Which Linn floorstanders, budget £3-500

[Fermit]

After hearing some Linns with Tag Mclaren kit at Kevin Greens (the Tag servicing guy) I have realised that my current Mission 752 Freedoms are out of their depth at the performance point of my other kit.

To be used with a Tag 700/7R, an AV32R (which powers the rears) and a CD32R. On ebay I'm seeing much stuff within budget, but am not sure what will give the best sound? I do listen to a fair bit of dance music (mainly house) and Rock music, and I'd like something with a good deep base. The Kef sub I have can then be retired for all barr movies, or maybe even completely.

The 700:7R is a 7channel x 100watt amp. I note that many of the Linns have a tri-amp wiring set up. With the rears being powered by the AV32R this leaves only the centre needing to be powered by an independent amp. Could I accordingly use the remaining 6 channels for these front speakers?

I can't really be stretching the budget any further either.

Any pointers gratefully welcomed!

[P700DEE]

My 2c I would never buy Linn speakers as I think there are better out there for the money either new or second hand. Triamping , not at that budget! Using a suround sound amp for triamping , I think no, don't they need a 7.2 signal and send different sound to the amp they are not designed for Triamping. Hopefully someone will have a suggestion for you at your £3-500 budget second hand. Your Tag amp will be fine for the two front channels stereo, assume you have other speakers for the rear?

[JimbobVFR]

I thought the AV32R was a preamp,. How is it powering the rears?

[Fermit]

JimbobVFR said:

I thought the AV32R was a preamp,. How is it powering the rears?

Just checked, and you are correct. For some reason I thought it was?

[Fermit]

P700DEE said:

My 2c I would never buy Linn speakers as I think there are better out there for the money either new or second hand. Triamping , not at that budget! Using a suround sound amp for triamping , I think no, don't they need a 7.2 signal and send different sound to the amp they are not designed for Triamping. Hopefully someone will have a suggestion for you at your £3-500 budget second hand. Your Tag amp will be fine for the two front channels stereo, assume you have other speakers for the rear?

RE rears, yes, some Kefs to the rear and centre. So considering the (second hand) price point, any other suggestions if Linn aren't your bag? One thing, the wife is very aesthetics driven, I can just about get away with the 752's! I'd also want ideally an oak type finish, or possibly Rosewood.

[NDA]

I have just retired a pair of mint cherrywood Ruark Prologue II speakers in favour of some KEF LS60's.

Not sure where you live, but you'd be welcome to try out the Ruarks in your set up - I think they sound as good, if not a smidge better, than the new KEF's!

I am in Hampshire, near Surrey/Berkshire borders.

[Fermit]

NDA said:

I have just retired a pair of mint cherrywood Ruark Prologue II speakers in favour of some KEF LS60's.

Not sure where you live, but you'd be welcome to try out the Ruarks in your set up - I think they sound as good, if not a smidge better, than the new KEF's!

I am in Hampshire, near Surrey/Berkshire borders.

Hi NDA. Apologies, only just seen this. I'm sure they are supurb, but aren't they £5000 speakers?

[Lucid_AV]

You might be thinking of some other Ruarks.

I used the original Ruark Prologues at a Hi-Fi and AV show. The company made a matching centre (Dialogue) and some stand mount speakers (Epilogues) and a sub (Logrhythm) to make a complete 5.1 system. It was very musical. Way better than the AV amp it was partnered with. Lovely gear

[Fermit]

Lucid_AV said:

You might be thinking of some other Ruarks.

I used the original Ruark Prologues at a Hi-Fi and AV show. The company made a matching centre (Dialogue) and some stand mount speakers (Epilogues) and a sub (Logrhythm) to make a complete 5.1 system. It was very musical. Way better than the AV amp it was partnered with. Lovely gear

Ah, I read the post too quickly. I was interpreting that the Kef's were the suggestion!

[NDA]

Fermit said:

Ah, I read the post too quickly. I was interpreting that the Kef's were the suggestion!

I wouldn't give away the new KEF's

I can't lift them for a start!

[Fermit]

NDA said:

I wouldn't give away the new KEF's

I can't lift them for a start!

Don't blame you! Back to your original post. Firstly, we're at North Notts, so a listen to them isn't really viable, but thank you anyway. Having a look at reviews of them, some say they are a little light on the base. What are you thoughts on this?

[NDA]

Fermit said:

Don't blame you! Back to your original post. Firstly, we're at North Notts, so a listen to them isn't really viable, but thank you anyway. Having a look at reviews of them, some say they are a little light on the base. What are you thoughts on this?

I like quite a tight/controlled bass and the Ruark's deliver that. They don't feel light to me.

I'm not necessarily recommending you get a pair - just that I had a pair of floor standers that you could have tried if you lived within 50 miles or so. If you fancied the Ruark's, I guess you might find a pair by shopping around - they're not big money, maybe £200?

I've always really liked them and have a reasonably good ear. Mine were fed by Class A mono blocks, that helps too.

[Lucid_AV]

Fermit said:

Don't blame you! Back to your original post. Firstly, we're at North Notts, so a listen to them isn't really viable, but thank you anyway. Having a look at reviews of them, some say they are a little light on the base. What are you thoughts on this?

Bass can be deceptive. You can have deep bass with no overhang, but it costs a bloody fortune. It also depends a lot on the room.

I could put those Ruarks up against a set of Monitor Audio Bronze 5 floorstanders, and your initial impression would be that the MAs have more bass. They sound like they do, but it's not as clean and tight. It booms. Not outrageously so, but there's a pronounced thickness in the bass that people either love or hate, and that's coming from someone who likes the Monitor Audios. But I've also had Rega floorstanders. Now if you want to talk about bass-lite, but my God, they're fast.

