Bookshelfs for a hutch desk?

[bikemig]

I'd like to reconfigure a music system for my office using a computer as a source. The problem is that I have a hutch desk. I'm attaching a pic of one (it's not mine but you'll get the idea). Mine is deeper than that. I'm not in love with that desk but I'm not getting rid of it. The problem is that the speakers are effectively near a corner since they will not be that far from a side and a rear wall. The speakers I currently have are around 6 inches from the rear and 8 inches from the sides. They're rear ported (I splurged on PSB Imagine minis I picked up on a blowout several years ago). I know they're a bit muddy because of the location.

The speakers can't be too large because of space limitations. I'm running a sub so this is a 2.1 set up. They need to be passive speakers because I have an amp/dac/headphone amp I want to continue to use. Should I look only at front ported speakers? Any suggestions for speakers? I've looked at 2 different speakers (and both are considerably more than I've paid for a speaker before): (1) The sierra acoustic Luna (they're beautiful and front ported); and (2) the Dali opticon 1 mk 2 (small as well, rear ported but the port is angled down and the manufacturer claims that the speaker is designed to be placed near a wall).

The Elac debut 2.0 B5.2 are larger than I'd like for that space but they're front ported, get great reviews, and the price is good. The focal chorus 605s are on a blowout price. They're front ported as well and they're smaller than the Elacs which is helpful.

Maybe I should just plug the rear port on the PSB speakers I own? That would be the most cost effective solution, .
.

 

[doctors11]

In your location I would think a sealed design would work the best. Running the sub with a high enough crossover should help a bunch too. Front ported would be the next best choice.

Consider the Arendal Sound 1961 Bookshelf or the NHT C1 for sealed, and add to your good choices of front ported the Aperion Audio Novus Bookshelf.

 

[Eppie]

The Philharmonic Audio mini monitors are only $550 right now and can be run ported or sealed. Great speaker at that price. 12x7.5x12"

 

[lovinthehd]

Where are you placing the speakers? On stands to the sides or ?

 

[shadyJ]

The port mounting might not make as large of a difference as you think. If the ports are very close to the rear surface, they could get acoustic loading from that surface, but it's hard to say how much. A lot of the bass boost you get from placing a speaker near a wall is simple boundary gain, and it doesn't matter where the port is facing for boundary loading. Here is a guide to improving the sound of a desktop audio system.

If the problem is too much bass, just EQ the speakers! Since your computer is a source, download something like this Equalizer APO and if you want to make it super-user-friendly, run the Peace extension on top of it. Buying a new speaker is a terribly inefficient way to equalize them, which is what you are really trying to do here.

 

[bikemig]

Where are you placing the speakers? On stands to the sides or ?

I have a pair of audioengine DS 1 desktop stands. They angle the speakers up nicely.

 

[bikemig]

The port mounting might not make as large of a difference as you think. If the ports are very close to the rear surface, they could get acoustic loading from that surface, but it's hard to say how much. A lot of the bass boost you get from placing a speaker near a wall is simple boundary gain, and it doesn't matter where the port is facing for boundary loading. Here is a guide to improving the sound of a desktop audio system.

If the problem is too much bass, just EQ the speakers! Since your computer is a source, download something like this Equalizer APO and if you want to make it super-user-friendly, run the Peace extension on top of it. Buying a new speaker is a terribly inefficient way to equalize them, which is what you are really trying to do here.

That is a great guide and gave me a lot to think about. Thank you. So I can set the speakers 4 inches from the rear wall which should be enough but I may want to think about acoustic treatment for the side walls. The amp can handle the EQ (it's a little marantz amp) if I need it but I'm thinking getting the sub right and maybe the acoustic treatment might do the trick. Sub placement is going to be a pain though.

Agreed that buying a new speaker is not an "efficient" way to solve the problem. . I was tempted to buy new toys but decided to start this thread to get some better ideas for how to fix the problem.