Monitors for a bedroom system.......


Hi guys, I always like the great advice I get here. I am setting up a bedroom system for the 30-45 minutes it takes me to fall asleep. I tend to play ambient stuff to help me nod off. Anything with great, deep soundstage, clarity, neutrality? The speakers have to have presence at low volumes. In fact, they only need to play at low volumes. Placement restrictions will force them to sit about 6 inches from the wall. I can spend about $2000 used.
I wasnt thinking when I sold my Nautilus 805's. Any suggestions??
mythtrip
lololololololololol..Marco you should be doing standup.
HaHa that's a good one!
Marco, thanks for the response. Cause, you know, 75 grand and 2 grand are almost the same. And rooms are similar too. You know, the crapper, a big mirror, hard surface floor, you see a lot of bedrooms like that. Thanks for your post, it was quite insightful, and added alot.

Answer me this, with a simple yes or no..

Would the Kharmas sound better than the Bose? If the answer is yes, you just validated my point.
Most here will probably laugh, but check out Red Rose's Spirit Monitor's including cables and 35 w amp for under $1,000. They look and sound better than most for their size and price.
Would the Kharmas sound better than the Bose? If the answer is yes, you just validated my point.

That isn't much of a point. Since you seem to need a translation: Just like listening in a bathroom, listening in a bedroom, at low volumes, to ambient music, while laying down, with the speakers six inches from the wall, all implies some serious compromises to how much of the performance you are paying for is actually something you will be able to appreciate. Given those considerations, it is my opinion that there are plenty of great monitors that folks have mentioned above that are well below the $2k mark, that I seriously doubt that you, the poster, or anyone else would consistently pick out while listening to Enya reclining in a bed at low volumes, as being inferior to, for instance, your B&W 805s or any $2k monitor.

The speakers have to have presence at low volumes. In fact, they only need to play at low volumes.

This person is looking for speakers that they will be playing only at low levels while nodding off in bed listening to ambient music. At typical lower volumes human ears are not capable of hearing low frequencies of sub 50hz. Want proof? Get a test tone (pink noise) generator, or a CD such as Sterophiles Test CD series. Set your system up at the low-volume level you're likely to be listening at in bed using some music you like (my guess would that would make for 60db peaks or lower perhaps). Cue up a 50hz test tone and see if you can hear it (or feel it for that matter). I truly doubt it. If you are only going to be listening at lower levels, bass doesn't really come into the equation (unless you are adding some form of equalization or emphasis with a subwoofer). A single-driver alternative like the Cain&Cain Abby may be worth consideration, though it is not a monitor. Single driver speakers, when done right, have remarkable low-volume presence. You'd need to pay careful attention to the balance of the system you pair them with. Used Abby's are around $900-1200.

Marco
You won't get deep soundstaging with speakers 6" from a wall. Try Louis at Omega speakers for some Fostex single driver - NO whizzer is my strong suggestion. You need tubes with Fostex. These speakers can't play loud and as a result sound very nice at low volumes.
I have Tang-Band W3-871s and W4-1320SB drivers from partsexpress.com. Tang-Band sounds good with solid state. They are made to go up against the wall and need to be near a wall for bass reinforcement. These sound good with my Denon mini-system but you can't buy them. Maybe Louis could make his speaker with Tang-Band instead of Fostex. Another neat feature of the Denon is the sleep function where you can set it to turn off after 10-80 minutes.