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Tower speakers sub-$400 budget

post #1 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:24am
Thread Starter 
Hi, relatively new to posting here on avs, have read a lot, but would like some direct feedback.
I am on a 400+ shipping budget for some tower speakers and am having trouble deciding.

At the moment, my current thoughts are

1. Infinity primus 363

2. Polk 65t

3. Jbl towers (forgot the model number, but about 200 each)

I have a h/k avr1700 and an onkyo 10"sub, and surround system (which I plan to replace the 2front surround and center )

I have no intention of replacing the amp.

Another thought, jbl and infinity are h/k branches, should I stick to one of those for that reason alone?
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/22/13 at 10:10am
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post #2 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:34am
Since you are having trouble deciding - I will add one more
Boston A360
http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/BOSA360WHA/BOSTON-ACOUSTICS-A360-3-Way-Dual-6.5in-Tower-Speaker-Each-White/1.html
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post #3 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:38am
IMO the Boston A360 is the best deal at $400pr
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post #4 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:41am
Thread Starter 
Ugh,another choice, I was really leaning towards the infinity 's, except their upper range is only 20khz....Oh and what about matching center? I was going to get down the road... Oh and white isn't an option mad.gif
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/22/13 at 9:48am
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post #5 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetocdnerd View Post

Ugh,another choice, I was really leaning towards the infinity 's, except their upper range is only 20khz....Oh and what about matching center? I was going to get down the road...

Your ears can't hear past 20khz, so as long as the frequency range goes to that, you are good. Anything beyond that is useless to you.
I vote for the JBLs or the Bostons. I have never heard any of Boston's home theater stuff, but their car audio speakers are great. Seems like the link posted by zieglj01 is for white speakers, and they only seem to have those in white on that website. I have JBL towers in my main TV room and I love them as a lower budget tower set. They have a very nice sound for what you pay for. As for a matching center, if you ever plan on going to a full surround sound setup in the future while still using these towers in the setup, buy a matching center now. Matching the L/C/R speakers is very important.

Newegg has these JBLs on sale right now for $139 each:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882665155

Or you could bump your budget up by $60 and get these JBLs (two 6.5" drivers as opposed to one):
http://www.amazon.com/JBL-Studio-190-Floorstanding-Loudspeaker/dp/B00413OWMY/ref=sr_1_10?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1358877623&sr=1-10
Edited by neuspeed94 - 1/22/13 at 10:07am
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post #6 of 90
1/22/13 at 10:00am
Thread Starter 
I already have a decent sub, and I will use my current front speakers as rear surrounds, as they put great highs and upper mid, but lacking in the lower midrange,

. And I have heard that adding above 20khz sound often enriches sound quality.

Oh and my original onkyo speakers are the ht690, and as cheap as they were, they really do sound amazing, except lacking in the lower midrange, as they only have 3 1/2" drivers
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/22/13 at 10:44am
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post #7 of 90
1/22/13 at 2:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetocdnerd View Post

And I have heard that adding above 20khz sound often enriches sound quality.

Not directly; but if harmonics throw a tweeter into breakup that can be a problem that extends to the audible range (supposedly).

I run P360s on one of my setups and find them a far better speaker than I would expect for $250/pr (hunt a sale); though I've not heard all the current competitors.
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post #8 of 90
1/22/13 at 3:18pm
Thread Starter 
So a couple of ideas, what is the likelihood of these speakers being all at a fry's or best buy? Would like to audition then side by side.... and found the infinity primus on Craigslist for 300...so I am leaning towards that direction, but any input would be helpful
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post #9 of 90
1/22/13 at 3:39pm
Fry's has the Primus. When Fry's has the Primus on sale, it's about $240. Not sure about the other brands.
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post #10 of 90
1/22/13 at 4:57pm
Thread Starter 
Right now, they are on extra expensive sale for 330 each, but I will keep an eye our...
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post #11 of 90
1/22/13 at 5:38pm
Wow. Yea. That's not good. The "normal" price was $199/ea last time I looked.
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post #12 of 90
1/22/13 at 5:44pm
Thread Starter 
Yea, best buy has the same price, but free shipping, and I have a gift card....
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post #13 of 90
1/22/13 at 5:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jay1 View Post

IMO the Boston A360 is the best deal at $400pr
+1
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post #14 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:20pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by smasher50 View Post

+1

Still no white eek.gif and they only come in white as far as i can find....

And the JBL's i was referring to were the Studio 190's

So i have narrowed it to between the 2, not getting the Boston Acoustics because they are white and dont meet the GF approval rating. They have to be black or dark cherry.

1. Infinity Primus p363
2. JBL Studio 190

And seriously leaning toward the P363.... but still very little feedback from fellow forum'ers
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post #15 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:26pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetocdnerd View Post

Still no white eek.gif and they only come in white as far as i can find....

And the JBL's i was referring to were the Studio 190's

So i have narrowed it to between the 2, not getting the Boston Acoustics because they are white and dont meet the GF approval rating. They have to be black or dark cherry.

1. Infinity Primus p363
2. JBL Studio 190

And seriously leaning toward the P363.... but still very little feedback from fellow forum'ers

Sure you can get them in black, they just cost $800pr, which is why the white ones are such a steal wink.gif

http://www.crutchfield.com/p_065A360B/Boston-Acoustics-A-360.html?tp=185&kw=&org=pla&nw=g&crv=6676469785

The 363 is a very well designed speaker (optimized xover design), it is cheaply made though which is why it can be had for dirt cheap on occasion.
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post #16 of 90
1/22/13 at 9:29pm
Thread Starter 
I guess I must be unclear to this thread.

