Here's my room...what are my options?

Also..hate to post a speaker I have never heard...but Von Schweikert just came out with a monitor speaker...the VR-1...and there other speakers are highly sought after...check out their website...this is a full range monitor(40hz) as well...in a room your size...I wouldnt go with anything less...if you audition these...let us know...I am very curious as well...

I own the Joseph RM22si sig, which is pretty much a 7si sig as a floorstander. I bought the 22's after overhearing the 7si's at a local dealer. My room is also very similar to yours dimension wise, I am using a McIntosh amp (the old MC2105), and like Peteinvicta1 I have my speakers on the long wall (I got lucky in that they sort of had to go there). I think you have the right idea getting minimonitors for your space. My 22's are floorstanding, but still imploy the small, 2 way design of the 7's, and it works very well having smaller speakers for a smaller room (especially when placing them on the long wall).

I can tell you the Joseph's are very nice speakers and that they image well and are not too picky as far as placement compared to other speakers. Some of this opinion comes from what I have read; what I can hear is limited as I am a new audiophile. I have also read that the 7si mk2 is a very significant improvement over the original. I can only imagine how good it sounds. I would definitely recommend going with the Josephs (hearing with your ears first would be ideal).

Given the set-up, my speakers will need to fire the long way. They will have to sit on a mantle fairly close to the back wall, so flexible placement is critical. I do plan to listen to everything I can, and even demo when possible. I have a feeling the more flexible the speaker, as far as placement, the better.

Please keep the suggestions coming, and thanks,

Well..for mantle placement..go sealed design...which are harder to find...maybe some small Spendors and a sub....any rear ported designs will be less than ideal....no chance of getting stands and putting them more into the room? Not trying be a smartass...but this will improve things greatly...no sense in spending alot of cash if they are going to be flush against a wall...

You need to find speakers that take into account the reflections and room loading characteristics of wall ( or near wall ) mounting. There are specific design criteria that can really make a big difference in such a situation. I don't know of any monitor sized speakers that are currently in production that do this though, so i can't really make any suggestions. However, the first thing that did come to mind was Allison Acoustics. Roy Allison had several different models that were specifically designed for wall mounting. Design Acoustics also had some models that would work in such a situation, but both companies are either completely gone or mere shadows of what they once were.

Some basic suggestions that i would look for:

Sealed speakers would theoretically work best here. If you must go with something that is ported, make sure that the port is front firing. I would not recommend speakers with passive radiators for such an installation.

Speakers that make use of foam or felt around the mids / tweeters would be more suited for this type of installation.

Since you did not mention the height of the mantle, you may want to look for a speaker that can be mounted tweeter on top OR tweeter on bottom. This will give you a bit of added versatility in terms being able to slightly alter on-axis frequency response to compensate for the height of the mantle and your seated listening position.

If the top of the mantle is up higher than your seated listening position ( i would assume that it is ), i would avoid any type of an MTM ( mid-tweeter-mid ) or "D'Appolito" design due to the limited vertical dispersion that such a design offers.

Hope this helps and gives you at least a bit to work with. Sean
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