Bookshelf speakers, budget £1000

[Frank Harvey]

as the title says i've £1000 to spend on bookshelf speakers.

first of all my room is rather small (3mx3m) and the speakers will be sitting close to me (on or above my desk, so less than 1m away)

i've no amp because i'm not sure whether to go for 2 speakers or 2 speakers + a subwoofer.

the sound i'm looking for:

mids, i want life like instruments and vocals, I can't stand recessed mids.

treble, my ears don't tolerate emphasized treble, must be neutral and i don't mind if it was slighly recessed.

soundstage, i want it to be true to recording (i find a lot of headphones like K702, HD800 have "big" soundstage, trouble it stays "big" no matter what genre or song ),

bass, i want quick, detailed bass, but still fairly powerful. since these would be bookshelf speakers (and i could possibly add a subwoofer) i'm not sure whether to look for speakers with "best" bass or settle for something with decent bass and great mids, etc. thoughts ?

i can only compare my idea of perfect sound to my current set of headphones, Audeze LCD-2, if its any help

any help would be very welcome, thanks for reading.

One thing to take into account is your position in relation to your intended speakers. If your ears are in line with the HF units that's all well and good, but if they're going to be situated higher, the sound and soundstage of a lot of speakers can change drastically if you drop yourself below HF eye line.

The other issue is that because you'll be sitting so close to the speakers, you're more likely to be aware of the HF not coming from the same place as the mid/bass. This can be quite off putting, and again, the sound of the speaker can change depending on your position in relation to each of the two drivers.

Amongst all this 'activity' ( ), I'm going to recommend, based on your post requirements, you take a look at the KEF R100's. The HF unit is situated in the centre of the mid/bass driver, and the overall driver design and materials used is based on KEF's Concept Blade and production Blade loudspeakers. Fast, precise, accurate. I don't think I'd use any conventional loudspeakers for nearfield, only a coincident design.

At £600, they leave plenty of change to pick up a good amp to get the most out of them, whether that be new or used. They'd kick ass with a used, nicely warmed up Audioab 8000A that can be had for £150, or an Arcam Alpha 10. If you want to add a sub, these amps have pre-outs, so you could add something like the sealed SVS SB12. All this would still keep you around £1500.

It's a case of having a few auditions and seeing what you like the sound of

 

[Anonymous]

ok, 1st i'd like to thank all of you who posted :cheers:

i was asked about my current setup, so here it goes,

PC --> (foobar2000/wasapi/flac) Burson Audio HA-160D (headphone amp, dac, pre-amp) --> Audeze LCD-2

below is a picture of my desk, as you can see i don't have much space to work with.

as for all the suggested speakers, i like the idea of actives due to the fact i won't need to buy an amp (which saves me money and space)

i think i'll go with one of the active speakers suggested and buy a sub later (that's if i still feel i need one)

and i'll definitely would try to get a demo before parting with my money.

i think its going to be between the trio of:

Adam A8X

AVI ADM9T

Dynaudio BM6A

now its only the matter finding a store with with those speakers

 

[John Duncan]

Ouch, not a lot of room there. Certainly think the Adams would be too big, and maybe the other two as well...

 

[Anonymous]

A great shortlist. Perhaps the Adam A7X would be a wiser shortlist choice than the A8X though, as they're a pretty big speaker for nearfield use in that area.

 

[John Duncan]

Did we just agree, Max? :O

 

[fr0g]

Here's an image from Google which illustrates the genelec's size compared to some Yamaha HS80Ms (which would compare to the Adams you have shortlisted)..

 

[fr0g]

Ouch. Unless you can move it, I'd agree. It's a bit cramped to that wall. Assuming you relocate the PC, it's still a tight fit not to mention the effect the wall will have.

Perhaps also consider the excellent Genelec series. 8020/8030 maybe, with sub.

It would look a lot more at home than bigger speakers in such a cramped area.

Check the picture earlier that I posted. The ADMs are sitting either side of a 24" monitor.

