Does anyone have any opinions on this combination? My local dealer has
today sent an e-mail recommending this particular setup. Does this seem
a sensible combination, from both a sonic and economic perspective? The
B&Ws are about £200.

Presumably the 22W, 6 ohm Denon amp will drive the 8 ohm, 88dB spl B&Ws
without a problem? For what it's worth, the B&W specifications state:
"Recommended amplifier power 25W - 100W into 8 ohms on unclipped
programme".

My main concern is that these B&W speakers seem to be marketed as one
part of a multi-speaker surround system. Should this be of any concern?
I only want to listen to music, not DVD movies.

My music taste is rather diverse (Joni Mitchell, Chemical Brothers,
classical, Fugazi...) so I'm not concerned with matching the system to
any particular musical style.

Thanks.

"Anthony Edwards" wrote in message
...
On Fri, 1 Aug 2003 20:23:14 +0300, JMB wrote:
Does anyone have any opinions on this combination? My local dealer
has
today sent an e-mail recommending this particular setup. Does this
seem
a sensible combination, from both a sonic and economic perspective?
The
B&Ws are about £200.

Presumably the 22W, 6 ohm Denon amp will drive the 8 ohm, 88dB spl
B&Ws
without a problem? For what it's worth, the B&W specifications
state:
"Recommended amplifier power 25W - 100W into 8 ohms on unclipped
programme".

If you haven't done so already, you might like to buy a copy of the
August 2003 issue of Hi-Fi News (formerly Hi-Fi News & Record Review)
in which Ken Kessler reviews the D-M31 system. The system is first of
all reviewed using the SC-M51 Mission built loudspeakers which are
supplied with it (although it can be bought without of course) and
then
(perhaps surprisingly) it is reviewed being used driving a variety of
high end exotica, including the Wilson Watt/Puppy combination and a
pair of top line Sonus Fabers.

Ken Kessler is extremely suprised by the Denon system, and expresses
the view that the power amplifier section is of particularly high
quality, driving both the Wilsons and Sonus Fabers exceptionally well
at all but the highest sound pressure levels. That being the case,
and Kessler being (in my opinion at least) a reviewer whose word can
be
trusted, it appears to me that the little Denon system would benefit
from better speakers than your dealer's recommended B&Ws.

Whilst budget is probably a concern, I would recommend considering a
jump again to the Quad 11Ls. These really are a fine loudspeaker, and
they are fairly accurate and neutral in their price range, but
particularly musical and well suited to a wide variety of source
material. They are frequently reckoned to perform as well as many
speakers up to the £1000 price bracket, and seem an ideal partner as a
result for the similarly giant killing Denon D-M31 system.

http://www.quad-hifi.co.uk/lseries.htm

The Quads are apparently in the region of £375, so if the budget will
stretch to it, they may be well worth considering.

My main concern is that these B&W speakers seem to be marketed as
one
part of a multi-speaker surround system. Should this be of any
concern?
I only want to listen to music, not DVD movies.

I own a pair of B&W Matrix 805Vs, the forerunner to the current
Nautilus
805 model. I am a fan of the high end B&W sound, but less so of the
B&W
products at the lower end of the scale, believing that other
competitors
in that marketplace offer better value for money.

--
Anthony Edwards



Many thanks for this comprehensive reply, Anthony. Much appreciated. Of
course, I'm very glad to hear of the Denon receiving such a positive
review, and the Hi-Fi News article certainly sounds most interesting.
However, I am currently living in Finland, and unfortunately I am unable
to purchase the magazine here. I assume Ken Kessler found a marked
improvement when using the high end speakers, compared to the
Missions...

Thanks for recommending the Quads. I will most certainly add those to my
shortlist, although they are at the upper end of my budget.

Thanks again.

On Thu, 7 Aug 2003 05:21:14 +0300, "JMB" wrote:

Just lacks a bit of "oomph" with heavy
percussion.

Easily solved. When I reviewed the original DM30 for Stereophile, I
found that adding a small powered subwoofer to the mono (line) output
did the trick.

Kal

"Kalman Rubinson" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 7 Aug 2003 05:21:14 +0300, "JMB" wrote:

Just lacks a bit of "oomph" with heavy
percussion.

Easily solved. When I reviewed the original DM30 for Stereophile, I
found that adding a small powered subwoofer to the mono (line) output
did the trick.

Kal

Kalman, regarding the lack of "oomph", I was actually commenting on my
old Panasonic mini system, which I imagine didn't make it into the pages
of Stereophile! Apologies if my previous post was unclear. However, your
suggestion to add a small sub to the Denon is duly noted.

I must admit I am quite unfamiliar with subs, as in the past I've always
considered them to be for home cinema use, rather than for listening to
music. My simplistic viewpoint was that Joni Mitchell's acoustic guitar
was unlikely to benefit from 250W of sub-50Hz bass! However, the idea of
being able to control the lowest frequencies independently now seems
rather appealing. Initially I think I'll have to see how the Denon
sounds without a sub, and try to buy the best quality main speakers I
can afford, but I will definitely consider a small sub as a future
upgrade.

So, if I felt it would be helpful to add a small subwoofer at a later
date, could someone recommend a suitable low-cost, good quality product,
in keeping with the spirit of the Denon? My room is approximately 5x4m
in size, if that helps.

Thanks.

On Thu, 7 Aug 2003 16:55:32 +0300, "JMB" wrote:

So, if I felt it would be helpful to add a small subwoofer at a later
date, could someone recommend a suitable low-cost, good quality product,
in keeping with the spirit of the Denon? My room is approximately 5x4m
in size, if that helps.

Dunno. I tried it with the smallest Canton sub at the time because
that was what was available. Considering the system context, I do not
see that the sub need be anything huge unless you are a head-banger.
For most classical, it was not necessary but sometimes helpful.

Kal

On Wed, 06 Aug 2003 22:36:39 -0400, Kalman Rubinson wrote:
On Thu, 7 Aug 2003 05:21:14 +0300, "JMB" wrote:

Just lacks a bit of "oomph" with heavy
percussion.

Easily solved. When I reviewed the original DM30 for Stereophile, I
found that adding a small powered subwoofer to the mono (line) output
did the trick.

Indeed, and in fact in the 1990s Thomas Heinitz made a comfortable
living selling the earlier Denon D70 mini system together with LS3/5a
loudspeakers and a powered subwoofer, which made extremely enjoyable
sounds:

http://www.google.com/groups?selm=37...&output=gplain

Thomas Heinitz passed away in 1997; the following obituary appeared
in The Times:

http://www.thomasheinitz.com/tom.html

--
Anthony Edwards

On Thu, 07 Aug 2003 17:58:42 -0000, Anthony Edwards
wrote:

Indeed, and in fact in the 1990s Thomas Heinitz made a comfortable
living selling the earlier Denon D70 mini system together with LS3/5a
loudspeakers and a powered subwoofer, which made extremely enjoyable
sounds:

http://www.google.com/groups?selm=37...&output=gplain

Thomas Heinitz passed away in 1997; the following obituary appeared
in The Times:

http://www.thomasheinitz.com/tom.html

Indeed, I remember his remarkably conservative ads in HFN way back in
the 60s.

Kal