dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 Greetings and salutations, as the title suggest I am looking to potentially upgrade from my Usher 520 speakers in my music listening station (powered by either a Rega Brio R or Kenwood KA-8100). Are there any bookshelves at around the $1000 mark (new or used) that would be a considerable improvement over these or am I better off saving up for a larger budget. I have been recommended these Ascension speakers at $895 but I have no way of auditioning them http://www.adelaidespeakers.com/woodfox-bookshelf.html Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted December 16, 2014 Volunteer Share Posted December 16, 2014 Just to throw a thought into the mix, my understanding is that the Ushers like quite a lot of power. Might be worth seeing if you can try them with a different amp before you give up on them 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 Just to throw a thought into the mix, my understanding is that the Ushers like quite a lot of power. Might be worth seeing if you can try them with a different amp before you give up on them How much power? The Kenwood is 75 watts per channel into 8Ω Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted December 16, 2014 Volunteer Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) @@davewantsmoore recommends 100w http://www.stereo.net.au/forums/index.php?/topic/55249-amplifier-to-drive-usher-s520s/#entry940582 EDIT: I have no experience with these speakers, I'm just parroting what I've read Edited December 16, 2014 by Sir Sanders Zingmore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 @@davewantsmoore recommends 100w http://www.stereo.net.au/forums/index.php?/topic/55249-amplifier-to-drive-usher-s520s/#entry940582 EDIT: I have no experience with these speakers, I'm just parroting what I've read Yikes. Ok, this is definitely something to consider. Thanks a bunch for the info. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jventer Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 You are in Melbourne - I would go and listen to the Osborn Loudspeaker: Eos you can take your amp/s with or demo in your own home. But have read lots of reviews that says the Ushers require certain type of amps - check out on Digital Audio Review. Have heard good things of Adelaide speakers - as usual it is very hard to know with different speakers, amps etc., that is why I recommend reading reviews and even better listening. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 You are in Melbourne - I would go and listen to the Osborn Loudspeaker: Eos you can take your amp/s with or demo in your own home. But have read lots of reviews that says the Ushers require certain type of amps - check out on Digital Audio Review. Have heard good things of Adelaide speakers - as usual it is very hard to know with different speakers, amps etc., that is why I recommend reading reviews and even better listening. Eos speakers look great, definitely worth a listen, before I hit them up do you know if they are within my budget? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jventer Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) I have a pricelist, but I am moving house and cant find it. The Eos might be, but I dont think the Eos reference might be. Phone Greg and ask him - he can do wood finishes or paint finishes - which can suit your decor Edited December 16, 2014 by Jventer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 I have a pricelist, but I am moving house and can find it. The Eos might be, but I dont think the Eos reference might be. Phone Greg and ask him - he can do wood finishes or paint finishes - which can suit your decor Great, have contacted Greg, hopefully will hear back from him soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenikoy Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) Yes I think the Ushers are as power hungry as people say. Until recently I was running a pair in a large living space with a 20yo+ AV Receiver which I thought was 50wpc @8ohm. The set up seemed OK using the loudness button which gave a fair bump up in volume. Decided to upgrade to a Yamaha A-S500 rated at 85wpc @8ohm. They whole setup just died. Needed the volume cranked and it sounded rubbish, the fairly sophisticated loudness control on the A-S500 couldn't fix things. Brought down my relatively efficient(90dBS)floor standers and everything sounded great again. For similar volume levels the floor standers had the volume control at 10 o'clock, the Ushers needed 12 o'clock, which is not how I like to run an amp. Though I have to say the Ushers are great little speakers for what they are and cost. I took them last night to the smaller music room, with the A-S500 and they were sounding great again. That old Sony must either have more grunt than I thought or delivered it all in the first half of the volume control movement! Edited December 16, 2014 by enikoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pulinap Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 Just to throw a thought into the mix, my understanding is that the Ushers like quite a lot of power. Might be worth seeing if you can try them with a different amp before you give up on them I have User 718be....need at least 200w in to 8 ohms for them to sing........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 So is it worth looking to upgrade my amplifier in order to try and power the Ushers correctly, or is that pointless for a $350 speaker pair? Am I better off spending the money on more efficient speakers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 I have a pricelist, but I am moving house and cant find it. The Eos might be, but I dont think the Eos reference might be. Phone Greg and ask him - he can do wood finishes or paint finishes - which can suit your decor Hmm, these are closer to $2k so a bit out of my current price range unfortunately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jventer Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 Another way to do this may be to start another post with: Which speakers for my Rega... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DAMO 1147 Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 I think both are valid ways to go. The ushers are well regarded and could very close to anything that 1K retail and handle an amp upgade. However certainly S/H 1 k or a little more is likley to be udgrading. There has been some nice LS50's come up in the F/S section for example. What do you think you are missing have you heard soemthing else to compare that you like better? Have you read Tweenys stand moutn thread? Some good reviews there: http://www.stereo.net.au/forums/index.php?