favorites to several. These look good. Reminds me there are a couple Frazier options too since they were in that same price range.

Frazier Concerto = $500
Frazier Model 7 = $650

My original speaker budget was $200 (because of the CS-88), then $300, and now it’s $400. Keep thinking what if it was $500, well then it would be $600 and so on. Next thing you know I am in a lot of trouble. Ha.
 
QSilver said:
Pairing speakers with an amp I find is not a point worth considering. Start with a good pair of speakers. They'll show you the differences in the amplifier designs. Certain speakers don't sound good on a specific amplifier. Some "pairs" will sound good together. Why? Possibly the techs at the in house design department have added an in circuit EQ to the amplifier to make the speakers sound better than they are - ie - just like you turning the Treble and Bass to say+2 and +3.

Finding a good speaker is the hardest part. In my limited experience, I've found that bass driver size is important - but the enclosure itself has to be made of something acoustically dead or as dead as possible, like MDF for example. Then the cabinet needs to be braced internally.

Two pairs I like, B&W DM2 Series 2. - I find that they have good bass, the mid range is in a critically damped chamber of its own in the cabinet to stop interference between the woofer and mid range cones. The Tweeter is a 1" dome tweeter and sounds good to me.

Second pair is Tannoy DC3000. In these the tweeter and midrange are within one cone so the theory goes that all the sound comes from one single point, improving the accuracy of the sound stage I think. Then, they have a second 8" woofer for the bass. These cabinets are cross-braced inside and the drivers themselves are braced from the rear of the cabinet. The cabinet is also quite heavy and has a compartment that can be loaded with sand to make them more acoustically dead and less likely to self resonate - colouring the audio.

People might disagree with me. But I know these two sound good and when you open them up, to me it starts to seem obvious why. TLDR: Choose a speaker and cabinet that has been engineered to some point with bracing etc - not just a square box full of cones.

My opinion of course, I hope it helps.
Click to expand...

Interesting. I will check these out. Thanks.
 
ChiefStu said:
CS-99a !! I still have mine from 1974 and ran them for 30 years with a Pioneer SX 727. If you get a good digital copy of the opening theme to 2001 A Space Odyssey (Thus Sprach Zarathustra) they will reproduce the low 20hz base note - without a sub woofer.
Click to expand...

I followed up on the CS-99a, everything is in good working condition but one speaker has the peeling veneer. Talked him down on price just to see where he would go…still don’t think it is worth a re-veneering at $400. Likely not an option anymore, but they look amazing.
 
Yowch... thats more like delamination than peeling... if you wanted to re-veneer them. Buy the veneer, get the right glue and some tools, prepare the speaker surface (ie get it back to a flat surface remove old veneer) and then glue, and reapply. Its not super easy but its not impossible. :thumbsup: Have faith! Failing that, a friend who is also a good carpenter.
 
@BingoRingo ADS L620 in Rowlett on Dallas CraigsList. Generally ADS house sound is pleasing across a wide variety of genres. These would be a great piece of gear to start a system. I would like to see them at 50-75% of the ask, but prices have been going up up up. You might get them to come down some. They look in great shape and could be worth a listen.

Read this thread on comments
 
Tiver said:
@BingoRingo ADS L620 in Rowlett on Dallas CraigsList. Generally ADS house sound is pleasing across a wide variety of genres. These would be a great piece of gear to start a system. I would like to see them at 50-75% of the ask, but prices have been going up up up. You might get them to come down some. They look in great shape and could be worth a listen.

Read this thread on comments
Click to expand...

Interesting. Definitely worth a listen. Sent them a message. Guess I will see what they say. Thanks!
 
Ended up with the Frazier 7’s. It was hard passing on the 7’s knowing I might not get a chance to buy a set anytime soon.

Will go listen to the ADS L620’s and Yamaha NS-690’s as soon as I can. Think these were the other finalists, none of which were on my original list to start this thread thanks to forum member recommendations.

Thanks for the feedback and guidance.
 
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