 

[Dave_]

I'd add Mackie HR624 mk2s to that list.

 

[Anonymous]

Did we just agree, Max? :O

Must be a leap year 8)

 

[steve_1979]

Ouch, not a lot of room there. Certainly think the Adams would be too big, and maybe the other two as well...

I agree aswell. :silenced:

It's pretty safe to assume the Opals would be a definite no go too...

 

[drummerman]

regards

 

[John Duncan]

I never liked that out-of-head soundstage thing.

 

[hoopsontoast]

The Genelec 6010a look ideal for that size space then!

http://www.genelec.com/products/2-way-monitors/6010a/

And review (with the sub that I doubt you will need)

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/may09/articles/genelec6010A5040A.htm

 

[moon]

http://www.whathifi.com/review/eclipse-td-td307-paii

Speakers can be wall mounted to save space.......

 

[steve_1979]

http://www.whathifi.com/review/eclipse-td-td307-paii

Speakers can be wall mounted to save space.......

Considering he has a budget of over £1000 I think that he could get something better than those Eclipse speakers.

 

[steve_1979]

as for all the suggested speakers, i like the idea of actives due to the fact i won't need to buy an amp (which saves me money and space)

i think i'll go with one of the active speakers suggested and buy a sub later (that's if i still feel i need one)

and i'll definitely would try to get a demo before parting with my money.

i think its going to be between the trio of:

Adam A8X

AVI ADM9T

Dynaudio BM6A

All of those speakers would probably be too big for that space. The compact Acoustic Energy Pro Sat and Pro Sub 2.1 speaker system would be a better choice. I've listened to them in a similar small space and the stereo image stays solid even if you're only sitting 1 meter away from them. They'd work well on small desktop stands with their backs up against the wall.

This would also give you the option of getting the Pro Sat's first then adding the sub later if you thought it was necessary.

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/feb11/articles/ae-pro-subsat.htm

 

[moon]

Dali Mentor Minuet.£ 899

Yes, nice idea.

Ahem, And to keep you happy. To spend the all the OPs money I now recommend the Beo Sound 4 wall mounted. Can I also recommend the

http://shop.xtz.se/dsp/mh-800-white?stat=1

but they might sound a bit shonky at 490euro

There a broad selection of equipment spanning the OP's budget .

I hope this is satisfactory.

 

[steve_1979]

No offence intended.

 

[moon]

No offence intended.

none taken

 

[relocated]

How amazingly well behaved everyone is being especially given that a certain brand of active speakers has been recommended!!

Three cheers to everyone. Jolly well done.

Ps. thanks for the update John.

 

[Anonymous]

my worst fears have been confirmed i considered buying speakers before but gave up due to the small room and my lack of knowledge about them...

but after another round of recommendations i still remain positive

i think i'll read couple of reviews/comparison and see what happens.

thanks again for helping me out

 

[Overdose]

Unfortunately, not all actives are created equal.

So some may be less than one million times as good as passives then?

And there was me thinking inflation had only gone up by .1%.

 

[WinterRacer]

I think some small Genelecs could be ideal for you. I've tried some passive speakers (Monitor Audio GS10) up close for near-field and really didn't get on with them. I don't think I'd like my AVI ADM9.1s on my desk either, but only because they're too big.

Here's my set up using a pair of Genelec 6010As plus their matching sub. It took me a while to get them set up so that I was happy with them, but I now really like them and think they're ideal if space is tight. Sorry about the mess

BTW, if you add the matching sub (hidden hehind the NAS in the photo), you get a handy little volume control you can see under the left corner of the monitor. More importantly, the sub also adds a 80Hz crossover meaning the small monitors don't have to deal with too much bass.

For scale, the monitor is 24" model and about 56cm across.

6010As are £400 a pair and the sub is also £400.

 

[relocated]

Mess??????????????????? You should see my wife's desk :help: :help:

 

[WinterRacer]

You should see mine when it's not posing for a photo shoot! :shhh: