Recommend speakers for a large living room

I agree with agustus and for the cost of used Meridian DSP you can’t go wrong, however they will no longer be offering the se upgrade after the end of the month. Having done it myself I can say I’m done. Now when I go out listening to demos my system is the reference and I don’t hear anything better, good, great, impressive yea, but nothing I’d risk losing the musical harmony I have here now.

I have the Dynaudio Evidence Temptations and they can fill a room beautifully. I love the setup of your home. I wish I could find one in Michigan just like it.

$50k for speakers! Lot to consider, appearances, sound quality, size. Since you mentioned omni directional MBL would be quite the conversation piece and if you trust the reviews they’re always mentioned in Best sound at the show. I have a would be buddy with a room about your size and he’s struggled mightily trying to get music in that room. I can tell you what didn’t work, but for every one I mention someone else will disagree. He is currently using the persona 9h, has a large throw rug over much of the hardwood, but the 20’tall window wall presents challenges. I haven’t been over to hear his latest system, but will soon and can report if interested.

gammajo  That's even larger than my former listening room.  Do you think that the 55Ks would be okay in a much smaller room, 15' X 20' X 10' high?  The room is extremely well insulated (16" compound walls/12" 3000 psi reinforced concrete floors-$160K built).  The bass wouldn't be a problem as I am currently using Legacy Focuses with 6 12" woofers but the bass is limited to 25 Hz (okay with me).  I know the Ultra 9s are way too big.

With your budget and the amount of space to fill - hands down I would choose either the Sound Lab 845s, 945s or the Maggie 30.7s. Either, when set up properly ( in the location of your red dots would work great - just would have to experiment with distance from the wall behind and toe in) would make a beautiful, well balanced and detailed stage and imaging that would not shift, change, or collapse, regardless of where you are in the room/rooms.  Whether seated or standing anywhere near the sweet zone, either would present a very large, deep stage with pin-point imaging and timber to rival any of the speakers mentioned.
The need for massive amounts of power is a bit over stated. I can't imagine any tolerable sound level that couldn't be (with high quality) attained with a pair of Carver, Crimson/Raven 350 mono, tubes or a quality, high current SS amp.

If a low powered SET amp is your thing, I agree that the super efficient, very nice, open baffle, Spatial Audio X3, would be a great speaker for your large room/rooms. Un-rivaled in performance by anything even close to it's less than $8K price tag - would save you many thousands to put somewhere else. 

Jim
  

*Oooo* Post #666! *L*

"The devil made me do it..."

Oh, BS...I can do fine by myself...*LOL*

Pity the audition is in the typical hotel room....

HO, line source speakers sound best in a large uncluttered space, more ’hall’ than ’cluttered’.  Not the typical living room with the usual 'living room accoutrama' .

Lines could work @ the window wall location; @ the circles, feeding into the dining area...*ehh*

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2ch8aQLwUY&app=desktop

Found this link that describes spatial qualities... see end of video for Laufer’s explanation.

A little "out of the box" thinking here. :)

Given the size of the room and the hardness of the surfaces... why not use a myriad of well placed ceiling speakers,. with the requisite number of subs at floor level?

I would also echo the recommendation for Meridian digital active speakers as suggested above.  In addition to the DSP8000s, you can also consider DSP7200s and their Special Edition variant which will fall within your price range.  Worth a listen and consideration.

Oh, the Ohm/Walsh 5.1 ought to fill the main space nicely.
Mine does. *VBS*

dpal, your 'living space' is as large as one of my shop buildings sans restroom. *L*  A lot of air in there.... ;)
You haven't mentioned ceiling height(s), which in that large an area will effect what anything will sound like.  Just be aware...

Since all your windows are on the west wall, I'd like to suggest a different approach based on the noted 'use areas' in the floor plan.

Have a 'Nice' pair of speakers flanking the windows; it suggests having a drink, preferably with the significant other, watching the sunset or the view you're paying for. ;)  Subwoofer optional...*S*

The wall with the 2 circles could have a flat screen of your choice flanked by a front pair with a back pair by the same manufacturer.  An obvious location for the 5.1 system.  If you opt for Ohms, you shouldn't need a center infill, but a small sub would be terrific.  The back pair, also Ohms, could be smaller to be less intrusive, flanking the sofa.

You could drive both arrangements with a single 'well bred' receiver with a decent speaker selector.

As for the rest of the rooms, Bluetooth as desired, unobtrusive as possible.

Careful shopping ought to keep within the budget. *G*

All I'd ask is let me come listen someday...;)  I'll BYOB to share...

I haven't looked at all the recommendations, but if no one has yet mentioned the Rockport Aviors at $38,500 you'd probably do well to check them out.  
https://www.stereophile.com/content/rockport-technologies-avior-ii-loudspeaker

The VR55 speakers were in one of the best systems I've ever heard. If I had the money I would build a system around them. 

