[Wayner]

I'm in the mood for new speakers and would like to know what makes a good match with my amp. My system is in a smallish room so large speakers or floor standers won't work. I'm looking for a nice bookshelf with a footprint of about 12" X 12" or less. I would even consider Maggies on the wall (paired with a sub-woofer?).

Wayner

[WEEZ]

With the U70?, or the 170EX? Budget?

[avahifi]

I too think you should consider the Ellis 1801.  And have Jim Salk do the cabinets for sure.

Dave Ellis owns an Ultimate 70 amplifier and you can ask him how well it matches with his 1801 speaker.

Regards,

Frank Van Alstine

[Philistine]

I would also put Salk speakers on the audition list.
I heard the HT3's over at Jim's house and was very impressed with the synergy when fired up with an AVA power amp (I believe it was one of the Fet Valve, but not sure which one).

[avahifi]

We had the Ultimate 70 driving a pair of floor standing Salk HT2 speakers at the Denver show last fall with great success, but our little tube amp does not have enough steam for the HT3s.  The HT1 bookshelf Salk models are another great choice, but I do not know their efficiency.  I would like 87-88 dB minimum if possible.

Regards,

Frank Van Alstine

[rustneversleeps]

What does Ellisaudio do? Do they sell spealer kits? If they sell speaker kits, what should we have Jim Salk make the cabinet?

I went to their website but didn't learn anything.

[richidoo]

I heard that Ultimate 70/HT2 demo, it was my preference of all the AVA/Salk combos that I heard.

Thanks for the Ellis link Brian, looks great. I've never heard that tweeter. I appreciate his unsmoothed traces too.
Rich

[Wayner]

Hummmm, walnut or birdseye maple 1801's.  I like SEAS drivers and the Excel line probably has the finest drivers in the world in its line-up. The 1801's are on the top of the list......so far.

Thanks for the input, guys!

[WEEZ]

Wayner, if you go with the 1801's (good choice, btw) make sure you've got some sturdy stands. (they weigh in at approx. 35 lbs. ea.)

WEEZ

[pearsall001]

I have a pair of AAD 2001 monitors mated with Frank's OmegaStar 440EX amp. The sound is literally stunning & magical. If you can get your ears on a pair I guarantee you'll be grinning from ear to ear.
 http://www.questforsound.com/speakers/spkrs_aad2001.htm

[WEEZ]

Also, Wayner...remember that the 1801's are rear ported. If you go that route, make sure you can give' em room to breathe.

How big (small) is the room? And again, what's your budget?

WEEZ

[TomW16]

Just one more vote for Dave Ellis 1801 speakers.  I paired mine with the AVA 350 FetValve and the sound was wonderful.

Good luck!

Tom

[Rob Babcock]

If memory serves Dave Ellis has about a one year wait on a pair of 1801s!  So obviously it's undestandable to want to buy the kit from him and have someone else build the cabs.  Of course, Jim probably has a pretty good backlog, too!

[OldCoder]

I run a pair of Dahlquist DQ 10s with my Ultra 550, and a pair of DQ-1W subwoofers with my 240 EXR.  A modified Dahlquist LP-1 provides the crossover / volume balancing that is required.  In my rather small listening room, I really can't open it up much without bring the house (and the wife) down on my head,
but I do enjoy having the dynamic range that *nothing* ever clips.

These speakers are real power hogs, and they absolutely sing with a good recording with these amps. 
With a T-7 driving the whole thing, I couldn't be any happier.

My last AVA system lasted 18 years, and I'm sure this one will too (with a couple tubes now and then...).

[Zheeeem]

I'm running a pair of VMPS RM30Ms paired w/FV350, T-7 & Ultra DAC.  The footprint might be bigger than what you're after - but they are fantastic in a small (11x15) room.

[warnerwh]

I'm running VMPS RM 40's, actually the planar/ribbons of my speakers with an AVA 550 exr and Mullard tubes.  I know another guy with the same speakers as mine who also uses his 550 to run the mid/treble of his RM 40's too. I believe he is using all AVA gear except for the dac.  The slight bit of tube sound with the extreme cleanliness of the AVA amp makes it a perfect match for planar and/or ribbons.

I've had the 550 in my system for 2 years now and am very pleased with it.  Fortunately if Frank keels over I know I will still be able to get factory service.    It will more than likely be at least another decade before I need to do more than swap  tubes. 

[Wayner]

WEEZ,

Sorry for not getting back to you. The room is about 10 X 15 feet with the usual 8' ceiling. The equipment has to be mounted on the long side. It's a room that was never designed to listen to LPs in but that is what it has become. The wrecking ball may also be in the future (maybe next year), taking out 2 walls and making the room 15 X 25 feet. My main listening room is 28 X 36 and I really enjoy the acoustics in that room, but I can't blend my AVA stuff in that room because there is no room (believe it or not).0

The Ellis model 1801 sound like it will cost $1801 and I guess that  is a little steep, but in the ballpark. I'm running some Paradigm Studio 40v.3 now and they do sound good, I think I could do better. I probably would put the Paradigms on my Outlaw 2150 receiver and if I could swing the Ellis I may go that route. There are some other good suggestions though.

W

[WEEZ]

Wayner, that's good information.

If you plan to stay in the small room, I would suggest you consider a sealed monitor for a couple of reasons:

1) They will usually play better near the front wall, or, if need be, on a shelf. No need to deal with a rear port.
2) They will not 'boom' as much as a ported speaker in a small room (higher bass cut-off, but at a more gradual slope).

The Ellis 1801b can be built sealed and is 2" shorter, and 2" shallower. A couple other options would be Selah's SSR in a sealed design;  any of the NSM monitors; or for a real thouroughbred..the Merlin TSM. All of these designs are tube 'friendly', as the impedence stays above 6.5 ohms. All are easy to drive.

If, on the other hand, you really plan on expanding the room, then the options are far greater. At that time, you could always add a sub to the system; or wait until then (all the while saving for floorstanders) and re-visit the issue.

fwiw,

WEEZ

[MarkM]

Another speaker to consider is the Selah Audio RC3R.  I use them with the Whomp! subwoofer in a room similar to yours with excellent results.     Ultra 550 amp and T8 preamp, SB3 and Lite Audio DAC 60

The RC3R are a tremendous value, with the SS8545, you may find that a sub is not necessary.

http://www.selahaudio.com/id15.html

Mark