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Studio Monitors in HI-Fi Systems @ 7ft

soundwave76

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I have a pair of Genelec 8340 in my living room, listening distance about 4 meters. They sound great with the built-in room correction.
 

digicidal

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I was using the LS305's at about 9' in my family room. Now using the Adam T7V's there in a 3.1 configuration.

It's a hard room for audio (SPL-wise) - open to the kitchen behind and the dining/living room to the left. So it's ~45' X 35' but not rectangular (more "L" shaped)... luckily there's a pony wall between it and the dining room that's high enough to give some boundary reinforcement to my 12" sub. Without the sub the 305's couldn't cut it at all. The A7X's are better without the sub - but neither can 'fill the space' very well. However, I rarely listen to anything over ~80dB so it's fine. I found the 305's to be a little easier to listen to music on (probably dome vs ribbon difference mostly) but I do appreciate the extra reach of the 7" Adams. Have them crossed with the sub at 60 IIRC (maybe 50) and just Audyssey XT32 for DSP.

Despite not being what I would call a "compelling" setup - it's fantastic for TV/movies, and more than respectable for music... it just can't compete with my semi-treated office where the 305's are now. That's 10' X 12' though and the 305's are only ~1.5 feet from the listening position. No sub needed or wanted for that room - mostly because there would be no where to put it unless I give up all of my leg room:
IMG_0304.jpg

There's another desk and two bookcases on the opposite wall (and two more panels) so it's pretty tight over all. Makes the JBLs sound HUGE though!
 
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Ron Texas

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I was using the LS305's at about 9' in my family room. Now using the Adam T7V's there in a 3.1 configuration.

It's a hard room for audio (SPL-wise) - open to the kitchen behind and the dining/living room to the left. So it's ~45' X 35' but not rectangular (more "L" shaped)... luckily there's a pony wall between it and the dining room that's high enough to give some boundary reinforcement to my 12" sub. Without the sub the 305's couldn't cut it at all. The A7X's are better without the sub - but neither can 'fill the space' very well. However, I rarely listen to anything over ~80dB so it's fine. I found the 305's to be a little easier to listen to music on (probably dome vs ribbon difference mostly) but I do appreciate the extra reach of the 7" Adams. Have them crossed with the sub at 60 IIRC (maybe 50) and just Audyssey XT32 for DSP.

Despite not being what I would call a "compelling" setup - it's fantastic for TV/movies, and more than respectable for music... it just can't compete with my semi-treated office where the 305's are now. That's 10' X 12' though and the 305's are only ~1.5 feet from the listening position. No sub needed or wanted for that room - mostly because there would be no where to put it unless I give up all of my leg room:

There's another desk and two bookcases on the opposite wall (and two more panels) so it's pretty tight over all. Makes the JBLs sound HUGE though!

The office setup looks inviting. As for the open plan house, I used to have a pair of B&W stand mounts in a place like that and there was no bass at all. My room now is 14x18 opening into a small 60 sf hallway with a door at the end. I have some hand woven pieces which your office gives me the inspiration to hang. Besides, the bare walls need some brightening up.
 

Sal1950

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I was using the LS305's at about 9' in my family room. Now using the Adam T7V's there in a 3.1 configuration.
That's one monster computer tower, you running a server there?
 

digicidal

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That's one monster computer tower, you running a server there?

LOL, actually my server isn't nearly as powerful! That's one of my other stupidly expensive hobbies. It's my largest (barely) workstation. Watercooled via 2 pumps and 5 radiators, 12 core CPU, 128GB RAM, 2 GPUs and all the RGB LED lights and goodies (because RGB lighting makes it faster just like power cords make audio sound better). :p My server is a little embedded low wattage number that at peak load uses ~68W. The workstation pulls well over a kilowatt from the wall when loaded. It's just for VM lab environments, gaming and the occasional 3D render. Not cheap, but was able to hit 4.8GHz on all cores - could go to 5GHz but I need to spot cool the VRMs because they start hitting their thermal limits - and that gets too loud. Under normal load (desktop stuff) the fans all spin down to ~600RPM becomes almost completely silent.

