Best value Bookshelf speaker


I'm trying to decide which bookshelf speaker to acquire. I just purchased a Bob Carver Dominator 8 Sub which seems good. Will hook it up to an old Audio Research D90 and SP-12 pre-amp (tube/SS hybrids). I have a pair of JSE floor speakers that have Dynaudio drivers and have always loved them, but now are too big for my new room- it's a marriage thing!

I've listened to Dynaudio Focus and Vienna Acoustic Haydns and both sounded nice. The VA salesperson said he did head to head comp w/Dynaudio and the VA's were superior.

Any thoughts from anyone?

Thanks.
jamesk58

Showing 1 response by marct

I have listened to both, and liked them. My recollection of the VA's is that they were tonally very elegant and well balanced, but that they were not particularly well focused. They played big, but without great spacial definition. It could have been the positioning. I really like the focus 140's, though they are more money. You could also listen to the Totem Rainmaker. I find them a little harsh on the high end, but for under $1000, they are a real value. With the right electronics they would probably be fine.