Which bookshelf speakers to match with Marantz receiver?

[petar]

Hi all,

A friend of mine asked me for some advice on which speakers to buy. He recently got himself one of these Marantz slimline receivers:

http://www.digitalci...antz-nr1402.htm

He doesn't have too much space available, so he's thinking of getting a pair of bookshelf speakers, and placing them on top of the shelves, either side of the TV. From what he tells me, the shelves are part of a wall unit, so the speakers would be sitting right on top of the highest shelf. He reckons the WAF dictates that the speakers 'must' be placed on their sides, to prevent the 'eye sore' effect.

I've read some good reviews about the Usher S-520 and the Wharfedale Diamond 10.1. Maybe there are other options in the same price range? They'd be used for both stereo listening and home theatre.

I guess it's a question of which speakers would match nicely with the Marantz.

Also, assuming that the speakers will be placed quite high, would it be good to place something beneath them (i.e. at the very rear) to tilt them forward, facing towards the main listening positions?

Thanks!

Pete

[Pops110]

Sorry I don't really have any brands of speakers to recommend to you but I would try to raise the back of the speaker to get the tweeter pointing at ear level as much as possible. As you have said the speakers have to sit on their side, maybe look at buying two centre channel speakers to use for L and R, as they sit like this normally, or maybe some in ceiling speakers with directional tweeters could do the trick.

Cheers Dave.

[Grainy]

How high is this shelf? Getting a good sound could be tricky. Watch out for rear ported speakers if they are going to have their backs to the wall. No room for small floorstanders next to the wall unit? I like Pops suggestions.

I just went through trying to obey they WAF rules with the missus. I had size and colour restrictions but in the end I found the speakers I wanted and got her to listen to them. She loved the sound, case dismissed

[Sub Sonic]

Concentric speakers like the VAF i90s are not fussed about which side they lie on and they are cubes anyway, so this would sort out the orientation problem. They also look and sound great but may be a little pricey depending on your budget.

Regards,

SS

[Guest Muon]

I'm not sure on a speaker recommendation, due to where they will be placed, but some good points have been noted by others that are worth consideration already.

A front ported speaker is a must if on a shelf like that, otherwise he will need to plug the rear ports to tame the bottom end, but that will attenuate it also. and the tweeter does need to point to the listener.

Maybe he could get two pairs of these http://www.amazon.co...l/dp/B0002D0B4K to place under them, to angle them down a little and provide isolation at the same time. Some illustrations in this link to show what I mean http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_mopad/sound_isolation_mopad.asp

Edit: I also agree that Pop's suggestions are indeed creative thinking at work.

Edited August 28, 2012 by datafone

[petar]

Hi all,

Thanks for your suggestions. Just to follow up. My mate ended up buying a pair of Usher S-520s, along with the S-525 centre channel (from Trevor Lees), Went over there with the family last night, and with our little kids running around trying to 'help' and touch everything, we managed to hook up all the gear and test it out. Really impressed with the Ushers, and they sound like a good match for the Marantz receiver.

The S-520s are sitting on the top shelves (2 metres high) either side of the TV, with the centre channel just below the TV. Since the cabinets, shelves, etc. are all almost black themselves, there are no eye-sores to worry about and the WAF has become a non-issue. I've given the proud new owner some tips (thanks to the great info from you guys on SNA), so it's now up to him to tilt the speakers forward towards the main listening area, etc.

Cheers,

Pete