looking for general advise on room setup and speakers

[mopple]

Hi all,

I recently stumbled upon this forum/reviews, and you guys seem quite helpful and knowledgeable . What would be your advice in my situation (pictures attached i hope...):

In the bookshelf, there are 2 Edifier R1700Bt speakers and, more recently, an Edifier T5 subwoofer under the TV, which starts to drone at medium volumes. Since last Black Friday, there has also been a Wiim Ultra, which feeds the speakers from the PC (=TV) via Toslink.

At the other end of the room, by the dining table, there is also a small, old compact stereo system, now with a Wiim Mini, so that all speakers in the room can play at once.

All these botched-up elements are aesthetically and acoustically somewhat unsatisfactory. The idea is to replace the Edifier R1700Bt with something 'bigger' and possibly omit the small stereo system. The subwoofer at least needs to change position, and it would be nice not to have it at all for aesthetic reasons. Larger bookshelf speakers look kind of ugly in this delicate shelf, and are too close to the wall and to each other to sound nice (as far as I’ve read). Therefore, floor-standing speakers on either side of the bookshelf seem to be a reasonable option, but i would need to negotiate whith my ladies.

The Edifiers were much too muddy/bassy, but the equaliser and Wiim auto room correction did a good job (to my ears...).

I was thinking of:

• Edifier R2750/2850: Cheap (and small?) upgrade, but don’t know where to put them; kind of ugly.
• White bookshelf monitors (e.g. Yamaha HS5): too chunky on the shelf, too close to the wall, too close together?
• Dali Oberon 5 or 7, or Monitor Audio Bronze 200, or similar on both sides of the shelf. Some speaker amp, as a full amp won’t fit the shelf (depth 32cm), and I don’t need any additional functions (Wiim Ultra). Active speakers would be nice as well and cheaper overall (but must be white)? This is the most expensive option, and i wonder if it will be any better at all when in the kitchen...

All this is used for watching TV (30%), listening to music on the couch (30%), listening to music while cleaning the kitchen/flat (99% 30%), and background music while at the table (10%). No high expectations, just a clean setup and neutral sound, as far as possible for 1-2000 EUR or so. Do i miss anything obvious to you?

And yes, i createt the floorplan and 3d models from scratch only for you

cheers

 

[Power Pop 23]

I vote for the option of a adding a small amplifier to drive a pair of passive floor-standing loudspeakers - if you can get approval. The 12 volt trigger output of the WiiM Ultra can trigger a Fosi Audio ZA3 amplifier to power up or down. I have not heard the floor-standers you list. I am using a WiiM Amp with a pair of Polk ES60 floor-standing loudspeakers and perceive more clarity when I enable automatic room correction.

 

[kyuu]

Agree with the above, although if possible rather than adding an amp to your Wiim you might just replace it with a Wiim Amp (Pro). As for the speakers, given your budget I might suggest:

KEF Q7 Meta
Elac DFR52
Revel F35 (can be difficult and/or expensive to source Revels in Europe I understand)

 

[mopple]

Thanks for your input. So you reckon a wiim amp would be powerfull enough to drive these speakers in a 40m2 / 400 ft2 room? I do have neighbours, but sound isolation is quite good

 

[Power Pop 23]

Thanks for your input. So you reckon a wiim amp would be powerfull enough to drive these speakers in a 40m2 / 400 ft2 room? I do have neighbours, but sound isolation is quite good

Yes

 

[JeremyFife]

Hi, you don't mention budget?

You already have a WiiM Ultra, so I'd be tempted to try to stay with active speakers (aesthetics permitting)
Kali do white; LP6 are good, LP8 will give you more bass

Have a look

 

[mopple]

Hi, you don't mention budget?

i did, must be cheap from an audiophile point of view, but i'm aware i will need to spend at least 1000-2000 for floorstanding speakers and an amp. but that's not fixed. I have a toddler and expensive speakers hurt more if broken. And my main fear is to invest money without any better result. These Edifier sound nice to me, and i've no real clue what i could get with better or really good equipment, and proper placement.

You already have a WiiM Ultra

yes, i should've asked you guys before buying But i will need more wiims for multiroom anyway. Although, a wiim ultra in a bathroom would be a bit a pitty.

Im sure bookshelfs on stands will not be approved, but thanks for the Kali tip anyway.

KEF Q7 Meta
Elac DFR52
Revel F35 (can be difficult and/or expensive to source Revels in Europe I understand)

Looks nice. I'm still positively surprised the small wiim amp would be enough.

 

[JeremyFife]

i did, must be cheap from an audiophile point of view, but i'm aware i will need to spend at least 1000-2000 for floorstanding speakers and an amp. but that's not fixed. I have a toddler and expensive speakers hurt more if broken. And my main fear is to invest money without any better result. These Edifier sound nice to me, and i've no real clue what i could get with better or really good equipment, and proper placement.


yes, i should've asked you guys before buying But i will need more wiims for multiroom anyway. Although, a wiim ultra in a bathroom would be a bit a pitty.

Im sure bookshelfs on stands will not be approved, but thanks for the Kali tip anyway.



Looks nice. I'm still positively surprised the small wiim amp would be enough.

The WiiM Ultra is a brilliant choice - no issues with that at all.
Similarly, stand mounted speakers are also a sensible choice. Floorstanders *may* give better bass (no guarantee) and can be easier to drive - might be louder. It depends on the model.

Stand mounts give you more flexibility in placement themselves and for any subs you might add later.

Don't dismiss active speakers, and don't rule out stand mounts.

Have a look at the Focal range too (although Kef is always a smart choice)