Big speakers in small room at moderate volume levels

That TAD ME1 price drop was brought to my attention last night. The recommendation in the past was try the Harbeth SHL5+ and if price is not a concern then the TAD ME1 is the way to go (a better Harbeth). That was when the TAD was $15K with stands today it is $10K with stands.

I just got off the phone with Mike Major at GIK and we went over the placement details. As I mentioned in some posts above I did not know what I was doing last night (but still got great sound) but he set me straight on what to do. The only thing remaining for me to do is the placement of the side panels using the "Mirror Technique". I will do that later in the evening once my wife gets home. I will also move my CD rack to the another area of the house and clean up that left side wall so I have more flexibility in left side wall panel placement.

Mirror Technique - Sit on the listening chair facing speakers. Have someone with a mirror place the mirror on the side wall and have her move toward you along the wall. When you, siting on the listening chair, see the left speaker, via the left side wall mirror, you mark that sport as a reflection point. That is where the panels for the side wall reflection needs to be placed. Then apply same technique for the right speaker.

So my thoughts a few weeks ago were to wait for the GIK treatments and listen to the room with my existing components. Well last night I can see that even with less than correct GIK setup the room sounded the best it ever has. The system sounded so much bigger and sounded like a fatigue free good system. That was one of the points of this thread to get fatigue free bigger sound. I will listen to this GIK treated room for a little while and think it over as to what to do next.

I can see now that for a stand mount I will not need DSP to get great sound. For the floor standers that I am considering (including the Yamaha NS 5000) I will likely need DSP and maybe more treatments. The ceiling and my closet are the prime candidates. Added treatments to the ceiling is a no go, for aesthetics and house reasons.

So other than the Magico A3 all speaker options I have listed in the past are on the table. The TAD ME1 is something to consider at the new price and considering the sound I am getting with the similar sized LS50’s. One advantage of the TAD ME1 is the ability to use one of those new relatively low priced, high quality integrated amps that are being released. I mentioned a few earlier. With a bigger speaker I am looking at a good DSP capable preamp connected to a good amp. I mentioned 3 preamps above. Both are attractive options in there own way.

My son is sick at the moment and I may not play music today while he sleeps to test the system. Though, I will post photos of the GIK optimal setup and descriptions of the GIK suggestions later tonight. GIK have more suggestions for the room but they told me to not buy everything at once and do it one step at a time. I maybe done with the panels since it already sounds good.

@yyzsantabarbara,
The TADs that you are considering are fantastic. I had heard them at AXPONA 2017. They were playing Maria Mena's "I Was Made For Loving You" and it was so musical. Amazing sound and musicality. Go for it if you can - it will suit your room too!

I have added photos of the new setup. I removed the CD rack from the room,it was in the way of the left side wall panel. The setup I have  is likely what most people with treatments have done. It has really transformed my room. The LS50s sound really impressive now. Well as impressive as it can with the Peachtree Nova 150. The gear is good (though not at low volume) but I am now looking to get to another level of sound with new gear. This existing system will go to a bedroom or some other room.

I would say for 19/20 songs I play the sound is non-fatiguing and checks of all the good things I want to hear. That 20th track sometimes gives a little bit of badness, usually a bit too much bass but sometimes a little bit of treble. This can be seen in Neil Young's HEART OF GOLD's harmonica (treble). Adjustments of the side panels have improved this harmonica greatly. It is not really a big deal, just not perfect.

Mike Major at GIK was the one responsible for this setup and panel choices so kudos to him. Highly recommended. He does think I can improve this room even more but I do not want to add too much more panels for aesthetic reasons. He suggested ceiling treatment and also to go to town on the closet because he says that is not a good area.

In a small room any small adjustment or change seems to be easy to spot. For example, I had a lot of CD cases lying on the ground while I moved the CD rack to another room. I decided to do some office work while the CD's lay on the ground and the music playing. That did not last too long. It was like ice picks in my right ear. I removed the CD's and gave my ears a rest. All was good after that.

Also notice I sit facing the left wall. Mike Major was saying this was also a reason my sound was so bad prior to treatments. My off-axis sitting position is no longer a problem. I am thinking of playing around with my speaker positioning now that the acoustics are controlled.

Now it is time to figure out what gear to get. First thing is to get a preamp that is DSP capable. I want something that has defeatable DSP and also good quality DSP. I do not need DSP with the KEF LS50’s. I may not with the TAD ME1 but the other speakers I am thinking of I likely need DSP help.

The speaker I want to fit into this room is the Yamaha NS 5000. Just because it would be interesting to own that speaker. The Persona 3F is high on the list but long term listening is uncertain. The Vandersteen Treo CT seems like it will now fit into the room. The Vivid Kaya 45 would be great for the room now but it may be too close to the KEF sound.

If I raise the cash that I am expecting then I will splurge a little on a demo amp (will keep quiet on this one). The store with the amp I want also has the Vandersteen and Vivid. So I will demo those 2 speakers if I have cash for the amp. If I do not get this $$ amp there are a few new amps coming out that I am interested in, the CODA #8, KRELL XD 125, and some older models. Amp will be easy to select.

I really don’t have too much more to add now until I demo the DSP preamps.

Home Depot Owens Corning 703 4” deep panels in closet, get one box to start....

Portishead !!!
ya
i had Bauhaus on late, late.... fun