What are the best speakers for listening to music?

[dereck]

Is a HTIB the best for classical music? Should I go with that?

[Perineum]

I prefer "Realistic" brand speakers. I repackage them in ice cream buckets for the best fidelity. Don't forget to line the bottom of the ice cream bucket with pink insulation to stop that dreaded back wave though!

[lcdguy]

Originally Posted by dereck

Is a HTIB the best for classical music? Should I go with that?

Dear god no. HTIB are always NEVER better than anything else. With home audio you get what you pay for. a $500 HTIB will never be better than a $1500+ Speaker system. I would save your money and invest more cash.

[CMetaphor]

That's kindof like asking "What's the best car for driving?"
What are you looking for exactly? Sound quality? High power? Home theater? Surround? Stereo?
What kind of music do you listen to? This will also make a difference.

All that being said. Klipsch if you have the money. Sinclair audio if you don't (and its canadian).

[lcdguy]

Don't forget other brands such as JBL and Auperion Audio. I have JBL and love them but they are not for everyone (probably cost me 2k+ for the speakers by them selves)

[mo' power]

What receiver/amplifier do plan on plugging your speakers into?

[steers]

While we're on the topic of speakers, I've heard good things about Paradigm (another Canadian brand). I've been fancying myself a pair of their Titan Monitors, but I don't really know how they stack up against similarly priced monitors (they're $600/pair). My dad has always bought Paradigm in the past, and as such that's what comprises the entirety of the speakers in my parents' home theatre. They sound great for movies and games, but a 5.1 setup is suboptimal for most music imo. Anyone else have any experience with Paradigm's wares, more specifically their new stuff?

[Nodscene]

Edit: Before I bought the Angstroms I was auditioning the Paradigm's along with B&W's that were about twice the price when you add up the price of the Modular 2's and 10i sub. I was frankly really dissapointed in both sets of speakers. I found them quite bright and harsh. I will admit that I'm really sensitive to the higher frequencies so your experience may be different. Thank god for Silk dome tweekers :)


As for other fantastic Canadian speakers you can look into Totem if you listen to a lot of classical, although they are expensive. By far my favourite Canadian speakers right now are Angstrom (Loud Speakers | Angstrom Loudspeakers). IMO the best price/performance out there right now. Look into the Modular series, the Mod 2's are around $650 and their center channel is only $350. If you email them you can get their 10i sub for around $250 as B stock instead of the full price of $850. This has been the only setup I've heard where the sub this musical. It dissapears completely as do the Mod 2's. All you are left with is the music.

[lcdguy]

those are some pretty good prices since my jbl towers were around that.

[Nodscene]

I can't say enough good stuff about this company (Angstrom). I was looking for the center channel and went out to Mississauga looking for one. The store I went to doesn't carry them in stock and usually only orders whenn needed, ( most of the buyers are architects etc using their in wall speakers). So I decided to head to the Markham office and check them out. It isn't exactly open to the public, at least not without arranging for a meeting before hand. This is their warehouse, office and testing place. The guy was nice enough to let me in. I got to look around and talk with him for a while. He then sold me the center channel for a reduced price! You don't get service like that anymore I tell you. Not only that but he had just gotten back from vacation that day and I know he had a ton of stuff to catch up on. That didn't stop him from taking about an hour out of his day to answer all questions I had. I also was one of the few who got to see the new set of speakers they are working on. Too bad I didn't have any time for a listening session.

My only complaint is that I'm moving in a few months and I won't be unpacking my speakers, Oppo BDP-83 and Emotiva UPA-7 power amplifier until then. All this beautiful equipment just sitting in boxes :( I should also mention how amazing Emotiva is. They are an American company that you buy direct from and offer astounding equipment at unheard of prices. By far the best price/performance company out there right now. Anyone seriously into audio but have a limited budget (like myself) should definitely check them out.
Emotiva Audio: Audiophile Quality Multi Channel Amplifiers, Stereo Preamplifiers, Audio/Video Processors, and Award Winning Speaker Systems At Direct Prices

Sorry if I've hijacked the thread a little.