Help Deciding On New Speakers For Small Room, $10k budget


Hello everyone! A brief background. For the first time in my life, I have a dedicated room for listening! šŸ™Œ Iā€™m very excited about it. However, itā€™s not very big. Something is better than nothing though. Previously I always lived in apartments and had to primarily listen on headphones. The room size is 10 feet by 11 feet with 10 foot ceilings, almost a perfect square. It has already been professionally sound treated with many panels from Gik Acoustics. So despite its tricky sizing, it should be all set up for a proper experience! And I already have a nice chain, a McIntosh MC52 Preamp and Primare Power Amp and CD Player with a Holo Audio May KTE. Oh, I also have a Rel A7X subwoofer.

I unfortunately have a disability that makes it very difficult for me to travel. I cannot easily just go to a hifi store and try things. I also live kinda in the middle of nowhere. But Iā€™m a former professional musician and music is my life, and I want to feel connected to my music as much as I can, so Iā€™m willing to invest into it. I have a budget of about $10k give or take $1k or so. I donā€™t mind looking at used options in like new condition.

A little about my hearing preferences: I am very sensitive to high frequencies, specifically around 7k-10k. For reference, every hifi headphone Iā€™ve ever used made me wince because the high frequencies are too pronounced. I just put up with it because I didnā€™t have a choice, but Iā€™ve noticed that with speakers Iā€™m usually not so sensitive to them so Iā€™m excited to go down this journey and enjoy my music listening more. I like powerful, punchy bass, and generally prefer a warmer sound signature, however, even though my ears are sensitive to higher frequencies, I love a nice crisp and realistic cymbal sound. In general, as a musician, I think Iā€™d love something that sounds ā€œtrue to lifeā€ because I have obviously a lot of experience hearing instruments live. I mostly listen to jazz (because Iā€™m a jazz musician) but I also love music of all genres like rock, electronic, pop, soul, alternative, and occasionally K-Pop too, Iā€™m pretty open minded. So something that is a good all-rounder might also be nice. Writing this all out, I now think I might be asking for the moon though, so letā€™s just say jazz and realistic instruments is my main priority šŸ˜‡


So with all that said, I would greatly appreciate your suggestions. Iā€™ve been looking at Focalā€™s line of Kanta and Sopra but Iā€™ve heard they are bright. Iā€™ve heard B&W but I donā€™t think their house sound is for me, again too bright. Ā Also debating between bookshelves and small floor standers for a smallish room. Iā€™ve been looking also at Canton, Dali, Tannoy and Wharfdale, but Iā€™m not as familiar with the speaker world as I am the headphone or IEM world, so Iā€™m quite open to ideas. Thank you so much and best wishes on the evening of this crazy time Iā€™m in the U.S.!

cookiecurls

If those high frequencies bother you, I recommend getting a Schiit Loki Max. I have one in my system and itā€™s crucial for taming those highs on tracks where they are too pronounced. It will also make speakers that sound great to you at all other frequencies except the highs a possibility where otherwise that one aspect might have been a deal killer.Ā 

Iā€™ll second the Dynaudio suggestions. Ā I am sensitive to high frequencies as well and their dome tweeters are very smooth and detailed without being overly bright. I have no listener fatigue with mine. They are also not overly picky on placement. The Contour series would fit right in your budget.

I also highly recommend the Joseph Audio Pulsars. Ā They are a fantastic speaker and you wonā€™t go wrong with them. Ā The Perspectives are also great. Ā Somewhat out of your price range are the Wilson Sabrina Xā€™s, used. Ā I have a room of virtually the same dimensions as you do (11x11x9.5) and I mainly listen to jazz as well. Ā The Ā Wilsons are simply fantastic in my sized room, and wonderful for jazz, but classic rock as well. Ā Stretch your budget if you can for those! Ā They are way superior to the Pulsars, IMHO, but are much more expensive. Ā Note: Ā I owned the Pulsars, and not the Pulsar Graphenes and Focal Diablo Utopia IIIā€™s prior to the Sabrina Xā€™s in the same room with the same components, so I think that I can make a pretty good comparison.

How about a pair of Legacy Audio Signatures - very neutral with good extended bass, extended highs and no emphasis anywhere in the audio band. Expensive small tower sealed cabinet speaker that can be placed against the wall for right at 11k for the pair.Ā  The high end is all air motion transformer of Legacy audio design. Very highly rated. I have a pair that are well over 20 years old that are still pretty good, but their newer designs are better.

Another one you might consider is a pair of Ohm 2000 floor standers. In that small a room you might find there would be no need for your sub at all, but they have a response curve that might suit you very well and a pair would only run you about half of your budget. Further they offer a 90 day trial period (I believe that is correct on the trial period) to live with them and decide if they are for you or not. There are others on this board that have these speakers and like them very much. Myself included. If you appreciate the 'live' presentation with a broad soundstage and the ability to be almost anywhere in the room and listen and hear a well defined sound stage from virtually any position to be of value to you, you should at least audition a pair.

I would recommend you Riga from Cabasse. It's playing everything, any gene of music in great way and it matched perfect with your REL.Ā 

Good luck!