Quads 57 -

Full disclosure. I am a personal friend of Wayne Picquet.

While there are many fine speaker mentioned in this thread none of them are in the same league as the Quad. The Quad is a legend and for good reason.

Things have changed with the Quad since it was first produced. Wayne rebuilds them to higher tolerances than originally delivered from the factory. Additionally, all speakers are equipped with protection boards. Between the two you essentially have a bullet-proof speaker that cannot be arced or damaged. With the protection circuits one may use ANY amplifier they like.

We often hear about the the lack of dynamics, bass, etc. from the Quad. Generally poor set-up and small amplifiers. With modern protection circuitry one can use power amps in the 60-100 watt range and this makes a HUGE difference in terms of bass slam and dynamics. If one has never heard a Quad with a large, muscular power amp they have really not heard what the Quad can do.

I am a bit surprised that the Quad ESL63 was not mentioned as an alternative. It will do better in terms of bass and dynamics than the original.

Your room is small but either Quad will perform well if you pay careful attention to set-up. I have installed many Quads in rooms of this size with excellent results.

I have owned original Quads since 1982. Many other speakers have come-and-gone over the decades in my listening room. Most of them were great, some stellar. The Quad remains.

Who purchases Quads? At least 50% of my sales are to former Quad owners. They owned them, they weren't 'perfect', and they moved on to something else. In some cases after chasing their tale for decades they return to Quads because, overall, they are hard to beat. In the critical midrange is has few peers.

Generally when one purchases a Quad they have purchased their last loudspeaker.

Set-up will be tough but can be done. While the speaker is technically a dipole the rear wave is well damped internally. From say 500Hz up there is little output from the rear. Some but not much. More of a dipole in the lower region.

I have local client with a pair of ESL63 in a room that is about 8'X 13'. I stated right up front I did not think the match be would good but since she was local I said lets give a try. The sound is amazing in the room. Nearfield yes, but the speaker sounds best in nearfield anyway. Once they were installed I was told they were not leaving!

Will set-up in that kind of room be ideal? No. But few of us are lucky to have ideal rooms or set-ups. Of course I am biased but I would take a Quad, in most situations, that is in a less than an ideal room than speaker X in the ideal room. They were designed for smallish British living rooms in mind. I see no reason to reject them outright just because the room is smaller than might be ideal.

If HP could shoehorn the IRS in his bedroom size room back in the day and proclaim it Valhalla I think one can fit the Quad in a small room with good results. Being a smart a** here but I think you get the point!