Here's the money shot:
D75_0466.JPG

The office setup looks inviting. As for the open plan house, I used to have a pair of B&W stand mounts in a place like that and there was no bass at all. My room now is 14x18 opening into a small 60 sf hallway with a door at the end. I have some hand woven pieces which your office gives me the inspiration to hang. Besides, the bare walls need some brightening up.

Yeah, without at least one decent sub it's pretty bad... since I almost never have a chance to use the theater any more, I'm thinking of moving my other 12" sub down there for some added reinforcement. Luckily the house is fairly quiet so it doesn't require higher levels for clarity... just for entertainment value.
 
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daftcombo

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Who around here is using a powered studio monitor in a hi-fi system at around 7ft or greater distance? I have been listening to JBL LSR 305P MkII for a while and am surprised at how good they are. My LS50's have been AWOL since mid June. If they don't totally outperform the 305's when I get them back, the KEF's will be sold.

NB: JBL's in use with a single ML 1000W sub. No bass management other than the -3db boundary switch. KEF's were used with a Crown XLS 1502, same sub and the Cown's built in high pass filter set to 80 hz. Topping DX3 Pro DAC.

I just got a pair of 305p mkII last week. I listen to them at 2m, that is almost 7 feet.
They sound absolutely great.

I wouldn't like to listen to them nearer because of the slight hiss coming from the tweeter.

Noaudiophile tested the mkI in his living-room and liked them there too: http://noaudiophile.com/JBL_LSR305/
 

digicidal

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What I would love to see more of in the active speaker arena is something around $3000/ea for an attractive tower, furniture-grade finish, with a nearly silent amp (not Benchmark silent... but maybe nCore) and built in DSP management features similar to the D&D 8C or Kii Three. Essentially a more 'middle class' version of those two.

With the relative affordability of my main passives (Aperion GVT) this seems like it shouldn't be a big deal at all. However, it seems like all the options are either on the JBL 305 side of things (cheap boxes with plastic baffles) or on the high-end side like the two 'darlings' mentioned above.

I keep hoping Jim Salk will make my dreams come true (he's getting there) - but there are some admittedly very subjective requirements that are lacking: namely no LED's or inputs visible on the front and I love curved cabinets over boxes. I'd be fine with a subtly backlit logo in brushed aluminum at the bottom. I had great hopes for the ELAC ARF-51's but I'm not a fan of concentric driver solutions... at least not those I've heard or could afford (the TAD's don't count). Admittedly I haven't gotten a chance to hear them in person, so it might not matter that much - but the KEF's (LS50) didn't impress me when I heard them. Not sure if it's more related to dispersion or driver interactions caused by the music itself - jazz was fine, metal was definitely not (even at low volume they seemed to struggle to me).

Does anyone know of any other attractive but great-measuring floorstanding actives in the $4-6K/pair range?
 

maxxevv

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You could look at JBL's 705 if small size with a load of power is desired.
 

digicidal

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I've considered the 705's (and 708's for that matter) - but they're all pro and no show IMO. :cool:

I'd love it if they made something like a slightly smaller (and 1/3 priced) S3900 active. I'd buy that all day long for $3-4K but JBL isn't taking my calls on that one. LOL!
 
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Ron Texas

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I think the Adam a7x is an interesting alternative for those with a bigger budget than the JBL LSR30x series.
 

digicidal

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I think the Adam a7x is an interesting alternative for those with a bigger budget than the JBL LSR30x series.

Yeah, that was my original plan for my family room upgrade... loved the front ported nature, but not the switch, pot, and LED. Their timely release drove me to the T7V's - which sounded exactly the same with the exception of being slightly less dynamic obviously.

Maybe Kali will make my dreams come true in the future and release an upgraded model with more/better amplification and a bit sturdier cabinet for around $1K/ea. That would be sweet!
 

Blake Klondike

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I have a pair of Genelec 8340 in my living room, listening distance about 4 meters. They sound great with the built-in room correction.

