# Apogee Centaur vs JBL SVA2100



## UncivilizedAMD (Mar 22, 2009)

Hey all,

Just started jumping into home audio and I'm a newb at it. I have the opportunity to buy a set of JBL SVA2100 for 500 or a set of Apogee Centaur (26" ribbon and 8" woofer) for 400. I will be driving the speakers with a Denon 5700 which is rated at 140 watts per channel. Based on my web research this amount of power should be able to drive the JBL well but it may be difficult to drive the Apogee centaur. Also the ribbons on the Apogee have been known to be problematic and will need replacement. I haven't heard either speaker but have read reviews on the internet that claim both the JBL and Apogee are high quality speakers. 

Which set do you guys think is the better buy?

Thanks


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

What are your goals for sound reproduction?


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## UncivilizedAMD (Mar 22, 2009)

ItalynStylion said:


> What are your goals for sound reproduction?


I'm looking for a nice wide enveloping soundstage that sounds good at most positions in the room. I don't like fiddling with speaker location much so I prefer easy to set up speakers and playing with the time delay. I like dynamic, detailed, and smooth sound that is non fatiguing even at loud volumes. I tend to listen to music at loud volumes so the ability to play loud is critical. I don't plan on changing receivers anytime soon so 140 watts a channel from my Denon is all I've got to play with. I've never listened to ribbons before but love the sound of good horns and prefer them over regular tweeters. I play all types of music including r&b, techno, dance remix, rap, soft rock, instrumental, vocals, and a little classical. With the music I listen to most of the time, midbass is important for the front speakers. I plan on using a subwoofer to take care of sub bass duties 80hz and below.


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## ItalynStylion (May 3, 2008)

When you say that you want something that's not really directional that will yield a large sweet spot, I immediately think of horns. I have a set of HSU research bookshelf speakers and the dispersion on them is unreal.


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