Downsizing HiFi
Discussion
Hi all. To compliment my downsizing PC thread ...
I've been kicked out of my loft Man cave and have to downsize my HiFI.
Currently have separates that ive owned for 30 years !
Ariston Q Deck, Kenwood KX 880 tape deck ( not used in years ), Technics ST-G570L FM Tuner, TECHNICS SL-P555 CD Player and Technics SU-V450 Amp.
The speakers are Kef floor standers that will have to go one way or another.
The room size is 2.6m x 1.9m ! I will have a desk pretty much the whole width of the room facing the window that will have to house 2 hopefully 3 23 / 24" monitors.
Budget for Speaker will be a max of £500 but it looks like they are going to have to sit on the desk so size is paramount specifically the width.
I'm hoping at least initially keep my old amp as I purchased it new and still think it sounds pretty sweet to my ears. That's comparing it to a mate who has a decent NAD amp and Monitor Audio Speakers. If I audition my old amp with the speakers I eventually select and it sounds rubbish I will budget around £300 for a new amp.
So suggestions and advice please. Is it even possible to have a nice sounding setup in such a small room which will also have cupboards along the top left hand side and the back.
2nd hand is an option but would prefer to purchase new as I dont want to travel far and would not want to risk damage to speakers or amp plus I would have to listen / audition them with my old map.
Cheers !
I've been kicked out of my loft Man cave and have to downsize my HiFI.
Currently have separates that ive owned for 30 years !
Ariston Q Deck, Kenwood KX 880 tape deck ( not used in years ), Technics ST-G570L FM Tuner, TECHNICS SL-P555 CD Player and Technics SU-V450 Amp.
The speakers are Kef floor standers that will have to go one way or another.
The room size is 2.6m x 1.9m ! I will have a desk pretty much the whole width of the room facing the window that will have to house 2 hopefully 3 23 / 24" monitors.
Budget for Speaker will be a max of £500 but it looks like they are going to have to sit on the desk so size is paramount specifically the width.
I'm hoping at least initially keep my old amp as I purchased it new and still think it sounds pretty sweet to my ears. That's comparing it to a mate who has a decent NAD amp and Monitor Audio Speakers. If I audition my old amp with the speakers I eventually select and it sounds rubbish I will budget around £300 for a new amp.
So suggestions and advice please. Is it even possible to have a nice sounding setup in such a small room which will also have cupboards along the top left hand side and the back.
2nd hand is an option but would prefer to purchase new as I dont want to travel far and would not want to risk damage to speakers or amp plus I would have to listen / audition them with my old map.
Cheers !
If you want some really good sounding small speakers, I can definitely recommend Neat Iotas.
They are tiny (Width 200mm, height 130mm, depth 165mm), are designed to be mounted close to a wall or on a shelf, but sound great. They are normally oriented so they look like they are on their sides (which means you can choose whether to have the ribbon tweeter on the inside or outside), but if horizontal space is really tight, can be oriented vertically.
I have a pair in the living room running from an Ecko valve amp and they sound remarkable - hard to imagine the sound they produce can come from something so small.
Normal price is £780 for the pair, but occasionally Creative Audio have an offer where they sell slight cosmetic seconds for £499. They currently have these available in both black and white.
I bought a white pair for £499, and phoned them to ask what was the cosmetic fault on them. The guy said he couldn't really see much wrong with them. When they turned up, I looked very closely at them and could see absolutely nothing wrong with them. They are perfect as far as I'm concerned.
They are tiny (Width 200mm, height 130mm, depth 165mm), are designed to be mounted close to a wall or on a shelf, but sound great. They are normally oriented so they look like they are on their sides (which means you can choose whether to have the ribbon tweeter on the inside or outside), but if horizontal space is really tight, can be oriented vertically.
I have a pair in the living room running from an Ecko valve amp and they sound remarkable - hard to imagine the sound they produce can come from something so small.
Normal price is £780 for the pair, but occasionally Creative Audio have an offer where they sell slight cosmetic seconds for £499. They currently have these available in both black and white.
I bought a white pair for £499, and phoned them to ask what was the cosmetic fault on them. The guy said he couldn't really see much wrong with them. When they turned up, I looked very closely at them and could see absolutely nothing wrong with them. They are perfect as far as I'm concerned.
Over a year ago I was living in a big detached cottage in Surrey and one of the huge bedrooms became my music room.
All my kit was bought in 1985 and still going strong.
NAD amp and tuner, AR18 speakers on stands, Yamaha CD multi changer and the only new addition, a Project turntable.
