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Do any speakers image/sound-stage close to walls?

I'm about to spend a huge amount of $$ on full-range speakers, but realise from all the published acoustical data and conventional wisdom, that the laws of physics are absolute. So, in a 17 X 23 X 15ft ceilinged room, when I have to place the speakers no more than 12" from the front (short) wall, 2 ft from the side walls (for WAF and furniture and structural reasons - dont ask,) am I blowing my money? The source, preamp, amps are all superb - but what do I do about finding speakers to match? Sure, I could buy a superb $19K SP Tech Revelation or Zu Definition or Coincident Total Reference, but what about the sound-staging and imaging? Surely I'm not the only person with this dilemma, yet there are so few posts on A'gon regarding this issue, that I wonder whether the problem is exaggerated in my mind or is it just that most A'goners are smarter than I and designed their wives' furniture choices better?:) Room treatments dont help much, or do they? Is there any solution, other than moving the whole sytem to a wifeless room? Please dont ask why these space restrictions apply - believe me, they do, and the interior decorating details are not relevant here.
System: EMM CDSD, DCC2, Sota Cosmos IV, Ear 324 Phono Preamp, Atma-Sphere MP-1, Atma-Sphere MA 2.2, PAD Dominus S/C, etc.
springbok10

Showing 1 response by onhwy61

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onhwy61
5,137 posts
 
I think you'll be able to get very high quality sound from any of the speakers you've mentioned even with the space constraints you're facing. Unfortunately, I really doubt you'll be able to hear your system at its best because of those constraints. The difference can be relatively small, but it can make a large subjective difference in bringing the magic of the music into your room. I believe that matching the speaker to the acoustic environment is the most important element in gaining great sound. You're probably not going to be able to do this with any of the speakers you propose. You'll still be able to get quite good sound quality anyway.

It really would help with your series of post if you provided a number of pictures of your room.
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