What Speakers should I get?

inconsolate61

Bookshelf speakers in that range generally have a solid sound foundation, but will vary a bunch in terms of what they are best at and overall timber, due to the trade-offs the maker decides on to provide the best "Bang for the Buck" They usually try to incorporate as much of the sonic signature of their more expensive models as they can, to encourage trading up at a later date.. Stay with companies well known specifically for speakers if you can. Due to the trade offs, It is very important to try to audition models in lines you like. Horn driven speakers will generally have a more forward sound, for example, while ones that feature say, silk dome tweeters, may offer a more "Windows-cut-in-the-wall, between you and the Band" sound, or augment the relative volume of some range, like more mids or more (not deeper, but louder) bottom end. This is as much to accommodate room response differences as anything. Absolutely nothing will sound in the home as it sounded in the store, or even the same from one room to another. Some models try to provide as flat a response across the board as they can,out of the box,for classical lovers, and let the buyer solve any room problems..They (bookshelf speakers at the moderate end) generally do not delve deeper in to low bass that most band instruments actually produce, cutting off reproduction around 50 to 45 hz before the sound levels start to decline. -Not end, but start to decline in volume. The so called 3 dB down point. Actually the room will mediate this point, in so far as you ears are concerned. Ported or ducted models will keep up a more even sound level to slightly lower tones than sealed units, but trade this for a rapid decrease in sound output at frequencies deeper than they are tuned to. Many who buy them for size considerations add a sub-woofer at some point, to expand on that. Bookshelf speakers are great for smaller to midsize rooms. In fact, small rooms benefit very little from large speakers. Rather than brands per se, become empowered to Go Forth and Listen .

spacemissing

OK... Here we go with some alphabet soup and a bunch of names you've probably never heard of before, but these are the ones I would be looking at: JBL Infinity Wharfedale Boston Acoustics Mission Celestion Paradigm Energy Mirage Klipsch KEF NHT Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) Polk Keep in mind that the breakover point to get really good sound these days is $200 per cabinet, so if you were to increase your budget to $400 you would have a better chance of being satisfied.

ANDRE L

You do understand that to use proper home audio speakers, you will first need a proper audio receiver, right ? Basic ones start around $150 - $200. You will also need to determine if you want a basic stereo model, or one capable of 5.1 audio, as a home theater receiver. Otherwise, spacemissing's list, a very good one, will not provide you with anything that will work without said receiver.