I recently moved my 500 DR and 552 DR along with an nice LP12 for a source to a listening room in my basement. It wasn’t getting the attention necessary in the living room as the kids are now older and that system is basically background music. So I have a pair of YG Carmel 1’s down there and after some critical listening, they just seem to bright with this system. Looking for some suggestions to try? I live in a town where options to demo aren’t plentiful. Some ideas I had are: Focal Utopia EVO bookshelf, Wilson Duette 2 ( I had Duette 1’s and didn’t like them to much) Wilson Tune Tot, B&W 805 D4, Magico S1 mkII. Open to other ideas as well. Thank you!
I will probably move my ND555 down there as well but for now I’m enjoying the vinyl.
Good point, sorry. Room is 11 feet wide by 15 feet deep. System is on the 15 feet deep. Ceiling is about 7 feet. Pretty dead quiet room really. One small egress window behind the system.
With a NAP500 your choice will be wide given that it is capable of driving many speakers well, so I think you should be asking mainly about what speakers will work best in this room and to your personal taste.
I have a suspicion @Richard.Dane might be wondering whether he should suggest N-Sats
I would consider passive SCM40s, they would work well in your room, I think. I have heard the 40s many times, driven by an LP12/552/500 system, and it sounds great. SCM20s should also work well if you want a stand-mounted speaker.
That’s not actually very small. My room is 12’ by 15’ and a 552/300 worked brilliantly with SL2s. People have used DBLs in smaller rooms. You’ll find that the right ‘big’ speaker will work really well.
Cool, thanks for all of the replies so far. I have heard of Stenheim’s but have not listened to them. Thanks @HungryHalibut I guess it just seems small when compared to my living room. I just think I need smaller speakers. Appreciate the input so far!
The room is a little on the small side in absolute terms, though not particularly so, more like average British living room area.
I don’t know those speakers, but one question is whether it is the speakers or the room. Does the room have soft furnishings, wall coverings, etc, or is it all hard? Are the speakers close to side walls? If you clap your hands is there a ‘flutte’ echo? It is possible that some eegree of room reatment could be beneficial.
Your room Is almost exactly the same size as mine, with a similar system and I expect any good mid size floor stander would potentially work. That would leave a lot of options, so you probably need to select some to demo.
Hi,
I have Wilson Duette 2s in the attic room mated to my 252/300 and they continue to sound amazing since I brought them from a much larger marble-tiled room (about 50m square) in Abu Dhabi. I also have Tune Tots on dedicated stands mated to a Nagra Classic Pre/Power combo in the small office and they continue to punch well above their weight (but possibly not cost!). The TTs were previously in a much larger sitting/dining/kitchen in Abu Dhabi about 25m square and were no slouch. The current office is roughly 10m square. Hope this helps
Cheers
Kudos Titan T505. Extremely coherent, musical sound that not only goes very well with Naim amplification but they scale as far as your electronics will go. They’re neither bright nor warm but perfectly balanced to my ears. They will tell you if a recording is good or bad but will ensure what you hear is still enjoyable.
Before trying more expensive options try to demo a pair at home with your system. You may end up pleasantly surprised.
I have carpeted floors and traditional drywall but nothing on the walls at the moment. From an echo perspective, there is none, pretty dead quiet. Speakers are 24 inches from the back wall and the nearest side wall is about 12 inches away. Some room treatment could be beneficial.
The room/speaker engagement is everything and so the ideal thing would be to form a shortlist (or long list) then try them at home.
That is not easy at the best of times and if you do not have understanding/supportive dealers nearby it makes the process more difficult.
The usual names discussed are worth trying, eg Kudos, ATC, Neat and so on and you will get plenty of recommendations based on personal experience from the good folk here.
I will throw one name into the mix based on my recent listening experience: Acoustic Energy’s Corinium.
They are quite new and I think are excellent (I may buy some myself - still going through the process), but the key is going to be which brands you can audition at home.
You could do some travelling to dealers further afield, find something you like at the dealer’s place, then take a chance it will work at home. Or go the used route, which may mean you can sell on if they really don’t work.
I have them a the end of a NSS333, NAC252+SCDR, NC250 system.
I chose them over the Upotia Evo bookshelves. They do a fantastic job at bringing the excitement of music with great precision without being fatiguing.
I am pretty sure that they would do a fantastic job at the end of a 500 system.
