Best Small budget speakers for girlfriend

I'll add a tic to the Spica TC50 votes, and will add to your list the Era Design 4's (great sounding little speakers), and Silverline SR11's. You didn't mention a budget. The Spica's would be the least expensive options, but OTOH have no replacement drivers - should one go bad you'd be limited to repair. Another good choice on the used market would be Soliloquy SAT 5's.

Pedrillo,

Where would she be placing the speakers? On a shelf, on a stand? I think some of the recommendations (including mine) would not be good if she plans to place the speakers on a shelf or inside of a wall unit. You mentioned that her living space is "tiny". Is she going to be forced to place the speakers agains the wall? If so, nearly all rear ported speakers would not be appropriate.

Also, what would she be using to power the speakers? Does she have an existing amp?

TIC

I will place another vote for the Audio Engine 5. They are the perfect size, the sound is absolutely amazing with a sweet midrange and they have a surprising amount of bass from such a small cabinet.

I have a pair of the Soliloquy SAT 5's that Jax2 recommends and they're my favorites of the many small speakers I've tried. I'm using them in a second system with the Onkyo 9555 I recommended in your other post and it's a wonderful combination. The Soliloquys will be hard to find, though maybe not any more so than the Spicas.

A current production speaker that's excellent for $400 retail is the Usher S-520. There's a Stereophile review online. I bought a pair for my daughter with a NAD all-in-one unit and it makes a great, simple setup.

For real budget speakers the Insignias that Goatwuss recommends are pretty amazing and another good option are the Athenas at about $100. I liked the previous generation of those better than some Paradigm Atoms I had.

I can also recommend the AudioEngine. I bought a pair of A2 while I was waiting for my Quad 2805 and while the Quads are much better I was still amazed at both the sound and looks (the finish - I got black - is amazing) of the A2. Not having to use an amp makes things simpler.