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Small bookshelf speakers in cabinet

AronJ

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Mar 4, 2023
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I am looking for speakers that will fit the setup in the photo below.

What's there now is a pair of Mission M30i that I got second hand for 30 euros.

For personal listening you can see the Focal Utopia in the background, so the speakers are for when I have company, or can't be bothered to put on headphones, for both music and movies/series.
Of course I'm not expecting to get to the level of the utopia with this setup, but I'd like to know how far I can get, with the size constraints and the placement directly against the cabinet.
Are there any speakers particularly suited to this setup?
The opening is 37x19x15 cm (HxDxW), I don't mind if they stick out a little. There's also room for a subwoofer potentially in the middle, with a maximum height of 17cm.
Budget wise, the very limit would be something like 1000 euros new if I can get a good second hand deal, but I suspect that that is already way more than the setup merits?
(The receiver is a Marantz nr 1602 that I just picked up second hand for 100 euros)

And a final question, I guess in principle it'd be better to raise them to the top of this opening in the cabinet, so less sound is blocked by the coffee table or couch. It would be even less stable though, depending on what I put under it. Any suggestions there?
speakersetup.jpg
 
That setup looks fine to me. I'd say to just enjoy it as you know it is a secondary system and not a full on, I need the best I can afford system.
 
Missions place the tweeter under the woofer. Having a tweeter at floor level is, let's say, "less than ideal". Also - port ought to be front firing. Consider looking for Elac DBR-62 and then lift them to the top. The soundbar idea above - is a good one as well. Just get a quality one.
 
Put something under the speakers they are too close to the floor
 
Yes, your best bet here is to find a way to get those speakers higher (or yes, switch to a soundbar). And yeah, if the Missions have a rear port, that's not ideal given the housing.

To raise the current speakers within the enclosure, you might be able to find some white high-density foam blocks? Or buy black blocks and cover with a stretchy white cloth fabric?
 
The first thing that comes to my mind is a front ported coaxial speaker. Front ports because the rear port of a speaker won't be able to breath properly with the back panel of that stand. Coaxial because they have better vertical directivity which should help with the fact that the speakers are below the TV. I owned the KEF Q100s at one point and thought they were decent for the price but Amir's Review was not very favorable. They do have an extended shelf bass tuning which might work well with your TV Stand situation.

Looking closer at the opening dimensions you give, the Q100 would fit height wise but it would hang off the edges with its depth and width. Another option may be the Monoprice Monolith THX satelite speakers reviewed by Erin. They are small sealed coaxial units which have good linearity and directivity but really require a subwoofer.
 
I would invest in different furniture or wall mounting to get the speaker somewhere else, if you possibly can. Putting them next to the floor is bad, and of course you won't get any appreciable stereo image with them so close together, either.

Other than that, I would put some books (or something) under the mission speakers, and turn them upside down to get the tweeters higher up.

The suggestion of KEF is a good one, since they have coaxial drivers the sub-optimal vertical placement isn't a death sentence for the sound.

A soundbar is also a good suggestion in a situation like this. If my choice was "put the speakers next to the floor" or "soundbar" I'd probably concede and go for the sound bar. Fancy fake-surround effects and whatnot will probably sound better for TV / movies than trying to squeeze more out of the current setup.
 
Yeah anything to try to upgrade that setup will inevitably not quite fit in that space, at least depth- and width-wise. Being so close to the floor you would want something with excellent vertical directivity like a Kef, but all their bookshelves have rear ports which you also don't want in there. You'd want something sealed or front-ported. If you're going to stick with bookshelves in that space, you should not only raise them to the extent possible but also tilt them up (using a wedge of some sort) to get the tweeter pointed as near as possible to seated head height (being a little shy would be fine, you just want to be within 20-degrees of on-axis typically).

If you don't mind the speaker being a little bigger than the space in terms of depth and width, I might recommend the Elac DBR-62.

Edit: Above mentioned KEF LSX II LT might be a good option. You might be able to use EQ to counterbalance the effect of having the port shoved up against a boundary.
 
Putting them next to the floor is bad, and of course you won't get any appreciable stereo image with them so close together, either.

A soundbar is also a good suggestion in a situation like this. If my choice was "put the speakers next to the floor" or "soundbar" I'd probably concede and go for the sound bar. Fancy fake-surround effects and whatnot will probably sound better for TV / movies than trying to squeeze more out of the current setup.
Yes. I'd worry about reflections from the hard wooden floor. Maybe a rug would help.? Also upward pointing stands like you get for computer speakers - KEF do sell expensive stands, but I have a budget pair that does the job. Also KEF realise LSX might be used as computer speakers at the back of a desk and have an option for this in their DSP set up... that might work for your set up (?)
 