My recommendation for the best audio system sound I ever heard had the Von Schweikert Ultra 11s in a huge room.  After that, at half the price are the Ultra 9s good for large rooms as well.  They are expensive but would have fit my previous home's room of 20w X 25+d X12 h   Now my room is only 15w X 20 d X 10 h and I will probably settle for the VR55k   

@racamuti , 
I like the Shahinian's. But, they are more in the class of Ohm. Very spacious, but nebulous sound. If the OP wants this, then they would be a great choice. On the other hand, if the OP wants something that provides a detailed soundstage, I would opt for either Vandersteen, MBL, Sound Labs or Magnepan.
I wish I could demo the Daedalus or Sonus Faber, as so many here on Agon have sung their praises.
Bob

I'm going to through this out there - Shahinian Acoustics "Diapason Ensemble".  They are located not far from you on Long Island.

Good Luck, TISH

Ask Ted Nugent😎🍺

I’ll second the comment by Atmasphere above, to the effect that special consideration should be given to speakers that are easy to drive.

That would be beneficial in several ways: Whatever amplifier(s) you choose will most likely sound better; the need for less power is likely to lower the cost of suitable amplification considerably; a greater percentage of whatever amount of money you choose to invest in amplification would be likely to go toward quality rather than toward watts; and, finally, less heat is likely to be put into the room by the amplifier(s), if that may be a consideration for your apartment.

One speaker which certainly meets that requirement, and that would be suitable for use in a large space such as yours, and that I believe is consistent with your budget, is the Daedalus Zeus that was suggested earlier in the thread.

Although with those as well as many of the other speakers that have been suggested the need for multiple listening positions would seem to be problematical. If you want to consider Daedalus a conversation with Lou Hinkley (its designer/manufacturer), who is wonderful to deal with, is likely to provide you with helpful guidance about suitability and placement.

Good luck. Regards,
-- Al

My vote is Meridian DSP 8000, a subwoofer will not be necessary and you will not find a smoother effortless exact sound especially at lower pleasant volume. They can easily fill the rom in stereo and many Meridian owners are hooked on Trifield as well. Since they are digital the lengths of wire is nothing in comparison. You can pick up preowned pair for $16K and upgrade to SE later. I believe there is also a single on this site. If you look on the Meridian Hitchhiker site a lot more information on preowned equipment. I will say that I have been enjoying and building my Meridian system for over twenty years. I had Magnapan and Martin Logan prior, and got tired of the amp, preamp and wire games.

Several here have suggested MBL, I concur.  I will add, propper amplification IS required.  I power mine with an ML 33H amp.  someone else has suggested Dunlavy.  I have these as well and highly recommend them.  

MBL can be enjoyed by many as the listening/seating position isn't as critical do to their design.

Best,
Jose

Sam Laufer's new line array speaker (The Note) is a good candidate. It is not an OB design. It does require subs. I believe he is still in Brooklyn so not far from you. 

There is lots of tasteful room treatment available. I would strongly recommend consulting with a professional in this area. The room doesn't have to look like a sound studio to be treated. 

We design and manufacture dipole line source speaker systems and know about room integration challenges. A true line source is worth considering. Call Sam and ask about The Note. I have no affiliation with Sam or his company.

For something that size you'll need speakers that are easy to drive!

Focal Stella Utopias with Boulder amplification.
I have a large, difficult room and they fill it effortlessly. I am part of a soundsystem and domestically i require a powerful, but unfatiguing, musical sound with excellent PRaT, but also with texture and intimacy
The only alternative i might consider would be dipoles.
 Ime JBL's can be fatiguing

You owe it to yourself to at least audition Vandersteen 7 ii's.  After listening to them, you may find a way to come up with a way to defray the cost of the balance between your budget and the actual cost of the 7's.

https://www.muraudio.com/sp1 

I heard these Hybrid Electrostatics at AXPONA and they were excellent. With curved panels, dispersion and imaging were magnificent.  As I recall, they were well under your maximum.  Low WAF if I had to guess but the sound may just override that resistance, if you face that problem. 

I would suggest listening to 30.7 Maggies, their size would not over power the room and properly set up the sound is amazing.

There are many fine choices, and synergy with the amp is critical as you listen to the candidates, Good Luck!

IF you want a coherent soundstage from most any location in that large area, you would have to go omni: OHM, mbl, and GP being the three I would consider with your budget. For larger mbl models, you still might have to go used on a $50K budget. OHMs would have teh unique advantage among those of going closer to walls for WAF in a lived-in space as opposed to a dedicated listening room where placement far from walls needed for true omnis is more practical..

