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Best Off-Brand Shelf Speakers?

4

49erinnc

Platinum Member
Is anyone familiar with any off-brand, cheap bookshelf style speakers that sound better than they should for the price? I'd love a pair of Bose but I just can't justify the money for them right now. Figured maybe there were some "diamond in the rough" speaker sets out there. Just need something with some good highs and good 'umph' as well. Brand/model number (and possible link) would be much appreciated. I have an older Sony rack system that I love but it came with some mammoth floor speakers. Just want to toss those in the attic and make my setup a little more compact/discreet.
 
Parents just bought a bose mini system for the kitchen. I'm actually quite impressed with the sound, VERY clear.

I'd just run to bestbuy or CC and try out their displays
 
Originally posted by: 49erinnc
Is anyone familiar with any off-brand, cheap bookshelf style speakers that sound better than they should for the price? I'd love a pair of Bose but I just can't justify the money for them right now. Figured maybe there were some "diamond in the rough" speaker sets out there. Just need something with some good highs and good 'umph' as well. Brand/model number (and possible link) would be much appreciated. I have an older Sony rack system that I love but it came with some mammoth floor speakers. Just want to toss those in the attic and make my setup a little more compact/discreet.
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Koss sounds about the same as Bose.

Sony makes bookshelf speakers that are inexpensive and sound better than Bose.
 
No highs, no lows... Must be BOSE! 🙂

I think you're better off with KOSS too, except if you buy the wave radio, then you have a *decent* system. Otherwise it's all crap.
 
used to be you could get a kit at radio shack for $30 that you could make those tiny crappy bose speakers out of
 
KLH but i dont do shelf, i like their floor standing, my shelf would just rattle, i want the floor to shake.
 
Man, wasn't expecting so much Bose hatred. People really think they're that bad? Guess I've been out of the audio/video world for too long. Always thought Bose was the standard for quality home audio. The speakers I have are great but like I said, they're big floor speakers. I'm wanting to relocate this stereo to another room in the house, eliminate the entertainment center and just tuck away a couple good sounding shelf speakers. I'm not looking to shake the house but I would like some really good sound for a great price.
 
Originally posted by: 49erinnc
Man, wasn't expecting so much Bose hatred. People really think they're that bad?.
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People don't think they're that bad, they KNOW they're that bad.

What's your budget?
 
Originally posted by: 49erinnc
Man, wasn't expecting so much Bose hatred...
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There was thorough test of the topend Bose Lifestyle (MSRP like $3k or so) system a few years back that included a frequency response graph: it did not put out ANY sound in several large ranges, including at least one whole octave! (~120 - ~240 Hz).

Bose is a marketing, not audio, organization...
 
If you asked a week ago, I would have recommended the ELT LRS from av123. They were $250 bookshelves on sale for $100. I snagged a pair. From what I hear, Onix has very good performance at pretty much every price range.

How much do you want to spend? I imagine going used will help you a lot as well.
 
Originally posted by: asm0deus
KLH but i dont do shelf, i like their floor standing, my shelf would just rattle, i want the floor to shake.
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KLH is very inexpnesive, but they really don't sound good IMO.

BIC america RTR speakers are usually priced pretty decently. I have a pair of the RTR1530s and they sound good. (Have Sony 2ways in the back, and a JBL 3way EC 35 in the center)

If you can afford more, go JBL, it's worth it.
 
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