Thanks, I raised them with books and turned them upside down, that does help.

Regarding an upgrade, the KEF LSX II LT do fit the space quite nicely, and I can find them new for 720 euro.
I don't like that they're active though, and all this streaming functionality. I can already stream spotify through my tv, which I like as you see what's playing, and more importantly having the receiver in between allows me to plug in my utopia if I want to watch something and have great sound.

The DBR62 will have a bit too much overhang I think.
 
Above mentioned KEF LSX II LT might be a good option. You might be able to use EQ to counterbalance the effect of having the port shoved up against a boundary.
I have KEF LSX I and the app has a "distance from wall" EQ option that goes down to < 10 cm. Again they must be thinking of computer desk situation...

KEF LSX II LT are on heavy discount in UK at the moment - not sure about EU prices!
 
I suppose I could connect the KEfs to my tv through hdmi-arc, and connect the receiver to the tv through optical purely for headphone use. The only downside being slightly more hassle and not being able to control the volume through the tv remote when using headphones. I'm tempted..

I have KEF LSX I and the app has a "distance from wall" EQ option that goes down to < 10 cm. Again they must be thinking of computer desk situation...
Do you have it close to the wall?
 
Thanks, I raised them with books and turned them upside down, that does help.

Regarding an upgrade, the KEF LSX II LT do fit the space quite nicely, and I can find them new for 720 euro.
I don't like that they're active though, and all this streaming functionality. I can already stream spotify through my tv, which I like as you see what's playing, and more importantly having the receiver in between allows me to plug in my utopia if I want to watch something and have great sound.

The DBR62 will have a bit too much overhang I think.
My KEF LSX 1s work wonderfully with Spotify - they are Spotify Connect compliant. I stream in from my router via ethernet (yes, the KEFs have an ethernet connection!) I use a Kindle Fire 8 Tablet as a controller.

I *can* stream Spotify from the TV, but the Kindle "super remote" makes the experience a whole lot better.

The KEF LSX II LT has an HDMI connection, so connectiing to the TV, at highest quality, should be a doddle - one up on my KEF LSX I - it doesn't have HDMI - I use an HDMI to optical converter to stream TV audio.

*But* the KEFs are so resolving that I reckon I can tell the difference between a non-lossy stream and Spotify so have moved to Amazon Music Unlimited for the moment - going through the TV works quite well for Amazon Music...

My highest quality interaction was also headphone based (Senn HD 650...). But I've a tendency to Tinnitus, which headphones especial;y exacerbate, so I thought i'd seriously up my speaker experience by buying the LSXs. I did not expect them to get anywhere near the Senns, but they did!

You might still be able to have the receiver in-between! Is there an optical or co-ax out connection from the receiver? If the speakers *must* allow connection via RCA/ aux then you need LSX I or LSX II - LSX II LT doesn't have an aux in.

My old CD payer only has an RCA analog connection, no digital output at all, but it sounds great through KEF LSX I aux in (blows Spotify out of the water...)

Amir has a very positive review & measurements of KEF LSX I - of their sound at least - he didn't like the app - I didn't find it a problem (I read the manual...)
 
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Better equipment will not help this system. If spending money, spend it on furniture that can accommodate speakers in a better location. It's pointless buying better speakers when they are sitting on the floor. Furniture and room treatment are where you'll actually see a benefit from making changes.
 
Better equipment will not help this system. If spending money, spend it on furniture that can accommodate speakers in a better location. It's pointless buying better speakers when they are sitting on the floor. Furniture and room treatment are where you'll actually see a benefit from making changes.
I think that's a bit of an overly strong statement on the situation. The speakers can easily be moved up a little and tilted up, particularly a small speaker like the KEF LSX. Throw a rug on the floor to attenuate the floor bounce in the higher frequencies and it should be perfectly fine. Not ideal, of course, but far from a situation where better equipment won't help.
 
I had a 5.1 setup with KEF speakers and SVS sub in my family room. My wife hated the look so when we remodeled the room I sold it off and bought a Samsung Q990C soundbar. What surprised me was I don’t think it was a downgrade sound-wise and my wife was right, it looks so much better with all the clutter gone.

Also, it would drive me crazy with the speakers so far below the screen when watching movies etc.
 
I had a 5.1 setup with KEF speakers and SVS sub in my family room. My wife hated the look so when we remodeled the room I sold it off and bought a Samsung Q990C soundbar. What surprised me was I don’t think it was a downgrade sound-wise and my wife was right, it looks so much better with all the clutter gone.

Also, it would drive me crazy with the speakers so far below the screen when watching movies etc.
I had to do the same thing. I moved and had to sell a fantastic surround system and go to a very nice sound bar. It was a step down but a very slight step down.
 
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