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Big speakers in small room at moderate volume levels

My office is 11’W x 10’L x 9’H and is where I can listen to music for the next few years. I have a toddler and, for now, he has commanded the big spaces in the rest of the house. I have auditioned the Magico A3 and wanted to buy it but that was before I was relegated to the smallish office (I was expecting to move to a bigger room). I have removed the closet doors in this office room. The removal of the closet door gives me another 4 feet of depth to this room, though for only 1/2 width of the room. I can sit unobstructed 8 feet away from the speakers before I hit the area where the closet ends (so near field listening).

I currently I have KEF LS50 with Peachtree Nova 150. It is good and I can listen for the whole day without fatigue. I listen to FM, digital files on ROON, and my Sony SCD-1 SACD player. I want a bigger sound so I am looking at bigger speakers. I also do not want to use a sub since I am not a fan. I will also upgrade the NOVA 150 to the NOVA 500 in Spring 2019 and use with the LS50’s in a bedroom.

I came to the conclusion that my tastes would be best served by one of KEF Reference 1 or Magico A3. I was thinking that I would use the Lyngdorf 3400 in this room but I am having seconds thoughts on this now (some A’gon comments that it maybe a little dry). I am interested in solid state AB units like the Hegel H590 and Mark Levinson 585 to drive the speakers. I have heard the ML 585 and it is a fatigue free sounding unit that was a joy to listen to. I have not heard the Hegel H590 yet (but have heard other Hegels with KEF) and I am in the process of getting an audition of the H590. I have also discounted the class AB Micromega M-One 150 (with MARS room correction) because I do not want a cooling fan blowing in the room.

I must mention that I do not listen that loud when I am working and when I am working very late at night the volume is very low. The Mark Levinson and A3 combo was very good at low volumes during my demo but that was in the dealers perfect large room.

1) Am I making a mistake foregoing room correction with the 2 integrateds I am considering? Should I go with the Lyngdorf and A3 or KEF Ref 1, though I have never heard the Lyngdorf?

2) Will the Magico A3 work in this small room at moderate volumes WITHOUT room correction or will I subject myself to headaches and fatigue?

I am going to ask the dealer selling the A3’s this question when I am ready to buy but i wanted to ask on A’gon first to get some feedback. I doubt I could get the A3’s into my room for a trial but I have not asked the dealer yet.

I think (not 100% sure) the KEF Reference 1 with a non room correcting amp should work in my office space but I would prefer to buy the Magico A3 for the office. I have plans to buy another KEF model once my kid is a bit older and I can kick him out of the big room.
yyzsantabarbara
tomic601's avatar
tomic601
12,869 posts
 
Absolutely never mock a fellow audiophile who provides an ironclad excuse !!!!

truth be told, starving 5 hours into auditioning power amps at Audio Alternative ( now Hi-Fi Buys ) we made a desperation run to Varsity for chili dogs...

the Atlanta crowd will understand....

result : Ayre VX-R

great amp
great sloppy dog
bliss....
gdnrbob
4,422 posts
 
You get around Tomic

Though I prefer Papaya King. Hey, I'm a NY boy...
B
ctsooner
2,480 posts
 
If someone is saying Treo's are boomy, they haven't heard them.  It's that simple. Spoke with someone this week with the Lyngdorf and Treo CT and he loves them together.

 If you are looking at a stand mounted speaker, I"m shocked you aren't looking at the Proac line.  They too hit every box you are looking at.  
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yyzsantabarbara OP
4,602 posts
 
@ctsooner All of the speakers I have focused on I have heard, except for the Harbeth and the Yamaha. Of the ones I have heard I think the Persona is my favorite. I could easily live with any of the others in my office. I am not too worried about the speakers. I am also not worried about the separate external amplification or network player. All of these are of high quality that I am looking at. Almost any permutation of the speakers, amps, Network players I have identified would make for a good system (in a big room).

I am only concerned about 1 thing now and that is making a big speaker fit into the small room in a manner so that I can enjoy a good deal of the systems capability. To that end I have done a few things such as cleaning up the room of furniture and getting acoustic treatments. The last thing I am doing, which is to explore DSP, is something that the DSP guys are saying will make my goal a reality.

If I stay in my room lane and get an appropriate sized speaker (small stand mount) I may not need DSP. However, I am trying to do fit an inappropriate sized speaker into this room. The DSP demo I have scheduled will tell me if I have solved the problem.

With regards to the Treo CT I have only heard them with Bryston Cubed stack. The Lyngdorf issue I described was the amplification stage driving the Persona 5F, it was not good. However, the Lyngdorf preamp section impressed the heck out of me and is my leading contender for those duties. The dealer did mention to me that the combo we discovered, Lyngdorf preamp+Simaudio amp was the best he has heard the Persona 5F.

That Persona demo so impressed me that I am now questioning the purchase of the Blade for the downstairs. A large Persona speaker, such as the 9H, is heavier and hard from my kid to move. The Blades are rather easier to dislodge. The front facing woofers on the Persona maybe easier to place compared to the side firing Blade drivers. I still like the Blade more but from a practicality standpoint the Persona is compelling for my downstairs. This is a digression from this thread.

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