Your audiophile chair

Ekornes Stressless

I'll second the Ekorness Stressless recliner.

Indeed

I had some Knoll Barcelona replicas that were great, at first, but offered no head support for those long sessions to doze off on and got to be a PITA to get up from.
Still working on a better solution.

All the best,
Nonoise

the Ekones Stressless is an excellent chair for lounging. i use one for TV watching, have owned 3 or 4 over time, and really like it when i have the back reclined. but for listening to stereo it’s not ideal, in that mostly it cups the sound around your head, and it does place the weight on your tailbone when your head is at the tweeter height. so it’s a 2 hour chair for serious listening.

there are Ekones Stressless chairs with lower back rests that don’t cup the sound, but the tailbone issue remains. so it’s compromised.

OTOH a perfect chair/zero gravity chair from the relax the back store, with a fixed back and thigh support and a weight transfer for your lower legs unweights your tailbone, so you can sit in it indefinitely. some ’perfect’ chairs have issues with also cupping the sound, but my perfect chair has a narrow back rest and head pillow and so reflects sound away from your ears so no tonal shift.

i’ve owned my ’perfect chair’ since 1999, 24 years now. i can and do listen for 12 straight hours with it. i’ll be buried with it.

+4 Ekorness  :-) I bought a pair, one for TV room and one for music room. Great low back and shoulder support. Worth the bucks.

I had the EKORNES “Stressless” recliner by reputation …yes , it’s a good option.

With a large home reno, I stumbled onto an ETHAN ALLEN top model  Leather Recliner ….It is better in build, body support, and comfort for me . Who knew ?

… = Bye bye “Stressless”.

Highly recommended. But you would be best served by actually test-driving it for yourself.

I’ve had this one going on three years and it’s the best I’ve ever had. just the right amount of softness, but not too much, and power headrest. All controls are at your right hand. I found it more comfortable and adjustable than the Stressless, even though they are beautiful. Then there is the added advantage of not having a large separate footrest. I loved getting rid of that.

Gray Power Recliner with Adjustable Headrest | K-21506 | AFW.com

This ad is from a store in Arizona where I live, but it's made by Ashley and sold nationally. 

This is always my go-to for long listening sessions...https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41%2ByZgvoRQL._AC_SX425_.jpg

DeKay

I could never find a seat that would do the trick, so I customed mine. Low back upholstered chair with a tiny stake running up the back supporting a couple of small narrow car head pillows bunched up just right to support my arthritic neck. So no high back to block the sound and full head support. I believe you can see it on some of the pics in my house of stereo system. Critical component. Good luck in your search.

I use one of the zero gravity recliners from our pool. Works. 

Zero gravity power recliner….   Gotta be careful listening to LPs when in this chair….   It’s easy to fall asleep when reclined 

Leather low backed (shoulder height… so the back does not interfere with sound) love seat from Wayfair so my doggies can sit next to me.

I don't like big, bulky, soft chairs. They absorb sound and soften focus and dynamics. I use hard, small chairs.

Eames Lounge Chair & Ottoman replica has comfortable classic design. Find them everywhere around $600. Recommend choosing one with upgraded leather for more luxury feel and durability. Or get the authentic original by Herman Miller.

Like mwatsme I have an Eames replica and love it.

How about Ikea Poang 

Have a Knoll, Wassily chair. Its  old, worn and pretty uncomfortable but still looks great in my room. When it gets to killing my back a retreat to the sofa, lol. 

I'm cheap and won't spend multiple thousands on a chair I use a couple hours a week (dedicated room), sometimes zero hours a week.

The Ikea Poang works for me.  A lot more comfortable than it should be for $150...

Having said that, the Ekornes would be my choice if I did.

I just had my 15-year old Lazy Boy re-upholstered in a nice neutral leather.  I use it every evening, so it was worth the $ vs anything new.  Quality has gone down on furniture over the last 40-50 years.  Just like everything else.  Prices are also insane.

If you like Vipp other options to check out is 

https://www.v4designspecialists.com/furniture/lounge-seating

I have a Tyler Roll Arm Recliner in leather from Pottery Barn with an Irving Storage Ottoman in the same leather. They are great together. 

@ggc awesome

The Felice Rossi looks like it would work well with open baffle speakers.

The back of the chair CANNOT be higher than your shoulders.......A comfortable swivel Barrel Chair is the best for optimal, unobstructed sound.

Ekornes Stressless

They are available in about 20 different sizes and configurations and 60 or so leathers. (Fabric too)

Full disclosure, I sell Ekrones chairs.

2 Ikea poang chairs and one very nice upholstered rocking chair.

I don't have a pic of mine, but for 25 years just for headphones see below. It is too tall for speakers, but crank it back and I can be out in 10 minutes, so it stays upright for listening!!!!

