Are these too big?

[Claudio2]

Hi. Thanks to those who helped with my question on active servo. I'm looking for a pair of speakers, but since my budget is VERY limited, I'm relying on locally-used-bargains-hunting. I've spotted a pair of Boston Acoustic A120 at $80 that look fine, but before going to test them I need to know whether they will be to large for me. Currently I have a medium-sized living room (about 11x20 feet), but I'll be moving in to a smaller place (as wide but half as long) in a few months. These speakers have 10" woofers and are 120W. The alternative, if I manage to resist buying these, is a pair of bookshelves and (later) a sub. I'll greatly appreciate any advise/opinion.\


Claudio

 

[MDS]

It depends on what you mean by too big. Are you talking about physical size of the speakers or the fact that they have large woofers and high power handling that you think may be overwhelming for a small room?

If it is the latter, I wouldn't worry about that at all. The max power rating is the most they can handle (usually convervative and they can likely handle far more). It is not the amount of power they need. Except for transients in the music, which can demand a whole lot of power, the majority of the time you will be using only a few watts from your receiver.

If the physical size of the speakers isn't too big for your room (ie they wouldn't look nice or fit in the space you want to put them) then I would rather have the 10" woofers than a smaller bookshelf with smaller woofers. A larger woofer will play lower and louder than a smaller woofer in most cases.