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How to choose speakers that won't overpower your room?

I am considering buying new floor standing speakers to replace my kef reference ones stand mounts and I'm wondering how to avoid buying something that overpowers my room. My room is fairly small 12 1/2 by 11, And I listened at fairly low volumes mostly jazz and some rock.

I will use Sonus Faber as an example, I'm thinking the Olympica Nova 2 or Nova 3 might be a good fit and I also look at the Serafino, and think that would be very nice as well, but I have no idea if these would be too much for my room. They all look good on paper. And yes, I realize that I have to go listen to these speakers I've never even heard them before, but still auditioning them at a dealer or somewhere else is not the same as putting them in your small room.  Are there any technical details or cue that would tell me whether or not the speaker might be too much for my room?

Bonus question I am going to AXPONA next week is there anything that I absolutely should hear when I am there?

zlone
zlone OP
873 posts
 

Thanks for the additional comments, I will be pursuing some room treatments. @sawbuck I built a custom Pi/Digi streamer a few years back with good success. I nigh have put it back in to see how it compares to the Innuos. 

sawbuck
22 posts
 

The Pi /  Digi Signature is an excellent solution, I used Moode Audiio as my streamer software. At the time I was also using a MiniDSP SHD going out to a Crown Amp with very good succes

bcgator's avatar
bcgator
356 posts
 

Just stumbled onto this thread, very interesting responses.  I admit to having always believed the "small room = small speakers" axiom, so it's really enlightening to see so many responses indicating that this not necessarily true with some of you successfully running floor standers in what I'd consider a small room.   I stumbled here because I'm considering upgrading, and my room is 11x10, so I'm in just about the same boat as the OP.  I've been trying to rationalize some Wilson Benesch Endeavours in the room, but my "old" knowledge keeps getting in the way, with the continuing thought that they're just too big even though they're technically monitors on stands.   I don't mean to hijack the thread in any way, but I'll just say that it's a bit reassuring to think that maybe I don't need to be so concerned about WB Endeavours in an 11x10 room and I'm glad I found this discussion.

steve59's avatar
steve59
1,849 posts
 

I gave up on subs, maybe it’s in my head but I convinced myself they only blended with my speakers at a specific volume! I even got so bad I bought one of those velodyne subs that came with a volume remote, still no joy, but that’s my insanity. 
 

I was offered a pair of Dali Kore’s for a really hard to refuse price, but refuse I did because I figured they’d overload my room, damn. 
  I heard the KEF ref 3’s in a few rooms at axpona and if anything I thought the mids needed to be tamed most in those little rooms. 
 

Idk of any math calculations to predict bass response, most of the time it’s room nulls I get. You state to listen at fairly low volume so you ought to be with any practical choice 

g2the2nd
187 posts
 

Maybe Magnepan LRS+ or .7s if you don’t need to rock the house and have an amp that is up to it.

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