General Forum

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Graham1982 — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 06:57:57 GMT

Hi:

I was glad to help and I am sorry it was such an obstacle course getting this all sorted out.

I think the issue with whether this brand is better than another is all due to respective opinion. Without being overly philosophical how do you know that something is good unless you have an evil to compare it to. If you believe in God, you must believe in the devil etc. How do you know a Mercedes is a good car unless you have been in a Robin Reliant - thus to tell that the Robin Reliant is bad you have to compare it against the Mercedes.

The issue here is that most speakers of a particular price bracket will be mostly the same. As you have no B&O speakers to compare them against you will probably not notice the difference until after you have heard the B&O ones. Mourdant Short are now a brand owned by Richer Sounds and are not independent. This is not to say they are good speakers.

I have had Technics and Kenwood equipment before and I have been genrally happy with it. I do not know if anyone would concur here but due to manufacturer's warranties and consumer rights of the mdern age, you cannot really buy a bad piece of electronic equipment from the major retailers.

Don't know if that helps or if it is just waffle.

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 05:36:59 GMT

Just wanted to update you all on the trials and tribulations of Ding Dong's mission to have music played through his new Ouverture ....

I have a Technics digital amp (30 quid from ebay) on its way.

I have also found a shop on Ebay which make up Din to phono cables, for exactly this purpose. (for reference they seem to make all sorts of cables to make B&O kit work with other hardware). - a very good find! If you are interested I will let you know.

I am planning on using my old Sony speakers from the shed for the time being. There are some nice Mordaunt speakers locally, i have my eye on..but not that bothered. Would rather save for the 2500 or the 4000s.

So, once all this arrives (tomorrow) I should be up and running...

Thank you all for your help. I really could not have done it otherwise.

Ding Dong

Question - is Technics any good? there is chance i can get some v cheap floor standing speakers. (when i was younger i seem to rememeber Technics being one of the better brands..) but then i was very naive back then. (and still am, of course)

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 05:28:39 GMT

I do still have my old Sony speakers in the shed, from my previous Sony stereo (10 years odl), so a cheap Sony Amp could be a way to go.

Also, my wife is getting bored of me moaning about lack of speakers, so has offered to purchase some B&O speakers as a Wedding anniversary present. (yes, I too was very surprised) .. and I have my brother in laws contacts in Denmark..(think a trip to Denmark should be planned soon)

If a cheap Amp comes up on Ebay and is local I will get it.. 30-40 quid seems reasonable. I would think the B&O speakers from any source are at least 3-4 weeks away.

I am so sad. I am currently listening to the radio through my Ouverture on some A8 headphones, placed on the table. At full volumne the quality is coming through. They are even in a seperate room and I can make out all the words.

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

ChrDH — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 05:26:07 GMT

A great view in to loca prices in DK is www.dba.dk it is private sellers, so no gaurantee, just type beolab 4000 in the "Søgeord" field. There are 2 shops for used B&O in denmark: www.bbuy.dk in Copenhagen and Radio og TVeksperten in Odense (http://www.radioogtveksperten.dk/). I think a beolab 2500 is about 500£ and the beolab 400 is about 800£.

All in all, a old amp and a decend pair of speakers is a good solution at a price around 100-200£ all in all if you use a little time to find the equipment second hand. if you get an older simple amp, it will probably have an mechanical on/off button and not a electric reley, so it will work just fine.

best regards

Christian

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Graham1982 — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 05:11:42 GMT

Hi:

No problem, business objects might me interesting as I aim to get into business journalism at some point.

Anyway, the simplest and cheapest option is to buy any half decent second hand amp from Ebay - late 90s Sonys etc cost £30 or less sometimes and then just get some modernish speakers of about the same age/quality. You could even get some cheap bookshelf speakers from Argos and thus for a bit less than £100 you have a temp solution.

Remember you also need the phono to composite cable but this will be a few pounds and no more.

Perhaps you could ask Christian about the switch thing he mentions as I think I know what he means but don't want to confuse you (or myself). In my opinion, for a cheap solution I could handle turning the stuff on manually. However, it is all down to personal preference...

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 04:24:58 GMT

Hi Christian,

I have so many potential options.. i think i will save for what I really want. If i get a temp solution, i see that as money wasted towards the really nice 2500 or 4000's.

I see you are in Denmark..Where are you? My brother in law is from Kolding, and has contacts back in Denmark. How does the price compare between Denmark and UK? It seems second hand 2500s are around 400-500 pounds in UK. second hand 4000's are around 695 pounds from shops.

he is going to look into local prices, could you give me an idea please?

