Ok, thanks all for the suggestions. Here's an update, and I hope you're still with me. I described this bedroom/listening room. It is about 12x15 with a 10' ceiling. The south (12') wall has a Yamaha electronic piano. Also on this wall is my turntable and other components. The head of the bed is against the north (12') wall. The bed is 34' high (storage underneath). At the foot of the bed, about 6' from the south wall, is a chest of drawers (33' high). I began this thread asking what floor standing speakers I might use on either side of the piano and close to the south wall. I appreciate the suggestions for the Ohm, and have talked with the fellow there, who suggests the tall 1000. That's well within my budget. My concern is with the sound stage of the omnidirectional speaker. I understand that I can return the Ohm's if they don't work for me, but I want to avoid doing that if I can. I am generally concerned that even with a good-sized floor speaker, the sound, especially the higher frequencies, will be coming from well below my head when I am sitting on the bed. So ... it has occurred to me that I might put two good bookshelf speakers on the chest of drawers, facing the head of the bed, on low stands that would raise them the a few inches to the ideal height. The could be about 5' apart, and 6' from the south wall. The would also be about 7' from my head. Of course, that would require that I run speaker cable to the from the south wall, along the east wall, along the north wall to the bed, then under the mattress to the speakers (probably 25 to 30' in all). However, in terms of speaker placement, this seems promising. What do you who know much more than I think? And, if you think this would be better than anything I can do on the south wall, what specific speakers would you recommend at, say, $3000 or under, new or used?
What now?
At the risk of repeating a question that has been asked and answered a few times, let me tell you my story. I am an old-time audiophile (now 79) who has to adapt to new circumstances. For the past forty years or more I have listened to music on two pairs of Snell type A speakers (A and AIII), one pair in my living room and another pair in the studio where I paint. I have moved to a smaller house. I had to sell the Snells because I don't have room for them (they went to a good home). I also have sold some fairly high end equipment that powered them. I now have two Marantz 60009 receivers and a nice vintage turntable. The turntable is in a small (about 12x15) room, with a piano. I need to find floor-standing speakers I can put on either side of the piano and close to the wall behind them. I want to find them used, but not too used - I don't want to need to repair them anytime soon. I am used to good sound and my hearing is still pretty good. I listen to some classical, some choral, some solo voice, some guitar, etc. I like what might be called a "warm" tone - without wanting to get into a debate about what that means - just don't want treble that is on the edgy side. My budget is flexible, but not unlimited - maybe from $700 to $3000. I do care how they look. Some years ago I had a pair of Acoustic Zen adagios, which were OK, but I always preferred the Snells (maybe I was just used to them). So - what do you recommend? Adagio? Vienna Acoustic Bach? Tannoy? Sonus Faber? I am not in a place where I can easily audition speakers, and many of the ones I would consider are no longer sold new anyway, so I need to rely to some extent on the judgment of others. What do you think?
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- 49 posts total
- 49 posts total