If you've lived with Maggie 1.6's, you're going to have a very hard time going back to box speakers.
In a small room like yours, what would be ideal is a speaker that doesn't sound boxy, whose directional characteristics don't make a bad situation worse. In particular, it is difficult to get natural-sounding bass in small rooms.
The ideal would be a speaker with a radiation pattern that allows it to be placed close to the "front" wall without becoming boomy or suffering from excessive midrange coloration. What would also be nice is a very coherent speaker so it sounds good up close.
Such a speaker exists, but it's quite a bit more expensive than the N805 - however, with luck you might find a used pair. This speaker is the Gradient Revolution. It uses a dipole bass system that can be oriented to sound good when placed close to a wall. A dipole puts 5 dB less energy into the room's bass standing wave modes than a monopole does, which means the bass notes will decay more naturally and have much better pitch definition even in a small room. Above 200 Hz the Revolution uses a high-quality SEAS midwoofer with a concentric dome tweeter, in a cabinet that produces a cardioid radiation pattern. This minimizes interaction with the wall behing it. This is really an extraordinarily creative and innovative design, and it works as advertised - at CES 2001 by far the most natural bass in any of the small rooms came from the Gradient/Gamut room, and the speaker remained natural right on up the frequency range. But it was startling to hear natural bass in such a small room. I was so impressed I became a Gradient dealer, even though I wasn't shopping for a speaker line in its price range.
Gradient's Revolution page at their website is quite educational and worth reading. Go to http://www.gradient.fi/En/Products/Revo/Revo1.htm . Be sure to click on the links to pictures of the radiation patterns on page two.
You see, the Revolutions do something that very, very few loudspeakers do: They create a reverberant field that has essentially the same tonal balance as the direct sound. This contributes to natural timbre and a lack of listening fatigue.
The Revolution retails for about twice the price of the N805, but keep your eyes open for a used pair. This is a superb speaker on an absolute basis, but its design is uniquely suited to sounding very good in a small room.
Just for the record, I'm a die-hard planar lover. I've either built or bought planars of one kind or another for the last seventeen years. I sell Sound Lab electrostats, and I also think very highly of Maggies. Very few box speakers even begin to get me excited. The Revolutions replicate many of the things I love about planars, partially because they are a dipole for the first 3 ocaves. They are designed for the planar lover who doesn't have the room to properly accomodate big full-range planars.
The Revolutions can be placed either very close to the "front" wall or very close to the side walls. If the latter, toe in the mid/tweet modules and use some kind of treatment to diffuse or if necessary absorb that first sidewall reflection. I use fake ficus trees for diffusion. The Revolutions require quite a bit of power, but think of them as compact, room-friendly alternatives to big planars, and you'll have a pretty good idea of what to expect. I'd be glad to answer any questions you might have.
Best wishes on your quest!
