Moving on a sailboat - bookshelf speakers?


I've decided to spend a year on a sailboat. I'm loath to give up my home system as it's about as good as you can get before spending silly money. (LX521s, ATI/Parasound, maxed-out Linn LP12 with Blackbird arm and VdH Frog) All of it is going in storage except for my Ayre QB-9 Twenty powered by my M1 Mac Mini. 

I am interested in opinions on great bookshelf speakers that actually need to live in a bookshelf. (No room for stand-mounted speakers in a 40' monohull sailboat.) I also need a good integrated amp to power the speakers. (I'm leaning towards the Audio by Van Alstine Vision SET 120 Control Amplifier.) 

I think I've got about 18" tall by 12" deep as limitations. Maybe less. (I'll update when I know for sure.) 

What speakers should I be looking at? Various reviews like the KEF but declare that it needs stands. Others declare the sub-$1000 B&W anniversary speakers and don't mention stands. I wish I could fit a pair of LX Minis, but the associated mid/bass tube knocks it out of the running. 

marktrav

+1 bkeske

The Vandersteen VLR woods/CT. Designed for exactly that purpose. The 60 hi current watts made by the amp you mentioned should be enough to drive them. I have the older version of this speaker at my mountain house and am driving them with an older Sonos amp. The one thing I'll say about any bookshelf that's made to live on a shelf is that the bass will be a little thin. Without a port there's only so much that can be done. If you want full range down to deeper bass you'll likely need a sub. 

Easy! Get Closer Acoustics OGY. They’re front ported. Are built for SET (but any amp will power these speakers). They use single drivers so vertical / horizontal directivity don’t suffer much from placement. 

ROKSAN Caspian integrated amp driving SPENDOR D1’s might stir your drink.

Good luck to you what an adventure ! As a side note the salt air (I presume it’s the ocean or gulf you’ll be on) will really wreak havoc with the electronics in your system. Nevertheless, having a great audio system with you will certain add to the experience. 

You may want to look into car/mobile audio speakers that are specifically designed for a marine environment.  You are going to compromise the sound quality, but they will at least have a fighting chance (and won't be terribly expensive).  Plus, they are installed into the bulkhead which will make them less likely to be stolen when you are out eating dinner.  

My thought is to get the best marine-grade speakers you can, but plan on headphones for "serious" listening.

But I am also assuming you are going to be on something like a 30-foot sailboat.  If you have Jeff Bezos money and are on a mega yacht, then you should have plenty of air-conditioned space for whatever you want.  

https://youtu.be/pY2R7aOeBLU (30 foot sailboat tour)

vs

https://youtu.be/cm40e1ChozE (mega yacht tour)