Requesting Your Expertise - Best Options - High Sensitivity Speakers For A Smaller Room


As the title says, I am looking into the best options for higher sensitivity speakers for a somewhat small room. The room itself is 12.5 feet by 9.5 feet. The speakers would be placed along the 12.5 foot wall. Amplifier power is 8wpc. 

The system will be used for a variety of music, including folk, instrumental, rock, jazz, and singer songwriter offerings. Budget is a max of $3k, used. And a quality subwoofer, chosen specifically for the room, and use with whatever speakers that I choose, is available to employ.  

I already have some ideas, but, clearly, none of us are aware of everything, and, in the higher sensitivity space, things can get a bit tricky. Your experiences, thoughts, recommendations and expertise would be appreciated in terms of outlining all the worthwhile options available. Thanks. 

nightfall
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firberger’s avatar

firberger

120 posts

 

Surprised no one has mentioned the Daedalus Muse ( used of course) - May be more than your $3k Budget but they are stunning to look at as well.  . I use 8 watts now and they sound wonderful . I do not have any Rap or Heavy Metal in my collections so unable to confirm with that type of music. 

 

I am definitely interested In Daedalus as a contender. I also do not plan to play any rap or heavy metal, but with the 8wpc you have, can the Muse do say, classic rock effectively? 

On second thought, scratch Daedalus as a viable option. It had become the next primary target on my list, however, I spoke to Lou about how they would work in my room, and he says the Muse, or Muse Studio are my only implementable options. There has only been one pair of Muse speakers for sale, online, since 2022. Safe to say it would take a miracle to find another one. 

I I thought that I had really pulled off a miracle in getting just enough extra funding for a discounted pair of Volti Razz which I had dreamed about owning. A somewhat dinged up and scratched pair was available, but, in a just in a case discussion, yesterday, with Greg from Volti, he made it clear that my 8wpc would be enough to play music at low levels, and even "polite" levels, but if I wanted to play, say a rock album, they would run out of gas. Not workable for me, as whatever speakers I end up with have to be able to be driven by my amps in all situations. Greg says a good 20 watts is what’s really needed for the Razz to perform well.

Today, a good friend confirmed that a member of the audio group in his area just went from a 10wpc SET amp to a 20wpc amp, with his Razz, and the difference was night and day. So, sadly, my absolute top choice is out of contention. I had dreamed of adding those to my system, but the reports I got from trusted audiophile friends, regarding their sensitivity were apparently inaccurate, as I was sure that 8wpc would be enough. 

I also auditioned the Klipsch Forte 4 Heritage Editions over the weekend. Very nice, but, at least for me, no magic was produced. 

 

I’ve now learned that my top two options are either not usable, or not available. To be honest, nothing is left that excites me much at all. I am still considering a pair of Fritz Carbon 7 BE’s, which I know will work with my 8wpc, but as great a bargain as they appear to be, I’m somewhat doubtful that they are the "end game"/"forever" speaker that I am in need of. 

 

If only a pair of Heretic AD614's would appear at a sensible price. Now that WOULD excite me. Unfortunately, they almost never appear for sale, used. And now that the owner and designer has passed away, and the company closed, the very, very few that do appear are at the original list price, or higher. 

I've heard, and liked, the Rethm Bhaava.  I heard it in a setup where it was not close to a wall, so placement might be an issue.  I am not as concerned about power requirement--it is reasonably efficient and should work well in a small room even with as little power as you have available.  

The various Klipsch speakers mentioned would also work well close to the back wall and with modest power on tap.  I would personally go with a used pair of Audio Note AN-j or AN-K myself with your situation.