Golden Ear Triton7 spk: High-end or just mid -fi??

I have to agree with Johnnyb53. I own the 7s and I love them! Definitely high-end driven by Cronus Magnum with KT120s. Like Johnny said, they produce lots of bass and it may overload your small room. My listening room is 20x15, 9 high and they sound superb!

Amazing for the likes of a Dire Straits, Alan Parsons, Supertramp, Fleetwood Mac, etc. Not so great for classical/orchestra/choral.

1.7 need lots of room and power, IMHO at least 15x12 and 175 wpc.

The Aon 2s or 3s may be a better option for your 12 by 12. I personally love the unassuming Minuet Supreme Pluses on my second 12x10 listening room.

Best speakers I've ever heard under $2,000, Totem Model 1s. You may find a used pair for around $800.00. Nothing will beat that!

Good luck and happy listening.

The Triton 7s aren't that much smaller than your Adagios, so you aren't really gaining (or giving up?) that much in relation to size.

I think you are better off with monitors in a room that small. the deCapos are a good choice, as well as offerings from Green Mountain Audio. Both are excellent designs offering stellar performance in small packages.

Shakey

To the three members who responded so far: Thank you for the solid and useful advice. I have considered the Golden Ear Aon2 or 3 monitors. I don't see much difference in bass specifications. The Aon 3 did get TAS Editor's award with a nod to Aon 2 as possibly having even more precise imaging due to its smaller size.

Unfortunately I don't have the room or the power for Maggies 1.7 or sub 3 system. I have a Rogue Sphinx integrated (100RMS) which is very good, and choose it over Rogue's CM because of money restraints

For the record, I play a lot of the same music as Kiko 65, plus other classic rock of 60's. like The Dead, Stones, Traffic, Yes, etc.

As well reviewed as the Aon 3 and 2, I don't want to give up a lot of detail. transparency, and especially musicality. So I may be drawn to the Totem Sig Is which I believe is more expensive used than $800; I have seem them at as high as $1500 on AG. However I read similar comments as KiKo many times on Audiogon. I never thought Totem's monitors had much bass. Plus, Reference DeCapo's Si are out there which seem to garner lots of praise

Another possibility is the new Dynaudio Excite 14, or much more expensive Dynaaudio 160....The latter looks very cool in white and white stands.... Anybody who has listened or or owns either one of the Dynaudios, please let me know your impressions of their sound quality.........Thanks again, Jim

Maggie 1.7s are more amp-friendly than you might think. I power mine with a 100wpc early '80s Perreaux PMF 1150B, which is rated 100wpc into 8 ohms, and probably makes close to 200 into the 1.7's 4-ohm load. The Sphinx isn't too far behind that at 100/155 into 8/4 ohms.

BUT, instead of occupying a 12.5x12.4 room, mine are in a 16x22 living room with 15' vaulted ceiling, and the back half of the room is open to the rest of the open architecture living space. Granted, I have a couple of *tiny* 8" subs, but they only fill in about 36-45 Hz and aren't turned up very far.

Anyway, 100wpc into 1.7s should be plenty for a 12.5x12.4 room.

Silverline Prelude Pluses should also be a good fit, and present one of the tiniest footprints.

What are your top priorities in terms of sound reproduction? You stated what you don't want to give up, but that's not really the whole picture and would be very helpful to know more about your preferences.

One thing to consider is you have a nearly square room, which can be a nightmare in terms of bass reinforcement and boom. I'd stick to smaller speakers and augment with a sub if you need more bass so you can better control and manage bass issues.

Of the options mentioned the DeCapos and Minuets could be very good candidates to explore. There's also a pair of Joseph Audio RX7XLs for sale here that may be a great option if imaging and soundstaging along with musicality are priorities. Best of luck.