ML overkill for small room?

[snyderkv]

MLO,

Thanks in advance. I have ML Spires + NAD M25|M15HD|M55

I'm deciding on selling/trading all my gear because I'm moving into a 500 sqft condo with a living room size of 16x10.4 and 10' high ceilings and hardwood floors.

Being that I will end up breaking every ML placement rule in the book and taking up much needed real estate, I may have no choice but to downsize to ML EFX all around but have not heard a single review on them or how disapointing the sound will be compared to the Spires. Also, If I get the EFX, what advantage would seperates have over a good AVR when the speakers are outclassed by the amp?

Any suggestions?. Thanks again

 

[twich54]

Any suggestions?. Thanks again

don't move...............seriously though, give your gear a chance in the smaller room before you abandon ship.

 

[jmschnur]

I have a 14x16x 8 room with my Montis. It is a dedicated listening and video room and my results are fine; 5' from front walls and 26" from side walls with listening couch 8' from speakers leads to good results.
I use GIK 244s behind the Montis.

J

 

[snyderkv]

Twitch, Ok thanks. I'll take some pictures when I finish moving in

Jm, my side wall clearance will only be a foot (allows a 100" screen) and 3 feet from the front wall due to a door opening. I'm not an audiophile so I may not even tell the difference in sonic quality.

I'm going to stack up the equipment in a corner so it's not going to take up much real estate. The EFX is appealing being that I'm a minimalist but I can't find a used pair. A new pair of EFX is almost as much as a used pair of Spires. Hard to justify the trade

 

[peacefulcargo]

You will be fine and with the Spire you have bass management which can be key in small spaces, my lounge is 13ft x 19 ft with 8ft ceilings. I have had SL3s and Quests in my room.

 

[jmschnur]

Twitch, Ok thanks. I'll take some pictures when I finish moving in

Jm, my side wall clearance will only be a foot (allows a 100" screen) and 3 feet from the front wall due to a door opening. I'm not an audiophile so I may not even tell the difference in sonic quality.

I'm going to stack up the equipment in a corner so it's not going to take up much real estate. The EFX is appealing being that I'm a minimalist but I can't find a used pair. A new pair of EFX is almost as much as a used pair of Spires. Hard to justify the trade

You should be fine . The screen will cause more issues than the the 1 ft wall clearance I think

Are you putting together a 5.1 system. Sub placement can help the spires a lot if you xover at 70 he or so.




J

 

[snyderkv]

You should be fine . The screen will cause more issues than the the 1 ft wall clearance I think

Are you putting together a 5.1 system. Sub placement can help the spires a lot if you xover at 70 he or so.
J

I don't think I need subs since the Spires already go pretty low + it's a 500 sq condo. I don't think neighbors would appreciate subs even with cement walls. I will try and get 5.1 in, but 7.1 would be difficult as one entire wall is floor to ceiling windows and the other side is a kitchen. Any suggestions on that?

 

[jmschnur]

5.1 should do fine.


J

 

[snyderkv]

Thanks for the input everyone

 

[snyderkv]

I can't place these any other way without sacraficing more real esate. I'm thinking of downsizing being that I'll never hear their full potential. Bass is boomy as well and muddies the treble. No Audyssey microphone but was thinking of picking one up

 

[Bernard]

The thing that's limiting the placement of your speakers is that wide screen. If you went for something smaller you'd have more flexibility, moving the speakers away from the corners.

 

[Bevensee]

From what I see, you can move the speakers a few cm closer to eachother. Try playing with toe-in and rake. And use the bass control to manage boom. If I were you, I would try very hard to make the Spires work before abandoning them. Basstraps in the corners, and some diffusion/deflection panels on the sidewalls behind the speakers could help. The sidewalls in front of the speakers will only give you more problems if you switch to dynamic speakers. Stats are much more forgiving to sidewall proximity due to the controlled dispersion. Try to achieve a 2/5 relation between the sideẃall and frontwall distance. This will minimize bass boom. You can also try to use a heavier (more absorbing) curtain in front of the window, and supplement it with a tapestry on the wall opposite the window.

Dont give up!

 

[Bevensee]

One more thing: Where is your chair/couch in relation to the back wall?

Moving it just 10 cm way from the wall can reduce base boom quite significantly. And diffusors on the back wall can help clear up the midrange and treble.

 

[snyderkv]

Thanks for the tips, I'll keep that in mind, but I want to retain that living room look/feel since it's just a studio so curtains, bass traps and extreme speaker placement is out of the question

The speakers are 8 feet from eachother (inner diameter) and 8 feet from the couch. The couch has maybe 4 feet behind it and then a closet with 2 additional feet depth. Eventually I'll get a motif center and EFX surrounds. Just wish EFX had more bass so I can use them for the mains. The Spire's bass is overkill for that tiny room. Maybe a downgrade to Ethos instead. They are a bit smaller and doubt I'll hear a difference?

 

[jmschnur]

My Montis are 8' apart and 8' or so from the couch and they work fine. Couch is 2 ' from rear wall. It is important to get couch off the rear wall as you have done to avoid boominess.

The spires bass should be fine for you once all is properly tuned; not there when it should not be ; and there when it is.

Set the bass on spires to - 3 or so for starters.

J

 

[snyderkv]

Thanks jm. It's hard to tune because the receiver also has bass/trebble adjustments including some dynamic EQ thing as well so I'll probably have to order a NAD Audyssey microphone and tune it that way.

 

[jmschnur]

Start with the spires set to -3, run audyssey using Jon Fo's sticky In this forum. Turn off dyn eq for music.

While you wait for mic, try two of those three .


J

 

[snyderkv]

Thanks for all the help everyone. I'll move them off the side wall at least 10cm, tune etc

 

[NLaudiophile]

I'm completely new to the world of Electrostatic speakers. In a nut shell, went to Futureshop, seen the ESLs, loved the sound, did lots of reading and research. All positive reviews. Purchased a couple of pairs of coned speakers but I knew I wanted the MLs. 4 months later, I have them. I consistently read of proper placement being key. After listening, I can understand why. I love the sound, just need to better perfect it. Could I get some suggestion.

Room size is 12'W X 17.5'L 7.5 H
60" TV on the far wall.
Door located on the long wall but its next to the wall with the TV! Window is on the opposite wall from TV, covered with curtains that go to the floor. There approx 3' of gyprok wall exposed on each side of the curtain.

Any positioning ideas? What about installing high fronts? Placement for rear/ sides?

More importantly for the post is best positioning for the ESLs

Thanks for any input

 

[hifinutt]

i have summits in similar size room , one is fairly near wall at side but use acoustic panel at back
had to get smaller tv to accommodate
they sound awesome , of course in a bigger room they would be better but still love the sound