Jazz Speaker /System Suggestions?

I have several record players, the prize one being one of those heavy weighted technics that the DJs love. I like record players, and I have a large record collection, but I'm not particularly educated when it comes to technical audio information.

I am fairly knowledgeable when it comes to record collecting, and I used to trade records a lot.

A wee bit more ... it's strange for me to think that a set of speakers, for example, makes a difference for something or other. In the early days, up until the explosion of pop music and cheap recordings in the late 60'd, the best recordings were of classical music, and there are stories, for example, that a few folks at Abbey Road were upset when some long hairs that did not know music got into their studios! The RCA Red Label, featured some incredible recordings, and if you can find these I recommend listening and having them, as they would give you a very good listening experience, however, some folks have the idea that some speakers are better for classical, some for rock and some for jazz. Nowadays, instead of 50 years ago, I am not sure that it matters much, since the equipment you have is already better for the recording stuff that you are going to play ... but thinking that something or other is going to be better, is weird for me, although that is how I chose my speakers. 

I went to the music store, and in the speaker room they had everything (we're talking 1975/1976!!!) that was considered the best in speakers. I brought my English version of the LP by Tangerine Dream (Phaedra) and played the cut from the 2nd side (Mysterious Semblance ... ) on 4 sets, and you could tell that some of them were designed for "heavy" rock music, as in loud and cheap ... and their bass sound was too strong, and not a good definition of well recorded music, but it was what at the time folks liked ... the stereotypical FM radio sound, which was tempered with btw, with a slight touch slower (not always noticeable) to make it sound heavier. Other speakers, you could tell were cheaply built and the price was just the name of the thing, on cardboard as I like to say. The only speakers that handled the mids and the combination of sounds and twists, was the ESS Heil AMT 1 that I eventually bought at the time ($325 each!!!) ... but it made Tangerine Dream come alive really well.

The music that you use to select the speakers is the important part with one exception ... there is a MARKED DIFFERENCE between a stylus cartridge that costs $100 bux and the one I bought at the time, the best stylus cartridge from Stanton. It lived for almost 35 years. 

The quality of the stylus cartridge is massive in the selection of the rest of the stuff ... so a cheaper stylus does not bring down the music so much ... and at that point, the speakers are more forgiving, because of the detail the cartridge can give you ... and this is when you find which stuff was well done ... don't ever compare the Sgt Pepper's English and American versions ... you will want to go kill somebody for ripping off the public! And you know right away who the jerks were that did not like the long hairs getting famous and rich. Capitol Records was full of them, and the majority of those folks came from classical music, and didn't think the long hairs would make it ... check out the stories about the worst business decisions ever made ... and the Beatles and Rolling Stones are in the top 5, though I have not checked it in 10/15 years, but comparatively speaking the incredible results showed a bunch of rich farts that didn't care about the music, or the art!

It is a tough choice, but make sure you get yourself something special, and not just a favorite album, or band ... where you will see the difference when you play something else that is better recorded, than the average stuff that you get on bandcamp, or any of the streaming places these days ... they are owned by the record companies and are still trying to kill the downloads of anything ... talking about living in the past ... !!! And I have not tried this on remastered albums, but you know that the remastering is a joke, since no one has redone any of the awesome classical recordings of the 1960's which ought to tell you how well they were done, as opposed to popular music. 

And it could be said that what Steven Wilson is doing is almost exactly what/how a lot of classical music was looked at and recorded in the 1960's ... he might make you think that he did something exceptional, but in the end, if you have not experienced the super high quality of some classical music 55 years ago, you almost have no choice but "fall" to the opinions of folks that think they are the experts ... which they are to a degree, but not enough to show me music properly ... since the majority of the music they are using is not exactly the best in terms of the idea and strength needed to expand the listening experience for you and I. And doing justice to an orchestra is far more of a great job than 4 instruments in a rock band. Remember that.