I agree with him saying “Every speaker above 50 Hertz is a small speaker” in below video. It doesn’t have to be large speakers for a big room. My system consists 5.24” woofer 2way speakers with 8” powered sub. I am very happy. Alex/Wavetouch
Big speakers, are they really the best way to get great sound?
Yesterday, I had the opportunity to listen to some very large speakers that are considered to be at, or close to, the pinnacle in speaker design and ability. Needless to say, the speakers retail in the mid to high $300k range. These speakers, and I will not be naming them, were sourced by about $800k of upstream gear. Room size was about thirty by twenty, maybe a little larger.
To say the the overall sound was BIG would be accurate, but also I noticed something else, that I typically hear with big speaker systems. Generally, the speakers were right on edge of overloading the room, depending on music, the dreaded bass boom could be heard. But, the whole presentation was greater in impact than most any smaller speaker system, yet it was almost unlistenable for the long term.
The question I asked myself, is do we really want this type of presentation in our home audio systems? The speakers threw a pretty large soundstage, but also made things sound somewhat larger than life. I also thought that this type of speaker is akin to the large box dynamic speakers of yesteryear. For example, a set of large horns from Altec Lansing or similar was reminiscent of this sound. Makes me believe that if one has a big room, a similar sound can be obtained from most any large speaker system and at a fraction of the price.
I listen in a very small room, and by necessity in the near field, yet I think the overall intimacy of this type of listening experience is better for me, your thoughts?
Showing 25 responses by mihorn
I see your system and I understand why you believe that. Then I want to hear the truth. Do you have a live recording of your system online? Alex/Wavetouch |
If you don’t have a live recording of your own, please let me know you think/believe/heard the best sounding large speaker in the world. Or may be the closest sounding system to your system. I’ll count it as your system. It is OK to include > $million speakers. Please list few if you can. Then we can talk about the proper approach. Alex/Wavetouch
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I don't agree that the natural sound to me is unnatural to some others since we hear natural sounds (voices, winds, dog barking, car tire and engine sounds, water flowing, etc.) everywhere. Alex/Wavetouch |
I am curious what do you think is "the best audio sound system in the world" (you heard or believe)? Please list few. Could you let me know videos or articles? Alex/Wavetouch |
Below videos are my audio system consists 5.25" 2 way speakers. Do you hear such a strained and less natural? My room is 22' x 14' x 8'. Alex/Wavetouch My Rival - Steely Dan, Wavetouch audio live recording Lidia Borda - Cuando silba el viento, Wavetouch audio live recording Self Control (Laura Branigan) - Wavetouch audio live recording |
I will compare to any audio system in the world. Please you show me any audio system’s live recording video sounds better than mine. Alex/Wavetouch audio |
This is a plan. You choose a live recording video from online. Then I'll upload my system's live recording of same music. One condition, the music is NOT an instrumental. The instrumental music is harder to judge. So, the music must have a singer. Alex/Wavetouch |
Do you think "A" sounds better than "B" in YT, but "B" is better than "A" in real? I don’t think so. I exhibit my audio system in an audio show every year and I heard almost every rooms in the show every year. I know what I heard. Alex/WT |
Please listen to the original music (center video). You will hear same hiss there too. Alex/WT |
In my opinion, close up recording will only reveal and emphasis flaws of speaker sounds and it will only hurt people's ears. I am using Nikon D7100 with an external mic attached on D7100 (8.5 ft from speakers). Please watch. Alex/WT |
I am surprised you point that out. You have great ears. I agree on mid cupped or deadness in sounds. Yes. It makes my forehead hard, heavy, and dead-end (not open sound) feeling. But I am hearing that same sound from the original music too. I am aware that your system sounds open (not airy tho) on mid-range unlike the original music. To my ears your audio system sound everything opposite to the original music. Where the original music push forward, your system sounds open and backed off, and vice versa. I know partially why your system sounds like that. Almost all audio systems in the world sound like that. I found a solution of that and apply it to my system. Therefore, my system sounds close to the original music. Alex/WT |
