you wrote " my room.." That might be the problem right there. It is "your" room, and yet your wife has a say? My suggestion would be to solve the speaker problem by dealing with the room issue. A room of your own! I mean, not one that you make claims for, but one that you have claims to. If you and your wife agree about this, then much of the other problem will be resolved. If what you are really struggling with is a desire to share "your" passion for music and movies with your wife, then your conversation begins not here, but there with her.If You wish her to share your passion for anything and she does not, then it is control issue and it is your problem- i.e. there is no happy face on this button.
Can you help or do I have to get divorced?
Size and Placement does matter do to a misunderstood wife. I can't have speakers on stands, I can't have floorstanding speakers, and in-wall speakers are too permanent. What in the hell am I suppost to do? My room is 17' X 14' and I'm looking for speakers that will be used for music listening and eventually home theater listening. (when I can afford to complete the system). I want to find a good pair of speakers and amp that I can eventually build a good home theater system with. I need to stay below $1,000 for speakers. Any advice?
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O2Pete thanks,I am glad you see it that way.The worse part when you try to find onother partner,most of the women,I corresponded they are not even half of my late wife in terms of kindness,understanding,this are the women who will divorce you in a second,and geta goodlawyer. Next thing you know,they are getting half of your fortune,maybe even asking one of your monoblock amp, one speaker,one cable.I have a feeling, I will never get marry again.Sacry.... |
Jayctoy -- I'm sorry to hear about your losing your wife, and I'm sure I'm not the only one on this forum who feels that way. While I don't know either you or your late wife aside from what you say here, I'm sure you wouldn't have posted your message unless you and she cared for each other a great deal. The loss of any family member is not easy, but to lose your partner in life is hard indeed. Such a loss puts our audiophile hobby, interesting and satisfying though it can be, into clearer perspective, and I think you're doing us all a favor by pointing that out. Anybody having a disagreement with his wife over things like what kind of speaker to put in the living room should find a way to work it out, even if she's being very unreasonable. You never know how long you will have to live together, and getting along with your wife is more important than getting your way about speakers. |
Baddabob, that was the solution I had in my first apartment after getting married. The speakers sat close to the rack against a side wall where they were fine as background music, but I could rearrange the room in two minutes and have great sound. It's a simple solution that easily satisfies both parties involved-- The room is arranged the way she wants it, and I get the music in the room I want it in. |
The speakers do not have to be out from the wall all the time do they? I imagine this would only apply during those times when you are in your 'happy hour' and doing critical listening. Would she be happy if you left the speakers against the walls most of the time but just pulled them out when you wanted to enjoy them at their best? If she is not happy with that compromise, then maybe the problem is bigger than the speaker issue. Also for the cut-up who recommended getawife.com - just for the heck of it I tried that site and it automatically re-directs you to a site that features pictures of nude teenage girls. Actually kind of sad. |
This hobby seems to be a problem with some married guys. Would it be better if he came home late, smelling like smoke, beer or women's perfume instead of buying a lousy set of speakers for the living room ?? "Let the poor guy be his happy self for God's sake" (my wife's quote after reading this thread) I told her before we got married this is my hobby, love me or leave me, we're still married. Jmcgrogan2, I like your analogy, you'd make a good counselor !! |
As in many things, it's all in the presentation. You need to resort to the old bait and switch, my boy! Show her photos (and price tag) for a set of Avant Garde Trios. Then, with that "threat" still hanging in the air, propose a pair of ... oh, say, ProAc 1's. (Or insert your favorite monitor with high quality wood finish detail here.) They'll seem downright reasonable by comparison. Heck, she'll probably fall all over herself helping you buy them. Yeah, yeah, that's the ticket ... LEGAL CAUTION: The above advice is offered for entertainment value only and should not be relied upon. Should your significant other not react as predicteed and instead brain you with one of your fairway woods, it's not my fault. Really. Some restrictions apply. Past returns are not guarantees of future results. Your mileage may vary. Happy Listening. |
Darn, I didn't notice the original post was from '02. My sympathies and best wishes to [email protected] . |
This thread started 4 years ago. I think it's a mute point at this time. john1in2, boy does that sound like the same old song. Two reasons why most marriages end in divorce: 1) The woman goes into the marriage believing she can change the man. 2) The man goes into the marraige believing the woman will not change. |
I had the same problem in my kitchen. I ended up with B&W 302's on shelf brackets held on with double-stick tape.Never fallen or been a problem. I think any smaller front ported speaker should do fine. Bigger speakers would just need bigger brackets.This way of mounting is better than drilling holes in the rear of the speaker,as some bracketry calls for.By the way,I paired the 302's with a Bryston B60 and a sony sacd player.My wife loves the sound and is thrilled with the speakers off the floor. |
