Seek non-ported speakers - $700 to $1500 To stop the port-itis in my room!


I have a smallish room 12x12 that has an unusual ceiling.  I've used several highly regarded speakers in the space and the real ported ones are the biggest problem.  I tried KEF ls50's and wanted to love them but the lower-end was too puffy sounding.  Front ported speakers do have less of a "port-itis" issue.  I found a used pair of polk lsi9's and they sound very good in my room but not great.  I'm looking for ideas for non-ported or ported speakers that are less problematic.  Range $700-$1500.  Thanks for your input audio brothers!  Drumbe the retired drummer.
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Drumbe, I also have a small room and found the LS50's kinda wooly and bloated in the bass as well. I now have ProAc Tablette 10's which are sealed and sound great in a small room. Nice tight bass and great imaging. You will need a sub (get a small sealed one) if you want to add deep bass though. You might be able to find a pair used in your price range.
Your problem drumbe is not your speakers, its your room. In a room 12x12 the first mode is at 47Hz (speed of sound 1130 ft/s divided by two times 12 = 47), second mode is 94Hz and so on. 47 and especially 94 are right in the area of the bass hump designed into most speakers regardless of design. Even worse since your room is 12x12 then you have the same modes both directions- double the trouble. (Please don't tell me the ceiling is around 12 feet too..... !)

The good news is there is a solution: bass traps. The bad news is figuring out exactly what to do calls for a little math and creative thinking. To be effective the trap dimensions and placement are determined by the frequency and room. Bass traps go in corners where walls meet, or walls meet ceiling, or both, and need to be bigger (thicker) to get lower in frequency. Beyond that you just need to figure it out for yourself. Not that hard but it does take a bit of like I said math and creativity. Oh, and a browser!

Or you can keep throwing money and speakers at a problem that has nothing to do with either. Bass traps are mostly fiberblass or foam which is dirt cheap compared to speakers. DIY! Otherwise if you stick with trying different speakers all you're really doing is trying to find one that's lean or even has a suck-out at those problematic frequencies. Which, again, has nothing to do with speaker design. Its the room.


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