If it were me I’d go biggest baddest OHMs and call it a day. Those would be the 5000 series currently with 12" main drivers. THere is even a limited availability 5015 version of those with built in powered subs that would do it all if available for just over $10K or so. My F5s are similar size, one model generation older, and no powered subs built in but I run them off 500w/ch BEl CAnto ref1000m amps. The Ohm Walsh model decision will be totally objective, mostly based on your room size. All models have similar design and sound, its just a matter of how much you need to deliver the bass best in any particular room.

Sounds like you are in NYC area so you might have the extra advantage of being able to visit the factory in Brooklyn for an audition. In any case, a generous guaranteed in home trial period is provided and if you are local, would not even have to worry about absorbing any shipping charges so there would be essentially no risk to audition in your actual room.

IF you are in Baltimore/DC metro area, I'd be happy to provide an audition.  Would just need some advance notice to plan.

In any case, Good Listening!

I have a similarly large space.  35x30x18 high with mostly glass to the east, winding staircase to the north side with a balcony overhead, open to the southern direction to the kitchen and the west wall under the balcony overhead is all stone with a fireplace.  It's a very convoluted area to say the least.

I have a pair of Bryston Model T signature fully active speakers, however I am running them with the heavy duty PX1 external crossovers.  I have three subs spaced evenly around the perimeter to the sides and back, one is the Bryston Model T sub with three 8 inch drivers, the other two are made by Axiom Audio (who builds all of the Bryston speakers).  One is the EP800V4 and the EP500V4.   

If you are a full bodied type of listener, that is you enjoy powerful dynamic, super clean music; these speakers will impress you.  If you took it up a notch and added three amps each to both the left and right main speakers with the Bryston fully active crossover, it will take it to a whole new level.  I am not sure you can do all of this within your budget, but if you skip the 6 amps and just do what I am doing, you'll still be very pleased.

dpal,

Thanks for the answer. I guess I narrowed your location to a few blocks as I was imagining SoHo. I really do not think places of that composition exist outside SoHo, Tribeca, or maybe a few more spots on the island. I am sorry that I have no useful advice. Others do.

Have you tried Lyric HiFi? They are in Manhattan, they say they do custom installations, they do cary very fine equipment, so, hopefully, they have encountered similar situations. Same goes for Innovative Audio.

Sam Laufer at Laufer Technik is working on a new line array speaker called The Note that is supposed to tackle both of the primary issues you have: excellent 180 degree radiation with stable imaging, and large room oomph. They need to be paired with good subs, but that’s probably a good solution for your space as well. Information is just starting to Trickle out about them. I am considering a pair for a 23’ x 55’ space that has placement issues as well. I just heard he will be at the nyc audio show in a few weeks demoing them. 

I do have a stereo system in a living room of similar size. I can’t recommend specific speaker model but will echo previous comments about room treatment (and subwoofers). The biggest issue at the moment at my home is taming the room. Spend some thought and money into treating your room and you will gain much more than you can get from the different components at this price level.

DPal,

PMC - Perfect for any large space.
I don't understand why so many are stuck in the past and ignore the most advanced Dynamic speakers in the world. Every aspect of reproduction makes PMC  superior. I could go on & on but why don't you just have a listen to one of there larger models like MB2 SE.
You owe it to yourself to check them out and peruse their website thoroughly! Just see the users list......
I sell them up here in Canada so I'm definitely bias....

Great open baffle Great new Speaker 
from Spatial Audio X3 with powered low 
Bass Xover from 90 hz on down, world class AMT on top German BMG midrange mid Bass, and emmenande pro series bass driver with latest 
200 watt Ncore Bass amp. It nice wood finishes. Being too over 95 dB efficient 
you can use a Smaller tube or solid state amp with great results ,and a 60 day satisfaction return policy .
they are that good and  for $7500 
a no brainer they beat speakers 3 x their cost .Not investigating these would be a Big mistake only out 3 months but raves at the shows ,check out too on Utube. 

Thanks all. Adding Magico M6's & Alta Audio Hesta's to my listening array.

@glupson the apartment is a loft in Soho, Manhattan. With that said, if anyone recommends I speak with someone in the area that can help with the project that would be helpful.

On room treatment plans, I plan to use some bass traps in the ceiling corners, but I am also open to doing more but I do want to make sure the aesthetics are preserved - its a living room at the end, not a dedicated studio.

Alta Audio's HESTIA-sensational 32K-35K /pr.I was part of a review panel and was really taken with these. Out performed everything we heard including MAGICO, WILSON, FOCAL, JOSEPH AUDIO, YG ACOUSTIC, KEF and RAIDHO to name a few.

If it helps with your planning, bear in mind that speaker setup (positioning) has as much influence on the sound as all of the hardware, if not more.

At the very least make sure the speaker manufacturer will visit your room and place the speakers to work optimally with your room. 

I design and install loudspeakers for Aluminous Audio so I can speak to the critical nature of speaker placement.

