High quality speaker package £2,500-£3,000 suitable for small (10ft x 10ft) room?

[admin_exported]

Hi,

ATM I have an Onkyo 705, a 50 inch Samsung Plasma and Kef 3005 speakers. I want to upgrade the speakers and have up to £3,000 available. I will upgrade the amp too, later, if necessary.

Problem is the room is small, so big, physically overpowering speakers will probably not be right. Also. because of the room limitations, the speakers inevitably need to be placed up against the walls or even wall-mounted. I should mention that the room is a dedicated mini-theatre so appearance isn't the *overriding* factor but aesthetics as well as sound quality are important.

I have been more than happy with the Kefs from both the SQ and appearance POV but am wondering if I can do better, especially in terms of more 'grunt' for action movies, more musicality for musicals etc and a more involving experience all-round. The rear speakers need to be wall mounted.

It's a 5.1 system and I have no intention of moving to 7.1 because of the room limitations. I prefer a speaker 'package' for reasons of compatibility and aesthetics.

Do you have any suggestions? Many thanks in advance.

Mike

 

[Anonymous]

Bearing in mind the size of your room and your limitations you do do worse than considering the Tannoy Arena Highline 500 or possibly the B&W 683 Theatre

PS I'm jealous you have a dedicated cinema room

 

[John Duncan]

I'd look at the Tannoy Revolution 5.1 set, PMC DB1 5-pack, Dali Ikon 5.1...

 

[Anonymous]

Must admit I prefer systems based around floorstanders, but assumed you had discounted these as large speakers?

With a budget like that & assuming you dont mind largish spekers you are going to be spolit for choice.

I love my tannoy revolution DC6 5.1 set-up. The DC4 will be almost as good (and perhaps more suited to your environment).

In addition to the dali ikon's which are supposed to be great with movies you may also want to consider

MK 750 THX

B&W XT Series

& the Monitor Audio RS6 Silver AV (theres a new model out now but cant remember the name)

 

[Anonymous]

barnsleydave:
& the Monitor Audio RS6 Silver AV (theres a new model out now but cant remember the name)

It is the Monitor Audio RX6 AV package you are talking about!

Watch that most floorstanders need room behind them, so backing them up to a wall is a no-no! The highline 500 would be my choice if I were you. Demo all possibles!

 

[Anonymous]

I have my Tannoy Rev Sig DC4Ts up against the wall and they seem to like it. They are actually pretty compact with a small footprint. Don't know about wall mounting the Rev Sig DC4 rears, they have a curved back and might be a bit tricky. Much better to put them on decent stands. Alternatively you could use the non-Signature versions for the rears which are square I believe, and could save a few pounds you could spend on decent cables

If you go for stands, I used Apollo AZ stands to get to my preferred height of 1M, They had the smallest baseplate and footplate I could find, but are very sturdy. If the more common 60cm height suits you, Atacama Aurora 6s also have a small footprint and look extremely cool. Take the grills off and the Tannoys get plenty of ooohs and aaahs for their looks. They're not a "style package" but are an aesthetically pleasing traditional speaker package.

In terms of subwoofers, I felt the Tannoy TS-12 was a bit bulky. If space is an issue, you do have a couple of good choices though. A few people match the Sunfire units which are quite neat with the Tannoys, but I went for a Velodyne MicroVee. It's a 9" cube and likes to be sat in a corner near the walls.

I looked at the Tannoy Highlines, but I just didn't like the look.

 

[Anonymous]

I would recommend Wilson Benesch Square Ones and Square centre plus some wall mounted bipole speakers from the rear (perhaps Monitor Audio Silver range). I wouldn't bother with a sub in such a small space!

These WB speakers can be placed very close to the wall and have a sweet midrange that is great with dialogue and fabulous with music.

 

[v1c]

Check out Miller and Kreisel range M7 , Xenon 36 or 750 THX pack. In size order it's Xenon , M7 then 750. If size , aesthetics and sound quality are the priority then the Xenon my be more for you , but any of these would suit your requirements.

 

[Anonymous]

I have'nt got these myself, but have heard them and they are very impressive:
http://audioaffair.co.uk/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=1363