What are the best, smallest high end speakers?

[speedygonzalez]

Neumann kh 80 is a good speaker, I tried 2 weeks at home when renovating my monitors.

Bizarrely, despite good measurements, it didn’t sound well at home: so muddy in mid range, I don’t understand why (I put it on the same stand floor as Genelec and adjust gain and bass with the ipad app, which works great).

I also dislike the digital conversion and posterior analogue reconversion inside the DSP, really needs a SPDIF or AES/EBU input as kh 120 ii. Genelec 8320 has the same issue, given the lack of space as a possible reason I will prefer no XLR input and just the digital one.

What would you choose in my case?

 

[Miguelón]

What would you choose in my case?

As you posted, “by best I mean… the most flat”, I will go to the Genelecs 8030cpm if you can go for that size.

Its volume is approximately the same as Neumann KH 80 but it sounds better. No 4 inch speaker was found in my personal search that sound really well (I tried Kef LSX II, Genelec 8020, Neumann KH 80: didn’t go further because poor measurements of other monitors). Even Genelecs 8020 (or Genelecs 2, are the same inside) sound a bit unnatural.

Neumann’s KH 120 ii is quite big in comparison. costs 150€ more (each unit) and they definitely sound bizarre. The last comment is totally personal but you asked…

The 8030 genelec behave well and are very handle, trustable and made a lot of people happy from pros to audiophiles from years.

Other 5 inch monitors are less flat, or too bigger and expensive as KH 120 ii, and 4 inch monitors are unacceptable in sound quality compared with 5 ones.

 

[teashea]

New in town. By best I mean flattest and most objectively true sounding to source material. I would prefer actives but passive suggestions I would be open to. Is there a law of diminishing (literally) returns with smaller speakers. Physics does kick in the smaller you go. I am talking compact.

So far I have KH80 and Genelec 1 or 2 on my list. Mucho thanks.

Neumann KH 150's and KH 120 II's. Read Amir's test results here -- and the several hundred posts.......

 

[Ktacos]

8030c are about the smallest I'd say one can go and still sound right. The kh80's were nice but didn't sound quite as good as the 8030, which are still really small. They should last a long time, but kh80's plastic cabinet didn't gel with me.

 

[Miguelón]

8030c are about the smallest I'd say one can go and still sound right. The kh80's were nice but didn't sound quite as good as the 8030, which are still really small. They should last a long time, but kh80's plastic cabinet didn't gel with me.

Totally agree. Had both on comparison at home and KH 80 resonates a lot. Placing the hand over the cabinet and I can reproduce the whole track by vibration as a human turntable

 

[speedygonzalez]

Totally agree. Had both on comparison at home and KH 80 resonates a lot. Placing the hand over the cabinet and I can reproduce the whole track by vibration as a human turntable

I will have to give the 8030 a listen. Aluminium is the way to go it would seem, after seeing the March pictures and how easily wood cracks.

 

[Miguelón]

I will have to give the 8030 a listen. Aluminium is the way to go it would seem, after seeing the March pictures and how easily wood cracks.

I can say that one of the little Genelecs 8020 felt from 1,20 meters to the floor and just only a little scratch on the coin. Thomann’s deduction on return value was minimal as it sounded perfectly good…

 

[Miguelón]

I add the Genelec 8010 to the very little speakers that sound phenomenal. We got a pair to the study room, and we are in love with them at home.

Is true that we listen at relatively low SPL, over 90 dB or so they distort a lot on the bass region (think is due to port resonance).

We are even thinking about selling our 8030s to buy a subwoofer and have them as main speakers, we never go over 80 dB

 

[speedygonzalez]

I did look at these and they are going on my short list. Which subwoofer would you pair them with?

 

[staticV3]

Which subwoofer would you pair them with?

Budget?
New or used?
Country?
Size constraints?
Do you have an external crossover (DSP), or do you need a sub with one built-in?

 

[speedygonzalez]

Budget?
New or used?
Country?
Size constraints?
Do you have an external crossover (DSP), or do you need a sub with one built-in?

Any
Either
Any
Something I or my wife could move without two people.
No and maybe?

 

[Killingbeans]

A subwoofer you can easily hold in one hand will be a woofer at most. The 'sub'-part is just not possible.

KEF KC62 is probably the smallest I'd personally go.

 

[speedygonzalez]

A subwoofer you can easily hold in one hand will be a woofer at most. The 'sub'-part is just not possible.I

Thank you for pointing this out. I edited my response.

 

[Miguelón]

A subwoofer you can easily hold in one hand will be a woofer at most. The 'sub'-part is just not possible.

KEF KC62 is probably the smallest I'd personally go.

A mini-sub will be a great invention

 

[Miguelón]

Thank you for pointing this out. I edited my response.

Subs use to be expensive, I suggest you to decide the speakers without it before.

You can’t go wrong with Genelec 8030 if the size is acceptable for you, also Neumann 120 ii if a little bit bigger is ok.

Here there is some agreement (informal) that all speakers under 5 inch woofer don’t reach an acceptable “musical” level.

I partially agree, based on some of them tried: Kh 80, 8020, kef lsx ii, ruark (I don’t remember the model), Yamaha HS4… they are seductive and cute but after a while they tend to be unrealistic by any reason.

Our recent enthusiasm for Genelec 8010 turned quickly in acoustic fatigue, they sound very well “for the size” but uncontrolled resonances and distortions.

Neumann KH 80 was theoretically the perfect 4 inch speaker, good measures in Amir’s review, but again was deceptive in my opinion once tried at home.

My final recommendation is to avoid little speakers unless they are totally necessary, taking by “little” the sense of “inferior than 5 inches”

 

[kemmler3D]

Personally now that I have 8030s on stands, with a sub, in my desktop setup, I now only find things to dislike about my room, it's clear the speakers are not holding me back anymore.

 

[speedygonzalez]

Subs use to be expensive, I suggest you to decide the speakers without it before.

You can’t go wrong with Genelec 8030 if the size is acceptable for you, also Neumann 120 ii if a little bit bigger is ok.

Here there is some agreement (informal) that all speakers under 5 inch woofer don’t reach an acceptable “musical” level.

I partially agree, based on some of them tried: Kh 80, 8020, kef lsx ii, ruark (I don’t remember the model), Yamaha HS4… they are seductive and cute but after a while they tend to be unrealistic by any reason.

Our recent enthusiasm for Genelec 8010 turned quickly in acoustic fatigue, they sound very well “for the size” but uncontrolled resonances and distortions.

Neumann KH 80 was theoretically the perfect 4 inch speaker, good measures in Amir’s review, but again was deceptive in my opinion once tried at home.

My final recommendation is to avoid little speakers unless they are totally necessary, taking by “little” the sense of “inferior than 5 inches”

Your reply makes a lot of sense. I would agree to 5" woofers but not any bigger. Do you think the same fatigue rule applies when a subwoofer is integrated?

 

[Killingbeans]

A mini-sub will be a great invention

I mean, a 4" driver with 6" xmax should do the trick? Talk about "pistonic behavior"

 

[kemmler3D]

I mean, a 4" driver with 6" xmax should do the trick? Talk about "pistonic behavior"

While working in the industry, I once asked the manufacturer of a very impressive linear actuator (not originally designed for audio) if they could do this. They stopped answering my emails.

 

[Peluvius]

Personally now that I have 8030s on stands, with a sub, in my desktop setup, I now only find things to dislike about my room, it's clear the speakers are not holding me back anymore.

Same setup here. Very happy with it all. I am also running it all through a MiniDSP Flex using Dirac. Can't really think of anything I would rather have for this setup.