I've been gifted a pair of Thiel CS2s

You guys don't get it, do you?

He's not BUYING the CS2s.

He's been gifted the speakers.

It's not like he could ask to swap them for SCSs :)

Funny thing, Doggiehowser, I think most here do recognize that he was gifted speakers, but some of us here deal with the unvarnished truth as opposed to peddling unsupported allusions to what is possible. It would be more helpful to tell the OP what he can actually do to get him there than just to say you heard it done once by an audiophile and felt he was successful.

Here is something that is possible, not necessarily an answer. But it is what I would do if I had the problem. It is without regard to any possible intruding problems, doors, windows, necessary furniture, etc.

Place the speakers on the short wall. Place them within a foot of the side wall and a couple of feet from the back wall.

Place the listening chair so your head is about 7 feet back from the plane of the speakers.

Toe the speakers in so the axis crosses well in front of the listening chair (probably at about a 20 to 25 degree angle from the wall).

Place sound deadening materiels on the side walls that will seriously reduce FR above 1000hz (I'm arbitrary about that). Place some diffusing materiels on both the rear and front walls.

Be prepared to stuff the ports on the speakers to reduce the bass output to compensate for speaker placement (too close to walls/corners). Consider purchasing a sub woofer to place in the center of the speakers plane and cross over over killing the main speakers bass response at 200 hz +/-.

Because you are going to be sitting too close to the speakers make sure you have electronics on the warm side of neutral, especially in the mid's and highs, which will be fatiguing if not compensentated for.

A good starting point? Perhaps. Cheap? No. Easy? Definitely not! Worthwhile? Unlikely.

Now if I had to live in that room, music wise, what would I do? I'd get some monitor speakers desdigned to be used in small spaces (like the old Rogers LS3/5a) and set them up in the nearfield (4 to 6ft) treat room surfaces appropriately and enjoy. That would be, probably as good as it is going to ever get (in that room that is).

You shouldn't be so critical of those who recommended other stuff. Consider that they might just feel that the cost of using different speakers might just be less, and with better response, than using the gifted ones, especially after the money from the sale of the gifted speakers is subtracted.

Now Doggiehowser it is time to put your 'money' where your mouth is! What would you actually reccomend? :-(

I get it, this is Audiogon; sell them, and get appropriate speakers for the room.

I posted a pic earlier of my friend's 2.4 setup.

And it actually sounded better than a number of other 2.4 setups in larger rooms.

That's where my money is.

Good News! The room measures 10.5 feet by 15 feet (not including closet).

So, the recommended Thiel settings should be "in play".

So, if went with the McC DNA 0.5 what would be a good matching pre-amp.

Is solid-state or tube best?

thanks for all the feedback