CARA - Room Acoustic Software

Psychic, you are comparing apples to zucchinis. The atmosphere, acoustics, goals, etc... of a nightclub sound system are VERY different from that of a true "high fidelity" reproduction system. Regardless of the brands used in either, the nightclub will have very poor resolution, lack detail, offer very irregular frequency response ( on purpose ), will not offer any type of soundstage or imaging, etc... whereas a good home system will do all of these with ease. After all, what kind of midrange can you get out of a 12" or 15" JBL woofer in a front loaded horn ??? Sean
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While i haven't seen my September Stereophile yet, i guess that they talk about this program, maybe even review it. Based on Frank's ( Frap ) comments and what i read on their website, i've ordered their "package deal". This consists of the computer program and a CD of test tones, etc... Since most of my rooms are quite irregular, along with that of my brother's house and my Dad's, this should come in REAL handy once it shows. I know that Doug ( aka Sedond ) also ordered it, so we'll probably start seeing more comments about it here and on other audio forums pretty soon. For the record, they are currently back ordered on these items but do expect them in sometime very soon. Sean
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Metaphysics: Several YEARS ??? Thanks for the warning and the laugh : ) I guess i know what to expect now...

I've seen others state that this program is SLOW and can really chew up computing power. My fastest puter is a lowly 350, so it might take more than a FEW years for me....

As to Luis' question, I "think" that CARA can accomodate openings. At least i hope it can. That is one of the main reasons that i'm picking up a copy. The room that my HT system is in has an archway adjoining into what we call the computer room. I have a seperate 2 channel system in the computer room. As if that weren't tough enough to deal with, the computer room has an archway opposite the other opening that leads into the kitchen !!! There is a direct line of site opening from the front of the house all the way through three rooms to the back wall of the kitchen. Talk about "trouble" when it comes to freak acoustics !!! Then again, this might end up helping me due to staggered standing wave patterns ????

Since some of you folks have already been using this system, can you work with speakers that offer 360* of radiation ??? Sean
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Thanks "Meta" for clarifying the issues. Sounds like this program is REALLY worth the money and FAR more versatile than any of the others. Since your 1 gig puter can do it overnight, my older 200 can probably swing it within 2 - 3 days or so : )

Psychicanimal, what is a GOOD sounding "disco" ??? If you think that nightclubs have "good" sounding audio systems, i can understand why you went with the 1200. I'm not trying to be rude, but there is a BIG difference between what a sound reinforcement type PA system and a home audio system do well. Sean
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Psychic, i have worked doing pro sound reinforcement for a living, sold pro sound gear for a living, recorded and produced a few local bands, etc... As such, i would consider myself QUITE familiar with all of the aspects that you have mentioned.

If you would take SPL measurements in the clubs that you think sound "great", you would find that the first thing that they did was to "neutralize" peaks and dips in the room due to its' specific acoustics. This WILL vary with how crowded the club is. That's why minor adjustments are needed on a night by night basis. Once the room is somewhat "flattened out", they will administer further equilization to achieve the tonal balance that they are seeking to achieve for that specific group of entertainers.

Most "metal" or "hard rock" will get tweeked at about 80 - 120 hz with a slight emphasis between 200 - 400 hz. This adds "weight" and "body". Depending on the venue and sound that the band was looking for, sinking the 1 Khz slider down will make the vocals sound more distant and "heavier". One might also elevate the 2.5 Khz to 4 Khz range, as this would let the guitars cut through with more "bite". If cymbals were weak, you would play with the 8 - 12 Khz range. Moving this will add or subtract "splash" accordingly.

On the other hand, acts with a lot of vocals would not want the same equilization as it would come across as being muddy at the minimum and possibly even sibilant or "spitty" sounding due to the upper mid boost.

Even with all of the EQ'ing that takes place, it is next to impossible to get even sound coverage in most halls. The speaker arrays are normally not well thought out, their dispersion characteristics are not optimized, the acoustics of the room are rather eratic and the density of the crowd varies drastically. As such, trying to go for a "flat response" would be a waste of time and typically result in HORRIBLE sounding performances as it would only be "flat" in a very few spots. Most folks would rather have it be "coloured" but sound pleasant.

All of that is why home audio and pro sound are so different. We know the venue that we'll be listening in, we know the acoustics, we know where the listener will be seated, we know the appr listening levels, etc... Since most of the variables have been removed, we can then attack the problems more completely and precisely with less side effects than if one was working on a much "grander" scale.

The bottom line is that Pro Sound and home audio have very little in common other than they both use electronics to amplify and reproduce the signal. Sean
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