speaker suggestions for apartment for < $300

Hey all,

I'm thinking about upgrading my speakers this fall and although I've done some research I'd like more input.

For an apartment in NYC (about 300 sq. feet), would floor standing speakers be unnecessary as opposed to bookshelf?

As far as how I will be using my speakers: Most of the listening will be for music rather than for movies and tv. I want speakers that will be good for listening to bands like Radiohead, Pink Floyd, and Red Hot Chili Peppers, but also be able to provide solid and rich bass for dubstep and other bass-oriented dance genres.

I will mostly be playing the music out of iTunes on my laptop or an ipod, in case that's relevant.

I've heard good things about the Polk Audio Monitor speakers, what do you all think of these? Which models would suit my needs?

Lastly, does anybody who lives in Manhattan know what stores have speakers I can listen to and help decide for myself?

Thank you so much for any suggestions or advice that you have.

Thanks for all the suggestions, keep them coming. If I end up going with any of these floorstanding speakers, do I need to buy something else to use them (like an amp or something) or can I just plug an iPod into the speakers and listen that way? If I need something else, what would you recommend? I'm on a budget, so something relatively cheap but is great value.

Hey everyone,

Just wanted to follow up on how my speaker-buying went. After lots of research, I narrowed it down to the Polk RTI-A1s and and TSi200s, and after trying them both out at the store, I have to say that the TSi200s blew the RTi's out of the water. I compared the TSi200s to models by companies like Klipsch just to see, but for the $300 price tag, these speakers seem unbeatable. Anyone investing in speakers for an apartment and is looking for getting the best value really needs to consider these guys. You can hear every layer of music so perfectly and cleanly, and... I just can't say enough good things about them.