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Vintage speaker upgrade suggestions?

To start it off... I'm one of those people who's trying to go hifi on a very very low budget. My find of the year was a Marantz SR2000 receiver (circa 1970+?) and a pair of Mission 710's (bookshelves, 1983+) for $100. Recently, I came across an ad for a pair of Boston Acoustics A70's for $30. My questions are as follows. The receiver is rated at 40 watts per channel. Will this be enough to adequately power the A70's? If so, how big of a difference in sound will I get? I also have the option of using these to replace a pair of Bose 401's attached to a different receiver. Lastly, I couldn't really get a straight answer out of the guys at Myer Emco when I asked whether I'd notice any difference if I were to listen to SACDs using this system. I was told "some people can hear a difference, some people can't" implying there's not a real difference.

In summation:
Is 40w/channel enough to power A70's?
How do A70's compare against Mission 710's or Bose 401's?
Would I notice any advantages in switching to SACD with these speakers/receiver?

If it helps, I listen to Jazz (mostly vocal), Classical (mostly piano) and a bit of electronic.
alo

Showing 2 responses by alo

alo OP
25 posts
 
Thanks for the help. I'm going to check out the A70's soon. Also, thanks for the referral to Audiokarma, it seems to be a good place to lurk around.

In defense of myself, the speakers and receiver had been checked out and repaired already at time of purchase. Second of all, as a college student living in a small dorm room, I'm not headed for a pair of Nautilus's and McIntosh gear any year soon. I'm Just trying to get the best I can for the most I can afford. A little advice in that direction certainly wouldn't hurt.
alo OP
25 posts
 
At home, we're running a Sony SACD player w/ a DA3ES driving the Bose 401's. At school, in the dorm room I'm running the Marantz/Mission combo and my source being an archaic JVC cd player and the headphone out of my Powerbook. Basically, I'm stuck with the Missions until me and my roommates move to a bigger house, so I was wondering if the A70's were worth the pickup and could possibly be used instead of the 401's at home.

As for budgeting my purchases, if it seems reasonable, I make it. Right now, my summer cash is running a little thin so I'm looking for really cheap stuff. Come end of summer, I might throw down for some B&W 601's (then agan they may not be worth it). I guess to go in the other direction, I'm trying to resist picking up a more modern 5 disc CD changer. I'm not really sure which of the slightly older models I should be interested in. Especially since all that seems to pop up is Technics, Sony and sometimes Pioneer (I'm not missing something am I?). If anyone has any hints or suggestions as to if any slightly older CD player is worth a pickup... I'm also looking to pick up a record player as another source, but that's another story...

Anyway, my mode of buying is to shop craigslist.org for items that people seem to have forgotten the value for or are trying to get rid of. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes picking up good finds or needs to spare some money.
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