Cheap passive bookshelf speakers

[galapogos]

Hi guys,

I'm looking for recommendations for passive bookshelf speakers that will be hooked up to a Yamaha R-N301 network receiver and shared among 3 computers. Budget is $200 or less.

Was considering just getting an Edifier R1280DB and sharing it over BT or the 2 coaxial input ports, but since I have the receiver lying around, thought I could get better sound quality with a pair of standalone bookshelf speakers. However, a quick google search doesn't yield any results for my price range.

Looking at new and not used.

Any recommendations?

 

[petetherock]

Why not consider some 2nd hand ones.
Better quality and a better match for your amp.
Or go to Lazada and see the Mission speakers.
You can visit their store: Alpha Audio and talk to their sales guy, asked for a low end model. I think they can help come close and get you a better speaker...

 

[benedium]

Definitely please get used ones from Carousell. Passive speakers last super long with no problems. Most of us buy used. Around $200-$300 can get popular and reviewed ones already. Although many of us actually believe active speakers will have better sound quality for 3 times less cost. But lifespan of active speakers may be less and harder to resell. My 3 used pairs of mission lx2 all got sold within a day or two.

 

[galapogos]

Thanks. Wife doesn't like to buy used stuff, so would prefer new.

Thanks for the Mission recommendation, managed to find a few around my price range, as well as a few others from other brands. Here are some

MISSION MX-S
MISSION VX-2
Wharfedale Crystal 4.1
JBL STAGE-A120W

Any opinions on the above?

I saw a few other recommendations for cheap speakers such as the Polk Audio T15 ($69), the Micca MB42X ($90) and the Klipsch R-14M ($139) on Amazon, but I can't seem to find them in Singapore at those prices.

Any opinion on these?

 

[Ysatis]

get a second hand s520

 

[galapogos]

OK I think I've narrowed down to the following

Wharfedale Crystal 4.1 - $199
MISSION VX-2 - $239
MISSION MX-S - $179
JBL STAGE-A120W - $261.45

Can't seem to find many reviews of the Wharfedale, but they look pretty good. The VX-2 does have the largest woofer though (130mm).

Any opinions on the list, or any others in the same price range (new only)

 

[wwenze]

And this is why the active speakers from Edifier and Swan have so much value, when you consider the price of passive speakers at the same size.

I think your best value is Pioneer SP-BS22-LR for SGD$172 on Amazon with free 3-day delivery. Apparently there is stock stored here or something. Bass does not go as deep as 5-inch woofers but stays pretty flat down to a point after which it disappears quickly.

 

[galapogos]

How would an Edifier 1280DB/1850DB/2000DB compare against any of the above mentioned speakers?

 

[petetherock]

How would an Edifier 1280DB/1850DB/2000DB compare against any of the above mentioned speakers?

Auditioning speakers is not so easy right now.
Our opinions are personal and I would like to see someone actually reply that they have reviewed all these speakers, especially side by side..

I will also agree that the Pioneer is a good buy at $172
http://peteswrite.blogspot.com/2014/11/pioneer-sp-bs22lr-review.html

 

[wwenze]

Honestly with enough EQ, the only difference between speakers are their bass extension (or max volume) and directivity behavior, and whether this and its size works with your setup.

The BS22 with a modified crossover and internal padding mod is one of the best measuring speakers on ASR.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/affordable-accuracy-monitor-review.13624/

But, will it give the same shiokness as a bigger 5-inch speaker? Probably not, because bass extension and quantity is important. So keep that in mind when choosing 4 inch or 5 inch. Assuming you don't have access to EQ.

 

[benedium]

How would an Edifier 1280DB/1850DB/2000DB compare against any of the above mentioned speakers?

Honestly, for most people, perceived sound quality is subjective and personal.

If u are not in a hurry, u should go test the speakers u are considering. I have the edifier r1280db in my bedroom. Also have elac debut reference dbr62 and debut 2.0 b6.2 in the living room powered by av receiver. If u live near me can come listen anytime. I stay at braddell mrt. Just PM me if u want.

If not... I would probably recommend edifier r2000db at $200-$250 new. I am assuming it is the best option, especially if u dont know how to EQ (like me) and don't intend to add a subwoofer to the small passive speakers and av receiver combo.

