Speakers least affected by room acoustics

Headphones are not vulnerable to acoustic waves but they are vulnerable to RF interference. The headphones per se and the cables and the electronics.

Gradient

Generally, horn, ESL and line sources. All of them control dispersion vertically. 

But still, room acoustics matter. A combination of tight dispersion control plus good room acoustic choices where you can control it is the best choice.

Reach out to GIK acoustics for attractive affordable solutions and good advice. 

Best,


Erik 

This thread is really on the right track. Dipole speakers are the natural solution to your space and acoustics problems.

I was going to recommend Magnepan (I have a pair and love them), but the Spatials are much more compact and probably have a higher WAF.

Emerald Physics and Spatial both come from the same heritage, but it's my understanding that the originator of both now owns and runs Spatial. I notice, however, that Walter also strives to improve the Emeralds and they get good notices at audio shows.

Still, I personally like the looks of the Spatials better, I like that they're passive and don't inject digital signal processing into the signal path, and have a 60-day return period and generous 20-year warranty.

If you decide on Emerald and Underwood Wally, find out their current return policy. When I was in contact with them a few years ago, there was none: once you bought it, you kept it or sold it yourself.

I have a really bad room acoustically speaking.  17 × 15  x 9 with a tin ceiling , speakers must be on the long wall because the sofa has to be on the opposite long wall.  This is because there is a door in the middle of the wall the speakers are on. 

There is also a door and window on each short wall,  2 more large 6' tall x 3' windows on the back wall...  its a tough room

I have owned about 10 pairs of speakers in this house, some sounded pretty good, some not so good.  Large speakers that go deep do worse in this room as opposed to small monitors with a sub.   The room has a nasty room mode that is centered around 40 Hz ...  This was easy to tame with monitors and sub along witha Velodyne SMS 1 to eq the peak.    

Although I never buy on impulse,  I did when I went to listen to a pair of Klipsch Heresy.   I sat down , listened to a bunch of material with the same amp i own and ordered a pair on the spot.  They checked off all the boxes for me, easy to drive with my EL34 amp, compact, 3 way,  sealed and can go close to the wall, dynamic and can rock out when necessary. 

Most importantly they drop off well above the room mode.  I run them full range with the subs x over set low .  My last speaker was the Revel m106 so its quite a departure , and as great as they were for a little speaker, they always sounded like a little speaker.   They just could not pull off a realistic bass guitar or lower piano registers like the Heresy can with the help of a sub of course.  

I think the Heresy's short stature and risers that angle them up slightly really help them work so well in a bad room.