Almost got floored by Cambridge S30 - Page 12

I just ordered a pair (blk noir) from crutchfield about 3 weeks ago and the faceplate is black.

Btw.... I absolutely LOVE them. I have them paired with a Denon 1613 and totally screwed up the Audyssey programming and they still sound amazing. Can't wait to really tune them in proper when I get back in town.

I just ordered a pair (blk noir) from crutchfield about 3 weeks ago and the faceplate is black.

Btw.... I absolutely LOVE them. I have them paired with a Denon 1613 and totally screwed up the Audyssey programming and they still sound amazing. Can't wait to really tune them in proper when I get back in town.

cool, I would rather have the black. I guess we shall see how they sound first before I get caught up in looks.

I didn't read the entire thread but are these possibly just Mordaunt Short's design of the Carnival series just repackaged as Cambridge Audio?
They are both owned by the same company. And these speakers look exactly like the Mordaunt Short Carnival speakers just a different cabinet.

Glad to see you're still enjoying your S30s Jim!

While I did not compare the same speakers in my home, when I was looking for desktop speakers I did listen to the Cambridge Audio S30 at Crutchfield. Taking the different rooms into account, these did not sound the same, and I'm not sure which Carnival's you're looking at but they look nothing like my Mordaunt-Short Carnival 2. Lacking an audiophile vocabulary I can only describe the S30 as being more forward than the Carnivals, which still sit on my desk (currently playing Booker T. & the MG's Green Onions )

Cheers.

How much of a drop-off is there between the S30 and the S20? Speakers need to go in a built-in wall unit with a space of 24x22x17 (HWD), and I'm worried about the rear porting and resultant bass bloom. Not as many choices these days w/a front port.

Sealed choices seems to be NHTs, but at 440/pr for the Absolute Zeros, I'm now in the Focal 700 series / KEF price range. :/

I'm not looking for a high output system - just something musical at moderate listening levels for my den which can also be part of a 5.1 rig. I'll be using my trusty Energy S10.3 sub and an as-yet-to-be-purchased Denon AVR-2113 (or an Onkyo 709).

Oh, and the cheaper the better - the less I spend upstairs, the more I'll have to spend downstairs on the big system in the big room with the big tv, etc...

A pair of modded s30's is available on audiogon.

I am about to pull the trigger on a pair of S30's and pair them with a an S50 center channel. I plan to set them on a 10" mantle that will not leave much room between the back of the speaker and the wall. Do you guys think this will pose a significant performance problem? ....so much so that I should be looking at other options with less depth (i.e. S20's)?

I am in the process of setting up my first home theater room and after reading this thread I feel like these are probably the best speakers for the price out there. I know a lot more goes into the final sound in a room other than just the speakers, such as the room itself, but if I were trying to put together a set of speakers that would sound good at a decent price, what would be the best configuration? I plan on buying a Denon AVR-2313CI this week, so should I buy a set of the s30s and something like an s50 for the front mid and then a completely different speaker for the rest? Would 2x sets of s30s and an s50 do a good job? I have absolutely no experience with audio.. the only thing I've ever bought was a logitech surround system in a box

tk4387 yes that setup would be good. You could just get this 5.1 setup of morduant short speakers.. they are based on the s30. This is a great deal http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/MORDCARNPACK/MORDAUNT-SHORT-Carnival-Home-Theater-Speaker-Package/1.html

I have a pair of S30's in my bedroom being driven by this very cheap but very capable little amp - an AudioSource AMP100, less than $100. ..And use a Squeezebox Touch as the source. ..An awesome little system!!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882180022
Edited by syd123 - 3/7/13 at 4:50am

cool! I've been looking for something like that amp for a friend^

Whereas the Carnival 2 does seem to have been derived from the S30, that^ package doesn't include any Carnival 2 speakers. To size up that package, I'd recommend looking for specific reviews of the speakers it contains.
Edited by Resonate - 3/7/13 at 7:44am

I'd estimate that is not a good idea, although it will still probably sound fine if you are not fussy. That would leave 3/4" behind the speakers if you had the front flush with the front of mantle. Also what height is mantle? If high you may want those speakers aimed downward toward listening position.

Would you think that the Mordaunt Short Carnival 2's would be a better option? They appear to be very simalar speakers with front ports instead of rear.

