Listening Nirvana in Tiny Hideaway Room

Small rooms require a lot of engineering to get them to work. You also have to use appropriate speakers. Typically 2 way monitors. We did a small room which was less than 13 x 16 with Karma 3.2 speakers. It was absolutely incredible. I can put you in touch with that person if you want to discuss engineering a small room. The answer is yes--it can be done incredibly well, but it's not easy.

Hi Cwlondon,

Listening distance and early room reflections are the obvious but manageable issues. If you have no problems with listening about six feet from a loudspeaker and have the patience required to massage the best balance between reflection and diffraction with the acoustical treatments, you are on your way to enjoying some of the most fascinating detail and musical expressiveness from your music. It's tricky but well worth the escape!

Sonic holography is obtainable but a side benefit is the abundance of micro dynamics and intimacy with the recording/artist. You may draw new insights listening to old favorites since this type of setup brings on a different perspective. As far as loudspeaker choices, start off with “simplest is best” – a set of single-driver speakers with small tube amps. If that doesn’t trip your trigger, move into small two-ways (such as Totem/Meadowlark/AE/etc.) that don’t require an inappropriate listening distance to sound coherent. The only real problem I seem to always run across is the imbalance I hear in the treble with most small loudsepakers when placed in a tiny room. Whether by design or not, most sound overly bright and may require a slight padding down of the treble driver to get a natural balance.

Good Luck!

Steve Rothermel
Engineer/Associate
Ridge Street Audio Designs

I've been using Galante Rhapsody and Audio Note ANK/L in a similar sized room with low powered tubes amps for some time and it works out very well. The speakers were ceiling hung and still sounded very good. It did take some time to get them positioned just so and a friend to help that that exercise makes it much easier.

Using some deadening material on the ceilings and walls is quite useful, too.

I had great success in a room about the same size as yours. I did not even spend that much on it. I was using it strictly as my first dedicated listening room after an absence from High End audio for many years. I was just tired of it but this little system got me right back into it.

I was using a pair of Sonus Faber Concertinos on their matching stands and an Electrocompaniet ECI-3 Integrated with a used Sony XA7ES. For cabling all Audience Au24. The results were stunning. I would have my audio buddies come over and their jaws would drop. It sounded anything but small and the little Sonus would just disappear. I could also not believe the bass I was getting.

Maybe I just had system/room synergy but you really should have heard it. The room I was using was a smaller bedroom on the first floor of our first home. So it had a closet and two windows and was carpeted. I did hang a rug on the system wall and used some Sonex Panels on the rear wall and that was it.

I still miss that little system. Anyway, sorry if I rambled but I say go for it! A place to escape to is sometimes priceless...

Chris