@ toddalin I respect your opinion on the sound and skill with speaker making. I am listening. Your system sounds really good and better than many much more expensive systems I've heard.Could we compare sounds with different music such as below? And am I hi-jacking a thread right now? I think I should stop here. Alex/WT |
Those big speakers do well on C. Rock but delicate music. I heard JBL Everest with Luxman 300B amp from my friend 30 years ago. He also had A7 VOTT. I was in heaven listening Rickie Lee Jones (Pop Pop). One of serious limitation for big horn speakers (compression driver) is the dirty and rough sound. Only thing it does well is hard hitting sound such as a drum. I don't want to listen C Rock all the time. My system does well on all kinds of sources (CD, MP3, MP4 (YT music), MOV, etc.) and genres (Rock, vocal, classical, small chamber, Piano, violin, audiophile, fusion, etc.). Live recordings below. Many of them are YT downloaded MP3. Alex/WT Schbert - Fantasie C Dur, Allegretto, Vivaldi - Winter (Four season) Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 - Hilary Hahn, Lidia Borda - Cuando silba el viento Stars Fell On Alabama - Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong |
1st, no audio reproduction is perfect. I know my system is not perfect but my system is closest anyone can get in reproduction audio. You are right and I agree that most/all my recordings sound "cupped". I know its because all original records are cupped in some extent. I said all audio systems in the world are flawed, also all recording equipment are flawed too. Ex.) All microphones in the world are not made properly. Same problem for mixers. I only know how to make them properly and I’ll start to make proper microphones soon. Alex/WT |
I made some mistakes with my audio system at last Orange County show. I am not happy with that sound. My system is much improved after The SHOW 2023. Also, I didn't use the sub-woofer then. I look around almost other rooms to hear any thing changed at the show every year. Thank you very much for your interest and watching me! Alex/WT |
May be you could live record and post a couple of below (or similar) music. I need to hear your speakers more to see I am wrong. Schbert - Fantasie C Dur, Allegretto, Vivaldi - Winter (Four season) Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 - Hilary Hahn, Lidia Borda - Cuando silba el viento |
@ toddalin I wanted hear something more mellow and musical, and you brought a hard rock. Anyway, I have a live recording of same music from few weeks ago. I won’t say which sounds better. I’ll say this. If you are upgrading your audio gears, which sounds you want to have? Alex/WTA |
Yes. Your system does sound similar like the left speaker in the comparison video. Say "Hello" (or any words) while your video is playing. Do same to the original music and my video below. Alex/WTA |
My room has a minimal acoustic treatment which covering 1st reflection points with few small sponges. 70% left side wall is glass doors covered with a curtain. All audio systems in the world sound unnatural. The unnatural sounds are very bright and blatant. Your ears are used to a left speaker in video. My audio system behaves like a right speaker. Listen to your video in the previous post after watch this. Alex/WTA |
I don’t use any trick. Below video is made by Audiophile Junkie (YT ID.). Alex/WTA |
My shop is 36’L x 28’W x 11’H (11k cubic ft) and my system sounds even better than my room in the video (22’ x 13.4’ x 8’). Almost conventional speakers must pressurize the room with sounds to come alive because speakers blow sounds to walls, floor, and ceiling first rather than to to a listener. Almost all sounds a listener gets are reflected sounds. If the room is large, the sounds must travel longer (weaker and colored by reflected on dry walls) to reach to a listener. So, the room size is very important. With natural sound speakers, more sounds travel directly to the listener and the room size is not that important. The room size difference with a natural sound speaker is like a real person is singing in a small room or a large room. Alex/WTA |
My Wavetouch audio system consists small 2 ways speakers (a 5.25" woofer) with a Velodyne 8" SPL s2 powered sub. Can any system beat my system's sound and musicality? The Time (Pink Floyd) requires a good bass and I think my system is doing better than any system. Alex/Wavetouch Pink Floyd – Time - David Gilmour, Wavetouch audio, Live recording |