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Versatile, non-fatiguing speakers for a small room under $1500 used or new: advice needed!

Hi, first post here! And not a very original one, my apologies!:)

So after years of listening to music through miscellaneous mid-fi solutions, I am finally thinking about dipping my toes in hi-fi audio and putting together a dedicated stereo setup. Currently I am looking at speakers, and my head is already aching from the abundance of options, so I am looking for suggestions from you guys, primarily from those of you who have had first-hand experience building a stereo in a small room like mine and achieved results they are happy with.

My room is pretty small (approx. 13’ x 10’), and I will be placing my speakers along the long wall. My listening position will be 6 feet away, give or take; plus the speakers will have to sit fairly close to the front wall. 15 inches from the back of the speaker would be nice, but if needed, I definitely I could move them out farther into the room (up to 20 inches from the back of the speaker), for listening sessions and then move them back again. There are several rows of shelves , filled with CDs and stuff, in the middle of the back wall above my head (not wall-to-wall though) - would that work as dispersion? I’m thinking of applying some room treatment behind the speakers, and on the right-hand side wall as well (if needed) - on the left hand side is a window covered with thick curtains.

Budget: under $1500 used or new.
I listen to all kinds of music, primarily rock of all eras and subgenres (blues/folk/prog/hard/art/psych/indie, etc), jazz, blues, classical, acoustic, singer-songwriters, female vocal, 80s new wave/post punk, some heavy metal. So the speakers need to be as versatile as possible. As someone who likes rock music, the bass is important, but I live in an apartment (neighbors!), so I have to find the right balance there as I don’t want to overload the room - the bass has to be there but under control and not boomy. I want as big a sound as possible in my small room without overpowering it. In general, I’m looking for engaging, non-fatiguing, dynamic sound with good midrange and tone, with enough punch to rock out when needed, nuance to play softer, more sparse types of music, and resolution so the details in fast complex passages don’t get lost or smeared. Not a fan of excessive brightness, sibilance, or harshness in the upper midrange.

I’m primarily looking at standmounts, but maybe certain smaller floorstanders would be fine? I’ve seen opinions claiming floorstanders are the way to go, regardless of the size of the room. What do you think would be preferable in my situation - apartment with neighbors, 13’x10’ room, long wall positioning, distance to speakers about 6 feet, maybe less?

Thanks!
mermaid_smiles
foeraus
31 posts
 
https://youtu.be/_s0zrFeglIQ
Found this video......Not extremely common N.E.A.R. 15Ms fit your description well....near full range in a large bookshelf....not bright at all.....great for jazz, rock etc. Again, great bass! Well defined and reaches to 40Hz. Drivers blend together even at close listening.
I saw a pair on Ebay with a matching center around $500
https://www.ebay.com/itm/392512585797

Others...

ProAc Studio 100
ProAc Response 2
Totem Mani 2
Kef LS-50 (had not heard, but would be on an audition list)
daveman2's avatar
daveman2
58 posts
 
It would also be helpful to know your overall budget for the whole system.
daveman2's avatar
daveman2
58 posts
 
Also, IMO, the replies with long lists of random speakers isn't much more helpful than the op doing a blind google search. I think the op is looking for personal experience / intelligent recommendations.
reven6e
44 posts
 
I also have a small room and listened to my stereo from a similar distance. 
I had both the LS50 and the LS50 wireless on home demo. They do work well in a small room, they are not too bright (apparently the new ones are brighter), the bass quantity is satisfactory. But they sound cheap, particularly the metal tweeter. 
I tried cheap and I tried expensive speakers. Passive and active. I tried room correction. 
The only speaker that really worked for me was the WA TuneTot. Way out of your range and, many would say, stupid money for what you get but those people have not had to listen to a HiFi in a broom cupboard.  And in a broom cupboard only the Tots delivered the goods to my satisfaction. 
yyzsantabarbara
4,581 posts
 
Room treatments first. I have the same sized room, though I took out a closet door to add a bit more volume. GIK Acoustics did my room treatments for $700.

My KEF LS50’s needed the room treatments before they sounded great. It was a massive difference in sound quality. The album I used to measure this improvement was the Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream. Prior to the GIK treatments the bass was all over the place and I had tons of fatigue. I could only play this album at low volume and even then it gave me some irritation. After the GIK treatments I cranked up volume on the album and played it to the end. Glorious sound, so good I played the album again. The LS50's work great in a small space though the bass is lacking. If you can swing a $5K price for speakers there are some impressive used and new stand mounts out there.

I will be replacing the LS50s soon (move them to a bedroom) with a much bigger speaker. I will use the GIK Acoustic treatments and Digital Room Correction via ROON convolution file support to make this big speaker work in the small space.

I am outsourcing the DRC to professionals. It will be software based DRC running on a computer with ROON (or JRver). 
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