My wife and I like to listen to music while we're sitting up in bed reading before going to sleep, and also sometimes to help us fall asleep. Our signal source is currently an 80G iPod and after ths weekend will be a Sonos Zoneplayer.

We have a platform bed with a headboard with shelves and currently we have an old, cheap Cambridge Sound 5.1 surround sound system running in 2.1 mode, The amplifier is small - I'm writing this from work but I'd guess maybe 2.5" high x 6" wide and the little satellite speakers are maybe 3.5" cubes and the subwoofer sits on the floor under the headboard. It doesn't sound gawd-awful but the highs are peaky and beamy and the bass is boomy and exaggerated at some frequenies. But we do like this small, low profile arrangement because everything is either small or hidden so it doesn't call attention to itself.

We'd like to replace this with a better system. A 2.1 system would be good because we could keep a subwoofer under the headboard like we do now and use small-ish bookshelf speakers for the midrange and highs. Since we don't need much power and we don't need any kind of tuner we should be able to use a very small amplifier. We don't care how big or ugly the subwoofer is but it should go reasonably deep with accuracy and without boominess, or droputs in the crossover range from the little speakers. My wife is a classical pianist and owns a Steinway grand which she plays every day so she's sensitive to accurate reproduction of piano music.

Without spending like drunken sailors what would be a good step up from our current setup?

Thanks in advance.

The sad fact is that the room will probably be more important than the woofer in getting the bass you want. There are (rather more expensive) subwoofers with built-in specialized EQ units that are supposed to help fit the speaker to the room, rather than going the proper route of fitting the room to the speaker. I can't say anything from experience on this, but the process is controversial, some saying the results from EQ alone can never be very good.

What is your drunken sailor threshold? (budget)

For my home office, I recently replaced an old Cambridge Soundworks 2.1 system with AudioEngine 5 powered speakers. ($ 350). Placed on a shelf 4" from the wall, they are somewhat boomy at certain frequencies but otherwise quite pleasant to listen to. No subwoofer, just 2 speakers about 11" tall.

If I had been willing to spend more, I'd have considered spending $ 500 on NHT M-00 speakers, $ 100 on their volume control and $ 500 on their sub-woofer.

http://nhthifi.com/2006/products/pchifi/m00.html

Most inexpensive 2.1 speaker systems will have a powered subwoofer, so buying powered speakers can be cost effective.

If you want a separate amp, you might consider the Z100 which has an amplifier built in.

Bill

Indeed you get all kinds of nasty reflections of the corners of rooms, most studios for example try and eliminate sharp corners entirely or treat them with bass traps like

http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/page/shop/br...4a6e831539d59ba

It strikes me that sitting up in bed is a quite a lot like sitting at a mixing desk with a similar distance between you and the monitor speakers. Perhaps a pair of powered nearfield monitors such as

http://www.tannoy-speakers.com/s.php?produ...eal+5A&s=33

Would be worth considering. If you want extended bass response then active subs are available as well such as

http://www.tannoy-speakers.com/s.php?produ...le=TS8&s=38

I don't think we can get away without a subwoofer because of what I said about the piano. Keep in mind that the lowest note on a piano is 27.5 Hz and that the presence of those low strings affects the whole sound you get from the instrument via sympathetic resonance even when you're not playing quite that low. To save money I'm willing to accept some roll-off at that frequency as long as it's not too much.

BTW, one thing to note in the bedroom setup we're using is that our heads are only a short distance from the high/midrange speakers,so power doesn't count for anything (I'd be surprised if we're driving them with more than a few hundred milliwatts, on peaks) but a very low-noise final amplifier does matter because that close to the speakers we'll hear any hiss they've got. My wife has some very nice, expensive powered monitor speakers she uses with a Yamaha electronic piano and up close I can hear hiss from them (but not from our Cambridge Sound system).

You could look into these: http://www.acoustic-energy.co.uk/Product_r...ries/Aego_M.asp

We just took delivery of our Sonos system. Their zone players come in two flavors - with and without power amplifiers. We got one of each and put the powered one (50W RMS/ch) in the bedroom. Well lo and behold - it's a 2.1 system! I didn't know it had a subwiifer output! Its subwoofer output crosses over at 80Hz and autodetects so it rolls off the other speakers when the a powered subwoofer is attached. This creates new possibilities.

So what we need suggestions for are the smallest little bookshelf speakers that can go down to 80Hz smoothly, and have smooth, non-peaky, non-beamy highs.

You put that under her side of the bed.

Michael

i'm watching the infinity (primus) line of speakers for my next purchase:

http://www.infinitysystems.com/
http://stereophile.com/standloudspeakers/404infinity/

good luck

LOL!

I use harman kardon soundsticks II
http://www.harmankardon.com/product_detail...I&sType=PCS

They are not ugly, and they sound well with your expectations. Try to read reviews on the internet.