Which speakers excel at low volume?


I do much of my listening at lower volumes than I imagine most of you do: 60-70db for me much of the time. I understand why many speakers are designed to sound correct at live-music levels, and the hell with how they sound at lower levels. But that doesn't work for me. I need a speaker that resolves details, conveys proper tone and timbre, expresses microdynamics, and has a respectable balance, including a sense of weight, even at low volume. (Low volume does not mean low amplifier power.) This is an aspect of loudspeaker performance that is rarely addressed in reviews. It must be that most audiophiles don't care about it, or that reviewers feel it is not a criterion that loudspeakers are or should be designed for. Fair enough, but I still want what I want.

I used to have original Quad electrostatics, which were terrific at low volume. My ProAc Response 2.5s aren't bad (though they don't resolve detail too well even at high volume). The Thiel 1.6 is pretty good, the 2.4 less so.

What have you heard, particularly in dynamic speakers, that fits my requirements?
Ag insider logo xs@2xdrubin
Drubin -

Let me explain two mechanisms that detract from most loudspeakers sounding good at low volume levels, and then see if I can offer a few useful ideas.

First, imagine you're pushing a car. Small pushes do not show up in a corresponding movement of the car. Now imagine you're pushing a tricycle. Much smaller pushes show up in a corresponding movement of the tricyle. So in general, very lightweight diaphragms give better articulation at low volume levels (and better low-level resolution at all volume levels). This analogy isn't perfect, of course.

Second, different loudspeaker drivers have differing compression characteristics, and in general woofers compress more than do midranges and tweeters. So let's say you have an 85 dB woofer with a 91 dB tweeter. Obviously, the tweeter will have to be padded down to match the woofer. What is not obvious is that, because of their differing compression characteristics, they will only be precisely matched at a certain volume level. So let's say the designer wants them to sound great at about 85 dB at the listening position. Because the tweeter compresses less, up around 95 dB the tweeter may be 2 dB louder than the woofer - so at high volume levels, the speaker sounds bright and forward. But at lower volume levels - say 65 dB - the tweeter will now be 4 dB lower in volume than the woofer, so the speaker will sound dull and lifeless. This is a rather extreme example, but I hope you get the idea.

The reason original Quads sound so great at low volume levels is they have a very lightweight diaphram so they are very articluate, and the bass and treble panels have very similar compression characteristics. I peddle Sound Lab electrostats, which use a single driver and an even lighter diaphragm, and they are probably unexcelled at low volume levels. In fact, I often listen down around 50-60 dB late at night and as long as the ambient noise level is quite low, I don't feel like I'm missing much. And with the volume down low, it seems like I can relax deeper into the music.

If you don't want to go the planar route, then I'd suggest a high-efficiency (lighweight diaphragm) single-driver loudspeaker. The little Omega Super 3 is a very articulate and nicely voiced little speaker for ballpark $540 - $740 depending on which version you go for. The bottom end isn't real deep so you might want to add the new matching (sub)woofer, whose price I don't know offhand (just called the designer but he's out of town right now).

Other lines you might consider are Cain & Cain, Fostex (sold by Madisound; drivers only), Supravox (drivers only) and PHY (divers only). I'm a dealer for Omega and PHY.

Best of luck to you in your quest!

Duke
I have heard that the Green Mountain Audio Europas are very good at low volumes. I cannot speak from experience however. I recently purchased a pair, but I am still in the process of putting together the rest of the system. That characteristic was one of the reasons that I chose that particular speaker (among many).
I own the Green Mountain C1.5i 3-way floor standing speakers. I agree with Jb3 that the GMA speakers (his prelim Europa recommendation & my C1.5i reco) sound good at low volumes. I listen often at night 11pm & later when the rest of the house is asleep & my volume levels are in the 70-75dB level. The C1.5i are quite excellent at this volume. Per the manuf. advice I had to break them in to get this performance. Just as an aside, Roy Johnson recommends that music be played at both sane & insane levels (absolute level to be determined by the user as each person's sane & insane level is different). This loosens the woofer cone & allows it to respond better at low volumes. The drivers are superbly integrated (w.r.t. Duke/Audiokinesis nicely explained write-up) so the speaker is very non-fatiguing to listen to. Listening session is often hours & hours & only dictated by when I cannot sit down any longer.