Hey, this exact same thing happened to me. ....let me tell you the story. I thought I was pretty savvy, when I asked her to marry me I made her vow that I got to keep the audio hobby and I get to keep buying equipment, she was of course so happy she said "yes" and did so with a big smile on her face. When she made me sell my house and buy a bigger one for "us" she promised that I could have my own audio room, again no problem we both were happy about the deal. But there was no spendng money on audio stuff, I actually got yelled at for joinng BMG for those 7 "free" CDs. When she got a big entertainment center for the family room I wanted audio and so she gave me dimensions for the acceptable sized speakers. Oh yeah! A little lookng and Sonus Faber Concertina's fit easily in the dimensions so I got them. They looked big, so she recanted. But I pulled out the tape measure. She admitted they were in the size limt and next bought stuff to hide them- plants and clocks etc....... all appeared good.... ....time passes... Then she kept getting mad when I go into the dedicated room no more than 1 time per week to listen to music as I am "avoiding" her. I cannot listen to a full CD when she comes in and starts complaining about why I'm not hanging out with her. She also gets mad when we both watch TV and I try to speak, as it does not allow her to follow the plot of the reality TV junk on the screen; also when a movie is playing and you want actual surround sound with LFE. "its too loud." I am trying to be nice so let it go. Eventually... ...divorce in progress. You seem like a nice guy, but make your stand now and find out what you are in for. Been there dude. Not fun. |
I had to send off to Australia to find an audiophile wife. I think one of these guys got the last American one. I insisted on the prenup just in case. Seriously though, if you can find a pair of Paradigm Studio 20's via Audiogon or Ebay, they are a fantastic bang for the buck. Expect a used cost of approximately $350-450 depending upon wether they are version 1 or 2. |
What about B&W 602 bookshelf speakers, at roughly $600 per pair? I don't own them, but have heard them in a dealer's audition room, and they sounded very clean and detailed. They have a reputation for sounding bright initially, but neutral once they're broken in. At a lower price, what about KEF Cresta 2 speakers, or PSB Alphas? I think our friend is looking for some advice on equipment, not chest-thumping riffs impugning his masculinity unless he chooses confrontation over accomodation. Maybe a few of you have career ambitions to become the underwriters for the college tuition payments of some domestic relations lawyer's offspring, but I think he's just looking to buy some good-sounding speakers he and his wife can both live with. |
Yup I can help you, take her with you when you go audition speakers. That way she has input on the right color speaker for the room or you can get those lil Bose cubes(HT in the box)and hide them. To all the single men reading this post -take a lesson, this is why you need complete your system before marriage or you end up with a Bose--Ht in the box system. |
Believe me guys I will get what I want. The main reason I posted this thread was to find out if there were any good sounding speakers that didn't have to be on stands and weren't huge. Afterall the room I'm furnishing isn't large to begin with. Because I'm not truely knowledgeable about speakers and don't have many high-end audio stores in the area to audition them, I thought it would be wise to ask audio-nuts who have listened to all the speakers out there to get an idea what I should look for. Maybe I did a poor job of wording the question. But you know what, It was fun reading the responses you guys had. True audio freaks. I'm leaning towards a smaller stand mount speaker. Beleive me when I say, my wife is as cool as it gets. She is not a control freak, just concerned about the looks of the family room. Afterall the Klipsch speakers were pretty ugly, even I'll admit to that. Someday when we have a big enough house, I'll have my own room of kick ass audio/video gear. Thanks for all your responses, it's time to pick on someone else. |
Tommyt, you have to draw a line in the sand. You said it yourself, you're trying to be to nice. When you give in on this issue, there will be another that you will need to cave in on next. Women are like children, always testing boundaries. Whether the woman or the man rules the roost, is up to the participants. I'm not a marriage counselor, obviously, but if I were a real audiophile (which I am) and my wife told me no speaker stands or floorstanding models, I'd have to stuff her port. I gave up drugs, alcohol, smoking, and sex for my wife, I'll be d@mned if I give up the only thing I have left that gives me pleasure. My recommendation would be divorce, cut your losses before they get bigger. Hopefully there are no children involved yet. |
Tommyt: I am with Asa on this one. Who wears the pants in the family, you or her??? I'm not trying to tell you what to do and so forth. All I am making here is a suggestion. And that suggestion would be to go ahead and divorce the wifey and then get yourself a girlfriend who is as much into audio equipment and music as you are. If you do that, believe brother........... you won't be sorry. Hang tough man, you'll be alright. --Charles-- |
Get what you want and say, "Get over it." She will. I would have serious questions about a relationship in which one of the parties could not understand or would not accede to something as important as music. This isn't a matter of tolerating the disease of audiophilia. It is about honoring and respecting things that are important in each other's lives. Any time I hear someone say (speaking of SAF), "I can't have" or "she won't let me have" I start to worry. Healthy relationships are grounded in "I would prefer" or "have you thought about?", not in "you can't have!" In the days before your prelate discovered the ineffable joys of celibacy, he was married to a remarkable woman of many virtues. She had, alas, a tendency to say, "You can't have." Unfortuantely for her, I was just as adamant and built my sound system, anyway. I made sure I was as responsive to her interests (horses) as she was to mine. We had some rounders for sure as both of us struggled for dominance and control but in the end I learned to love horses and she learned to love good audio. IF you are behaving reasonably in the matter of money, etc. then stand your ground and tell her, gently and supportively, that she'll just have to adjust. And then give back to her the same kind of support for the things important in her life. Will |
