Your favorite Small Apartment Speakers


  1. I view this as sort of a companion thread to the “Best Small Speakers At any Price” thread.

Lets hear what you’ve used and loved!

Thanks in advance.
gochurchgo

Gochurchgo wrote:  "I guess I’m assuming floor standing speakers will project bass through the floor to the neighbor below. I’ve been operating on the presumption that stand mount is the imperative."

Bass can be transmitted by two mechanisms:  Airborne vibrations and mechanical vibrations.  The latter can be largely prevented by placing the speakers on de-coupling devices or pads, such as the Auralex SubDude.  The only way to prevent airborne vibrations is to not generate them in the first place.

Gochurch again:  "I just don't want to (and probably cannot) run a sub in apartment life."

One imo worthwhile advantage of running a sub is the adjustability.  You don't have to run it at full power (relative to the main speakers).  You can turn it down or turn it off.  And with two subs and a phase control you can increase the sense of envelopment while not adding a whole lot of bass energy (I can describe how if you would like).  Again, use something like the Auralex SubDude underneath the sub(s) to largely eliminate structure-borne mechanical vibrations.

Gochurchgo:  "I try to use Napalm Death (the band) as a guide as its crazy heavy and super fast.  If the speaker can render all the layers and keep the speed, it will probably work."

This makes me think you might want to consider fairly narrow-dispersion speakers.  Here's why:   Reflections in the room, and in particular the earliest reflections, constitute a "noise floor" which partially masks and therefore degrades the clarity of subsequent sounds.  Speakers that put less energy into the reflections for a given sound pressure level at the listening position will have a lower in-room noise floor and therefore better clarity, all else being equal.  Not saying that ALL reflections are bad; just that for very fast and complex music in a smallish space, we might want to be closer to that end of the spectrum.

Go, church.  Go!

Duke

speaker designer dude guy

gochurchgo

Full disclosure, I am a speaker manufacturer. I rarely post but thought this option might make sense for you.

Have you considered a DSP controlled speaker system? We are launching a stand mounted monitor that is DSP controlled. There are others on the market as well. A well engineered speaker system that is DSP controlled and with advanced room correction can address many room issues, which is what many of us are sensing when we are dissatisfied with an audio system. If the speakers are designed to be DSP controlled you will get a very dynamic presentation, not only the bass but also in the mid frequency region. A great solution for fast, dense and intricate music. Mix in high output, low distortion drivers and you can play all music.

You can use subs for now and if you move you can dial them down through the DSP system. Most good quality DSP controlled speaker systems have multiple presets so you can rock the house when your neighbors are away and change settings on the fly that limits the low bass. 
AudioNote UK AN speaker line are very nice in a smaller room because they work best in a corner, so you do not need the speakers way out in the room with you to sound their best. I'd also second the ProAc smaller speakers.

But really stand mount or floor stander is not going to be any different so a smaller set of floor standers wound work too.
 As Duke already mentioned.
@OP,
Yes, I think the Gaia should help with unwanted bass frequencies migrating to other apartments.
FWIW, I hope to be trying some Townshend isolation products with my system. I just need to get some time to play...
And, as an aside,
I live in a single family home about 100 years old. My main system is on the first floor.
If I go to the basement, I hardly hear anything. If I go upstairs, there is also not much I can hear- unless I really crank it up.
Bob
@audiokinesis 
Interesting. I will reaearch further. One speaker I heard that I liked was the Spatial M5. I had ruled it out as a floor stander. 

@arion  
Absolutely not opposed to DSP. I have zero experience with it but if there's a step by step I should be able to get it to work. I don't frankly care how accurate or linear a speaker is, all of them are to some extent in the higher dollar brackets. I just want something that sounds good. I like my Focals, but I feel like I can do better. My only reservations about DSP is that it typically adds a substantial cost. I was, for a while, looking into miniDSP or something of the sort.

@gdnrbob Thanks, I will look more into that. I want to be a good enighbor, even when I'm being a bad neighbor haha