Very small room systems and synergy


I have been trying for 20 years to put together a system for a very small (10' x 12") listening room and still haven't gotten it right.  I am currently using KEF LS50's with a NuPrime IDA8 integrated with moderate success.  I realize I really don't like metal dome tweeters and I've been drawn to class D amps.  This is probably due to my budget constraints of $2000 - $2500.  Does anyone have any input for me on this?
gmc56
I have ls50s ( with sub) in one smaller room and larger (12") Ohm Walsh in the adjacent larger room running off same setup including Bel Canto ref1000m Class D amps and Audio Research tube pre-amp.

Love them both but big difference in sound. The tweets are no doubt quite different. Ohms are soft dome warmer and more laid back. Ls50s have very Crisp yet clean dynamic attack . Both are very coherent which matters a lot for me and sound of each is dimensional in their own way. Room layouts are way different.

Upstairs I have smaller 8" Walsh speakers with Bel Canto c5i digital integrated in family room open to adjacent kitchen, another good sized room. This system is the most easy on the ears of all.

I have a pair of powered Vanatoo Transparent 1 encores coming this week for my wife’s sunroom. Heard these at shows and was very impressed. Looking forward to hearing them on my turf.

Like Totem Arrow, micro Walsh does bass very well for its size. They are smaller than either of my Walsh speakers with drivers about the size of a CD . Prices have gone up in recent years but the one thing Ohms will do that most others cannot is the huge sweet spot, pretty much anywhere in the room.

Sound is like ice cream....many tasty flavors.

I have had the same problem and ended up using active monitors (Genelec Ones) for a couple of years.

There was simply no high end proposition on the market to give me the sound quality without the overkill power.

Recently, when I heard that Wilson Audio were finally releasing something small, I knew this could be the ticket. Had the Duettes before but they were too big, both physically and SPL-wise, for my room.

The TuneTots are the ticket. I know there are a lot of haters. I know people mock their value proposition and I am not going to go there. I acknowledge and respect their point of view.

But the Tots deliver the goods in my small room, better that anything else I have tried before and I have had many speakers, small and large.

They are very limited in what they can do, agreed, but what they deliver is a mature, high end, refined sound that will not require a pile of foam on walls, Dirac and all that other modern voodoo (I really don't like Dirac. Let me say this again: I really don't like Dirac for stereo reproduction!)

I know they are way over budget but for me the quest is over. Connected to a Pass Int-250 they sing like no other in my small, challenged space.

To return to your budget, Genelec Ones have worked reasonably well for me. They are the LS50 Wireless with less box coloration, no annoying metallic tweeter (I demoed it for exactly three days hoping that that tweeter would "burn in" but it didn't so I sent them back), a better frequency response (they are three way speakers) and quite a smooth sound. Probably 8341 would do slightly better than the 8331.

Still over your budget but you can probably try the SH market.  
I have the same room size (though I removed the closet door) and the same speakers and Class D Peachtreee Nova 150 integrated. I also keep the room entrance door open. My system sounds 100% better after adding the following GIK Acoustics room treatments. They cost $700 in total.

https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/7605

GIK will work with you over the phone to recommend treatment options. You can use something like photos or Facetime to show them the room.

BTW - I am going to put a bigger speaker into this room soon because the acoustic treatments now allow me to do this. I will not use any digital signal processing to help out.
+1 on the acoustical treatments.

I also like the TuneTots but are definitely out of your budget.