Accurate speakers for a verity of genres?


Hello guys – I’m looking for L/R speakers to fill a 15x15 room – the budget is <4K (new/used). I’m not much of a PC user and was recommended by a good friend of mine to post here for advice.

I don’t have subs yet, so wanted something that could extend into the mid 30’s if needed. I will get subs next year so it’s not a big deal. My background is in music (have a degree from NYU) and come from a family or producers. Being that the speakers will be in my living room, I want something nice looking, and also capable of home theater usage and powered by a receiver.

I’m pretty young (under 26) and my musical tastes are leaning towards the more compressed side. Pop and some rock if I’m feeling casual, house or funk if I’m reminiscing and “real” hip-hop if I’m looking for stories or lyrical material. All mood dependent. I’m ‘classically trained’ and very critical in many genres’ being exposed to them my entire life though. Unfortunately, I do not listen classical music in my home although I do respect it. My instruments of choice are typically percussion based rather than string based and I really like both hard hitting bass and rolling basslines - but clean bass. Never boomy despite the musical choices.

Some examples of the types of music I listen to

Common – The People http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7B2VgRShew
The Roots – Boom http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyLEgfp4b-k
Nicolay and Kay – As the world turns http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Q-apEQa8Vg
Geoffrey Oryema – Piri Wango Iya http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL4F21FAD18930ECDC&feature=player_detailpage&v=HIoY_7qCOHk#t=68s
Afefe Iku – Mirror Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja1LS1AkN-Y&feature=related
Sigur Rios- Festival http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=RpKOawpMtsk#t=309s
Nosaj Thing – Aquarium http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPfDjZAct-0
LP – Iridescent http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLYiIBCN9ec&ob=av2n
James Blunt - I’ll take everything http://www.youube.com/watch?v=LX9sn5aAp_8
Sublime – Santeria http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEYN5w4T_aM&ob=av2n
Metallica – Unforgiven ½ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoTcb6vtGEo
Alicia Myers – I want to thank you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9wGnnwBc9M
Jackson 5 – Hum Along and Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xRcmIDj2cc
Level 42 – Starchild http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOpYmMyo1FM

Strange eh? I enjoy an accurate sound, that isn’t harsh in the upper band. Perhaps I have sensitive ears nowadays. I know to appreciate flat req response, and smooth off-axis response, great crossovers, etc. Now the question is – Where do I begin looking? Thanks for your time!!!!
bthought

Showing 15 responses by bthought

Thank you. Much appreciated. Like I said, accuracy is still important to me because I can understand the technical limitations. I've been told about Salk's offering (HT-2), Philharmonics', and Audio Soundfield 1, Selah Audio Circondare, KEF R series and many others. I'll work on the sub's later on and get something nice. My focus now is mids (vocal) and smooth treble. Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you all!
Thank you, What model Sonus would you recommend?

Manoterror: Understood. I just want to be set on the right path, and hopefully Ill find my way.

Phasecorrect: Thank you!

Chayro: The Cerwyn looks bass heavy and simply too large for a small living room (or anyones home!).
So your recommending going light on the speakers but focus on the subs.
being in NYC I really can't have subs unless I keep things low. What would you recommend other than Maggie? I have pets who may destroy it.
Thank you, perhaps I dont need huge floor standers for my needs? I really need to reconsider.

Maybe great ID subs, great floorstanding monitors, and a capable speaker would meet my needs.

I need a way to limit the subwoofer though (through a switch?)

Perhaps one day ill move and take full advantage of it.
Those Rhythmic Subs look great. I just spotted them on Ascend Acoustics website. Im not sure how Ascends monitor would fare though.
I like the idea of the sub tuning aspect. I don't have much space upfront.. Will look at other bookshelves now.
This is a great response, and in line with what I was looking for. I am worried though in regards to Maggie's getting damaged so will have to look at other products. It looks that the Velodyne SMS-1 will allow me to "reduce" some of the low end so that I wouldnt get kicked out of my apartment, and also allow for seamless integration.

My question to you is, considering a larger floor space (say 15x15), what other monitors should I consider? If you dont have brands then what characteristics should I be looking for?
"PS You'll also have to choose a high-cut slope to determine how sharply the top of the woofer output rolls off."

This part I understand, however, is it possible to determine the low point roll off on the sub? To kind of "limit" them until I have a proper living space to max them out?

My second question: Monitors seem to span a wide variety of sizes. For my room size, what traits should I be looking for? ie: Woofer size, driver arrangement, freq response.

The Carver CRM's for sale look good but I cant fund much information on them. That's a huge ribbon tweeter!
Comparing SVS or Rhythmic 12 subs, which offer the best upper band performance? I will roll off the bottom (<25hz end so not really concerned there. More concerned with clarity in the mid to upper bass-area