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Big speakers in small room at moderate volume levels

My office is 11’W x 10’L x 9’H and is where I can listen to music for the next few years. I have a toddler and, for now, he has commanded the big spaces in the rest of the house. I have auditioned the Magico A3 and wanted to buy it but that was before I was relegated to the smallish office (I was expecting to move to a bigger room). I have removed the closet doors in this office room. The removal of the closet door gives me another 4 feet of depth to this room, though for only 1/2 width of the room. I can sit unobstructed 8 feet away from the speakers before I hit the area where the closet ends (so near field listening).

I currently I have KEF LS50 with Peachtree Nova 150. It is good and I can listen for the whole day without fatigue. I listen to FM, digital files on ROON, and my Sony SCD-1 SACD player. I want a bigger sound so I am looking at bigger speakers. I also do not want to use a sub since I am not a fan. I will also upgrade the NOVA 150 to the NOVA 500 in Spring 2019 and use with the LS50’s in a bedroom.

I came to the conclusion that my tastes would be best served by one of KEF Reference 1 or Magico A3. I was thinking that I would use the Lyngdorf 3400 in this room but I am having seconds thoughts on this now (some A’gon comments that it maybe a little dry). I am interested in solid state AB units like the Hegel H590 and Mark Levinson 585 to drive the speakers. I have heard the ML 585 and it is a fatigue free sounding unit that was a joy to listen to. I have not heard the Hegel H590 yet (but have heard other Hegels with KEF) and I am in the process of getting an audition of the H590. I have also discounted the class AB Micromega M-One 150 (with MARS room correction) because I do not want a cooling fan blowing in the room.

I must mention that I do not listen that loud when I am working and when I am working very late at night the volume is very low. The Mark Levinson and A3 combo was very good at low volumes during my demo but that was in the dealers perfect large room.

1) Am I making a mistake foregoing room correction with the 2 integrateds I am considering? Should I go with the Lyngdorf and A3 or KEF Ref 1, though I have never heard the Lyngdorf?

2) Will the Magico A3 work in this small room at moderate volumes WITHOUT room correction or will I subject myself to headaches and fatigue?

I am going to ask the dealer selling the A3’s this question when I am ready to buy but i wanted to ask on A’gon first to get some feedback. I doubt I could get the A3’s into my room for a trial but I have not asked the dealer yet.

I think (not 100% sure) the KEF Reference 1 with a non room correcting amp should work in my office space but I would prefer to buy the Magico A3 for the office. I have plans to buy another KEF model once my kid is a bit older and I can kick him out of the big room.
yyzsantabarbara
lancelock
625 posts
 
@yyzsantabarbara I have the TAD’s in my living room currently. My living room is a horrible room to get good sound out of speakers with the L shape and all glass on one side but they still sound wonderful. The listening room at CAF was set up better and they did sound better. The room was probably 16’x 18’ if I’m guessing. I was drawn back to this room four times during the weekend. At the end of the show I bought his demo pair.

I also have a pair of Janszen zA2.1 in a 14 x 14’ room that sound spectacular. Unlike most electrostats they are not dipoles so you can almost put them up against the wall. These can leave you longing for more bass so I have a pair E110 subs that work great.

Lance
kahlenz's avatar
kahlenz
168 posts
 
I'm not sure what "full" sound is.  More bass?  Wide dispersion?  Small monitors with well integrated subs can sound plenty "full".  Timing issues regarding when the sound pressure hits your ears are a tough argument for me to swallow.  Separate subs that can be moved around can even be an advantage in cancelling room resonances.  The lower frequencies are fairly non-directional as the longer frequencies pressurize the entire room.  The mid and high frequencies, which are more directional (the sound pressure from the drivers hits your ear before the reflected frequencies) are coming from the same size drivers as a bigger speaker.  Big speakers are, well, bigger, and have the potential to be louder.  Small speakers are easier to integrate into a room, will likely create more stable stereo imaging, and are probably going to be loud enough.  If you have a big room, and like loud music, get bigger speakers.

The Magicos are great.  They will sound better than your LS50s.  You will probably want to invest in some acoustical room treatments, or DSP, to tame the room resonance frequencies.
d2girls's avatar
d2girls
641 posts
 
I may have to downsize/downgrade next year. Is the KEF Ref 1 a worthy replacement for my JBL 4367? Reason for downsize... can’t play loud bass anymore in the new apartment.
erik_squires
5,268 posts
 
In a smaller space, as Fritz to make you a custom build with a single ScanSpeak mid/woofer.


pokey77
604 posts
 
@yyzsantabarbara 

The LS50 is nice for what it is but as you may know, they need quality power to sound good. The KEF Ref 1 is just OK as I remember. If you are willing to spend Ref 1 money, take a very serious look at the Harbeth SHL 5. I've heard them twice in the last two days. Just so good with a Luxman 509X, Marantz SA - 10, Nordost wiring. Also heard with a nice TT and phono pre (Clear Audio + Luxman phono). This is a very musical setup on both digital and vinyl. I've never heard a speaker in this price range that is better. And IMOHO, it is much better than the Magico A3 and I've heard the A3s two or three times. The A3s didn't even make the list with TAD and Wilson and now Harbeth.

I've heard the TAD ME-1s many times (last time around a week ago) and they are stellar but are also 2X greater cost compared to the Harbeths. 
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