I also vote jbl everest . 
My room is 56x36x15 . I dont use anything but jbl . Currently my set up is wide dispersion tweeters and horns 2405 and 2441 w 2310 lenses . 2235 15” woofers and two 2245 18” subs. Horns and tweets powered by 100w rogue tube amp , woofs powered by 150w mcintosh , and subs powered by 600w x 2 mcintosh . 
More than enough oomph to fill the room . With the ability for sweet dinner time listening and intricate detail even at the lowest volumes . And all out mayhem at the higher registers.

 This entire system is half the cost of the budget you claim to have for speakers . By the time you have worthy amps and preamp youll be at 100k. Difference is i have a setup i can tweek infinitely .
 A 100k setup is what it is . You will have to like it even if it bothers you like a drip on the forehead. Chances are though a mcintosh c52 pre with a couple mcintosh mc1.25k amps and a pair of jbl dd67000 everest will sound pretty freakin awesome. And look drop dead gorgeous to boot . 

You have an interesting challenge ahead of you. That’s a larger room but that’s not the main challenge. The dinning area and living room area should have good sound quality if you place the speakers in the areas marked by the red circles. The sitting area to the side of the speakers will likely have several compromises. Maybe some sort of speaker trickery will help but I don’t know. How is the seating arranged in the sitting area? Any room treatment in the plans? Bass will not be an issue. Having enough output will be important. I suggest considering high sensitivity speakers with decent power handling capacity for high SPLs. Not so you can play loud but so dynamic peaks are reproduced. Many good speakers suffer from dynamic compression in the mid frequencies. They will get lost in a large room. I also suggest considering a line source design either OB or closed cabinet. Line source speakers attenuate less per distance than point source speakers do so more SPL will be available in your kitchen. They also have minimal floor and ceiling interaction. I suggest looking into DSP with room correction as well. Room correction will help integrate your new speakers with the room. I haven’t tried this but it’s possible to optimize for two locations and switch from one to the other depending on where you are. The space in front of the speakers should be fine. The room correction might work better than expected for the side space.

If it is not a secret, where do they make one-bedroom apartments with such a large living room? It is quite impressive. Some remodeled loft?

A couple of negative wisecrack responses that started the answers. That attitude is not helpful imo.

I would suggest auditioning Magicos. The S7 perhaps. I can vouch for the S3 sounding absolutely amazing and being able to fill a very large room with huge dynamic sound. I’ve not heard the S7, but they have to be the same incredible performance just bigger sound and more bass?

MBL 

Just seems to me that if you need to add a sub woofer to your speaker set up, it isn't a good set of speakers set to a good sound system.  I know and have heard what a sub woofer can do, but I would rather have a good system with great speakers that do the trick and not have another box on the floor.

Thanks for all the responses. Some really good information here. To answer some of the questions, my main goal is to ideally have a speaker system that works across most of the living room, specially the 2 sitting areas. Ideally it will sound great in the kitchen while I am cooking, as well as both sitting areas. 

On what music do I listen too, its mostly latin music (salsa etc) & old rock (the beatles, elton john, david bowie etc). I mostly listen to digital recordings.

On which speakers do I like, I currently have 2 other listening rooms (in different apartments). One has B&W 805d2 & the other Sonus Faber Olympica 3's. I used to like the B&W but have grown tired of them, I prefer the musicality of the Olympicas. I am planning on replacing the 805d2's with Focal Diablo Utopias. The big difference is both of this room's are audio rooms, with a specific listening position that honestly is very narrow. For the new living room I was hoping I could use a different kind of speaker to make the listening positions wider - thus I thought omni-directional speakers would work best. 

I could buy a pair of Focal Maestros' which I really love, but they have a narrow listening field. 

On which amp's, cables etc. I have bought nothing yet. My plan is likely buy the same brand as the speakers manufacturer for amp's etc, or just buy McIntosh which I really like.

I wonder if you purchased a decent receiver and set up a pair of speakers for that separate sitting area.  Then turn on and off the remote pair when you want to listen more critically to the two main speakers?  Not an expert on this.  Perhaps you are willing to give up some critical listening and strive to get dispersed sound throughout the room.  Adding some subwoofers would also help distribute the bass throughout the space.

Daedalus Zeus.  They demo this model in rooms that size at audio shows.

Klipsch K-Horns or Cornwall IVs. Or, with your budget, Something from Volti Audio.

Holly crap that's big!  No recommendation just a congrats on such a big room!

I have 38 X22 room with multiple seating areas and Von Schweikert VR55 Aktives work beautifully as they are adjustable in the self amplified base going down to 21 HZ at -2db, about .5% distortion across audio spectrum and rear facing ambience tweeter response to the room. They fill room well and sound great from more than just a narrow sweet spot