If you're looking for a lifelike presentation at low to medium volume levels and don't need deep bass extension, you might consider the little Omega Super 3. www.omegaloudspeakers.com. Yup, I peddle 'em.
The Super 3 uses a 4" full-range driver and likes tubes. It is the first speaker in the same price ballpark as the little Maggie MMG that I like better than the MMG.
Bedroom speakers need to sound good at low volume levels, and at low volume most speakers don't really come to life. This is because the tonal balance is level-dependent. Let me explain: Tweeters are generally more efficient than woofers, so the tweeter has to be padded down to match the woofer. But higher efficiency also corresponds to lower thermal compression, so tweeters also compress less (especially a more efficient tweeter that has been padded down). We're used to thinking that for a tenfold increase in power you get 10 dB more volme, but in practice that isn't true. With an 85 dB efficient woofer, you'd probably get about 8.5 dB loudness increase for a ten-fold increase in power. But with a more efficient tweeter (say a 92 dB tweeter), you might get a 9.5 dB increase.
If the designer has voiced this speaker to sound good at 80 dB, then up at 90 dB the tweeter will be bit louder than the woofer, causing the speaker to sound a bit bright and forward. If pushed to 100 dB, the speaker gets even brighter. On the other hand, down at 60 dB the speaker sounds a bit dull and lifeless, because the padded-down tweeter hasn't yet "caught up" with the woofer.
By using a single driver, the Omega line is pretty much immune to level-dependent changes in tonal character (although the ear's reduced sensitivity to low frequencies at low volume is still a factor, so you might want a little room-boundary reinforcement).
If you have any questions, give me a holler.
Best of luck in your quest!
Duke
The Super 3 uses a 4" full-range driver and likes tubes. It is the first speaker in the same price ballpark as the little Maggie MMG that I like better than the MMG.
Bedroom speakers need to sound good at low volume levels, and at low volume most speakers don't really come to life. This is because the tonal balance is level-dependent. Let me explain: Tweeters are generally more efficient than woofers, so the tweeter has to be padded down to match the woofer. But higher efficiency also corresponds to lower thermal compression, so tweeters also compress less (especially a more efficient tweeter that has been padded down). We're used to thinking that for a tenfold increase in power you get 10 dB more volme, but in practice that isn't true. With an 85 dB efficient woofer, you'd probably get about 8.5 dB loudness increase for a ten-fold increase in power. But with a more efficient tweeter (say a 92 dB tweeter), you might get a 9.5 dB increase.
If the designer has voiced this speaker to sound good at 80 dB, then up at 90 dB the tweeter will be bit louder than the woofer, causing the speaker to sound a bit bright and forward. If pushed to 100 dB, the speaker gets even brighter. On the other hand, down at 60 dB the speaker sounds a bit dull and lifeless, because the padded-down tweeter hasn't yet "caught up" with the woofer.
By using a single driver, the Omega line is pretty much immune to level-dependent changes in tonal character (although the ear's reduced sensitivity to low frequencies at low volume is still a factor, so you might want a little room-boundary reinforcement).
If you have any questions, give me a holler.
Best of luck in your quest!
Duke