Any normal size speakers that sound like Volti

@acman3, no update on the potential new room so some thoughts.

1.  Have a frank discussion with your wife about her objections.  As others suggested is it the size of the speakers or actually all the components in the living room?

2.  If truly the size then show her the smaller options from Volti.  Maybe if she picked the finish that would make her happy.  This assumes you could accept a smaller version sonics.

3.  If it is actually the audio gear in the living room then the only real answer may be the attic conversion to dedicated room.

II have not heard your speaker in a long time, and even if I were familiar with the sound, it is impossible to say what sounds like it because what you may be focusing on and what you may like about your speakers might be different from what I am focusing on and liking about that speaker.  I can only say that generally, I share your sensibilities and also like high efficiency, horn-based systems (I own a horn-based system myself).  That said, I can tell you about what I generally like that are smaller than what you have and would also work well in the corners of the room like your setup. 

My first recommendation would be a smaller Volti speakers.  They are quite good at delivering the liveliness and immediacy of horn speakers while not having the  most common horn colorations.  The Rival is smaller, but still a large speaker, while the Razz would be even more wife friendly. 

While not horn systems, Audio Note AN-E's are very good sounding speakers when placed in the corner of the room and they are reasonably efficient and work well with low-powered amps (my favorite kind of amp).  This speaker sells for well under your price cap, but, there are a dizzying array of variations, some of which are WAY over your price cap.  I don't know the price of the various options, but, if the Alnico magnet variation is in your price range, jump on that).

Coming in just under your price cap is one of my favorite reasonably priced speaker that also works well in the corner of the room--Charney Audio Companion (offered with several options for the driver; I like the AER driver the most, but they are all good).  I was shocked at how well these single driver systems perform; they even deliver decent bass.

Rethm speakers might work well too, and they are much smaller, but, they sort of have a funky look.  They deliver the same sort of dynamic sound that horn systems deliver.

I discussed adding the room in the attic with my wife and we both agreed if it gets to that point we will just move to a new house. I am nearing retirement and moving is probably the best option. Maybe I’ll get a barn like Mike L.

So, that left me with trying out some different speakers and see if I can find a pair we can live with.

I listened to the Audio Note An-e and it just didn’t sound great to me. I was disappointed because moving the speakers back to the corners would do the job, I think. The Volti recommendations are probably where I will end up. I was listening last night with the 300b amp and it was really everything you could want.

I’m waiting on some TAD Evolution one speakers to show up. They may be in this week. I think I can use these closer to the front wall. I heard them described as horns without the bass issues. We shall see. Alnic 300b, and Atma-sphere M60 would be out, but I can use the Atma-Sphere Class D for a while, and I do have a 250-watt Butler amp in the closet if more power is needed.

I will be keeping the Volti’s for a while till I figure it out.

Thanks for the ideas!

I’m waiting on some TAD Evolution one speakers to show up. They may be in this week.

The e1tx tad is one of the speakers I have.... You shouldn’t be having any WAF issues with it in a living room, unless your spouse is super picky, i.e., it is a good looking speaker to many eyes. However, a 300b is not gonna cut it for the Tad. I keep it on a luxman m900u, Technics r1000, etc. It doesn’t have to get crazy, but, you will need a higher caliber amp to do justice to it.