Best case against best is utopia and still subjective - and so is best case against worst. For example I can compare some live events (possible to me) against home system.
Best home systems have been better than e.g. classical orchestra in Savonlinna Opera Festival or pop/rock in Kuopio Music Centre.
Very good and stable performance focusing to accurate music reproduction with any genre and almost any record is quite valid goal imo. Recordings are what they are so "perfect and realistic" - whatever it means remains utopia.
Build personal church if realistic reverb, spaciousness and envelopment are the main interests in the music reproduction and that sound field is decided to be the only correct. If maximum dynamics, buy dynamite, explode indoors and listen as long as you hear and feed something.
OTOH it's not just the size of it but how You use it, as the saying goes 😉
in case of a listening room the layout is the key, as You have Yourself experienced with Your living room, big enough but with unsuitable layout
actually a bedroom is quite promising as a listening room in spite of its size
first of all a bedroom is the acoustically driest room in a home usually, in other words it is(/or easily be made) the most naturally acoustically treated room, so to speak, just with the usual furniture
there are layouts that can theoretically bring very good results, at least when one does the math:
first reflections calculator
So the big question is - are You in a position to negotiate the bedroom's layout with Your CEO 😀
ps. OBs won't work, and You don't need'em
yes, I just can't see where they could be positioned in a small bedroom for such nearfield listening
it's 11x12 where a typical bed in a small bedroom is perhaps around 5x6.5
I mentioned my speakers were "full range" not CD and I listen nearfield. Well, I've just made them CD by laying them on they're backs on the floor (graaf 😉) They are Jordan Eikonas, which have a rising off axis response (handy) in the VTL cabinet, which is very shallow (also handy, getting some bass boost). They sound almost the same as before, imaging wise, although I seem to be getting more height. I've also noticed that some of the more strident sounds in recordings that made me wince are smoother.
How about shallow on-wall loudspeakers?
On-wall placement takes 3 of the earliest reflections out of the picture and maximizes delay of another 3 in any given room.
It looks like in small rooms it should be the first choice of all those sceptical about early reflections' contribution.
On-wall placement takes 3 of the earliest reflections out of the picture and maximizes delay of another 3 in any given room.
It looks like in small rooms it should be the first choice of all those sceptical about early reflections' contribution.
Who needs their arms to enjoy music? They are just a distraction. Especially when the music is in your head.
Perhaps a good choice, and easy enough to build a Cornu Spiral Horn with some plywood and foam core. People report fantastic results. Plenty of info over in the full range section. It is on my list of projects simply because I am curious and have extra drivers laying around. I'll get my daughter to turn them into artwork.
The VTL's are supposed to be good against the wall, I tried it, it didn't work I think because I couldn't get them far enough away from the corners.
I'm afraid that I wasn't thorough enough in my earlier comment about negotiating the use of a bedroom for my listening room. It is the entire empty room without any existing furniture. We gave all of that away - bed, everything - gone.
Since then I've added a recliner chair for listening and a small equipment cabinet. That plus speakers is all that there is in the room. And it has thick wall to wall carpeting as well.
So I really have full control of everything in the room. I'm just not sure it's big enough to get the sound I would like to have. And I fully intend to try OBs. We'll see. Still quite a way to go.
We did Poplar and its derivatives specifically for a guy to be able to squeeze big speakers into his bedroom.
dave