Along with guitars and a drum kit, it was man cave heaven.
Now I live in an attic, the gear is stored in a shed and I use a Google Home
All my kit was bought in 1985 and still going strong.
NAD amp and tuner, AR18 speakers on stands, Yamaha CD multi changer and the only new addition, a Project turntable.
Along with guitars and a drum kit, it was man cave heaven.
Now I live in an attic, the gear is stored in a shed and I use a Google Home
C&C They have great reviews. It's going to be a hard decision.
Shortlisted so far ..
Iotas - 130 x 200 x 165mm
Monitor Audio SILVER 50 - 165 x 269 x 270
KEF Q350 - 210 x 306 x 358
Shows how the Iotas really are tiny ! The height and depth are not that critical but i'm sat here with a rule and even the KEF at 210 dont seem very wide. I'm sure I could cope with 210mm.
Anyone else have any suggestions or real world experience of the Monitor Audio and Q350's ? Mate has Q300's and swears by them.
Shortlisted so far ..
Iotas - 130 x 200 x 165mm
Monitor Audio SILVER 50 - 165 x 269 x 270
KEF Q350 - 210 x 306 x 358
Shows how the Iotas really are tiny ! The height and depth are not that critical but i'm sat here with a rule and even the KEF at 210 dont seem very wide. I'm sure I could cope with 210mm.
Anyone else have any suggestions or real world experience of the Monitor Audio and Q350's ? Mate has Q300's and swears by them.
SouthernSkye said:
I have a pair of Rega RS1's
Fabulous small speaker if your music tastes lean towards vocal, classical or acoustic music.
Not great on heavy bass,but they do the occasional Epica and Metallica blast well enough for me.
Would need to source a good used pair now mind.
Good luck
Rgds
Richard.
Thanks Richard. Yeah decent bass will be pretty important.Fabulous small speaker if your music tastes lean towards vocal, classical or acoustic music.
Not great on heavy bass,but they do the occasional Epica and Metallica blast well enough for me.
Would need to source a good used pair now mind.
Good luck
Rgds
Richard.
If you want good bass, then generally speaking, the bigger the better !
The Elac 'Debut' series are getting good Youtube reviews, especially the B6.2, but that's quite a chunky speaker compared to those you've short-listed, so maybe the B5.2 could be an alternative
Sadly they only have black which may not be everyone's taste these days
The Elac 'Debut' series are getting good Youtube reviews, especially the B6.2, but that's quite a chunky speaker compared to those you've short-listed, so maybe the B5.2 could be an alternative
Sadly they only have black which may not be everyone's taste these days
I'd be replacing the person who kicked you out of your man cave.
I have a second small system in my second living room with a pair of Neat Petites.
Tiny with awesome sound but need a properly matched amp (I have an old cyrus) and siting close to a wall.
Sound appalling with my sugden A class.
I have a second small system in my second living room with a pair of Neat Petites.
Tiny with awesome sound but need a properly matched amp (I have an old cyrus) and siting close to a wall.
Sound appalling with my sugden A class.
I was in similar position a few years ago, Naim stack, active SBLs, REL sub etc. but house move and subsequent neighbourly considerations precluded listening at volumes I preferred so it all went and bought myself a pretty decent headphone rig. Granted you don't get the in your face scale and impact of loudspeakers but that's offset by the amount of detail retrieval you get, maybe worth thinking about.
MikeyC said:
If you want good bass, then generally speaking, the bigger the better !
The Elac 'Debut' series are getting good Youtube reviews, especially the B6.2, but that's quite a chunky speaker compared to those you've short-listed, so maybe the B5.2 could be an alternative
Sadly they only have black which may not be everyone's taste these days
Very interesting. Black is not a problem. They get great reviews and come in at half my budget. Added to my audition shortlist.The Elac 'Debut' series are getting good Youtube reviews, especially the B6.2, but that's quite a chunky speaker compared to those you've short-listed, so maybe the B5.2 could be an alternative
Sadly they only have black which may not be everyone's taste these days
keirik said:
I'd be replacing the person who kicked you out of your man cave.
I have a second small system in my second living room with a pair of Neat Petites.
Tiny with awesome sound but need a properly matched amp (I have an old cyrus) and siting close to a wall.
Sound appalling with my sugden A class.
Quick google shows these as been well out of my price range. 2nd hand will be difficult as I really want to audition.I have a second small system in my second living room with a pair of Neat Petites.
Tiny with awesome sound but need a properly matched amp (I have an old cyrus) and siting close to a wall.
Sound appalling with my sugden A class.
