Can speakers be too large for a room

Now that you have eliminated the absorption at the reflection points to positive effect, it would be prudent to try an amplifier with about twice the power of your integrated, say 250w/ch into 8 ohms and then doubles down (doubles the power output as impedance halves). It will probably wake up the Sophias nicely.

Hi I have a similar problem. My room is 13' x 14' with a 14' ceiling A Frame. I can't put any floor standing speakers in that room that go below 40Hz. This holds true of ported designs even more. I had LIving Voice Auditoriums and the Avatars in my room, Vandersteen 2Ci, VonSchweirt Model 3, Athenas, Alon's and many many others over a 3 year period. Only the Alons worked after I purchased a new amp a Odyssey Audio Stratos. I'm a tube guy but that combination was deadly. I got tired of the boomy sounding speakers and opted for a pair of Spica TC60's. I ended up with a pair of Dali Suite 1.2 subs which are acoustic suspension. It has taken some work but finally I have a very good balance.
To be honest it sounds better than it has any reason to.

Because of the price range you have, the sky is pretty much the limit. I would choose Harbeths or Spendors and then the Vienna Acoustics are pretty interesting. I would choose a speaker that have great dynamics and excellent timing. I haven't heard any of the Proacs lately but they have always been one of my favorites. When I am able to move up, the Harbets and the Spendors will be one of my first choices to audition. Why? Because they have excellent balance in the music spectrum and servers many genres of music well. Of course there are other speakers but those two come to mind first. And they are both tube friendly and you should never get bloated bass. I don't know if the Bryston Integrated will be a great choice but I hear is is a wonderful integrated amp. Most of their gear is wonderful.

If your having trouble with the upper frequencies try pointing the tweeters out more. Little adjustments to the toe in with the Sophia make a big difference. Mine point at a spot well behind my head.
Are the tops level? I get best results at 0 degrees cant.
Check 90 degree level on sides and backs to see if speakers are standing straight.
Use door level with a clamped on extension to reach the top of both speakers to be sure they are adjusted to the same height.
All these little checks are essential before playing with the room or the amp.

"Problems that remain persistently insoluble should always be suspected as questions asked in the wrong way."

It's not your room treatments ... bass traps deal with low frequency issues Peaks/Nulls and modal ringing ... first reflection treatments effect sound staging and imaging

If you have High Frequency issues it may be caused by long RT60/decay times, Echo Slap, and Comb Filtering ... but I don't think this is what is troubling you

I think your source is over diving your Bryston's 1 volt input sensitivity not allow you to turn up the volume

Your Bryston has an input sensitivity of 1 volt ... meaning it only needs only 1 volt to be drive to it's maximum output ... 100w 8ohm 180w @4ohm (specs from Bryston site)

Your source is probably out putting 2 volts or better and this is driving your Bryston into distortion when you turn up the Volume

By turning the volume down you keep the Bryston from going into distortion, but can't provide enough watts at this lower setting to drive the room

When you turn the volume up you supply enough watts for the speakers to drive the room ... but because of the 1 volt input sensitivity of the Bryston and the 2 volt output from your source ... your source drives the Bryston into distortion which you perceive as Fatiguing

This link will explain it better than I can ATTENUATORS

I have a couple sets not in use right now ... if you would like to borrow a set to try and see if it solves your problem ... send me your mailing info through the A/gon mailing system and I'll send you a set to try

HTH Dave

Dlcockrum

You bring up another good question. I've talked to the guy's at Wilson and they told me that the B100 should be plenty af amp for the speakers, But I've heard more than once that I need a larger amp. The is no way that I could make my amp clip without hearing protection. Why would I need more power. Remember I'm a newbie and us newbie's ask dumb questions

Ponnie,
I like the Harbeth's I've heard them at a studio i was working on. I did not buy the Wilson's because they sound so great. I bought them because I got such a great deal on them. Money talk's

Samhar

I've tried every set up known to the internet. One thing I am going to try is to raise the speakers some. This is my office, so my listening position is higher than normal. I,ve read that the tweeters should be about ear level. I am going to try and raise the speakers about 2 inches. When listening the soundstage seems to be a little low. Just another tweak to try.

Thanks guy's