How is the bass response on those? I have the 8020Bs and what low-end information is there sounds great, but there is not much of it. One thing I notice upon comparing the Genelecs to many smaller passives is that the passives create more bass, but it sounds bad. I would rather have no low end than poorly controlled mush that does nothing but obscure the performance.
 

digicidal

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I think Rick Craig (Selah Audio) recently showed something along those lines.

I assume you're referring to the Epico. Very interesting and definitely one on the short list. I need to get to a show where he's demoing it. Might be just the ticket - thanks! Also like the fact that it's using the minidsp plate amp - although I'd love a step above that in noise specs... I like the idea that I could grab a couple of spares and be prepared if anything happened with the electronics years down the road.
 

soundwave76

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How is the bass response on those?

It’s excellent. In my opinion the 8x4x series is the first that doesn’t need a sub - at least in my living room. I had the 8040 before with the DSpeaker DualCore room correction and while it was good, the 8340 with the GLM room correction is MUCH better.
 

Ilkless

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Does anyone know of any other attractive but great-measuring floorstanding actives in the $4-6K/pair range?

Canton Smart Vento 9 - I've been impressed with the passive speakers in the Vento series, and there's now an active version. Not top-tier measurements but better than average - or at least, good enough to be a decent overall package once you add aesthetic/form factor considerations. Distribution seems a bit spotty in the US though. German-made with high-gloss cabinets for KEF R-series money. Uses a waveguided tweeter. Bet the plate amp is still made in the East but that shouldn't deter you.

There's an input screen but its tucked right to the bottom rather than in your line of sight like the Salk.

canton-smart-vento-9-40-set-lautsprecher-surround-51019.jpg
 

digicidal

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Canton Smart Vento 9 - I've been impressed with the passive speakers in the Vento series, and there's now an active version. Not top-tier measurements but better than average - or at least, good enough to be a decent overall package once you add aesthetic/form factor considerations. Distribution seems a bit spotty in the US though. German-made with high-gloss cabinets for KEF R-series money. Uses a waveguided tweeter. Bet the plate amp is still made in the East but that shouldn't deter you.

Oooooh! Very nice. I'm assuming those are the built-in filters in the graph? Looks like all but the red line might seem pretty forward and bright... but I bet listening slightly off axis would be pretty neutral. If nothing else some custom filtering should fix most of it. Definitely have to check those out.

It's too bad they only come with built-in DAC's (without which they could do away with the input screen and drop at least $150 off the price. At least they do have an XLR analog in. Thanks for the suggestion!
 

Ilkless

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Oooooh! Very nice. I'm assuming those are the built-in filters in the graph? Looks like all but the red line might seem pretty forward and bright... but I bet listening slightly off axis would be pretty neutral. If nothing else some custom filtering should fix most of it. Definitely have to check those out.

It's too bad they only come with built-in DAC's (without which they could do away with the input screen and drop at least $150 off the price. At least they do have an XLR analog in. Thanks for the suggestion!

No, those are the on and off-axis curves. Blue is on, green is I think 15° and red 30°.

Another option is the Nubert Nupro X-8000, a very engineering-focused direct-sale brand mostly serving Germany and the surrounding region. Measures like this, with better off-axis:

nubert-nupro-x-8000-aktivlautsprecher-51914.jpg


I've also been looking out for active floorstanders, and it seems most of them have been coming out of central/Western Europe, especially Germany. There's a few others like the ATC SCM40A, but ATC stuff is hardly a great value considering a DD is just a bit more. A sub+standmount setup is way more common for actives.

Edit: another up-and-rising brand with strong engineering chops is Taipuu from Finland, think @Juhazi was the one that clued me onto them.

There's also Abacus, which seems to enjoy a cult following in Germany for their sealed active speakers with AMT tweeters and Wavecor (mid)woofers. But no measurements. More generally, there's something about Germany and its surrounding areas that seem to encourage the manufacturing of more home-friendly active speakers - both by retail brands and custom installers, such as Merovinger.
 
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