Latenight Desktop Meltdown

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Reamonnt, Apr 18, 2018.

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  1. Reamonnt

    Reamonnt Mr.T Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ireland
    I finally had enough late last night and took my Monitor Audio BR2 on stands off my IKEA desk (142 cm long) and also took my amp (CA TopaZ AM10) off it and replaced them with my old Harmon Kardon Soundsticks II. I felt like the desk was overwhelmed by equipment and im sitting 2ft from the speakers and they were 3ft apart. I had even laid the speakers flat with tweeters on the inside to make them not feel so overwhelming but with that amount of gear on the desk you are always crowded. The sound always felt off with seperate tweeter and woofer sounds if you know what I mean like maybe they arent far enough apart!

    The Soundsticks sound good as they always have done and im running them through the ODAC to output music from the pc (flac files) so its not the worst but I feel like im now back where I was 5 years ago.

    I am now considering saving for active speakers at around 500 euros budget for two or would there be much difference between them and the Soundsticks. I feel disappointed but my other room is in the attic and has speakers amp etc so I could also make an effort to go up there more but its not convenient.

    Im in the corner of a large room/kitchen area so it will never be ideal but at this stage its getting to be a right pain constantly moving stuff around. Rant over.
     
    H8SLKC and timind like this.
  2. H8SLKC

    H8SLKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    I love listening near field in a home office but you are certainly right that the equipment-crowding aspect can become a problem. My sort-of answer has been to make my office system turntable only, using a U-Turn Orbit playing into a small tube amp that both sit on a cabinet of drawers next to the desk. I have Klipsch R-15Ms sitting on foam wedges at the back corners of the desk, away from the wall a few inches and toed-in. It has been a good arrangement, and in the winter here the amp helps keep the room warm too! FWIW I've always had the impression that the HK soundsticks provided very good sound on the desktop.
     
    Reamonnt and Dennis0675 like this.
  3. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Whether going for an active or passive solution is entirely up to you but an active one is not inherently better at near-field listening. Just FYI.

    IMHO, you could sell both sets of speakers and use that money towards a solution that will make you happy.
     
    Reamonnt likes this.
  4. Reamonnt

    Reamonnt Mr.T Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ireland
    Yes I think I need to think about it and see how I get on with the soundsticks for awhile.
     
    H8SLKC likes this.
  5. Rolltide

    Rolltide Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vallejo, CA
    I had this problem recently. My computer speakers (entry level Mackie monitors)were fine for everything computery, but I just couldn't handle how bad music sounded on them. But I also hated having big speakers on my desk cluttering everything up. The solution? Get active monitors suitable for near field usage and simply take everything else off my desk to reduce clutter.

    You can decide for yourself if I made it work or not. Sounds amazing, got to love what JBL does for $150/each.

    [​IMG]
     
  6. Mr.Sneis

    Mr.Sneis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ
    Long story short I recently placed my Int. amp and NHT Classic 3's on my home work table and they were so underwhelming. I'm going to have to figure something else out because they are just "wasted talent" in this capacity and it's a damn shame.
     
  7. Rolltide

    Rolltide Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vallejo, CA
    This is a situation that can be frustrating for an audiophile because we have to abandon a lot of our principles in favor of Normal People Logic. For instance, I first saw an opportunity for another system and tried out Wharfdale Dentons and a Brio-R. Come to find out most things don't work in near field no matter how badly you want to pretend they will. Thankfully the new owners of that gear are quite pleased with them.

    Those JBLs are a great choice for this though. Adjustable boundary EQ lets you push them right up against walls, and they sound great near field.
     
    H8SLKC likes this.
  8. Mr.Sneis

    Mr.Sneis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ
    Thanks Rolli, I totally will learn from these mistakes!

    It's sad I simply don't have a space or purpose for the setup at the moment, don't want to let them go but don't have any room to store!
     
  9. Reamonnt

    Reamonnt Mr.T Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ireland
    Looks good and not cluttered.
     
    H8SLKC likes this.
  10. Dillydipper

    Dillydipper Space-Age luddite

    Location:
    Central PA
    Two words: "Up there". Just how far out of your way can you raise those puppies without feeling the music is raining down from the heavens? My Polks are on top of my hutch, with half-sphere "door guards" underneath so they're "toed-down". Fills the room, hits me relatively straight-on, but not quite so near-field that the tweets are perceived as separate sources.

    It's a nice stereo-spread soundstage.
     
    H8SLKC likes this.
  11. H8SLKC

    H8SLKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    Whatever works and fits your environment is the right way to go, right? I love the JBL actives above, and also wouldn't be opposed to positioning speakers high in a small room, over a desk or whatever. Orthodoxy has no place in the personal decision making that goes into this hobby, IMO.
     
    Reamonnt likes this.
  12. wwaldmanfan

    wwaldmanfan Born In The 50's

    Location:
    NJ
    I have around 2000 albums in lossless AIFF format on one 2TB bus-powered FireWire drive. The other one is a back up drive. iMac is quad-core i7/20 GB RAM, Parasound DAC/headphone amp/preamp, Schiit SYS volume control for the speakers, Audioengine A2's.
    You need the rubber stands with these. They aim the sound right at your head. Small speakers like these are fine when you are only sitting 4 feet away.
    Music player is Audirvana Plus with Goodhertz Can Opener plug in, which adds EQ, balance, and crossover.

    [​IMG]
     
    rodentdog likes this.
  13. Reamonnt

    Reamonnt Mr.T Thread Starter

    Location:
    Ireland
    Thats a nice desktop set up alright. The desk itself looks deep which I think is important. Those stands look pretty cool as well. My own ikea desk is only 50cm deep whereas even my wife says I would be better with a much deeper unit.
     
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