Does size matter!!!!!

leftfield

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Here's a question I'm hoping people can share their opinions and experience. If the listening room is small should you only place a stand mounted speaker in it and vice versa.

I would be interested to know what speakers other people are using in a room approx 3mx3.5m to help me through my current speaker saga.!!

Many thanks
 

John Duncan

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Yes it does - in a room that small a floorstander could drown it with bass - I would be more inclined to stick with a standmounter in a space like that, but it depends on volume and placement as well. To some extent it also depends on your budget, since under, say, 500 quid, I'd recommend standmounters irrespective of room size.
 

leftfield

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I will not be playing the speakers at very high volumes as I want to remain on civil terms with my neighbours, although on the occasion that I do turn it up I would like to hear a controlled bass and not feel like i'm in a rave!

Placement will be near a rear wall and side wall, and my budget will be whatever I can get for my 704's plus a contigency for those must have purchases. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as there is now only Audio Excellence in the South Wales area and their stock can be a little erratic although they will offer home demo.
 

John Duncan

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k. Last pair went on eBay for £760. Brilliant standmounters in that price range and up are PMC DB1i, Proac Tablette Reference 8 (and especially the signature version if you can stretch to it), several Spendors (S3/5a, say).......yum.
 
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Anonymous

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Be conscious that some floor standers don't sound as well at low volumes. This of course depends on the amp too, so if your room is quite small, stand mounts may be a better option.

I remember I hated the sound of my old Marantz PM66 SE KI Sig and Rogers LS55a when I ended up renting in London for 3months and my so-called living room was about 3m x 3m. Even when toed-in and re-positioned more times than I've had hot dinners, I still couldn't get the sound that I was used to. It was worse when the landlord landed the furniture into the room too.

I ended up swapping them (temporarily) with a mates tannoy bookshelf speakers.

Mind you, it could well be that the Rogers were particularly difficult to get the staging right but the tiny Tannoys did the trick.
 

Frank Harvey

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leftfield: Here's a question I'm hoping people can share their opinions and experience. If the listening room is small should you only place a stand mounted speaker in it and vice versa.

I would be interested to know what speakers other people are using in a room approx 3mx3.5m to help me through my current speaker saga.!!A small room doesn't necessarily warrant a small speaker. Smaller speakers are usually used as they produce less bass and tend to have less problems. But there are some floorstanding speakers that tend to be leaner than most in the bass, making them useable in smaller rooms. I'd say there's more reason to look at floorstanders because you won't be playing very loudly. Many speakers tend to lose bass presence when they're turned down low, making them less enjoyable to listen to. Some standmounts like to be driven harder before they wake up, so these would suit larger rooms. There are general rules, but there are also no rules, if you get my drift.

My advice would be to try a few standmount speakers out, then try a few floorstanders (choose ones that are lighter in the bass). Whichever you prefer the sound of, get a home dem/loan to see how well they perform in your room. Don't dismiss floorstanders outright as you may miss out on your perfect speaker.

Just on a personal note, I've always preferred the Proac Response 1SC's over the 704's........

Regards

David
 

leftfield

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Thankyou all for the advice. Spoken to audio excellence today collecting a Roksan Kandy Power Amp to home demo for a few days tomorrow. The guy in the shop thought that the addition of a power amp would help. (We shall see)

Also booked in next thursday to demo different speakers with the Stereo Amp. I just need to draw up my wish list now!
 

Mike_Schmidt

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I have a room size identical to that and Im running proac d28's and have no boom and gloom whats so ever but i did with proac's studio stand mount 110's?? So there are no rules try out first, and dont be put off my floor standers, the right one could work, it did for me
 
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Anonymous

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Big speakers in a small room isn't just about Bass dominance as I recently found out. I had my B7W 602 S 3's set up in a room 3 x 3.5 metres. I thought they sounded good, until I moved them into my other room 5 x 5 metres. Not only did the bass notes tighten up in the bigger room, but the trebble sounded much sweeter and clearer.

