speaker advice

[VR028]

hi guys im looking to upgrade my speakers. at the moment im running clarion splits SRQ1621S up front and 3 way SRQ1631R rear. theyre powered off a sony gtx6040 amp with 60wrms each.

ive had a listen to the db and mm series and im much happier with the mm.
the shop however only has mm6501's but no 651's. is there much of a difference between them besides tweeter location? would the average listener notice because theres a substantial price difference between the 2

[Vital]

Yes, mm6501s are better then 651s in every aspect (well, maybe not the price lol).
If installed correctly you or anyone else will notice the difference in sound.

[VR028]

Would mm651's be better than db6501 then?

[bmenary]

I love my Monitor Audio RS8

[VR028]

still yet to make a decision. i definately cant afford mm6501's. ive narrowed it down to db6501s or pioneer tsd1720c. anybody had any experience comapring those 2?

[DSkip]

I prefer Polk's sound over any other speaker at the respective price point. Outside of Polk, I think Pioneer gets the nod in the budget categories. Its obvious to me where they were lacking, but the overall tonality was still nice. In Polk's lineup, give me the MM over the DB all day. The biggest thing you'd notice from getting comps over coaxes is that when the tweeters are mounted high, it will raise your soundstage significantly.

[VR028]

i had a listen to the db6501's and the pioneers side by side and to me the pioneers sounded much more on par with the mm6501's. they were both being powered of an audison sr4. has anybody else had a similar observation?

[DSkip]

The Pioneer's are hollow sounding while the MM's are a fuller sound. The MM's will also be able to dig lower and sound better doing so.

[VR028]

yeah the mm's were better but would u say the pioneers sound better than the db's? i dont need my speakers to play too low as i have 2 polk mm1240's crossed at 80hz

[DSkip]

No, I wouldn't. That comes down to preference though. At that price point, you're going to have sacrifices, and what is acceptable to you might not be acceptable to me. I like a clean, detailed sound, and to me, the lower end of Pioneer's models don't do that well. The Polk's do that well without getting too harsh.

[VR028]

ill go have another listen with a wider variety of songs. perhaps the song they played happen to suit the pioneer a tad batter. if i did buy the db's would i benefit from an amp upgrade? at the moment im running a sony gtx6040 (60w rms x4)

[DSkip]

Probably, but I'd buy the best speakers you can get since you already have an amp. You should take in a few CD's that include songs you know very well, from different genres that you enjoy. It'll give you the best idea of how a speaker performs and what you want out of it.

[ocharlas]

Just to chime in here - I had the DB5251s for a while and was quite happy with them. The high end is harsher then the MMs but it was still a nice musical speaker, I think I might've had a .5db cut around 12.5k. I can't comment on the low end because I had the 5.25" but if you're running subs like you said it shouldn't really matter.

Also, I was running mine straight from an Alpine head so you're already a step ahead if you've got an amp to them.

I would also suggest buying online once you're done with the research phase. I wouldn't be able to afford any of the stuff I have if I got it retail. I think I got my DBs for $100, which is basically half...

[VR028]

harsh tweeters are the reason i want to upgrade from the clarions. ill just go for the safe bet and get mm's. the cheapest i can get polks are 189 for db's and 289 for mm's. i am in australia however

[VR028]

before i go ahead and buy speakers ive decided to address some other key areas that are holding me back . i had a good listen to a few other systems ive put together for others ( 1 with the same speakers i have ) and it blew my system away. ive pinned it down to my 16 year old pioneer keh-p9750 head unit and 10 gauge wire. im also told that sony amps arent very good so im looking for a better quality amp in anticipation for polk mm's. ive had my eye on the new mb quart onyx amps, has anyone used these? im a bit sceptical because many dont like them since maxxsonics took over but apparently the onyx series are just untouched rebadged discuss amps

[pentoncm]

Arc Audio makes great amps, I plan on getting a KAR series amp when I upgrade my 4 channel

[VR028]

Arc Audio makes great amps, I plan on getting a KAR series amp when I upgrade my 4 channel

theyre pretty expensive amps, how do they compare to the audison sr series? i can get them a little cheaper

[pentoncm]

They should be somewhere on par with the SR series.

The KAR series is class H which is going to be more efficient than the A/B of the SR series. The KAR mini 4 channel is $399 and puts out just a little less power.

[VR028]

the cheapest ive seen the KAR is $699 over here whereas the the audison sr4 is $499.
the KAR however does have a little more power. would it be worth the extra money?

edit: size of the amps and its consumption are not really a issue, ive got space and the electrical system to handle it

[VR028]

bose dont make aftermarket car audio?

[pentoncm]

No BOSE does not make aftermarket car stereo equipment. BOSE is a company that transformed its crappy speakers into the best speakers just by advertising. They used to be an awesome company back in the 70s i think then they decided to just tell people over and over again that they are the best and continued to downgrade their stuff. Bose car systems don't feature kick panel speakers, don't include properly sized subwoofers, don't have enough amplification, and have too many speakers in general to have a good soundstage. In fact a bunch of car makers have shifted away from BOSE and have moved on to better sounding stuff.

[arun1963]

Dr Amar Bose, a self proclaimed audiophile, a Phd in EE and Acoustics from MIT and someone who got into making speakers cause he was underwhelmed by his hifi speakers. I wonder how the good Dr. can look himself in the mirror selling the junk his company makes. I gues a net worth of a billion $$ helps in muting the conscience .

[Cougar]

You should check out Hertz speakers. Not cheap, but great sound.

[1996blackmax]

Hertz does make nice speakers, but you will pay more. If you are happy with how the MM's sound, go for those.

As for upgrading your amp. Having some headroom is a nice thing, but if your primarily not liking your speakers, upgrade those first.

[VR028]

ive gotta go have a listen to a few more brands but i do like the hertz speakers better than the mm's. i just bought 2 hertz hx300 subs and im loving them

[pentoncm]

ive gotta go have a listen to a few more brands but i do like the hertz speakers better than the mm's. i just bought 2 hertz hx300 subs and im loving them

If you like the sound of Hertz than you may want to consider HAT, they are better for the money and give you more options to pick from. Clarus components were rated as #2 component set of all time (they only tested the 5.25 inch midbass) coming in under the Hertz Mille set by just a few points. BUT, Clarus is almost half the price as Mille.

[VR028]

on the weekend i upgraded my power wire to 4 gauge and the results were dramatic. turns out ive been using 10 gauge wire all this time not 8 like i thought. everything sounded louder immediately and i had to turn my gains down. the thing that surprised me the most were the sound difference of my clarion speakers. before they sounded hollow and tinny and there was no midbass but now they sound full and vibrant. im so happy with how they sound i simply bought a second hand set of the higher model srp1620 that have crossovers unlike my srq's.

theyre still running of a sony gtx6040 and i cant wait to see if my new audison sr4 will improve them further