Budget bookshelf system for acoustic bass


Need help deciding on a speaker system. I listen to mostly acoustic Jazz and am looking for a system that accurately reproduces the lush harmonics of the string bass and the clean timbres of brass and cimbles. Problem is it needs to be a bookshelf system and my budget is around $600 - 800. Do folks think I need a subwoofer or will a monitor with good response down to 40 or 45 hz suffice for the string bass? Obviousky if I go with a sub there wilk be some loss of coherence and I don't want a thumper to shake the room with HT special effects.

My system is a Linn Classic, Music Halll MMF-5 TT with Goldring 1012GX cartrige and Bellari VP129 pre-amp.

I'm thinking of three very different aproaches. 1) Magnepan MC-1 with a sub like the PSB SubSeries 5i or the Infinity PS10. 2) A budget monitor like the NHT SB3, PSB B25 or Infinity Primus 150. 3) One of the above monitors above with one of the above subs

Any suggestions? Thanks, PDenni
peterennis1

Showing 2 responses by gmueller

Well, it partly depends on what you consider a monitor. If you're talking about the really small monitors with a 4-5 inch mid-woofer, then 40Hz is really not an option. If you get up to 6-8 inch woofers you might find something that goes there but it will of course be in a larger cabinet. You do need to be a little more careful in making a selection because integrating a larger woofer like that with a tweeter requires a good tweeter that can cross lower since mid-woofers of that size have a little harder time reaching up into the upper midrange cleanly.

As far as the instrument itself, the 'typical' bass has a lowest frequency of about 42Hz (open E). There are of course exceptions with specific instruments that have lower fundamentals. Much of the sound is harmonics though, so even if you can't get quite that low you may be satisfied with the sound.

One thought that comes to mind is the B&W 602's. They get down to about 50Hz and can be found for $600. The 603's got a rather nice write-up in Stereophile recently but of course only you can decide if they are your cup of tea.

You should definitely play with placement. In general, most speakers will gain bass by being placed on a bookshelf or close to a wall. Unfortunately, this increased bass is often somewhat peaky and can be a bit muddy. Depends to some degree on the speaker and the crossover design. In the "old" days, speakers were often designed without baffle step and so their frequency response actually dropped off quicker than "spec" if you moved them out into space. Manufacturers now do a better job of designing with the specific goal to be flatter in the bass region even in free space. Move them around until you get what you like.
Lot's of good responses and choices here. I pointed out the B&W's because of the recent good write-up, meets the price point, gets pretty close to the frequency response goal and has sufficient sensitivity for the Linn. (Published sensitivity for the B&W is 90dB, same as the Triangle Titus-ES.)

I have absolutely no axe to grind on behalf of the B&W. (I run Vandersteens in my main system.) I heard them briefly and they are not unworthy of consideration at this price point IMO. In fact, I thought bass dynamics to be one of their strengths. That said, I think all of the choices pointed out here are good. Try and listen to a few of them and maybe some others, if you can, to see if the bass is satisfying. If not, then you may want to go with a sub and some truly small monitors.

As several have pointed out, the Linn has relatively low power output. Sensitivity is a spec to be looked at more closely in your case, although some mfrs seem to cheat a little on that number. Probably depends on the measurement technique.

Enjoy the hunting . . . .