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Avalon Eidolon for nearfield listening?

My room is only 10Wx17Dx15Dx8H (The depth of the room is unbalanced because of a pillar on one corner of the room). I am home auditioning Eidolon right now and so far really impressed. The geometry of the room and its size forces me to listen to them about 6-7ft. from them. Although I like them very much, I am wondering whether I am wasting money for such a small room and listening environment. If I went for a lower notch speaker that is better suited for nearfield/small room environment, will I get better sound than what I am hearing from Eidolons? FYI, I have listen to Avalon Eclipse also in the dealer and obviously, they are a couple of notches lower in most aspect vs. Eidolon. But I am wondering whether smaller speakers like Eclipse or Audio Physic Virgo would outperform Eidolons in my room.

Please make me your recommendations for my small room, assuming I am willing to spend up to Eidolon price for the best sound.

I am going to change my other gears to fit the speakers, so the rest of my system should not be a constraint. I am considering Goldmund amps and sources. Any one used them with Avolons?

Thanks
CPark
cjpark
mgottlieb
334 posts
 
I heard the Kharmas, but in a very large room, and immediately after hearing the top of the line Kharmas (the $80,000ish ones that just recently got a rave in TAS). In that room, and after hearing the bigger Kharmas, which are stunning, I thought the Ceramiques were a bit too polite, like Dutch Philips LPs of the '70s and '80s, but still very pleasant overall. In a smaller room, they might be just the thing. From my conversation with the dealer, however, I got the impression that they probably could not go as close to the rear wall as the Andras can, but you won't know that until you try.
audiojerry
77 posts
 
Don't laugh, but for near field listening, which a room your size requires, I have heard nothing better than the Red Rose R3 ($3,500). I did not have the other Red Rose components, but Mark Levinson's complete system for under $10k has been knocking listener's socks off, based on all the reviews. Sometimes, people can't believe that lower priced components can sound as good or better than expensive ones.

Another speaker that is supposed to be great for near field is the ACI Jaguar ($2500) with Titan Sub ($1000). You get a 30 free home trial.

In general, tall floor standers with a lot of distance between the woofers and tweeter, or with a 3 way design, need more distance to the listening position to sound coherent.
jcbtubes
400 posts
 
Cj- I auditioned the Eidolon, the Venture "La Perfection", and the Amati Homage when looking for a speaker. Each is an exceptional speaker with different strengths. I ended up with the Venture speaker. I, too, listen in the near-field though my room is a bit larger than yours. Hope your choice gives you as much enjoyment as the Venture's have given to me. Good luck.
cornfedboy
1,645 posts
 
cpark: i own eidolons. i've also owned (original) eclipses and ascents (avalon- before ml, apparently lacking imagination, stole the name). i've listened to every avalon speaker model made since they started making' 'em, in lots of environments. the eidolons will sound just fine in your listening room, tho you may need to do some acoustic treatment. i have some physical constraints in my listening room, too. hence, my eidolons are only 3 1/2 ft from the damped rear wall and 8 ft from my sweet spot. they sound great. with my accuphase/boulder/jrdg electronics/frontend, the imaging extends 8 ft. and more beyond the outer edges of the speakers and way, way behind them. while i don't mean to disparage bmpnyc's views, i think the eidolons are better in the nearfield than the opuses. probably due to the superiority of the eidolon's drivers and the absence of the down-firing sub. you might wanna' give the opus a listen, tho. they are also great speakers and, of course, YMMV. -cfb
glide3
402 posts
 
I will put in a strong plug for the Audio Physic Avanti III's. I have owned the Kharma's but prefer the AP's. They do very well in a nearfield set-up and will give you everything back you give them. I mistakenly thought I had their performance maxed out several times only to find there was more there as I upgraded/changed a component, wire, tweak or positioning.
The Piega P10ltd or P8ltd would also be at the top of my list given your room and based on price for performance.
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