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@FasterThanEver Will A7X sound constrained in my small room?
What are other choices better than A5 for a smaller room like mine, within $500 budget.
The Audioengine A5, a Swans powered model and an Acoustic Energy powered speaker were on my list a couple of years ago.. All had positive reports and a few good reviews. None were available locally. I chose the Audioengine A5s and have not heard the other two models.
I mostly listen to my Audioengine A5s in the near field. The speakers are about 5" from the wall behind them and the speakers are angled with respect to the back wall - a bare minimum for rear ported speakers. The speakers are on a shelf about 18" above my desk aimed more or less at my head. The 11 foot by 15 foot room has a Persian rug on the floor and lots of books on the walls.
You may have heard of floor bounce - the interference between direct sound and sound reflected from the floor that causes peaks and dips in response at your listening position. For computer speakers, the desk top can case similar interference. So can having a wall close behind the speakers. Placement of speakers (and the listener) makes a big difference in fitting any speakers response curve to the room's characteristics. Differences in on-axis and off-axis frequency response between speakers may make one particular model a better fit for your room. When you read a report about speaker sound, keep in mind that it is specific to that person's situation.
You should be able to find a good setup in your room for either Audioengine A5s or Adam A5s or A7s if you have some flexibility.
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No, your room isn't too small for it. The Adam A5 sound a whole lot better than the Audioengine A5 although it's close to $500 for a pair of Adam A5 rather than $325 for the Audioengines. I have the Audioengine A5, Adam A5, Adam A7, and Adam S3A. Simply put, the Audioengine sounds really equalized to me. It pumps out a lot of midbass to compensate for the fact that it doesn't extend very low and there isn't much soundstage, clarity, mids, and treble to speak of in contrast to the Adam A5 and A7. However, you really can't expect much competition given their relative different price point and targeted consumers.
My experience has been that the Audioengine delivers very pleasing sound. When I measure output at my listening position, I get reasonable output down to about 60 Hz without a big midbass peak. Clarity seems good to me and the soundstage is quite believable. I hear differences in recording perspective and microphone technique as I expect to on a good sound system. My 3-way active speakers in another room are better in various ways but I am not deprived when I listen using the A5s.
The Audioengine A5s have woofers of about 5" diameter. Don't expect miracles from any other bookshelf speaker with a single 5" woofer. I'd certainly consider active monitors with~7" woofers if I wanted to spend $ 1000-1200 a pair.
> there isn't much soundstage, clarity, mids, and treble to speak of in contrast to the Adam A5 and A7.
Apparently, moonboy403 isn't hearing anything but midbass from the Audioengine A5s. Aside from possible audiophile hyperbole, his room and his setup may be different from mine. I'm certainly willing to believe that the Adam A7s can be better in various ways. Maybe the Adam A5s are better too. I'd expect flatter and deeper bass response, less distortion in the bass region, better power handling and possibly more clarity from speakers that were much more expensive than Audioengine A5s.
Bill