TommyT - the Spendor S3/5s would work great. Small and beautifully finished. Sound their best on stands but can be used in a bookcase without killing the sound. Very natural; terrific mid-range. Lack low base if that's important, but given your constraints compromise is necessary. Come in a number of finishes - why not let the wife pick the one she likes, might help. P.S. There's a pair in rosewood being offered in the classifed for $699 obo. |
I'm a golf nut (9 handicap and don't care to work day in and day out to get any lower), a hockey nut, and an audio nut. Anyway, you're jammed so I'd go along with the B&W LM1's or the Gallo speakers. Wall mounted, small, unobtrusive. I own both, the LM1's reside in my bedroom and bathroom, the Gallo's in my HT system. Run your wires through the walls/ceilings or along the baseboards. They come in designer colors and are damned small. Both would benefit from a subwoofer, the Gallo MPS150 subwoofer is small and does a nice job (you can tuck it under a chair or couch easily). I'd go for a pair of LM1's and a MPS150 and once she chills out you can use'em for a dedicated HT while you roll in big-ass planars for your two channel rig. |
The Linn speakers are an excellent suggestion and are in your budget range. As mentioned, many of those Linns such as the Tukan were designed to be placed against the rear wall. Stereophile had a great review on the Tukan a few years back. In my case, I took my wife to a Hi-Fi show so she could see quite a few different manufacturers lines. Budget wise I wanted Martin Logan SL-3's at the time....they were NOT ACCEPTABLE visually but when she saw the Avalons.......I blew my budget but I got the Avalons I always wanted and I can put them anywhere in the living room I like!! Good luck with your dilema ! |
What a shame - I thought we had a celebrity in our midst. Tommy Tolles has such a nice game! (I'm sure you do too - I'm a double bogey guy myself). I wonder what TT listens to? Seriously, after you've sorted out your fronts, try a pair of Mission 77ds for rears (white, of course). Wifes love these because they are triangular in shape and blend right into the ceiling when mounted in the corners. They are dipoles and produce amazing "I'm right there" surround effects for HT. You can pick up a new pair on Ebay or the dreaded Ubid for well under $200 which makes them a steal! |
I'm a golf professional so I can relate to the golf-nut stuff and I'm only in the beginning stage of being an audio-nut. I will put speakers on stands if it comes down to it but I'm at least trying to compromise by going to smaller speakers. Can you imagine what my wife will be going through being married to a golf and audio-nut. She may divorce me. |
How are you planning on using a speaker like the Spendors? Your original post suggested that you couldn't put them on stands and seemed to imply that you had very little flexibility on placement. They're great little speakers, from all reports, but I can't imagine they're going to sound good stuck on a bookshelf. They're hard to find and I don't know that they'd sound good for HT, but the Linn Kan Mk II's are designed to at least be put close to a wall if not actually on a bookshelf. They're very musical and very small. They usually run about $450-500 a pair used, so you could get 4 for your target price. We're not giving you marriage advice, we're giving you audio-nut advice. It's a lot like golf-nut advice - if you want to pursue it with any real vigor, you're going to have to put up with a lot of potential friction with your significant other. Might as well brace yourself for it, but don't let it ruin your fun. -Kirk |
I don't need a marriage counselor, just some advice on speakers. I've seen excellent reviews on compact speakers such as Spendor S3/5's and Soliloquy Sat 5's. What I need is confirmation and some suggestions on other speakers in that category. What I intend to do is purchase a couple pair along with a sub and center speaker. |
I've heard that women don't respect men who don't keep their word and have terms. My guess is that she was testing you the whole time when you lived together and when you married and gave your speakers to you brother you failed the test. I'd call up my brother and explain to him that what your marriage needs is your speakers back where they belong along with your balls. I wouldn't worry about what the speakers look like instead of how your being consistant and reliable as a husband. Oh, about the question... I don't know much about speakers either. Bill E. |
A couple of years ago somebody introduced some speakers that were basically planars with a small cone speaker that were covered with famous art and were made to be hung on walls. They were claimed to sound pretty decent, but that was just by the show reports and new products sections of magazines so who knows. Anyway, probably the highest WAF speaker I've ever seen. I'm sure your divorce alternative is tongue in cheek, but unless you're a kept man, you should adopt a slightly more demanding attitude. That's a long list of "can'ts" - there has to be some reasonable compromise somewhere that you can have a decent setup without so many constraints. Maybe you have other priorities where you put your foot down and just can't have everything, but if music is anywhere near the top of your priority list, you need to tighten your belt and set some better ground rules for the "negotiations". -Kirk |
Harvey Rosenberg(aka Dr. Gizmo) says that the answer is to find something that she likes - he uses high heel shoes as an example - and buy some for her. She will then focus on her new objet d'amour for awhile. Monitor this time period and log it for reference. The next time you buy her some shoes, slip the new speakers into the living room while she is distracted. As long as she remains in her state of shoe ecstacy, she won't notice. When the enthrallment begins to wear off, buy her some more shoes. This way, her ability to notice the new speakers can be pemanently removed. |
