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Downsizing from tower to bookshelf

Moving to smaller home and need thoughts on bookshelf speakers. The new dedicated audio room is 12x14 and I plan to use the same wall/floor treatments I currently have in my 14x20 room.
I don’t live near a big city to go and demo, so I’d like to narrow down at least 3 speakers I can purchase and demo in the new room. I’ll send the others back once I find a winner.

Current equipment is;

VPI Scout with Hana SL

Parasound A21

Vincent SA32 Preamp

Elac PPA2 

Dyneaudio Emit 30

My preference is neutral to slightly warm sound with heavy emphasis on holographic soundstage. Price point is maxed at $3,500.
 

I was never really in love with the Dynaudio Emit 30’s but they did provide the neutral holographic soundstage I like. The only negative with the Dynaudio is they didn’t seem very dynamic or musical.i always felt they were missing something in terms of enjoyment. Maybe stepping up a model would help but I’m open to other brand suggestions.

My initial picks are;

Harbeth P3ESR XD

Revel M126Be

Wharfedale Aura 2

Any other recommendations would be appreciated.

 

vette5451

Showing 1 response by bdp24

bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,222 posts
 

 

@immathewj: You must be thinking of my thread about the Eminent Technology LFT-8 loudspeaker, which like the PS Audio Aspen speakers utilizes planar-magnetic drivers, a major point of discussion in that thread. I haven’t heard any of the PS Audio FR models, but p-m drivers are renown for their neutral sound quality, being neither warm nor cold. Another p-m attribute is their high transparency, which Paul McGowan always mentions in his videos about the Aspen speakers.

My attitude about "bookshelf"-sized loudspeakers is that a bookshelf speaker sitting on a stand may occupy no less floor space than does a tower model of the same dimensions (in terms of width and depth). A tower design may use the floor space occupied by the bookshelf’s stand for an enclosure fitted with woofer(s), the tower speaker therefore providing reproduction of low frequencies that the bookshelf is incapable of. The bass bin of the ET LFT-8b measures 13" wide by 24" deep (including the dedicated Sound Anchor bass). The Aspen FR5 measures 8" wide by 13" deep, excluding stand

The PS Audio FR5 utilizes a p-m driver for only the high frequencies (1750Hz and up), while the ET LFT-8 employs a large p-m driver for frequencies 180Hz up to 10kHz (with no crossover filters in that frequency range), a ribbon tweeter for 10kHz up. My argument in the ET LFT-8 thread was that if you value the sq of a p-m driver, the LFT-8 offers more of that driver’s sq than does the Aspen FR5

The Aspen FR5 retails for $3499 (plus another $500 for the dedicated stands), the ET LFT-8b $3200 (including shipping if bought directly from Eminent Technology). Think about it: the Aspen FR5 utilizes a 6-1/2" dynamic cone woofer to reproduce the critical midrange frequencies (all frequencies up to 1750Hz), the ET LFT-8b a planar-magnetic driver (from 180Hz up to 10kHz). Which loudspeaker seems more likely to out-perform the other?

However, the LFT-8---like all dipole-planars--requires space between it and the wall behind it. More is better, with 3' being the oft-quoted minimum distance. My recommendation is 5'.

 

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