@mwatsme - Agreed, and I've got a Herman Miller one.

I had a zero-gravity chair for a lot of years, but having something directly behind my head really messes up the sound and it's so much better now without any kind of headrest. 

The Chieftan has been an excellent chair for me. Mid-Mod styling, roooomy and very comfortable. 

https://www.thechieftainchair.com/

I will spend $20K on a DAC but there is no way in heck I am spending $5 to $8K on a chair that gets sat in 2 hours a day. Heck I have a standup desk and have had one for the last 15 years. 

@69zoso69 

That is a really beautiful chair!

@recklesskelly 

I hear you brother. When I bought my chair 8 years ago it was only 3k.

I nearly fell out of the damn thing when you said it was 20k. 

I try to buy things that appreciate over time, hard to do with audio gear. 

@69zoso69 

He didn't say it was 20k. He said he would spend 20k on a DAC.

@roxy54 I stand corrected. It’s only 18k.

https://www.dwr.com/living-lounge-chairs/chieftains-chair/6779.html?lang=en_US

It’s been a long day. I should post when I’m dog tired and can’t see straight.

Superbeets. 

@69zoso69 

No problem. It happens to all of us.

+1 @mbmi      Don't use a high back chair.  Padding behind the ears doesn't fix room boundary issues by simply shutting off  reflected sound from the rear.  The room has to be fixed.

IMHO, you never want anything that rises above your shoulders.  I inherited a pair of Stressless lounge chairs with Ottomans.  They are sized differently.  The smaller one was ideal, in that it comes up to the bottom of my neck.  Even though I am a large "audiopile", I find it comfortable for listening, and less sleep inducing than the larger, higher backed model.

I use a Eames lounge chair replica that my wife gave me for Christmas.  It's nice and works fine. 

Poang chair for me, with an ottoman and customed back support.  Without back support, the chair was not confortable but the back support transforms it to a lazy-man recliner.

When my Stressless Recliner finally got worn & ugly enough for my wife to insist I get rid of it (it also began to squeak), I simply substituted a nice, luxurious, padded, non-reclining chair I had in the living room. The fabric is just rough enough to keep me in the perfect position. It adds a nice bit of deadening to the room. It also puts me at the perfect listening height. I've been living happily ever after.

• I have a need to sit in a rocker, and after 50 years of listening critically in many chairs, I have found a comfortable yet supportive chair that embodies most of the best qualities for listening, reading and relaxing. It is the center chair, an Amish custom made glider (not rocking using noisy springs) chair with low shoulders and covered with a soft cloth fabric. You do not have to rock when listening seriously, but who does that all the time?! I found leather reflects sounds, messing with image, musical timber and tilts the audio spectrum upward toward excess treble. The chair is 2 inches wider to accommodate this somewhat "wide load" lol! If I figure out how to download pictures I'll do so! Google Schrocks Heritage Furniture for details. Ask for Jimmy. 330-893-2242. For about $800-900 you cannot go wrong!

https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/eJAm42E3Jest

https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/ooiaSFCtvQyQ

https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/7QXhsGfndPPu

Sorry I had to send 3 separate links to pictures. One is THE chair, another a view from behind the chair looking toward the speakers, and another from between the speakers looking toward the listening position. I hope this gives a good visual

@classicalpiano 

I looks like you have a beautiful system, but between those two huge puffy sofas on either side and the glass and steel table in front of your listening chair, there must be some strange absorption and reflection going on.

@ DeKay 😁! Here's my chair and I've nodded off a few times  :)                 713wv0Vw4FL.__AC_SX300_SY300_QL70_ML2_.jpg (177×300) (media-amazon.com)

@mewsickbuff 

Is that some type of barber’s chair?

@roxy54 it is indeed, height adjustable, (my speakers are fairly tall), reclines, has a small headrest and a foot rest. Quite comfy. 

I use BACCH4MAC 3D (theoretica.us) software and when Edgar was doing remote training sessions going over software setup and how to use the various modules he kept mentioning that my home-theater styled powered recliner wasn’t ideal due to the fact that the big bulky headrest reflects unwanted sound to the pinnae of the ear. I was concerned with getting a chair without neck and head support that would leave my fatigued after long listening sessions. I also wanted it to swivel so I can adjust my position where needed when doing custom 3D XTC ear based filters based on measurements which includes off axis head-tracking related measurements by swiveling to the far left or right easily. I settled on the Lucy Swivel Chair and I absolutely love this chair. It’s a very well made and comfortable chair. It’s available in burnt orange or black genuine top grain Italian leather. I paid $1200 it lists for $1599 😉

https://www.zurifurniture.com/common/images/products/large/lucy_orange_lifestyle_ID_259_plp_1.jpg