Where can these be found IN BLACK? I know AC4L has then in the wood finish, but haven't seen black anywhere in a while.
Edited by drumsky - 3/7/13 at 11:14am

supposed to be in stock at crutchfield tomorrow. I have them on backorder.

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_779S30N/Cambridge-Audio-S30-Noir.html

I had them on backorder too. I contacted them today and they said they have no idea when they are going to get them in stock. I had them cancel my order and ordered them through AVHIFI (the only other site I could find them in stock in black). If you decide to follow suit, they are still 219.99 with free shipping and you can use the following discount code to save 10% your total, making them even cheaper than crutchfield. --> Save 10% on your next order. Use coupon code FDXHD147 at checkout.

Although, I just realized I can't find any information saying that AVHIFI is an authorized dealer for cambridge audio.. so I don't know if I should have bought from them or not.

I ordered mine about 10 days ago from audioadvisor.com

Their website said they were in stock when I ordered it. A couple days later I got an email saying they were out of stock but were expecting some on the 8th.

I didn't hear anything from them so I called today. The lady who answered the phone saw that it was past due and was going to call the inventory/warehouse person and get back with me. She never did.



If they do not get shipped within a day or two, I will probably order something else. (it is just as well because I have already been up selling myself anyway)

I can't find the S30's in stock anywhere. Any suggestions?

Sweet deal on the coupon code! My s30s will actually be delivered today. It showed backorder the entire time on crutch fields website, but they did ship on the 8th.

Update: I was emailed by AVHIFI this morning and their s30's and s50's are also on backorder until "the end of march". He said its a national backorder. They are an authorized seller of cambridge audio products though, so that's a good thing. You got lucky, because I left my crutchfield order active until yesterday and when I finally decided to cancel it I had spoken to two different reps who both said they were still on backorder and the ETA was unknown.. I'm envious of you! So yeah: if anyone is wanting s30s, AVHIFI should have them by the end of the month and you can get 10% off and they ARE an authorized retailer. Also: for what it's worth, they are very helpful. The guy even looked at an S50 I ordered last week through AVHIFI's amazon.com store and applied the 10% discount back on it as well for me.

just got them set up. fit and finish is good, but not great. laminate has some rough edges on the back side, and where it meets the faceplate. phase plugs are not perfectly centered inside the woofer cones. the black finish is almost dark brown/purple. just nit picks though, overall they are nice looking speakers. they sound great, and seem very efficient. I am powering them with a small indeed ta2021s t amp, and they are surprising loud, with an incredible amount of midbass for their size and for what power they are seeing. more bass than the pioneer bs21 or 22s I would say so far. seem to image well, sound quality is good, we shall see if they will stay or if they are worth keeping over the pioneers.
Edited by veedo - 3/12/13 at 12:13pm

I ordered a pair of these last Wednesday. They were replacing an old set of Onkyo D-N3XAs (which were given to me, and replaced these tin cans).

I must say...these S30s almost make my Outlaw M8 subwoofer unnecessary. They produce an amazing amount of bass down to around 55hz (I have the sub's low pass set to 58ish). I haven't even let them break in yet, and they are absolutely outstanding; such clarity, even on a mediocre Audiosource 100 amp.

I did have to eq the bass down a smidge due to placement.
Old pic with Onkyos (no working camera atm)...same setup with the S30s though.

I'm looking for some speaker stands for these before I buy them. I don't really have a full knowledge of how those bookshelf speaker stands from budget companies like Sanus work; how exactly is the speaker mounted on the stand when the top plate is only 6"x6" in some cases? I read that the S30 doesn't have any pre-drilled holes for mounting.

Use blue tack or similar to hold em on the stands. They won't go anywhere.
They stay on them without tack fine also. Mine have been on the 28" sanus stand (link below) since I bought them (6mo maybe??) and they have not shifted. That reminds me I need to tack em in place.
http://www.amazon.com/Sanus-Systems-EF-28B-Foundations-Bookshelf/dp/B00009WE10/

As far as running speaker wire through those stands, do you think it would be possible to run two 14 or 16 gauge speaker wires through the hole in the stand, so I could have banana plugs from my surround receiver and stereo receiver?