Upgrading from Vienna Acoustic Haydns to ??????

[hifi123]

 I was wondering if anyone has upgraded fro VA Haydn's to another bookshelf model and if they would be so kind to share their experience?

Alternatively what bookshelf speaker do people recommend up to 4-5k mark?

Source is a streamer feeding a Denafrips Ares 2 and solid state pre power combo.

Room is 4M x 5m

Eclectic tastes in music so really almost any genre

Thanks

HIFI123

 

[TerryO]

Unless you actually have the Hayden’s sitting on furniture rather than using stands, why not consider a small floorstander? Your room is big enough for a floorstander.

Do you enjoy the VA sound or are you looking for something different?

 

cheers,

Terry

Edited February 10, 2020 by TerryO

[hifi123]

Thanks Terry,

I should have mentioned floor standers are not an option.

I am looking for something different. The Haydn's are very good but possibly a little too polite in my system.

[Al.M]

What’s the budget and amp using?

[Pim]

I've been using Dynaudio C1's for a number of years now and given the size of your room they would do very well in there. With the right amplification (I use a Devialet Original d' Atelier. Way over the top but man, what a sound it can bring out of those little speakers) I reckon you'll get exactly what you're looking for. Not too polite but still very listenable.

[genkifd]

the question is what are you looking for that your VA are missing?

 

imo since the Haydns are 3k rrp speaker an upgrade to a 4-5k speaker doesnt necessarily mean better but different.

[hifi123]

My amps are Densen (along the lines of Naim)

Budget  up to 5k.

The Va's can be get a little muddied with complex music and lack punch if playing Gary Moore or SRV. Very polite, very nice sounding but I keep feeling I am not realizing the potential of the source and amps being used.

 

[Cookies]

Try stretching a little more for a Hulgich Nina, you'll also be able to audition it in Melbourne very soon.

 

Otherwise the Osborn Eos Reference Elite is a very nice bookshelf speaker, but also quite a departure from your Haydn's being very warm and easy to listen with.

 

When I was looking for a bookshelf speaker many years ago, I picked the PMC Twenty.21 over the VA Haydn's. Now there's the PMC Twenty5.21 which is an iterative improvement.

[hifi123]

Thanks Standards,

Listened to the PMC Twenty 5.22 and was impressed a few years ago.

I might venture out to Gregs to have listen to the EOS. I might be mistaken, but I was under the impression his speakers seem to match well with valves

I am in no rush so I will keep an eye out for the Hulgich....

 

 

[lemarquis]

32 minutes ago, Standards said:

Otherwise the Osborn Eos Reference Elite is a very nice bookshelf speaker, but also quite a departure from your Haydn's being very warm and easy to listen with.

 

 

 

25 minutes ago, hifi123 said:

 

I might venture out to Gregs to have listen to the EOS. I might be mistaken, but I was under the impression his speakers seem to match well with valves

 

 

 

I second the Osborn Eos Reference option. They play Big. Enormous sound for the size. It's no joke when people confuse them with the huge floor standers they're sitting on top of at the Hi Fi shows. They really are in a class of their own and take things to a whole other level that you never knew existed.

 

I have paired them with valve and SS amps. IME they sound equally as good with both. Great synergy with my Vincent amp.

[davm]

I'm a big fan of ATC loudspeakers. Nothing emphasized or lost, just everything done right.

 

The ATC SCM19 is in your price range.

[Cookies]

25 minutes ago, davm said:

I'm a big fan of ATC loudspeakers. Nothing emphasized or lost, just everything done right.

 

The ATC SCM19 is in your price range.

Not a bad speaker, but very hard to drive and lacks low end punch like some of the other bookshelf's mentioned here.

[genkifd]

problem with all Hulgich speakers is that they rearly come up for sale (used).

Edited February 11, 2020 by genkifd

[TerryO]

22 hours ago, hifi123 said:

Thanks Terry,

I should have mentioned floor standers are not an option.

I am looking for something different. The Haydn's are very good but possibly a little too polite in my system.

All good, as you can see from all of the responses, everyone has their own idea about what is the best speaker you can or should buy.

Personally I would just take some reference CD’s and or records with you and go and try as many different speakers as you can in the local HiFi shops. Haggling will get you a easy 20% off of any RRP, but before you commit to buy you need any purchase to be conditional on a week long home audition of them in your room to see how they sound with your gear. 

 

On that front it would be best if you can take home a well run pair of demo’s so you can hear what they actually sound like.

 

Atleast because your after stand mounts they will fit in the boot of just about any car.

 

Good luck with the auditioning.

