Recommend a desktop nearfield speaker for me

Congrats! I’m sure they will sound terrific. I owned pre-Alnico Omegas years ago; they were beautifully made and exceptionally coherent with excellent presence, if a bit bass-shy. No doubt the Alnicos are much better, esp with the sub. I’ve actually been thinking about asking Louis to make me a front-ported pair of your speakers, if he thought they’d work well enough that way. He’s one of the good guys.

Congrats. Tell us how it goes after you get them into your system.

For sitting at a desk. most likely staring at a screen, the AudioEngines are fine. I use the A2 speakers. For more detailed listening while sitting at a desk I use headphones.

I also have the Harbeth P3 speakers.  They activate a larger space and their qualities come out when the sounds has a chance to react to the room.  I am listening in a comfortable chair with no other distractions and can appreciate the more relaxed presentation and the sense of space. They cannot come alive when used nearfield (they sound okay, but they are not in their sweet spot at the low volume levels required for near field listening).

It really all comes down to intent.  Accurate, dry nearfield monitors are what you want for recording and mastering, but are fatiguing for listening for enjoyment.  Big speakers that move a lot of air are great for large rooms and feeling the slam of the bass, but become tiring when you are done being impressed.  If you are sitting at a desk, perhaps doing other things besides listening to music, small speakers designed to have a full range at lower volumes will probably be your best bet. The Audioengines excel at that (especially the A2s).  If you are using a computer as a source, upgrade to a better DAC (I use a Schitt Modi Multibit with my A2s). A2s and  Schitt Modi Multibit < $600.00).

@kahlenz Thanks! I posted above though that I already made my choice and ordered a pair of Omega Compact Alnicos.

@atriya Congrats and are you going to put the speaker on your desk?

I just spent $170 buying an open box AudioengineUSA A2+ to be placed on my desk. It sounds exactly like I expected. It does the job to some satisfaction, but it is very hard to put a speaker on a desk. I am using an angled brace from AudioengineUSA to point the drivers upwards from the desk. If you can put it on the side of the desk, then that is better.

BTW - The Schitt Mjolnir preamp is an excellent choice for a desktop system. It has no remote and is beautiful Class A sound for $1300. Lucky for me my office sources are hooked up to 2 other options. I have a Benchmark HPA4 preamp connected to a $800 Schitt Aegir amp. The other option is the RAAL VM-1a tube headphone amp for reference level sound.

I am also using the KEF KC62 sub with the A2+. The sources are a Schitt Yggi+ OG | Benchmark DAC3B | Sansui TU9900 tuner | Magnum Dynalab MD108T tuner.