I've been thinking of trying some Salks in one or two rooms, but the myriad of models and driver options makes it hard to choose. Most of my critical listening over the years has been with Grado and Sennheiser headphones, and ideally I’d love something that wows me like my Grado RS-1s (while realizing that’s unlikely). A sense of detail and transparency are important to me, as well as natural rendition of vocals. Precise imaging or the deepest bass, less so.
Budget is flexible, but I need speakers that aren’t too large or heavy (need to move them occasionally, so less than 100 lbs), and probably front ported as they must be placed somewhat close to a wall. Both floorstanders and monitors could work. They need to suffice for home theater - I don’t listen at high volumes, but dialog w/o a center channel must be natural... I previously listened to a pair of B&W 804 in my room - amazing in many ways - but they sounded odd with male vocals / dialog - boxy, or nasal-ish, or something I don't think I'd ever get used to.
The room I'm most interested in upgrading is 15 x 13 ft, with one shorter side partially open to a kitchen. Speakers sit on the longer wall, on each side of a TV, about 6.5 feet apart. Two primary listening positions are in front of the TV, with heads about 9 feet back from the front of the speakers. Sometimes viewers sit further to the side, so reasonable off-axis performance would be nice. Currently a Pioneer Elite SC-87 is driving an old pair of Castle Richmond monitors (which I’m looking to upgrade). There's a sub in the corner, and two small wall-mounted Acoustic Energy monitors add ambience/surround for HT, but don't need to match the mains as any critical music listening is stereo-only. No space for / interest in a center channel.
I'm also thinking about music-only speakers for a larger room with a pool table in it. The challenge there is providing decent sound across a larger area, and with listeners ears higher than normal (typically standing, or sitting on a taller stool). Perhaps I should tip the speakers back slightly somehow? This room is far less used, so it's not compelling to spend as much there. An old NAD pre-amp/amp currently drive some old Wharfedale towers there.
Models that have caught my eye include the new Song 3s, Soundscape 7F or 7M, Exotica monitors, Silk AT monitors, and the Veracity STs. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!
