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Best budget speakers for near-field/small space

Hi Ladies & Gents,

First time on Audiogon.

Coming from headphones, due to dorm constraints, I'm finally going to be able to get a speaker setup once I move into an apartment at the end of the year.

Sharing an apartment with a few mates, so I'll be setting up the speakers in my bedroom. The room is probably going to be pretty small (about 12 by 8 feet), and with my bed, wardrobe and all, optimal speaker positioning might be a problem.

Hence I'm thinking of going with a near-field setup, on my desk with my computer since that's where I do most of my listening. I could swap my chair and desk with a nice recliner as well, but its going to be near-field either way.

My budget for speakers and amps is pretty tight. Under 1000USD (please don't tease =) and the lower the better. I'm looking for the greatest bang for my buck what with being a student and all.

I listen almost exclusively to Jazz. Mostly 50's 60's bop, hard bop etc. Some acoustic singer-songwriter stuff, and indie rock as well, but only occasionally.

At the lowest end of the spectrum the Audioengine A5 looks interesting. Possibly paired with S8 subwoofer. Being active, I'd save on electronics and could add a DAC down the road, to pair with my Macbook Pro.

At the upper end of my budget, the Magnepan MMG looks very attractive especially with the great reviews on the web. Potential worries: read that they need a really beefy amp that might cost a bit, and more importantly, positioning. I don't believe these speakers were made with near-field listening in mind so that's a bit of a worry.

I've also heard many great things about the Linkwitz Pluto. And since its available as a DIY I could save some bucks (though I have no experience whatsoever, so its a bit daunting).

Other active/passive studio monitors seem to be decent choices as well. The KRK Rokit series, Dynaudio BM5a etc seem like viable alternatives, but I'm worried that they won't be as 'musical' as hi-fi speakers and might end up being cold and too revealing (might be a problem with badly mastered records, especially all those bright RVG remasters).

I have incredibly limited experience with speakers. More well-versed with headphones only. So I really need your help!

Many thanks in advance!
milesandcoltrane
kbarkamian
647 posts
 
You can pick up a pair of active Quad L12 used for well under your budget. A friend had the in pretty much the same circumstances you'll have them in. They performed very well.

No matter what you buy, try and get a good set of stands if at all possible. I knew they were important, but didn't realize how mportant until my friend moved his speakers from the desk to a pair of stands.

If you absoutely can't do stands, I saw something on Music Direct's website that isolated speakers from a bookshelf. Looks promising, and I think they can be returned within 30 days if they aren't.
milesandcoltrane OP
17 posts
 
Hi ladies and gents!

It's been a while since I've posted a reply as I've been busy with my internship. Haven't been able to locate a Triangle dealership here in Singapore, so its been impossible to audition the Titus much less find a used pair around here.

I will be heading down to a few dealers tomorrow to check out the Audioengine A5, Mackie HR824 and Dynaudio BM5A. These are the only speakers I've found dealers for.

I will post an update once I get to listen to them and hopefully more of the speakers you guys recommended above.

But I'm just wondering, given my budget, regardless of buying used or retail, should I stick with active or passive speakers? I was thinking that active speakers might give me a better bang for buck, but I'm not quite sure. I've read some threads online, but mostly on forums like gearslutz which is geared at the pro-audio community. Event then the conclusions drawn are inconclusive.
btbluesky's avatar
btbluesky
37 posts
 
I second ascend acoustic. Been using sierra, use it as reference everytime a new pair of spks comes along. A used Sierra, or if you dun mind getting a preamp and a sub, a 340SE, they are the best bang for buck.
milesandcoltrane OP
17 posts
 
Took some time out to compile the recommendations that have come in so far to aid my auditioning. Here goes:

Passives:

Triangle Titus XS
PSB Alpha B1
Dynaudio Audience 42
Paradigm Studio 20
Proac Tablette 50
ERA 4/5
JohnBlue JB3
Silverline Minuet
Rega R1
Digital Phase AP-.7
Ascend Acoustics Sierra/340SE
Vintage: Spendor BC-1,SP-1, KEF 103.2, Epos ES-11, Celestion SL6i

+ Based on some Googling:
Paradigm Atom
Wharfedale Diamond 10.1
Dynaudio BM5A
Bowers & Wilkins 685

Pre+Power/Integrated:
Vintage receiver
NAD amp/receiver (50wpc)
Jolida 1501RC
Jolida FX-10
Audio Refinement Complete/Exposure/Crescendo Integrated
Virtue Audio Sensation or mdl.two
Rega Brio

Actives:

Mackie HR824
Audioengine A2/A5
NHT M00
Quad L12 active

This is a super long list of alternatives. Not sure if I would be able to audition all of them but I'll definitely try.

Anyone else would like to 2nd or 3rd the recommendations above. Would help me prioritize my search a little. So far the models that have been 2nd'd by others include:

Triangle Titus
NHT M00
Audioengine A2/5
Silverline Minuet
+ the Mackie HR824 (another friend had good things to say about them)

I'd probably start my auditions with these and then move to others on the list. Wow buying speakers really is a bunch of work. Can't quite audition several models at the same store unlike headphones.

Alright then, in the meantime please do chime in if you feel I should take any option out of the list on top or add to them or move a certain model into the top spot.

Cheers!
crad
39 posts
 
While active can be a good bang for the buck but at the same time most in your price range will be low end active models, not the nice upper end models we hear great things about although the Quad 11 could work nicely if you can find them used, in order to fit within your budget. Most active models are designed for pro sound which strives to be very accurate and possibly less musical on old recordings, which can be quite fatiguing especially if your laying back and relaxing to old Miles (trumpet) & Coltrane (sax) recordings.
I don't think I would last very long in the room with a pair of M-Audio active monitors playing "Love Supreme" from a digital source; I maybe wrong.

Suggestion; Please take to your auditions some of your old favorite recordings. Have a long listen, more than just five minute sit downs. Relax and Listen to the music.

Remember, you won't need big monitors for your small sized (98sq.ft.) room.
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