Stand Mount Speakers for Classic Rock that sound alive at lower volumes ?


I would like some advise for used speakers that:

- Play Classic Rock well without sounding flat or harsh (I only listen to 70s/80s)

- Sound alive and snappy at lower volumes (to avoid noise complaints)

- Won't overload my listening room but still have some boogie factor.

I've had B&W 803 Matrix for 20 years but they don't sound good at lower volumes.  When I play them at a volume loud enough to make them come alive in my condo, they interact with the room too much and sound harsh.   They sounded great when I lived in a house with carpeting and a bigger room.  I will probably get noise complaints trying to use these speakers in my condo.  The room is 12' x 13' with the speakers along the 13' wall.

I want to buy used so I don't take a hit if I need to buy different pairs before I find the right one for the room.  I was thinking of trying ProAc D2's or the really old B&W Matrix 1 which was a bookshelf speaker with a 6" woofer that many say was the first 805 but without the 805 name.  I heard these back in the 80s and thought they sounded really good because their small size presented a smaller musical experience and still boogied which seems like what I need.  I see some used ProAc DT-8s for $3500 but they are full towers with (2) 8 inch woofers so they would probably overload my condo which has no carpet and floor to ceiling windows that reflect sound.  I heard the B&W 805D3  back in 2017 but that was at a stereo store with a big room.  They really thrilled me at the time but maybe they would sound bright in a smaller room.  Anyone else been down this road of playing Classic Rock in a smaller room?

tom32801

I have a pair of large (bear with me) floor standers I was going to supplement with a pair of bookshelves specifically for low volume listening, but the dealer sent me home with a pair of 600 wpc monoblocks instead and presto, my big speakers became dynamic and detailed at low and moderate levels...I'd been using a 301/525 wpc integrated and really didn't think I needed more power, but I'm glad I went this route. 'coarse after reselling the integrated I was still out of pocket an additional $11k so there's that.

steve59

what gear and cabling is in your System these days?

 

Happy Listening!