Speaker Upgrade from LSi's

pmckeealaska

OK, right now I have a full LSi HT setup, but am thinking of investing in a new dedicated 2 channel rig. What do folks think would be the next "step up" in quality from the Lsi if one was looking to spend about 5K for a pair of speakers?

JimBRICK

B&W 700 or 800 series

jusdrink

b&w are great speakers depends on your budget though i just upgrade and in my budget i ended up with the paradigm studio 100v4 for the money and sounds quality i ended up with these if i had more money to spend i would of went with the 703's but i didnt hear much sound difference between the two just my opinion.

dane_peterson

Check out Tyler Acoustics. A very popular and increasingly common step up for many diehard polkies.

Bill Ayotte

What about that sick **** pair of Gallo's Venom just picked up? You could get a new set with the sub amp for under 5K........They are Gallo reference 3.1.

Sherardp

B&W 802d, and yes Tylers are sweet. I would go for the linbrook signatures.

dane_peterson

Bill Ayotte wrote: »

What about that sick **** pair of Gallo's Venom just picked up? You could get a new set with the sub amp for under 5K........They are Gallo reference 3.1.

I don't know. The Gallos definitely have an upper hand on the LSis in a couple areas, but overall I wouldn't consider them too much of an upgrade. At least in a price/performance aspect. They do look pretty sexy, though.

venomclan

Well of course I recommend the Gallos. I demoed the B&W 804's before I went with the Gallos, the 804's are great speakers, but the Gallos had them beat pretty much in every area. And I am B&W fan. The only speaker I might prefer over the 3.1's is the Sonus Faber Cremona at 8K. The PMC OB1 also was very nice at $5500. Go and do some intensive demo's to see what you like the best. But whatever you demo, be sure they are broken in.
V

JimBRICK

I'd love to hear those gallos

Bill Ayotte

JimBRICK wrote: »

I'd love to hear those gallos

As would I......God those are sexy.

Pepi28

What about Von Schweikert VR4jr's? Folk's here tell me they are a huge step up from the LSi series. I plan on getting mine within a few months.

venomclan

JimBRICK wrote: »

I'd love to hear those gallos

Go to roundsound.com and see if there is a dealer near you. Just leave your wallet and credit cards behind to be on the safe side
V

TennesseeOutlaw

DynAudio

jm1

If I had 5K and wanted to upgrade the two channel performance, I would incorporate a two channel preamp with HT pass through into the system. The LSi speakers have excellent sonic characteristics which will carry you through several equipment upgrades. I would also remove the equalizer from the two channel path.

The analog out from the Denon would be connected to the two channel preamp, the L+R from the receiver to the HT pass through and the preamp would feed the Rotel amp. Your two channel sources go directly through the two channel components and the HT uses both the multi and two channel components. Next I would upgrade the Rotel to a more refined amp of your preference. Only then would I make the move to new speakers.

If you want a completely seperate system, that is another story.

When I moved from the LSi's, I went to Dynaudio S1.4 then to Dynaudio C-1.

pmckeealaska

OK...so what would be a good amp to replace my rotel? It would have to be under $2000.

jm1

I am not sure what you are familiar with, but a few that come to mind that I am familiar with are:

• Ayre
• Bryston
• Conrad Johnson
• Classe
• Krell – my least favorite of the group
• Mark Levinson
• Musical Fidelity
• Simaudio

I have had limited exposure to this:

• YBA

Another of interest may be:

• Plinius

There is a forum member who has the Plinius and I believe he has posted some comments on this.

If you are receptive to having an integrated amp in your system, the Simaudio I-7 is an outstanding piece of equipment.

In the end, I choose the Simaudio P-5 and W-3 components for my system. The Rotel components along with the Dynaudio S1.4 are used for the second system the kids mainly use. Dora the Explorer sounds very good.

I am sure there are many others. Browse through Audiogon to get an idea of units available. This would be a good place to get some great equipment at outstanding prices.

audioblonde

1234

mulveling

The Tylers are an excellent upgrade for the money. Buy them used on the 'gon from another audio junkie or from Ty himself. It's a very worthwhile difference over the LSi IMO. I also love my Legacy Signature III (right under $5K), but they need the right amp to really shine...and right for me that means the Parasound JC-1 monoblocks (though the Halo A21 also did quite well for the money). Unfortunately the Sig III's were recently discontinued, but the new Classic HD should be superb...probably offering a sweet fullrange sound with no subwoofer necessary like the rest of the line...if I were you I'd seriously consider those and a new amp

venomclan

pmckeealaska wrote: »

OK...so what would be a good amp to replace my rotel? It would have to be under $2000.

Amps have a different "house sound" and Pros & Cons. There are many factors to consider and synergy is important. Get the "best" amp you can afford to cover any future speaker upgrades.
V

VR3

Ill 3rd, 4th, or 5th the Tyler Acoustics rec - lost count as I skimmed...

Definite upgrade over the LSi.

RuSsMaN

F Tyler, F Von Schweikert, F them all. You don't need no stinkin' Danes.

Enjoy the LSi's, they are world class speakers. Ronco that ****.

Amps? Look at Plinius, Krell, Goldmund, YBA, Sim Audio, Belles, Classe, Mark Levinson, etc.

Cheers,
Russ

marker

For $5K, you should be able to get a dual sub version of this Stereophile Class A rated system:

http://nhthifi.com/2006/s-s-ultimate.html

and already have the power amps, stands, speaker wire and sub cables included with them to boot.

Just add a pre-amp and source(s).

JoshParsons84

N.H.T. - Not Home Theater

VR3

marker wrote: »

For $5K, you should be able to get a dual sub version of this Stereophile Class A rated system:

http://nhthifi.com/2006/s-s-ultimate.html

and already have the power amps, stands, speaker wire and sub cables included with them to boot.

Just add a pre-amp and source(s).

Now that is an ugly speaker setup... wow

Serendipity

Ugly, but

They sound real good, though.

VR3

I like the dark better.

tonyb

mulveling wrote: »

The Tylers are an excellent upgrade for the money. Buy them used on the 'gon from another audio junkie or from Ty himself. It's a very worthwhile difference over the LSi IMO. I also love my Legacy Signature III (right under $5K), but they need the right amp to really shine...and right for me that means the Parasound JC-1 monoblocks (though the Halo A21 also did quite well for the money). Unfortunately the Sig III's were recently discontinued, but the new Classic HD should be superb...probably offering a sweet fullrange sound with no subwoofer necessary like the rest of the line...if I were you I'd seriously consider those and a new amp

Being the only other Legacy owner here....I can second this.You can find good dealer demo's with warrenty for cheap.Picked up my Focus 20/20 at a dealer in Wisconsin 6 months old,Retail was 7400. Grabbed them for 4000.Could not be happier.Of coarse in that price range,you only have a thousand or so choices.Get your ears on as many as you can.Good luck.

Serendipity

I like the dark too. I heard this setup once and the sound was very warm but detailed. I liked the sound a lot.