Size matters...need smaller speakers


It pains me to write this but alas I have finally accepted the fact that I am never going to have my own large listening room (not with real estate prices the way they are here in SoCal). The best I can hope for is my current corner of the living room or my yet to be built loft or a small den. For those of you who have read some of my posts, you know I love my Usher BE-10 speakers. They are some of the most accurate and transparent speakers I have heard. The problem is that I think they are just too big for the space I have alloted them. In the past year, I have complained a lot about my soundstaging issues (too low, too narrow). I know I can use room treatments but this is not possible in my living room and even with them, I still feel that my speakers are too darn big. I tried different toe in angles, pulling them out as far as I could, moving them away from side walls, etc. There is simply not enough room for them to breathe. Will monitors work better in smaller spaces, especially with regard to imaging and soundstaging? I think perhaps monitors with a sub could be the right way for me to go given my domestic situation.

Anyway, I do not know much about monitors and would appreciate a starting point. I prefer my speakers to be as accurate and transparent as possible. I prefer a dynamic sound that is true to the upstream components. Price does not really matter but I guess for monitors I would hope to spend less than $10K. One option is the new Usher "tiny dancer" monitor. Another is the Focal BE series. Are there others I should look that fit my preferences?

Thanks in advance.
128x128tboooe
Another Dynaudio "homer" here. I second the suggestion of Dynaudio Confidence C1's. A smallish bookshelf with a big, smooth sound.

Another suggestion, is the Verity Parsifal Encore, a floorstander with a very small footprint. Can be had used on the Gon for around $6 to $7K with flight cases.
Tbooe
You might want to check out Tonian Acoustics
They have a speaker for most designs

I have his monitor which is astonishly good and would be ideal for the room you're considering
I too have a small room 13x17 with a pair of VR5SE speakers
I really don't play music that loud, however I had the same thoughts about not getting the most out of these speakers due to room size. I will audition a pair of the german built Ascendo C8's to do a comparison betweent the two speakers, beginning next week. I heard these beautifully built speakers at RMAF and they sounded very good, my VR5SE's are a truly magnificent pair of speakers however I just don't know if I am doing them justice by using them in such a small room. However I will have a better idea after about a couple of weeks
Mitch, your findings would be of great interest to me. If you dont mind, please post your thoughts after your audition. I will be on the audition path as well. The hard part is that I hate auditioning speakers! There are just so many to choose from. I want to stick with speakers that use beryllium or diamond tweeters. Right now I am going to try and listen to the follow monitors:

Focal
Dynaudio
Marten Alto (thanks Stan!)
Usher