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Accurate speakers for a verity of genres?

Hello guys – I’m looking for L/R speakers to fill a 15x15 room – the budget is <4K (new/used). I’m not much of a PC user and was recommended by a good friend of mine to post here for advice.

I don’t have subs yet, so wanted something that could extend into the mid 30’s if needed. I will get subs next year so it’s not a big deal. My background is in music (have a degree from NYU) and come from a family or producers. Being that the speakers will be in my living room, I want something nice looking, and also capable of home theater usage and powered by a receiver.

I’m pretty young (under 26) and my musical tastes are leaning towards the more compressed side. Pop and some rock if I’m feeling casual, house or funk if I’m reminiscing and “real” hip-hop if I’m looking for stories or lyrical material. All mood dependent. I’m ‘classically trained’ and very critical in many genres’ being exposed to them my entire life though. Unfortunately, I do not listen classical music in my home although I do respect it. My instruments of choice are typically percussion based rather than string based and I really like both hard hitting bass and rolling basslines - but clean bass. Never boomy despite the musical choices.

Some examples of the types of music I listen to

Common – The People http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7B2VgRShew
The Roots – Boom http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyLEgfp4b-k
Nicolay and Kay – As the world turns http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Q-apEQa8Vg
Geoffrey Oryema – Piri Wango Iya http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PL4F21FAD18930ECDC&feature=player_detailpage&v=HIoY_7qCOHk#t=68s
Afefe Iku – Mirror Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ja1LS1AkN-Y&feature=related
Sigur Rios- Festival http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=RpKOawpMtsk#t=309s
Nosaj Thing – Aquarium http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPfDjZAct-0
LP – Iridescent http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLYiIBCN9ec&ob=av2n
James Blunt - I’ll take everything http://www.youube.com/watch?v=LX9sn5aAp_8
Sublime – Santeria http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEYN5w4T_aM&ob=av2n
Metallica – Unforgiven ½ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoTcb6vtGEo
Alicia Myers – I want to thank you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R9wGnnwBc9M
Jackson 5 – Hum Along and Dance http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xRcmIDj2cc
Level 42 – Starchild http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOpYmMyo1FM

Strange eh? I enjoy an accurate sound, that isn’t harsh in the upper band. Perhaps I have sensitive ears nowadays. I know to appreciate flat req response, and smooth off-axis response, great crossovers, etc. Now the question is – Where do I begin looking? Thanks for your time!!!!
bthought
bthought OP
15 posts
 
This is a great response, and in line with what I was looking for. I am worried though in regards to Maggie's getting damaged so will have to look at other products. It looks that the Velodyne SMS-1 will allow me to "reduce" some of the low end so that I wouldnt get kicked out of my apartment, and also allow for seamless integration.

My question to you is, considering a larger floor space (say 15x15), what other monitors should I consider? If you dont have brands then what characteristics should I be looking for?
bthought OP
15 posts
 
Those Rhythmic Subs look great. I just spotted them on Ascend Acoustics website. Im not sure how Ascends monitor would fare though.
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
Some good responses...maggies are great speakers...but can be a challenge to intergrate subs...especially for first time owners...hell even dealers have trouble...my experience is with the mg12s...and with bass dominant material...a more balanced full range conventional speaker might be better suited...Monitor Audio floorstanders have been getting excellent reviews...a few years back class b rating in stereophile for a 1k loudspeaker...good value...good luck
martykl
3,563 posts
 
Re: integrating Maggies/subs

Per Phasecorrect, this is a notoriously tricky task. I agree that trying to set this up by ear may end up a really frustrating exercise.

However, the SMS-1 provides a video readout from a mic that you set at the listening spot. There are a lot of controls (level, phase, x-over frequency, etc) to adjust, so it's time consuming. Lots of trial and error. However, once you get a flat line thru the x-over frequency that you have selected, you're in great shape. You may (or may not) wish to tweak further by ear, but you will be in very good shape, either way. This will take some time and effort, but that visual aid was IME really, really helpful.

As I indicated above, there's no magic to the MMG, just a smokin' good value. I have also used Ohms and Carvers (and several others too expensive to be relevant here) in the same set-up with the Rythmiks and the SMS-1. In every case, the manual set-up with video readout (eventually!) got me to GREAT results.

Good Luck,

Marty
bthought OP
15 posts
 
I like the idea of the sub tuning aspect. I don't have much space upfront.. Will look at other bookshelves now.
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