 

cheers,

Terry

Edited February 11, 2020 by TerryO

[muon*]

What about Lenehan ML-1's.

 

 

[Michael Clarke]

Carlton HIFI have a pair of PMC Fact 3 for $4950, you won't buy better

[Guest deanB]

1 hour ago, Standards said:

Not a bad speaker, but very hard to drive and lacks low end punch like some of the other bookshelf's mentioned here.

None of what you say matches up to my experience with the 19's.

I tried quite a few amps from 40 to 250w. The ATC's revealing nature made getting a tonally pleasing combo a chore. I ended up using an 80w valve amp with a ss preamp. Room was 4.2 wide by 6.5m long.

As for low end punch, my 24l transmission line/8 inch bass drivers go a bit deeper but don't punch as hard as the 19s did. 

@hifi123 would do well to take his Densen to the Sound Gallery for a demo of the Scm19.

[Cookies]

25 minutes ago, deanB said:

None of what you say matches up to my experience with the 19's.

I tried quite a few amps from 40 to 250w. The ATC's revealing nature made getting a tonally pleasing combo a chore. I ended up using an 80w valve amp with a ss preamp. Room was 4.2 wide by 6.5m long.

As for low end punch, my 24l transmission line/8 inch bass drivers go a bit deeper but don't punch as hard as the 19s did. 

@hifi123 would do well to take his Densen to the Sound Gallery for a demo of the Scm19.

Nope.

 

They may have enough bass to you, or perhaps good bass for a bookshelf, but they pale in comparison to the PMC and Osborn bookshelf speakers.

 

I never bought them (if you read above I choose the PMC's), because I just couldn't get them to sing, with any amp - PrimaLuna, Primare, Naim which I tried them on. And the room was smaller than yours.

 

There's a saying, of your amp can drive an ATC, it will be able to drive anything.

Edited February 11, 2020 by Standards

[Guest deanB]

48 minutes ago, Standards said:

Nope.

 

They may have enough bass to you, or perhaps good bass for a bookshelf, but they pale in comparison to the PMC and Osborn bookshelf speakers.

 

I never bought them (if you read above I choose the PMC's), because I just couldn't get them to sing, with any amp - PrimaLuna, Primare, Naim which I tried them on. And the room was smaller than yours.

 

There's a saying, of your amp can drive an ATC, it will be able to drive anything.

Maybe you needed to try the ATC SPA2-150 then. Or Doge 9 monoblocks in 150w mode. 

[Cookies]

3 minutes ago, deanB said:

Maybe you needed to try the ATC SPA2-150 then. Or Doge 9 monoblocks in 150w mode. 

Oh I have monoblocks now that will drive any speaker on the planet, but I've moved on.

 

I think the ATCs are certainly very capable, only when you can drive them properly.

 

Their active floorstanders are all amazing and I can understand the appeal. Just that, they're not for me and I wouldn't recommend their bookshelves unless I know for certain they are being driven properly.

[lemarquis]

The Osborn Eos go very low. In a similar size room I have removed the sub altogether. I've had bookshelves or stand mounts that were quite good in the bass but always needed that extra help. Not the Osborns.

[Guest deanB]

 

47 minutes ago, Standards said:

Oh I have monoblocks now that will drive any speaker on the planet, but I've moved on.

 

I think the ATCs are certainly very capable, only when you can drive them properly.

 

Their active floorstanders are all amazing and I can understand the appeal. Just that, they're not for me and I wouldn't recommend their bookshelves unless I know for certain they are being driven properly.

But did you use those monoblocks on the ATC?

I gave 2 examples of amps I used with the 19's that produced the goods in the bass dept. Hence my positive experience and aforementioned recommendation that the OP would do well to demo these speakers with his amp.

If his Densen amp is a good match then Gary Moore and SRV are going to sound fantastic. I know this from experience too.

 

 

[Cookies]

11 hours ago, deanB said:

 

But did you use those monoblocks on the ATC?

I gave 2 examples of amps I used with the 19's that produced the goods in the bass dept. Hence my positive experience and aforementioned recommendation that the OP would do well to demo these speakers with his amp.

If his Densen amp is a good match then Gary Moore and SRV are going to sound fantastic. I know this from experience too.

 

 

Like I said, I was only interested in ATC bookshelves briefly about 6 years' ago. I got my monoblocks last year. Weighing 70kg with no obvious handles, they are staying where they are (in my home), no point lugging them to my nearest ATC retailer when I'm no longer interested in that end of the scale.

[Irek]

At that particular price brand new my vote goes to Osborne eos and Pmc25.22. Saying that I haven't heard many brands.

[Guest]

@yannakout may have some insights as well.