1. Must be black or cherry

2. Must be at or under $400 (plus shipping)

please stop wasting my time suggesting white speakers, then offering the black versions for 2x my budget.

Some useful feedback would be greatly appreciated

So does anyone have anything to say about the Quality of sound between the two(speakers)? any really stand out?
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/22/13 at 9:34pm
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post #17 of 90
1/22/13 at 10:01pm
Nice attitude here. But here you go. The Polk Monitor 65T + 15C.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290271
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290273

<$400
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post #18 of 90
1/22/13 at 10:20pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Yosh70 View Post

Maybe just go with what your G/F suggests since she's paying the bill.

Then you won't be wasting the forum's time.rolleyes.gif

Thanks for staying on topic, your input is extremely helpful. Get a life and troll other threads. Sorry that you don't have anyone else in your life that you don't get to share your nice things with and whose opinion you care about.

So I took the Polk off my list off of desirable ones, as o heard them at my neighbor's house and wasn't too excited
..
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/22/13 at 11:24pm
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post #19 of 90
1/22/13 at 10:47pm
Thread Starter 
I am really looking for opinions or facts that can differentiate on those two sets of speakers, or a non-polk, black or dark cherry set
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post #20 of 90
1/22/13 at 10:51pm
Dude, people are just trying to help, stop being so hostile.

Between the JBL and and Infinity, going off purely specs, I would take the JBL.
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post #21 of 90
1/22/13 at 11:02pm
Thread Starter 
No hostility here, sorry if my blatant honesty offended, just really trying to stay on topic without the help of people who are having to think that I don't earn what I'm trying to do research on. So keep your Canadian 2c out, or American 1c. So the Canadian trolling is not helpful or useful.

In my current setup, I think the jbl are a better set, but seems like they would be better for an amp that can support bi-amping
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post #22 of 90
1/22/13 at 11:46pm
Thread Starter 
Also looking at the center channel the Infinity seems like it is a better speaker, at least the Primus PC351 vs the JBL studio 120C, which will be just as important soon...
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post #23 of 90
1/23/13 at 1:35am
Thread Starter 
Also what about the JBL ES80? they look to be almost the same as the infinitiy's again....very very similar, except the JBL have an UHF driver (not sure if that matters)

Would like some feedback on the ES80 vs the Infinity 363....both same price on amazon.

Infinity:
http://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Primus-P363-Three-way-Floorstanding/dp/B0046A8R3M/ref=pd_bxgy_e_text_y

and JBL es80
http://www.amazon.com/JBL-ES80BK-3-Way-Floorstanding-Speaker/dp/B00166ZFXO/ref=sr_1_12?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1358932907&sr=1-12&keywords=floorstanding+speakers

And googling this, i find that there is a thread already on that topic, here on AVS...and will go do an audition on thursday or friday and check out what i can.
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/23/13 at 1:41am
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post #24 of 90
1/23/13 at 9:46am
Hands down I would run for Infinities before the JBL. I would even get the Polk's before the JBL's

Never buy a speaker based on spec cause 9 out of 10 companys lie.

I have had great experience with Infinity and Polk home speakers. Only JBL speakers I thought were worth the cost were their professional DJ speakers
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post #25 of 90
1/23/13 at 10:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by crazyrob425 View Post

Hands down I would run for Infinities before the JBL. I would even get the Polk's before the JBL's

Never buy a speaker based on spec cause 9 out of 10 companys lie.

I have had great experience with Infinity and Polk home speakers. Only JBL speakers I thought were worth the cost were their professional DJ speakers

My father-in-law has Polks, I have JBLs. I prefer the JBLs over the Polks. The JBLS have a more detailed, full and dynamic sound than the Polks.
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post #26 of 90
1/23/13 at 1:21pm
Go for the Infinity speakers. The JBL Studios don't get interesting until you get to the higher end of that series.
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post #27 of 90
1/23/13 at 1:34pm
Thread Starter 
Yea, that's why I have taken Polk off my list, but really the Infinty over JBL? I already have a sub to make up for the low end, if that's what the infinity 's are lacking, on really looking for highs and mid support (especially the lower midrange, around 120 Hz )
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/24/13 at 12:58am
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post #28 of 90
1/23/13 at 3:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by budgetocdnerd View Post

I already have a decent sub
In that case you'd do better to spend the same amount on bookshelves, since the only benefit to towers is their added lows, and you won't be using those added lows.
Quote:
And I have heard that adding above 20khz sound often enriches sound quality.
Not really. Some oddiofools make that claim, but they probably think they can see in the ultraviolet too. Some people can hear up to roughly 20kHz, but that ability disappears right about the age when they're able to vote.
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post #29 of 90
1/23/13 at 3:13pm
Thread Starter 
Would like the towers for music though...and my crossover for my sub is between 80-100hz, , so some of the upper bass/lower midrange would be great
Edited by budgetocdnerd - 1/23/13 at 7:56pm
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post #30 of 90
1/23/13 at 3:25pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by shadyJ View Post

Go for the Infinity speakers. The JBL Studios don't get interesting until you get to the higher end of that series.

What about the es80?
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