/topic/44568-standmount-speakers-an-addicts-guide/ I reakon you need to try to auditon a few speakers before jumping the gun. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 I think both are valid ways to go. The ushers are well regarded and could very close to anything that 1K retail and handle an amp upgade. However certainly S/H 1 k or a little more is likley to be udgrading. There has been some nice LS50's come up in the F/S section for example. What do you think you are missing have you heard soemthing else to compare that you like better? Have you read Tweenys stand moutn thread? Some good reviews there: http://www.stereo.net.au/forums/index.php?/topic/44568-standmount-speakers-an-addicts-guide/ I reakon you need to try to auditon a few speakers before jumping the gun. I am just trying to balance my system out, I have spent about $1100 on my turntable, about $1000 on the amp/dac(s) and only $300 odd on the speakers. I have very little in terms of comparison to lower end speakers, have heard high end systems and could definitely hear the difference in clarity above all else. Everything just separated out nicely. Just seeing if stepping up to $1k speaker would be worth while really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
howze Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 I can highly recommend edward from adelaide speakers i have bought a few things from him now, can also custom make something to your specifications and room needs if thats what you're after Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamg Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) I am just trying to balance my system out, I have spent about $1100 on my turntable, about $1000 on the amp/dac(s) and only $300 odd on the speakers. I have very little in terms of comparison to lower end speakers, have heard high end systems and could definitely hear the difference in clarity above all else. Everything just separated out nicely. Just seeing if stepping up to $1k speaker would be worth while really. There is definitely plenty of enjoyment to be had from the S520s with the right amp. I've used with a few amps including their revered friend the sonofa'Gum. Sold them to mate and sourced him a 2nd hand NAD 326 BEE. I thought this was a better combo than the sonofa'. That said the simple answer to your question is yes. I normally listen at low volumes. IMO the S520 sound better at moderate volume. Moving to KEF LS50s was a definite upgrade and at the current 2nd prices are excellent buying. As Damo said my first step would be to read Twwen2 (not tweeny) stand mount thread, and then audition what you can. If you can't audition and want to persevere with the Ushers for a while try a BEE series NAD or something like a X17 model Sansui (more watts the better in both cases). Alternatively LS50s would have to be near top of the list but not sure the Brio will work that well with them. Edited December 16, 2014 by adamg 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpearce38 Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 my choice would be KEF LS50s owned both LS50 is a remarkable speaker for the coin imagining and balance and energy are fantastic and not overly difficult to drive. must take my hat off to usher getting a speaker to sound that good at that price is masterful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 So more votes for the LS50 (most likely will be using it with the Kenwood and not the Brio). I actually really like the new white version of the speaker, no idea why. Maybe that's something to aim at. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewantsmoore Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 So is it worth looking to upgrade my amplifier in order to try and power the Ushers correctly, or is that pointless for a $350 speaker pair? Am I better off spending the money on more efficient speakers? You don't need a particularly high end amp .... Just one which can manage 50w+ into 8 ohms (depending on your SPL requirements maybe 100w) .... and one which can drive reasonably difficult loads. This is normally beyond most entry level multichannel AV amplifiers, for example. IMHO, I would answers "yes". A speaker with a more typical efficiency could require an amplifier with only one quarter the number of watts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewantsmoore Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 (edited) So more votes for the LS50 Confused: The LS50 and Usher 520 are just about identical WRT efficiency and difficulty to drive. Edited December 16, 2014 by davewantsmoore 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Volunteer sir sanders zingmore Posted December 16, 2014 Volunteer Share Posted December 16, 2014 You don't need a particularly high end amp .... Just one which can manage 50w+ into 8 ohms (depending on your SPL requirements maybe 100w) .... and one which can drive reasonably difficult loads. This is normally beyond most entry level multichannel AV amplifiers, for example. IMHO, I would answers "yes". A speaker with a more typical efficiency could require an amplifier with only one quarter the number of watts. which question are you answering "yes" to - upgrade the amp, or look for more efficient speakers (or both)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dimo Posted December 16, 2014 Author Share Posted December 16, 2014 You don't need a particularly high end amp .... Just one which can manage 50w+ into 8 ohms (depending on your SPL requirements maybe 100w) .... and one which can drive reasonably difficult loads. This is normally beyond most entry level multichannel AV amplifiers, for example. IMHO, I would answers "yes". A speaker with a more typical efficiency could require an amplifier with only one quarter the number of watts. My Kenwood is 75w into 8 ohms so should driving it ok for a small room? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davewantsmoore Posted December 16, 2014 Share Posted December 16, 2014 which question are you answering "yes" to - upgrade the amp, or look for more efficient speakers (or both)? Oh, sorry... reading fail. It's a waste of time... spend the money on better speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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