Thanks

Ding

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

ChrDH — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 02:44:19 GMT

Well, there are many oppinions on amps, but I would say that you should get one that matches your speakers. If you got speakers that are heavy/difficult to drive, you should get a amp with relatively much power. If not, then get whaeever suits your taste musicwise, get the seller to demonsthate it in a set up that looks like yours.

If you choose to use the same solution as me for turning on the amp, make shure the on/off button on the amp is mechanical and therefore can be left in "on" setting all of the time, othervise it probably worn't turn on.

Old amps are avalible used 2 hand, that would be the way to go if you wornt spent above 300£.

hopes this helps

Christian

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:06:14 GMT

Hi Graham

Do you know if there are any limitations on the type of Amp, i should use please?

I am willing to purchase a newish one, or a good sencond hand. I guess what I need to know if will even the cheapest one make a sound come through on some speakers?

(dont worry, i do have higher standards that just a noise).. just seeing what my options are.

Sorry to keep asking such numptie questions.. if i can ever repay you with knowledge on stuff I know, I will see what i can do (my specialist subjects are arable crop rotation and Business Objects) :-)

Cheers

Ding

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

ChrDH — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 04:49:18 GMT

I use one of these so that my Rega amp turn on when i turn the Ouverture on: http://www.av-cables.dk/stroemkabel/elspareskinne/tv_elspareskinne_med_masterstik_1850_da.html

it turns on the sockets then the power drawn from the triggersocket (ouverture) rises above 10 w. It works perfectly.

br Chr

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 04:37:27 GMT

Avant and BV1 are TV's arent they? I am not there yet... for now just need to get the Ouverture to make some lovely sound..although if there are some cheap options to allow me to tie it all together that would be ideal.. (prob not this month though)

I picked the Ouverture up on Saturday, and it is a lovely piece. Very well looked after..remote all works fine as well.

Thanks for this great advice all.

Cheers

Ding

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Craig — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 12:47:01 GMT

joeyboygolf:

Hi Graham,
Your cheapest option is a Masterlink cable (I can supply this!) and use the Avant or BV1. Takes up less space too!!!

Agree with Graham as this is like my setup. My BS3000 is Masterlinked to my BV3-32, and it works perfectly. There are no external speakers connected to either the Beosound or Beovision.

Craig

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

joeyboygolf — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:31:42 GMT

Hi Graham,

Your cheapest option is a Masterlink cable (I can supply this!) and use the Avant or BV1. Takes up less space too!!!

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Hagen2000 — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:21:28 GMT

Ding_Dong:
Graham and Hagen2000
Thanks for trying to help me out..
So, where does the Beolink Passive fit in, if at all? Can I use one these instead of an Amp? and so connect to passive speakers?
So, essentially, I need either an Amp or a Beolink Passive if I want to connect to Passive speakers. (whilst i save for B&O active speakers)
In regards to cables, this sounds complicated at the moment (i am new to all this), but I assume these are the least of my worries... I can get the hardware and assume cables can be sorted afterwards if required. Or am I incorrect here?
Thanks
Ding

Yes exactly, the BeoLink Passive (or MCL2P - elder model, cheaper) is used to drive passive speakers. It´s easier to connect to a B&O system than a third party amplifier.

Connection is simple: 1 PowerLink cable between speaker and Ouverture and two speaker cables between BeoLink Passive and speakers. You can browse the products section on the main site to find more details about the BeoLink Passive.

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Graham1982 — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:16:55 GMT

HI:

That is correct. You do not need the Beolink Passive. The cable you will need will have phono (red and white) jack connectors at one end and din connectors at the other. Although not common anymore, you can get din/phono connectors probably from Maplin or if not you can get them made up. Last resort for your system at the moment would be B&O direct as you are making an interim lashup.

This is the equipment you will need:

Ouverture (obviously)

Din to phono cable

Hi Fi Amp

Hi Fi Speakers

Re: non B&O speaker options for an Ouverture

Ding_Dong — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:04:25 GMT

Graham and Hagen2000

Thanks for trying to help me out..

So, where does the Beolink Passive fit in, if at all? Can I use one these instead of an Amp? and so connect to passive speakers?

So, essentially, I need either an Amp or a Beolink Passive if I want to connect to Passive speakers. (whilst i save for B&O active speakers)

In regards to cables, this sounds complicated at the moment (i am new to all this), but I assume these are the least of my worries... I can get the hardware and assume cables can be sorted afterwards if required. Or am I incorrect here?

Thanks

Ding