Deep and powerful bass response along with impressive musical dynamics are instantly recognizable qualities that I believe distinguish live music heard in person from music played back of recorded music in one’s home. Due mainly to the extreme length of deep bass soundwaves that typically exceed the dimensions of most domestic rooms, however, high quality bass performance is far more difficult to achieve than high quality midrange and treble performance.
As audiozenology correctly stated earlier, "Problem with floor standers that go deep is best positioning for bass and for everything else unlikely to be the same except in a designed room." IOW, the optimum positioning of the bass drivers in a room for bass performance at the listening position is highly unlikely to be the same as the optimum positioning of the midrange and treble drivers in a room for mid/treble and imaging performance at the listening position.
The best solution I’ve discovered thus far for this dichotomy is to treat my system as two systems; a bass system and an everything else system. I utilize an Audio Kinesis Debra 4-sub distributed bass array (DBA) system to first get the bass optimized in my 13’x22’ room. This bass system consists of four relatively small (1’dx2’wx2’h) subs with 10" aluminum long-throw 4 ohm woofers all powered by an included 1K watt class AB amp that also controls the volume, xover frequency and phase of all 4 subs as a group.
This complete 4-sub bass system costs about $3K but provides powerful, fast, smooth, detailed and dynamic bass down to 20 Hz in virtually any room and seamlessly integrates with any pair of main speakers. There’s also the option of creating a custom 4-sub DBA system by adding 2 subs to your current 2 subs. These added subs are not required to be the same brand, model or size as your current 2 subs. However, the downside is that the volume, xover frequency and phase controls would need to be optimally set individually, rather than once as a group of 4 with an AK Swarm or Debra DBA system.
Once the foundation of a high quality bass system is in place, it’s just a matter of optimally positioning my everything else system in relation to my listening position, consisting of Magnepan 2.7QR main speakers and some room treatments.
Like the OP, jmarshak, I’m also very interested in improving my system’s midrange, treble and imaging quality. I’ve decided to upgrade by asking Santa for a pair of Magnepan 3,7i speakers and some additional GIK room treatments for Xmas.
Sorry for the length of this post but my main point is that treating your system as two systems and establishing a high quality bass system as a solid foundation, allows the freedom of choosing whatever main speakers you especially enjoy the mid/treble and imaging qualities of.
Creating a high quality 4-sub DBA system will not help you with a high quality everything else system, but it will allow you to choose a pair of main speakers you really like the mid/treble and imaging qualities of without regard to their bass performance quality. This will be something very beneficial whenever you choose to change your main speakers.
Best wishes,
Tim
As audiozenology correctly stated earlier, "Problem with floor standers that go deep is best positioning for bass and for everything else unlikely to be the same except in a designed room." IOW, the optimum positioning of the bass drivers in a room for bass performance at the listening position is highly unlikely to be the same as the optimum positioning of the midrange and treble drivers in a room for mid/treble and imaging performance at the listening position.
The best solution I’ve discovered thus far for this dichotomy is to treat my system as two systems; a bass system and an everything else system. I utilize an Audio Kinesis Debra 4-sub distributed bass array (DBA) system to first get the bass optimized in my 13’x22’ room. This bass system consists of four relatively small (1’dx2’wx2’h) subs with 10" aluminum long-throw 4 ohm woofers all powered by an included 1K watt class AB amp that also controls the volume, xover frequency and phase of all 4 subs as a group.
This complete 4-sub bass system costs about $3K but provides powerful, fast, smooth, detailed and dynamic bass down to 20 Hz in virtually any room and seamlessly integrates with any pair of main speakers. There’s also the option of creating a custom 4-sub DBA system by adding 2 subs to your current 2 subs. These added subs are not required to be the same brand, model or size as your current 2 subs. However, the downside is that the volume, xover frequency and phase controls would need to be optimally set individually, rather than once as a group of 4 with an AK Swarm or Debra DBA system.
Once the foundation of a high quality bass system is in place, it’s just a matter of optimally positioning my everything else system in relation to my listening position, consisting of Magnepan 2.7QR main speakers and some room treatments.
Like the OP, jmarshak, I’m also very interested in improving my system’s midrange, treble and imaging quality. I’ve decided to upgrade by asking Santa for a pair of Magnepan 3,7i speakers and some additional GIK room treatments for Xmas.
Sorry for the length of this post but my main point is that treating your system as two systems and establishing a high quality bass system as a solid foundation, allows the freedom of choosing whatever main speakers you especially enjoy the mid/treble and imaging qualities of.
Creating a high quality 4-sub DBA system will not help you with a high quality everything else system, but it will allow you to choose a pair of main speakers you really like the mid/treble and imaging qualities of without regard to their bass performance quality. This will be something very beneficial whenever you choose to change your main speakers.
Best wishes,
Tim