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Speakers for a unique small room

So I have been going about speakers all wrong.  I am used to having a large listening room, but due to a divorce i am in a house that is pretty small.  I will be buying a new house in July but I need some good speakers for a small room now and hope maybe they will blow me away for when I get a dedicated room. 

So first here are some specifics the size of the area where I listen.  The room is 10 feet (3.1 meters) x 14 feet (4.3 meters) and the listening position from a speakers which front is 3 feet (1 meter) off the wall is 8 feet (2.4 meters).  The 14 foot wall has a large window, behind the listening area are stairs going up to the 2nd floor and their is no right wall as it is open to other parts of the house.  Here are some pics to put things into perspective:

 

So right now I am running a NAD M12 and M23 as well as an SVS 3000 Micro, My speakers are PSB Imagine X2T an 8 feet is just WAY to close.  I want something that if I am sitting 8 feet away from sound amazing!  I cant listen anything fatiguing, I am looking for a bookshelf.  I also would like something that would be amazing when I have a dedicated room as well.  I have tried the LS50 Meta, still have them but thought they were mediocre at best.  

So I am hoping I can get two pieces of advice, great speakers for a small listening space.  Harbeth P3ESR XD's are the only speakers I have seen that can be great in small spaces.    I want something that will be great and I have a budget of $2500 with a little wiggle room.  Would love as wide of a sound stage as i can in a small room, No Klipsch and no Focal please.  Great speakers but just way too fatiguing to me.  

I listen to a lot of Jazz and Classical the rest is filled with Grunge, Punk, and Classic rock but Jazz and Classical are my priority.  

Based on the pictures if anyone sees any opportunities for treatments in any way please call them out and I will get them.   

 

128x128justinrphillips
reven6e
44 posts
 

On second thought - would you have the opportunity to audition some Quads, say the S2 or the Z1?

And another observation. If you want soundstage you should clear the space between the speakers. Get the rack under the window. Or keep the rack and TV where they are, move the speakers on the short wall. The TV between speakers is a very bad idea if you seek soundstage.

I assume you are using the soundbar for TV duty so there is no need to have the speakers next to it. 

pabs85
53 posts
 

I would consider the British speaker sound, all non-fatiguing and there will be options new or used in your price range. Those include the Spendor Classic Series (4/5, 3/1, 2/3) and A series (A1) bookshelf models, also Audio Note UK have a bookshelf (AX One, AX Two, AN K).

ddd1
261 posts
 

You have room problems and you can change the speakers all you want and spend crazy money on upgrading (or crazy money on downgrading) but it will all be a waste unless you can fix the room first.

Speakers should be put where the left and right speakers "see" the same environment around them. ie. you cannot have one speaker in a corner and one out in the open and expect them to sound right. Fix that first. Both speakers with a rear wall behind them and a sidewall beside them. Or both out in the open with no walls nearby.

Agree with some other comments about TV reflective, etc. but also keep the stuffed chair well away from the speaker's output to the listening position.  Stuffed chair on RHS and none on LHS gives you another symmetry issue.

 

burtlake
42 posts
 

Agree with the suggestion to flip your setup 90 degrees; would also give some space behind your listening position.  I just set up a small room and considered many of the above suggestions - went with Omega CAMs and a 24W EL34 integrated and an SVS sub.  Very happy with this setup. Speakers are 95db efficient so I have the option going with a lower power SET in the future.  Haven’t heard ARC lately but for me, lower power tubes are the way to go in smaller spaces.  

pennfootball71's avatar
pennfootball71
244 posts
 

Amphion speakers are specifically designed for small rooms in Scandinavian apartments. Argon 1 I use in my kitchen only like 8-10” from the wall.

They sound amazing and will destroy the psb

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