I remember all the reviews saying these speaker needed room to breathe. How right they were! Once they had some space around them, the difference in sound was tremendous. So my point is, don't buy speakers that are too large (Or need lots of space around them) for your small room, and maybe try and get a home demo if possible. Things can sound very different in your own home (As I have just found out!)
 

Craig M.

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proac studio 110 sound very good and probably wouldn't mind being placed near a rear wall. you should audition any speakers you go for at home as your room will have a big impact on the sound. they are slightly biased towards the treble in tonal balance and are front ported which might make them ideal for your speaker placement. i am getting some dynaudio focus 110's on home demo to go with my kandy cdp and amp, if the bass proves too much in my smallish room then i will be trying the proacs at home. the dynaudio's have a very powerful bass for their size and sounded great with rock in the demo room, the proacs are leaner in the bass but it is very fast and it was very easy to hear the texture and variation in the bass notes. your cdp probably has a warmer tonal balance then mine and might suit the proacs.
 
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Anonymous

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That's exactly what I found :) The music was a bit bright with the Roksan/proac combo but with Arcam maybe not. Paired with Primare they're not bright at all. Those Dyns you're demoing definitely have big bass - quite unsettling at first , really impressive for the size I have to say! Nice speakers :)
 

leftfield

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I called into my local Audio Excellence today to book a speaker demo, however i have also come away with a Kandy Power Amp for a home demo as the man in the shop thinks that it might give more control to the 704's.

It has now been running for just over an hour and there is a perceptable difference. But on initial listening it just appears to have given me more of the same problem. If i listen to anything acoustic, Jose Gonzalez for instance, it is superb. However if a put any rock music on, ie. Linkin Park, I find myself searching for the different instruments and lyrics. Could there be too much sound for the size of the room, or am i just talking rubbish?

Going to hook the 602's up now to see what difference the power amp has with them.

Thanks for all the comments.
 
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Anonymous

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How does it compare to not having the power amp?? The power amp should give the music a certain ease - dynamics should be improved with the highs sounding high and the lows sounding low with much less distortion, especially as you crank it up. Try listening again (with and without power amp) starting at a set vol level and then increase the volume and you should be able to listen at higher volumes (with power amp) without distortion. The same volumes on the integrated alone should distort at a lower vol level. Also don't worry about acoustic music being much easier on the ear -this is the case on every amp/speaker I've listened too, though, with the power amp the music hsould feel more solid and weighty. hope this helps.. Let us know how you get on!
 

Ajani

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leftfield:

Here's a question I'm hoping people can share their opinions and experience. If the listening room is small should you only place a stand mounted speaker in it and vice versa.

I would be interested to know what speakers other people are using in a room approx 3mx3.5m to help me through my current speaker saga.!!

Many thanks

A few years ago, I had a pair of Mission V63 floorstanders setup in a room about that size and the sound was really enjoyable.... I think you just need to audition various floorstanders and stand mounted speakers in your space, and then decide...
 

leftfield

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Nearly 24hrs in and I am very impressed with the Kandy Power Amp. I did hook it up to the 602's, but to be honest i couldn't really hear and difference. However, with the 704s it has been a revelation. Initially I thought it was just giving more of the same problems as I had without it. But after a few hours listening last night the separation is superb. It dispatched the Killers and Thriller with ease. I have now placed the bungs in the 704's and no longer have them toe'd in. This has made a real improvement to the clarity of the music..

It's only 24hrs down, and I have the power amp on demo until thursday when I go in to demo speakers, but it could be that the 704's are inline for a reprieve!!!
 

leftfield

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I have been very impressed with the control the power amp has given to the 704's. So much so that yesterday Audio Excellence kindly relieved me of the £495 for it. Where previously the speaker bass would sound a bit fluffy, it is now much more 'focused' and controlled. I have the amps connected with a pair of VDH Mk3 interconnects, with the power amp powering the bass and the stereo amp powering the trebble.

Within the last week I have also purchased a Project 1.2 for £50 from ebay. I didn't realise vinyl could sound so good!. Just need to get a newish stylus or cartidge now!!!
 

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