Hi Everyone,
Thank you for the replies and suggestions. I'm going to do my best to reply everyone.
First of all: What an incredible setup! Nice work.
I would replace the LS50 Wireless with an LS50 Meta.
Also, I would elevate the speakers to ear level.
Thank you fo the kind words. As I WFH and game, I spent most of my time in this space - I really enjoy it.
Thank you for the LS50 Meta recommendation - they're definitely on my shortlist. Do you think with a subwoofer I would notice any benefits of the Meta over a regular LS50? - there's quite a price difference (which I'm happy to pay if it's worth it).
For your use case small active speakers seem like the best solution. I would look at Genelec or Neuman active speakers, they are professional monitors so are built to be reliable in a studio environment where downtime costs real money and they have a well deserved reputation for reliability.
I've always wondered what some Genelcs would be like, so last week I found a local dealer and went to go listen to the 8341A and 8351B. The 8351B were definitely a step up over the 8341A - but generally, I was really impressed by them. There was a level of clarity that I had not heard before from a speaker. For critical listening, they sounded much better than my Arendal speaker's which I have for HT. My only concern is them being active. As my LS50 Wireless died, I'm wary of having active speakers which will die. At least with a passive, replacing the amp/dac is a lot more affordable.
+1
If you're willing to take another shot at active speakers, look into the Genelec 8030C or the Neumann KH 80.
The Neumann comes in black and white while the Genelec is available in black, white, or bare Aluminium.
I found a local dealer that has some Neumann for demo. I went to listen to the KH120 and was impressed, but honestly I was drawn a bit more to the Genelecs. They also stock the KH150 but didn't have them available to demo.
Unfortunately I don't have the space for a tower! But thanks for the reccomendation.
I have heard nothing but great things about that Wiim amp - do you think it could get the most of the the LS50 Meta?
If you want to go passive, then maybe look at the Ascend Sierra LX if you don't want to go with the LS50 Meta, but that's where I'd be looking for passives personally.
If you want to go DIY I feel like you're going to need to spend at
least $1100 to make it worthwhile, plus you have to build them yourself.
If you are willing to go active I agree the 8030c or KH120II would be my first stops after the LS50w.
And yeah I have to agree you've got a pretty pristine look on that "battlestation".
Thanks for comments about my battlestation! I love it - bring a smile to my face every day. I'm torn between doing an active from a brand that's trusted to last many years like Genelc, or whether to go passive. I'm happy to drop some money on the speakers, that's not an issue. Realistically speaking, my absolute max budget is about $6000 USD, but that would need to be for out of this world performance and reliability.
I looked up the Ascend Sierra LX and they seem really well regarded - I hadn't atually heard of them before. I did look at the CSS Criton 1TD-X as a potential option as they get good reviews. Then also I have been reading amazing things about the March Audio Sointuva AWG (bookshelf variant). I contacted Alan March about using them nearfield and this was his response:
"The thing you have to remember, and this applies to *all* speakers is that near field monitoring is a sub optimal situation. You need to be a certain distance away from the speaker before the response is considered "far field".
Please see below for more information:
https://www.prosoundweb.com/far-field-criteria-for.../
A good rule of thumb is that you will get a consistent frequency response at about 3x the longest speaker baffle dimension, which is about 1.5m in this case.
This doesn't mean you can't listen closer, or that it will sound bad, just that the frequency response may not be absolutely 0.1 ideal. A bit of EQ may be required. But as I said. This applies to any speaker unless they have been explicitly designed optimised for very close listening.
So in answer to your question, it's a qualified yes"
@Ricku If you will look at diy, i'd recommend this monitor from Heissmann
Passive 2-way compact speaker, equipped with the drivers already proven in Mark K's ER18DXT, Seas DXT 27TBCD/GB and ER18RNX (H1456-08)
heissmann-acoustics.de
Thank you. I've never heard of Heissmann before - I will check it out.
Not speaker related, but how do you get a screen like that ? Is it three normal screens, one landscape en two portrait ?
Middle screen is an LG 48" CX OLED, the side monitors are Lenovo ThinkVision P27h-20 - purely bought for the aesthetic, not the specs. All are mounted on arms which is how I got it all to line up so perfectly.
I would get Neumann KH120's with a sub, or if you can stretch it a bit, a pair of Neumann KH150's. Those you won't replace for a long time i think, and they don't break down that fast (hardly any returns i hear from sellers).
Genelec makes similar build quality and neutral sound, but i don't like them. If you don't mind, they are a good option also. The 8030C's are probally the best in your pricerange.
Thank you for the recommendation. What about Genelecs don't you like? As for my budget I can stretch up to $6000 USD if it's really worth it. My only concern with doing something like a Genelec SAM and using GLM is that I can't integrate my current SVS subwoofer. I've been half tempted to get a pair of Genelec 8351B.
Thank you everyone for your comments and suggestions - it is very much appreciated!
But, my current biggest question at the moment is, do you think there would be much difference at my listening distance (which is about 1m from each speaker, not equalateral triangle.. wider than deeper) between a traditional speaker (tweeter, driver) vs a coaxial design?
How do you think the March Audio Sointuva AWG (bookshelf) would fare? It's quite pricy, but I've read some extremely positive review (and a negative review, but seems to have been solved - definitely not digging this up as a topic of conversation btw!).
Finally, if going for a new setup that doesn't have room correction, what system would you recommend? I know the Genelec SAM models have GLM, but if I went with the Neumann or any passive speakers - what would you opt for?
Thank you!
