[rajacat]

  I suspect that the wide baffle Omega Super 3is prototypes offered special for $375 would be wonderful  for desktop speakers. Check this thread out for more info.  


http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=65971.0

-Roy

[OgOgilby]

I've been using the Monsoon Planar 9 for a number of years now.

If my amp goes out, I'm not quite sure what I'll do.

I loved my Monsoon's and my amp DID go out last year. I threw them out thinking that with technology advancements, I should be able to get something better. I haven't found anything as good as the Monsoons yet 

[Jeff B.]

Thanks for the info, Jeff.  Is there a guesstimation on what something like that would cost us consumers who aren't interested in building our own (IE just want to purchase a complete pair)?

I am certainly not the one to say. The driver and crossover cost would be fairly typical of other higher quality two-ways, so it would come down to the cabinet costs as much as anything. What a lot of people don't see is that it takes almost the same amount of work to make a small cabinet as it does to make a larger one. My cabinets I am sure would be fairly expensive. They are solid wood and the front baffle is machined quite a bit to allow the woofer to mount the way it does, which was just something I liked. It would not be hard to adjust the crossover for moving the woofer forward a few millimeters and flush mounting it from the front in a more conventional manner if this is what someone would want. This could also allow the speaker to be made of veneered mdf easier too. If you, or someone else, is actually serious then contact Jim and let him know what you really want. I will give jim the details of this design, and I am sure he would be glad to give you an estimate and build you a pair if you want them. I will say this much, they are among the favorites of any speakers I have ever worked on. I really love how these present vocals and acoustic instruments. Again, contact Jim if you want a pair, we will go from there.

Jeff

[Doublej]

I've been using the Monsoon Planar 9 for a number of years now.

If my amp goes out, I'm not quite sure what I'll do.

I loved my Monsoon's and my amp DID go out last year. I threw them out thinking that with technology advancements, I should be able to get something better. I haven't found anything as good as the Monsoons yet 

Repair the amp? It shouldn't be difficult as I suspect it was made with standard parts. Or you could upgrade to these when they become available:

http://blog.stereophile.com/ces2009/fooled_ya/

[OgOgilby]

I've been using the Monsoon Planar 9 for a number of years now.

If my amp goes out, I'm not quite sure what I'll do.

I loved my Monsoon's and my amp DID go out last year. I threw them out thinking that with technology advancements, I should be able to get something better. I haven't found anything as good as the Monsoons yet 

Repair the amp? It shouldn't be difficult as I suspect it was made with standard parts. Or you could upgrade to these when they become available:

http://blog.stereophile.com/ces2009/fooled_ya/

I can't repair the amp since I threw the Monsoons out. Didn't know there weren't many good desktop alternatives at the time 

Maybe Jim will come to the rescue...

[floresjc]

Yah, there aren't many choice options when it comes to desktop speakers. Fortunately, my HT3's and computer will be in the same area, so my days of dissapointment are coming to a close!

[Cyan]

Why not try with a 5.25'' seas excel? The w15cy http://www.seas.no/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=62&Itemid=86
We all know the quality of the seas excel. Also, the w15cy seems to have very low distortion down to 80hz: http://www.htguide.com/forum/showthread.php4?t=28746 . So one could get very high spl with a sub crossed at 80hz.
About the tweeter, one could go with a mid priced fountek neocd 3.0.
If i may, i'd like to link this speaker: http://www.xtz.se/produkt.php?allmant=true&produkt=30&eng=true
A review said they sound better than b&w 805S, yet they only cost 700 euros (something like 1000 dollars) per pair. And that's very low, considering they mout 6.5'' magnesium seas excel and fountek neocd 3.0. The only drivers cost about 500-550 euros.
To be honest i'd buy these if they sold a quite smaller version, that fits on my pc desk.
But with the w15cy, and even a sealed enclosure, one could get a smaller cabinet, yet a sorta flat frequency response down to 80hz.
The xtz 99.25 uses a 2nd order crossover, i think both for the woofer and the tweeter. Also, both the sealed cabined and the smaller woofer, would make it easier to get a flat frequency response; thus there would be no need for a back panel to change the frequency response of the tweeter, and no need to put the speakers far from the wall, not to get too boomy bass.
Jsalk could also give the possibility to choose for other veneers ^^.
Also, with such good speakers, a t-amp would have too little quality. But with a relatively cheap price one could get a much better (and powerful) class D amplifier: http://store.virtueaudio.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=26
So sensitivity isn't really an issue.

[OgOgilby]

I ended up getting the Focal XS 2.1 speakers. They are pretty good, maybe a bit better than the Monsoons - but they also cost more than the Monsoons did. One plus is the built in iPod dock. Still think some desktop Salks would be much better