b&w 685: heard 'em, liked 'em, but wondering


howdy audiogon community,

Im looking to buy a pair of new speakers for no more than $700 or so. They will be my first pair of somewhat decent speakers and powered by an 80w per channel marantz receiver. In shops I've been listening to the b&w 685 and cm1, dali ikons 1 and 2 and some speakers from paradigm and kef.

While I do like what I hear coming from the 685s- for the money, It sounds damn good- I am wondering if there's any other new speakers out there worth considering within my budget before I bring home the 685s.

My taste in music is fairly varied. I find myself listening to albums by the following- Wilco, Leo Kottke, The Allman Brothers Band, Charlie Parker and Sublime. That said, I would rather see more of my money go towards reproducing detailed mids and highs than powerful bass.

Looking around this site, I'm humbled by the knowledge and dedication you all have for hi-fi. I'm new to it all and am eager to hear some recommendations.
Cheers
rorty40

Showing 1 response by cerrot

I've had the 685's in my PC system (Musical Fidelity DAC, Cayin A50T, M Audio Firewire, Monarchy DIP) for about 8 months and still can't beleve how good they sound for $600 bucks. They image nicely, have decent bass, awesone soundstage, low level detail and are not fatiguing at all. They are also pretty transparent. I am very happy with them. I have each of them sitting on three symposium fat pads.