Unfortunately I offered the loft.... Yeah stupid I know haha !
wolfracesonic said:
I was in similar position a few years ago, Naim stack, active SBLs, REL sub etc. but house move and subsequent neighbourly considerations precluded listening at volumes I preferred so it all went and bought myself a pretty decent headphone rig. Granted you don't get the in your face scale and impact of loudspeakers but that's offset by the amount of detail retrieval you get, maybe worth thinking about.
I know what you mean and I have given this serious consideration. I have a pair of Sony Wh-1000XM2’s while not true audiophile headphones do sound pretty good.Think is it just doesn’t feel the same if you know what I mean.
Narcisus said:
Hi all. To compliment my downsizing PC thread ...
I've been kicked out of my loft Man cave and have to downsize my HiFI.
Currently have separates that ive owned for 30 years !
Ariston Q Deck, Kenwood KX 880 tape deck ( not used in years ), Technics ST-G570L FM Tuner, TECHNICS SL-P555 CD Player and Technics SU-V450 Amp.
The speakers are Kef floor standers that will have to go one way or another.
The room size is 2.6m x 1.9m ! I will have a desk pretty much the whole width of the room facing the window that will have to house 2 hopefully 3 23 / 24" monitors.
Budget for Speaker will be a max of £500 but it looks like they are going to have to sit on the desk so size is paramount specifically the width.
I'm hoping at least initially keep my old amp as I purchased it new and still think it sounds pretty sweet to my ears. That's comparing it to a mate who has a decent NAD amp and Monitor Audio Speakers. If I audition my old amp with the speakers I eventually select and it sounds rubbish I will budget around £300 for a new amp.
So suggestions and advice please. Is it even possible to have a nice sounding setup in such a small room which will also have cupboards along the top left hand side and the back.
2nd hand is an option but would prefer to purchase new as I dont want to travel far and would not want to risk damage to speakers or amp plus I would have to listen / audition them with my old map.
Cheers !
Active speakers are a great solution when space is limited. If you can do some man maths with your overall budget then these might just be ideal. http://www.audioaffair.co.uk/kef-x300a-wireless-ac...I've been kicked out of my loft Man cave and have to downsize my HiFI.
Currently have separates that ive owned for 30 years !
Ariston Q Deck, Kenwood KX 880 tape deck ( not used in years ), Technics ST-G570L FM Tuner, TECHNICS SL-P555 CD Player and Technics SU-V450 Amp.
The speakers are Kef floor standers that will have to go one way or another.
The room size is 2.6m x 1.9m ! I will have a desk pretty much the whole width of the room facing the window that will have to house 2 hopefully 3 23 / 24" monitors.
Budget for Speaker will be a max of £500 but it looks like they are going to have to sit on the desk so size is paramount specifically the width.
I'm hoping at least initially keep my old amp as I purchased it new and still think it sounds pretty sweet to my ears. That's comparing it to a mate who has a decent NAD amp and Monitor Audio Speakers. If I audition my old amp with the speakers I eventually select and it sounds rubbish I will budget around £300 for a new amp.
So suggestions and advice please. Is it even possible to have a nice sounding setup in such a small room which will also have cupboards along the top left hand side and the back.
2nd hand is an option but would prefer to purchase new as I dont want to travel far and would not want to risk damage to speakers or amp plus I would have to listen / audition them with my old map.
Cheers !
Always best to listen before buying so auditioning one of the actives available at Richer may be a good option. Possibly the active Wharfedale Diamonds, Dali Zensor 1AX or Ruark MR1.
If you are happy to choose without hearing then there are some very good options in the pro / semi pro market. https://www.dv247.com/en_GB/GBP/Focal-Alpha-50/art...
Crackie said:
Active speakers are a great solution when space is limited. If you can do some man maths with your overall budget then these might just be ideal. http://www.audioaffair.co.uk/kef-x300a-wireless-ac...
Always best to listen before buying so auditioning one of the actives available at Richer may be a good option. Possibly the active Wharfedale Diamonds, Dali Zensor 1AX or Ruark MR1.
If you are happy to choose without hearing then there are some very good options in the pro / semi pro market. https://www.dv247.com/en_GB/GBP/Focal-Alpha-50/art...
Kind of discounted active speakers. Really want speakers / amp etc.Always best to listen before buying so auditioning one of the actives available at Richer may be a good option. Possibly the active Wharfedale Diamonds, Dali Zensor 1AX or Ruark MR1.
If you are happy to choose without hearing then there are some very good options in the pro / semi pro market. https://www.dv247.com/en_GB/GBP/Focal-Alpha-50/art...
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