Help me with a pairing.....


HI all,

Somewhat new here. I’ve decided that it’s time to up my two channel game. I’ll be moving from Monitor Audio Silver 6’s powered by my Marantz AVR that has served me well for a long time. Initially I balked at the notion of HT bypass on an integrated but now i’m all in. I listened to a few different products but based on what I had read coming into it I sort of knew what would win, and that’s the Luxman 509x. It was exactly as advertised....very precise and powerful with no slowness to speak of and little coloration. We even compared it to 1.2k Mcintosh monoblocks and I felt the Luxman gave up very little if anything, but that’s a story for another thread. I was listening on Focal Sopra 2’s and have to say they did not suck! So while that’s a possibility they are really darned big. I would love to hear other suggestions on where I might look to find a somewhat neutral speaker that supports primarily indie rock (think Wilco, The War on Drugs, even low fi favorites like Guided By Voices) as well as jam bands (Phish, GD) and classic rock. Also if it’s any help we listened to Magico’s the same day and I didn’t care for them nearly as much. A bit warm for my liking.

Ideally footprint is a bit smaller, and has a center channel that isn’t 24w x 12" high since that would be challenging on most racks. Price maybe 10K per pair MSRP but i’m flexible for the right product.  Would considered used.  Brands on my radar include: Revel, Monitor Audio (clear winner last time I did this, but wasn’t shopping quite as upmarket), Focal (maybe one notch down from Sopra?) Kef and maybe Paradigm. I’d really like to get feedback on people’s experience with these combo’s, and knowing what I’m favoring at least start in the right spot. I’m in a big metro area so should be able to find a dealer with most anything.

Thanks very much in advance.

EW
128x128mtbiker29
The Focal Sopras are nice but will set you back $9500 ea. If you have a chance audition some Dali speakers like the Opticon 8 mkii or perhaps the Epicon 6 line.
Don't forget the lava lamp....

....would 2 be best with monoblocks....or just overkill? 😐
+1 for the MA platinums (I have the 300ii model).  Try the IsoAcoustic Gaia footers on them for even better sound and presence.  Robert Deutsch has great reviews of both in Stereophile.  Mine are driven by a Luxman m900u.
Some great suggestions within, thanks all.  

@basser-x not sure why I can't find a Dali dealer anywhere near CHI?  

@speakermaster I would welcome suggestions for vintage brands and models.  Klipsch and JBL seem to come up a lot.  

@millercarbon same as Dali, not sure how I would demo Moab? 

Hi all, 

Just wanted to update this thread and thank everyone for their original observations.  When I picked up the 509x I was able to demo several speakers yet again.  Focal Kanta 3's were OK, but didn't have me jumping out of my seat.  I believe this was because they were first.  Magico A3 was the same as last time, to my ears downright muffled and that sound just isn't ideal for me.  That said I'm assuming Sonus Faber should not be on my list.  Paradigm Persona 3F was pretty darned nice, and might be the leader at the $5K price point.  And I have to say again Sopra 2 is simply fantastic.  

Having said all of that I must say that the 509x has breathed new life into my Monitor Audio Silver 6's.  I also made some source changes and have been working on soundproofing but A/B testing tells me the power of this thing has tightened up the bass considerably.  I'm at a point where I can live with this for a while, and really decide what's going to work in my space size wise as I optimize the room.  

@erik_squires is it wrong if I leave the loudness button on 90% of the time? 🤣🤣 They really nailed it with this unit.