With a budget of £300-£500you could have those Ruarks and add a really good sub. Something like a new BK Gemini II or (much better but still the same 1ft cube) a used BK XLS200. These have a 10" bass driver and will connect to the same speaker output on the amp as a non-parasitic load. That means the sub draws no power from the amp.

A 10" sub like the XLS will get you lower bass than spending £5K on traditional floorstanders, and it'll be tighter in the room and far far easier to accommodate than huge floorstanders that need 2ft from the rear wall and 3ft from the side wall before the bass starts to work correctly. Better still, the bass level is adjustable. You want drum & bass, jungle, electro, rock? The kick up the level control up a bit. You want jazz, choral, chamber music; then drop the level down. Late night listening where you don't want the speakers on too loud but you still want the bottom end - no problem. Tweak the setting. It's very versatile.

[Timothy Bucktu]

I have some Monitor Audio Bronze floor standars, and also found the bass a bit boomy. I 'fixed' it by rolling up socks and putting one in each reflex hole

[Fermit]

Lucid_AV said:

Fermit said:

Don't blame you! Back to your original post. Firstly, we're at North Notts, so a listen to them isn't really viable, but thank you anyway. Having a look at reviews of them, some say they are a little light on the base. What are you thoughts on this?

Bass can be deceptive. You can have deep bass with no overhang, but it costs a bloody fortune. It also depends a lot on the room.

I could put those Ruarks up against a set of Monitor Audio Bronze 5 floorstanders, and your initial impression would be that the MAs have more bass. They sound like they do, but it's not as clean and tight. It booms. Not outrageously so, but there's a pronounced thickness in the bass that people either love or hate, and that's coming from someone who likes the Monitor Audios. But I've also had Rega floorstanders. Now if you want to talk about bass-lite, but my God, they're fast.

With a budget of £300-£500you could have those Ruarks and add a really good sub. Something like a new BK Gemini II or (much better but still the same 1ft cube) a used BK XLS200. These have a 10" bass driver and will connect to the same speaker output on the amp as a non-parasitic load. That means the sub draws no power from the amp.

A 10" sub like the XLS will get you lower bass than spending £5K on traditional floorstanders, and it'll be tighter in the room and far far easier to accommodate than huge floorstanders that need 2ft from the rear wall and 3ft from the side wall before the bass starts to work correctly. Better still, the bass level is adjustable. You want drum & bass, jungle, electro, rock? The kick up the level control up a bit. You want jazz, choral, chamber music; then drop the level down. Late night listening where you don't want the speakers on too loud but you still want the bottom end - no problem. Tweak the setting. It's very versatile.

Good thoughts. I suppose what I may do is draw up a shortlist of speakers, and set up a saved search on ebay. When/if any show up locally enough I could ask the seller for a listen? The Ruarks will be on said list. As mentioned in my OP, I'm looking to upgrade the front speakers. The 752F's are a great speaker, cost me £800 new in the late 90's, and were a multiple award winner at the time. What I need to ensure is that I'm making a significant jump up in sound performance, hence thinking about some Linns. I loved their sound when I heard the pair I did, and recall they were a much dearer speaker than mine new.

RE the sub, mine is a Kef Q400b (9") would this cut the grade?

[Lucid_AV]

Fermit said:

Good thoughts. I suppose what I may do is draw up a shortlist of speakers, and set up a saved search on ebay. When/if any show up locally enough I could ask the seller for a listen? The Ruarks will be on said list. As mentioned in my OP, I'm looking to upgrade the front speakers. The 752F's are a great speaker, cost me £800 new in the late 90's, and were a multiple award winner at the time. What I need to ensure is that I'm making a significant jump up in sound performance, hence thinking about some Linns. I loved their sound when I heard the pair I did, and recall they were a much dearer speaker than mine new.

RE the sub, mine is a Kef Q400b (9") would this cut the grade?

Linn Keilidhs probably have the closest sound signature to your Mission 752Fs. Warm and non-fatiguing despite the brighter top end. But they weren't hugely expensive floorstanders from what I recall. There's probably a bit more control over the bass, but maybe not such as expressive a midrange.

Keltiks and Kabers are more money but have quite different sonic signatures. What I'd be wary of is expecting standard Linn speakers to sound anything like those tweaked and pampered versions with all the expensive add-ons and stacks of amplification. That's one of Linn's little marketing tricks; "Oh, you bought our speakers. That's just great. Now you need to have a listen to the plinths and the tri-amping and the active cards and .... and ..."

Subs: I want to like KEF subs. I really do. Their speakers are excellent even if they sound quite different in the bass than most other stuff around the same price. I so want a KEF sub that isn't two grand to be impressive. The brand has been around forever. If anyone knows about building speakers it's KEF. Their subs don't suck, but they don't fly either. Not like some other brands for similar money.

The Q400b is a good match with bookshelf speakers in a smallish room. It goes low enough to create the impression of modest floorstanders. The power is enough to be heard as long as the room size doesn't overwhelm it. Also, it's a little unfair to compare the KEF against the BK XLS200. The main reason is that BK sells direct to the public. That means there's no 30-40% dealer margin to carry. It also means that BK can build a sub with a better driver and more potent amp, and on top of that add a really clever crossover system, and all at a price that's about 60% of traditional subs.

The BK will go lower and louder than your KEF. The 400b is already 6dB down at 27Hz, The BK is still going strong. It digs deeper and hits harder. The limits to bass extension start to be your room size.

I'd cross the sub bridge once you've sorted out the main speakers. The 752F won't be an easy act to follow. They do a lot of stuff right. Finding something that impresses long term rather than just on a quick hit listen could end up being a bit of a journey of discovery.