@erik_squires said: "I'm waiting on someone to bring up small, horn loaded speakers."
I have a reasonable, 3- or 4-way "hybrid" (or partial) horn system in a small apartment in Brooklyn with a 12' x 12' (with 9' ceiling) living room:
Altec 3000G (with integrated horn) tweeter
Altec 804A 1" compression driver on Edgarhorn 650Hz Tractrix horn
Altec 414Z 12" woofer in modern Altec 614 cabinet
Cain & Cain Bailey subwoofer
At the moment, I amplify all three Altec drivers (including mid-bass unit) with a Type 45-based single-ended power amplifier. And with this, I use a homebrew passive crossover. (The subwoofer has an integral plate amp and its own crossover network.) This is pretty far from ideal, though, for someone like me with so little crossover understanding. So, I'm in the process of converting to a more sophisticated configuration with an active digital crossover with a separate power amp on each driver pair or "frequency unit." This will allow for lots of crossover experimentation; improved bass quality (by using a more powerful, perhaps solid state, amp on mid-bass); and time alignment, equalization, and room correction.
Of course, with these speakers and two racks full of tube gear and a large turntable, the system (at least visually) dominates the room -- which may not be to everyone's taste. That said, it all fits neatly on one 12' wall, and (happily/strangely) appeals to my fiancee. (She's a designer and completely unpredictable when it comes to aesthetics. I got lucky on this one!)
I used to use (and still have) a pair of Cain & Cain Abbys, which might work for a similar apartment-dweller. Although almost 6' tall, they have a tiny footprint. And they were made (by a simple driver swap) in two versions, including "nearfield," which allows for a very close listening position. As Voigt Pipes, these are in the horn family, I guess -- or at least not too far removed -- so I figured I'd mention.
Anyway! Lots of ways to do this, as all of the excellent posts above prove...
I have a reasonable, 3- or 4-way "hybrid" (or partial) horn system in a small apartment in Brooklyn with a 12' x 12' (with 9' ceiling) living room:
Altec 3000G (with integrated horn) tweeter
Altec 804A 1" compression driver on Edgarhorn 650Hz Tractrix horn
Altec 414Z 12" woofer in modern Altec 614 cabinet
Cain & Cain Bailey subwoofer
At the moment, I amplify all three Altec drivers (including mid-bass unit) with a Type 45-based single-ended power amplifier. And with this, I use a homebrew passive crossover. (The subwoofer has an integral plate amp and its own crossover network.) This is pretty far from ideal, though, for someone like me with so little crossover understanding. So, I'm in the process of converting to a more sophisticated configuration with an active digital crossover with a separate power amp on each driver pair or "frequency unit." This will allow for lots of crossover experimentation; improved bass quality (by using a more powerful, perhaps solid state, amp on mid-bass); and time alignment, equalization, and room correction.
Of course, with these speakers and two racks full of tube gear and a large turntable, the system (at least visually) dominates the room -- which may not be to everyone's taste. That said, it all fits neatly on one 12' wall, and (happily/strangely) appeals to my fiancee. (She's a designer and completely unpredictable when it comes to aesthetics. I got lucky on this one!)
I used to use (and still have) a pair of Cain & Cain Abbys, which might work for a similar apartment-dweller. Although almost 6' tall, they have a tiny footprint. And they were made (by a simple driver swap) in two versions, including "nearfield," which allows for a very close listening position. As Voigt Pipes, these are in the horn family, I guess -- or at least not too far removed -- so I figured I'd mention.
Anyway! Lots of ways to do this, as all of the excellent posts above prove...