Slight problem here. My desk won't be able to accommodate 2 of them. It is two separate pieces, the bottom where everything sits and the top which consists of cabinets(Custom made by my dad and myself). I could grab one of them and hand it horizontally, if that would work(Heigh being 2 feet, width 4 feet).
Ah, so you are the DIY type? Get me a pic of the desk and mark where the speakers would sit. It is very possible, you can make some DIY treatments to fit in the rear recesses of the desk top piece. You could easily make these with 1/4" ply for the outer frames, about 2" deep minimium(but you do need 4" to combat upper bass frequencies), and use corner triangles to give the frame strength. Pull some cloth over the frame that matches the wood finish/color and make the treatments the exact size of the recesses on the desk and they would not even be noticeable.
If you could specify the mods that are most commonly done to them, I would have to problem doing them. And depending on the prices of the high grade acoustic material, I might take you up on your offer.
1) Remove tweeter from the front waveguide. Place rope caulk or similar material in very thin flattened out pieces on the plastic ring and plastic supports that the tweeter rests against on the waveguide. This will stop the air leak at this point(which causes noise at high SPL due to the air rushing through the small cracks).
2) Use silicone sealant and run it around the back of the tweeter motor where it meets the tweeter face plate. Apply liberally and include the base of the electric tabs. Do not remove tweeter from it's faceplate. This fixes another air leak.
3) Check the rubber gasket where the waveguide front attaches around the tweeter cutout. Make sure the gasket shows signs of being pressed down all around this area - there may be a tiny place at the upper top over the tweeter cutout hole where it does not contact. If it does not, move the gasket material/shift it so that it does make contact with the waveguide.
4) Use super glue liquid(not gel) and liberally apply it to the midbass magnetic shield's seam where it connects to the motor; apply it all the way around. This gap is only pressed together, and as such, will vibrate/buzz with certain music. The thin super glue will run into the seam and when it hardens, it will prevent the buzz.
5) Remove all stock acoustic absorption material. Replace with high grade high density fiberglass board or rock wool board(4-8lbs/ft^3 density). Use 4" on rear wall, 2" on other walls and 4" on bottom. Place a loosely woven cloth over the fiberglass/rockwool to prevent fibers from coming out the ports. Be sure to no place fiberglass directly against ports.
6) OPTIONAL MODS: Use a hammer and block of wood and knock out the ports. After you remove them use black silicone and small piece of wood from behind the port openings and block/seal them. Now, apply Dynamat or similar material to all inner walls. You do this before installing the new acoustic absorption material. Use a thickness equal to 1/3 the wall thickness minimum. That is, the walls are 3/4" thick; so you will use layers of Dynamat or similar until you build up to a minimum of 1/4" thick. Do not go beyond 1/2" thick. After 1/2", you will no longer get much more dampening. For optimum dampening, you can use what is called a constrained layer. In this case, apply 1/8" thick Dynamat or similar to walls. Now use an appropriate adhesive and apply 1/2" concrete board to the Dynamat. This creates two stiff plates(concrete board and exterior MDF) that will cause greater molecular excitation in the Dynamat, as a result of sheering type forces. You can go further and use some 5/8" all thread rod and cut it about 1/4" short of the concrete board to concrete board contact points across the enclosure. Use nuts on both ends of the rod. You will use the nuts to take up the slack and grab the inner walls. Use peramanent locktite on the threads to lock the nuts(you will have a few minutes open time) and use high quality metal epoxy to adhere the nuts to the concrete board. If you use the all thread bracing technique in more than one axis, try to have the all thread rods intersect with each other and use more of the metal epoxy to bind them in the middle of the cabinet; this will make the bracing stronger.
I'll be listening to these quite close as they will be on my desk, so I should only need 1 Subwoofer correct? I'm in a medium to small room as well.
Yes, as long as the subwoofer will be within 3'-4' of both speakers, it will integrate well. If you can not get it this close to both, then stereo subs will work better at the crossover points optimal for this particular bookshelf speaker.
I think I'll go with this option as it seems to be the simplest and simple is what I would prefer for my desk. I don't mind not being able to completely customize ever facet of the music I am listening to.
One thing though. That receiver seems a bit much(with all the extra options and whatnot). Is there anything that is simpler, maybe better quality because of less inputs that would also be a good choice? I'm fine with this receiver, just trying to review all options.
The receiver is the simplest option, because it has built in crossover; you will otherwise have to use external crossover(while being even better, does add complexity and parts and connections). You also have 5 discrete channels instead of just 2 available, if you want to later expand to full surround sound.
What soft foam would you recommend for de-coupling? These will be sitting on my desk, so I will need it. The tweeters should already be close to ear level as well.
Wal-Marts sells some mats intended to put on the floor to stand on in one place for a long time. It is a semi-dense foam that makes a good cushion material and is somewhat durable. It is about 1/4" thick material. They sell for about 10-12 bucks each, last time I bought one. Cut 1" squares and use them for the corners of the speakers. Use multiples and glue them together to make them thick, and use the thick ones on the front of the speaker if you need to tilt it up at a slight angle.
I can ship you the high grade stuffing for cost: about 3 bucks for enough with some to spare for the Behringer speakers. Shipping is around 6-10 bucks. So, 13 bucks worst case total.
Edit: As for the DAC, I have a Zero DAC/HP Amp/Pre-Amp that I could use. Would using it as a pre-amp do anything to the SQ?
Use it as a pre-amp if that is convenient. If not, the Onkyo will work fine as a pre-amp if you are using it's built in active crossover, which you should.
-Chris
