If mainly near field listening and you want all the S.E.T. sexiness ... you should be ok with a SET amp such as the Rachel or the Super Zen and a pair of really efficient speaker/monitors.

Another thing to consider in nearfield listening is that conventional hi-fi speakers may not be optimum due to having separate HF and LF units and concentric driver arrangements are often better than multi drive cabinets.  Think Tannoy Revolution DC4 and KEF R100 type driver setups.

However the speaker brands listed above are NOT efficient enough for low wattage tube amps ... but here are a few that are similar in design, but WAY more efficient.

If space is an issue, you could look into the Zu Audio Union Cubes.  They have a very small cabinet at only 10.5" x 10.5", but the driver is huge (at least it is for this sized cabinet) at 10-1/3” and it's a full range, cross-over-less at 98dB @ 8 Ohms.  

Recommended Union Cube Amps:

Average Room / Moderate Volume 1-4 watts
Large Room / Loud Volume 4-16 watts

If you wanted to go a little more refined with more bass, the Zu Audio Soul Mk.II may be a good choice.  It has a very similar driver to the Union (if not the same but possibly tweaked).  I have been told by Sean at Zu Audio that the Soul's cabinet design make the driver sound even better, smoother and refined.  And they are even more efficient at 99dB @ 8 Ohms.

Recommended Soul Mk.II Amps:

Average Room / Moderate Volume 2-6 watts
Large Room / Loud Volume 6-18 watts

Another manufacturer that seem to pair well with Decware is Hoyt-Bedford which are also single driver full range cross-over-less designs and 97dB @ 8 ohms (although the driver is not as big as the one used by Zu Audio).  They use the same driver in a wide range of cabinets and are somewhat modular that can be paired up with their own subs or bases.

Another one that pops up for near-field listening are the Parker Audio Model 95 Signatures.  I read a review of them on Steve Hoffman's Forums, and although not a concentric design ... it was a pretty glowing review from a near-field listener.


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From the Review: Parker Audio came about with one mans obsession to find the perfect speakers for what he considers the perfect amp, a Decware SE84C-Select which is a very simple single ended triode utilizing EL84 power tubes.

By the way, I don't own any of these speakers (although after speaking with Sean at Zu - I would like to own a pair of Soul Mk.II's, but just basing my opinions on what I have read in reviews and the specs that may fit your situation.

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The Blumenstein stuff is very interesting.

I've been looking at their website too, they are reasonably priced and the cabinets are beautiful as well.  I wonder how they would compare to the Hoyt-Bedford line?  I think the bigger drivers on the Hoyt-Bedford and Omega Lines would be better in the lower end and for filling larger listening areas.

I've always heard that single drivers don't do hard rock and hard blues all that great at higher sound levels (and that is the bulk of the style of music that I listen to).  They seem to do really good at near field, but when I think of near field I think moderate to lower volumes, but if you're using single drivers in a larger room that you don't plan on doing too much near field listening I have heard more than a few times that when you crank up the volume in larger rooms they seem to break up and only do well with certain types of music.

I can't speak from experience is all I've ever had are multi-driver cabinets, but I like the thought of cross-over-less speakers and that the drivers emanate sound from a single point.  It DOES make a lot of sense especially in a near field listening position.

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Slapshot, I've been all over the Cain & Cain/Lovecraft website and can't locate a "nearfield-specific" version?

The website isn't all that put together and I don't think there's a mention of nearfield drivers actually listed on it.

I actually read a review of the Abbyes on Enjoy The Music and they briefly mentioned the nearfield version here.


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From Enjoy The Music, The "Nearfield" model uses the Fostex FF 165K driver and is designed to work best in rooms that are 12' x 12' x 8' (WxLxH) or smaller. If you are going to be sitting six feet or less from the driver, the "Nearfield" version is probably a better choice.

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PR, Check here as well on the PranaWire site. Have not been able to confirm form them yet if they still sell them, but it's good info.

Hi PR,

Wow, forget about the Abbeys ... I'm saving up for the PranaWire Avatar II Power Cable it's quite the bargain at only $14,500 for a 1.0 meter cable.  I should have the money in about ... oh 20 years or so! And just think, it's only $4950 for each additional meter after that ... that's when the savings really kick in! ;D

Speaking of Single Driver Speakers ... I just read an excellent review of the Omega Super 6 Alnico on Digital Audio Review... it scores the very first “Dar-KO award”.

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PR, Consider also the Cain & Cain Abbys now made by Lovecraft.

Hi PR, I just wanted to pass this along since these have both been mentioned within this thread... I was just on the Blumenstein Audio website and it looks as if they are now doing improvement work to the Cain & Cain speaker line.  Just thought this was interesting ... 8-)