Help with choosing a set of speakers for home theatre and music

[YaskataSt]

Hello!
I've been thinking about getting floor-standing speakers and a AVR for home cinema and music, but since I'm new to the hi-fi space, I would like to ask for your input. Below is some information that could help with the choice:
The room is 22 square meters, with enough space to leave between the speakers and also to move them a bit forward from the wall, if needed. The ceilings are 2.6 meters high. The watching distance is around 2.5 meters.
The system will be used for movies and music (50/50). I would prefer the speaker to be more neutral, but I don't mind a bit of character as well. I do listen to all kinds of music, maybe except heavy metal.
I don't need a very loud speaker, but I want excellent sound quality even at low levels. Since I live in an apartment, I will usually listen on a low or moderate level.
As mentioned, I will start with the front speakers and sub (if needed), but eventually, I can get to 5.1 or more. For this reason I plan to get Denon x1700h or 2800h for AVR, but am open to other options as well.
With that I would like to share a few options that are within my budget and are available where I live (Bulgaria). Unfortunately, where I live, we don't have a good hi-fi store, where I'm able to listen to any of the listed, so I'll have to trust your and mine judgment.
All of the below are within my budget, but I'm really looking for the maximum value, so I don't mind saving few bucks, if said speakers offer mostly the same performance as the more expensive ones.

ELAC Debut F6.2 - 650 EUR/715 USD
ELAC Debut Reference DFR52 - 905 EUR/994 USD
Q Acoustics 3050i - 600 EUR/659 EUR
KEF Q750 - 808 EUR/888 USD
KEF Q950 - 888 EUR/975 USD
Q Acoustics 5040 - 930 EUR/ 1022 USD
DALI OBERON 7 - 1045 EUR/ 1148 USD
Focal Chora 826 - 1130EUR/1241 USD

There is also options for bookshelf speakers, however I'm not sure if they will be enough to fill the room:

KEF Q150 - 245 EUR / 269 USD
KEF Q350 - 303 EUR / 323 EUR
Klipsch RP-600M II - 706 EUR / 775 USD
KEF LS50 Meta - 808 EUR / 888 USD

And more of both types, so if you have suggestions, I can check if they are available here. Thanks so much for the answers in advance. I'm online to answer any questions or to add additional information if needed.

Apologies for the long post!

Yasen

 

[DJNX]

If you are in Europe, my first instinct would be to try to find the non-meta KEF R3, to use as front speakers.
And with the stands, try to get the listening distance down to 2 meters.
Then you can start thinking about what subwoofer to get.

 

[YaskataSt]

If you are in Europe, my first instinct would be to try to find the non-meta KEF R3, to use as front speakers.
And with the stands, try to get the listening distance down to 2 meters.
Then you can start thinking about what subwoofer to get.

Thanks! There are some for around 1050 EUR available, which is at the top end of the budget, but acceptable. My worry is that they are 4 ohms nominal, and I'm not sure what receiver would be able to drive them properly without an amp. Any suggestions?

 

[DJNX]

Thanks! There are some for around 1050 EUR available, which is at the top end of the budget, but acceptable. My worry is that they are 4 ohms nominal, and I'm not sure what receiver would be able to drive them properly without an amp. Any suggestions?

Depends on how loud you listen to music/movies.
You'll have the active subwoofer, which will help the AVR handle the R3s. And, if you get the speakers to a 2m distance, I would definitely not worry about this aspect (assuming the active subwoofer is already in place).

Either way, I don't know for how much the 2800h goes where you live, but there's also the Onkyo TX-RZ50, which has outputs for an external amp, if you find them necessary.
I use the R3 with an AVR, and since I listen to music at around 70dB, even without the subwoofer, the receiver can drive the speakers just fine.

 

[Spkrdctr]

If you get the KEF 950 speakers you will be able to drive them with any receiver with no problem. The problem is that the 950 is a lot of speaker. For your room size and listening distance it is in the "holy cow" level of speakers. You could get by with the 750s if you have a decent subwoofer for your movies. You are talking about very nice speakers and you will not be disappointed with them. You could even try them without a sub just to see how they sound. But for really deep music and movies a sub is pretty much mandatory. I see you ending up with a "killer" system!

 

[wunderkind]

22sq.m is it a shared space? Or is it a dedicated HT room? With the former, I think floorstanders and eventual 5.1 channel might be cluttering up the area. Therefore I recommend bookshelves and a moderate sub. Recognizing it is an apt. good neighbourly practice goes a long way towards harmony. Also consider WAF.

If it's a dedicate HT room, then by all means go for proper full duty floorstander as your main and complimentary centre channel and surrounds. I like KEF and Focal. They seem to balance movies and music well. For receiver, I'd go for Marantz. They make quite musical AVRs IMHO.

 

[Spkrdctr]

As wunderkind brought up, if you want bookshelves, the go with a large bookshelf with at least a 6 inch driver in it. Size does matter regarding home theater speakers.

 

[Timcognito]

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