I went to Best Buy this weekend and, pretty much on a whim, picked up a pair of the $99.99 Pioneer SP-BS21-LR speakers designed by Andrew Jones, who also authored the $50K TAD speakers. Definitely a talented guy. I must say these little speakers are pretty remarkable.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speakers/Home+Theater+Speakers/SP-BS21-LR
I listen to classical music, and truth of timber is priority one to me. These little things do a surprisingly creditable job of capturing the sound of unamplified instruments. Violins sound like they are made out of wood, not aluminum, as many higher-priced speakers would have you believe. They also throw a very good soundstage.
Bass from the little 4-inchers is surprisingly good, too. I have the advantage of being able to position small speakers in a 50 Hz mode, which often augments bass without blowing it out of proportion. These speakers, in that position, get most of what I need, especially since I listen mainly to chamber music. But even orchestral basses are believable to a surprising degree. The double-bass and tympani in Stravinsky's "L'Historie du Soldat" are just about all there.
In fact, my only serious criticisms are a slightly sandpapery quality to high pitches of violins and trumpets as well as a definite hooty or cupped-hands coloration to the lower midrange. And they start to distort a bit at louder volumes than I normally listen to.
Oh, and at Best Buy this weekend, I got them for $79! A cool 20 percent off. Probably the best $79 I've ever spent on audio gear. I briefly owned the little Insignias that garnered so much attention a couple of years ago. I remember them sounding a bit artificial on natural, unamplified instruments. Not so with the Pioneers. Well done, Mr. Jones. I'd certainly recommend at least an audition of the Pioneers for anyone thinking of spending up to $400 or maybe even $500 on new speakers.
No, I am NOT claiming these will blow the doors off $1K speakers, but they are damn fine boxes and would be a good deal at three-to-five times the price (IMO).
Frame of reference: Speakers I own or have owned: Harbeth Compact 7-ES3, Magnepan 2.5/R, Spendor SP-3/1P, B&W 805 Matrix, PSB Stratus Mini, NHT SuperTwo and a few others.
-Bob
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Home/Speakers/Home+Theater+Speakers/SP-BS21-LR
I listen to classical music, and truth of timber is priority one to me. These little things do a surprisingly creditable job of capturing the sound of unamplified instruments. Violins sound like they are made out of wood, not aluminum, as many higher-priced speakers would have you believe. They also throw a very good soundstage.
Bass from the little 4-inchers is surprisingly good, too. I have the advantage of being able to position small speakers in a 50 Hz mode, which often augments bass without blowing it out of proportion. These speakers, in that position, get most of what I need, especially since I listen mainly to chamber music. But even orchestral basses are believable to a surprising degree. The double-bass and tympani in Stravinsky's "L'Historie du Soldat" are just about all there.
In fact, my only serious criticisms are a slightly sandpapery quality to high pitches of violins and trumpets as well as a definite hooty or cupped-hands coloration to the lower midrange. And they start to distort a bit at louder volumes than I normally listen to.
Oh, and at Best Buy this weekend, I got them for $79! A cool 20 percent off. Probably the best $79 I've ever spent on audio gear. I briefly owned the little Insignias that garnered so much attention a couple of years ago. I remember them sounding a bit artificial on natural, unamplified instruments. Not so with the Pioneers. Well done, Mr. Jones. I'd certainly recommend at least an audition of the Pioneers for anyone thinking of spending up to $400 or maybe even $500 on new speakers.
No, I am NOT claiming these will blow the doors off $1K speakers, but they are damn fine boxes and would be a good deal at three-to-five times the price (IMO).
Frame of reference: Speakers I own or have owned: Harbeth Compact 7-ES3, Magnepan 2.5/R, Spendor SP-3/1P, B&W 805 Matrix, PSB Stratus Mini, NHT SuperTwo and a few others.
-Bob