 

[galapogos]

Auditioning speakers is not so easy right now.
Our opinions are personal and I would like to see someone actually reply that they have reviewed all these speakers, especially side by side..

I will also agree that the Pioneer is a good buy at $172
http://peteswrite.blogspot.com/2014/11/pioneer-sp-bs22lr-review.html

Thanks. Good point on opinions being personal. The Pioneer looks interesting, but another factor that I didn't mention is size. The Pioneer looks a bit too big.

 

[galapogos]

Honestly with enough EQ, the only difference between speakers are their bass extension (or max volume) and directivity behavior, and whether this and its size works with your setup.

The BS22 with a modified crossover and internal padding mod is one of the best measuring speakers on ASR.
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/affordable-accuracy-monitor-review.13624/

But, will it give the same shiokness as a bigger 5-inch speaker? Probably not, because bass extension and quantity is important. So keep that in mind when choosing 4 inch or 5 inch. Assuming you don't have access to EQ.

Thanks. This is one of the reasons I'm leaning towards the Mission VX-2 as well, since it has a larger woofer, but I don't see any reviews of it.

 

[petetherock]

Thanks. Good point on opinions being personal. The Pioneer looks interesting, but another factor that I didn't mention is size. The Pioneer looks a bit too big.

Look up NHG Superzero then, sells on Amazon SG too..
But you do lose bass... size matters..

 

[napoleon bohlumpar]

Look up NHG Superzero then, sells on Amazon SG too..
But you do lose bass... size matters..

serious ahh ??!!!


the legendary SuperZero available her in S'pore meh ??


then no-brainer liao...............the BEST small budget speakers ever..........need a sub though


i still regret never buying the SuperOne back then.........

 

[wwenze]

"Legendary" is an interesting word

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/nht-superzero-20-speaker-system-ht-labs-measures

 

[petetherock]

Thanks. This is one of the reasons I'm leaning towards the Mission VX-2 as well, since it has a larger woofer, but I don't see any reviews of it.

So what did you get?

 

[benedium]

"Legendary" is an interesting word

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/nht-superzero-20-speaker-system-ht-labs-measures

Thanks for sharing wwenze... now can anyone teach us roughly how to read or understand the measurement/curve of this speaker? Is this considered not flat enough? And what kind of measurements is considered sufficiently flat? Or does the curve here speak more about the lack of bass?

Ok I try to see if I understand correctly... from the way these articles are written minimum recommended dips in measurement is no more than +/-3db. This speaker already drops -3db even at 110hz so means should be crossedover to subwoofer at 110/120hz at least. Or if one wants to achieve 85db +/-0db this speakers needs to be crossover to subwoofer at 250hz which almost no subwoofer can do properly. So guess this means it performs more like a small satellite speaker than a bookshelf speaker?

 

[wwenze]

Both. The problem is not just the absolute +-3dB figure (or I prefer to call it 6dB), quite a lot of speakers vary by 6dB from the highest point to the lowest. The BS22 and 305P also hit these values; 305P goes even more off when we consider >15kHz

The issue is the shape of the curve. It is very smooth which is good, but it has many low-Q (wide) peaks at 150Hz, 1kHz and 15kHz. Or we can view it as wide dips at 500Hz and 5kHz. Deviations with a high dB/octave change plus a wide frequency range affected are more audible than 1) Narrow (high-Q) deviations or 2) gentle slope that is gradual across a wide frequency range.

I would exercise caution with interpreting the bass extension since it is connected to the subwoofer, but stereophile's measurement (of the earlier version?) does show an impedance plot that suggests a lack of bass. Plus the fact that it is a sealed design makes this performance highly likely. For perspective, BS22 has at least half an octave lower bass than that.

https://www.stereophile.com/content/nht-superzero-loudspeaker-sw2-subwoofer-measurements

USA price is $99 each, which is already more than a BS22. And USA price of 305P is $149 each with built-in amp. Maybe the Superzero is legendary in some way I don't know. At USD$70 they may work tho, if you need sealed satellites for some reason.

 

[extemporisation]

I have a pair of the NHT SuperZero 2.1, which I use as computer speakers. I drive it with a Marantz PM6006. It truly lacks bass - a subwoofer is definitely needed.