Make speakers disappear. Simple, cheap
My pet peave...
This simple visual trick is without question the biggest improvement in creating the illusion of stereo image that I've ever done. The illusion created is amazing and the improvement is HUGE. However I rarely see it used in two channel systems. I don't see any You tube reviewers using this illusion. When I go to audio shows it amazes me how MOST of the displays overlook this simple trick. (there are a small handfull of high end displays that get it)
I also have difficulty getting anyone to try this effect. It's too much of a commitment? WAF factor maybe?? They spend 10's of thousands on equiptment then miss the target on the biggest improvement of all!!
I'm flabbergasted when I see PS Audio new listening rooms that completely miss the mark on this illusion. Their rooms are bright as day and there is ZERO abience created. I think Pauls wife decorated the rooms and unfortunatley knows nothing about lighting.
You need to create the 'canvas' for the image to appear.The back wall behind the speakers should be flat black and as dark as possible. NO lights on the center back wall. My favorite is a matte dark black fabric that also aids in reducing reflections off the sheetrock.
You want to create the illusion that there is NO back wall. Just a deep, dark abyss from which the instruments will magically appear. This can be further enhanced by dimming the lights elsewhere in the room. Much like a movie theater. Ever notice a broadway play or a Las Vegas magic show is all about controlled lighting?
It's also a great effect to hi-light the speakers face with very low level up light. (Cheap at Ikea) or even a candle will do. Gentle lighting in front of the speakers or a down spot light in the middle of the room can even make the back wall darker.
Black paint will also work but I prefer a dark velour fabric.
The effect is dramatic and absolutely worth the little cost and effort yet no one does it.
@prof Bravo!! I found it very interesting and thanks for sharing. Looks amazing!! Your efforts have created a room that's above and beyond. "Batcave" is perfect for me. One question... why are the speakers toed out so much? My first instinct was to push the speakers back toward the back wall and toe them in a bit. I would imagine you've already done that? Just curious.
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Glad you got something out of it. in terms of the Home theatre experience, It’s been about 15 years And I swear, I pinch myself practically every time I use it. I cannot believe how amazing the experience is. As for the position of the speakers : The front on photo of the Joseph speakers from my listening position is misleading. The slight wide angle effect causes a distortion to the sides, which makes it look like the speakers are slightly facing outward. The speakers are in fact towed in lightly towards listening position. (though I don’t like strong toe-in. I find with most speakers imaging gets too tight constricted and artificial sounding). In terms of the position in the room: If you look at the first photo I posted which shows my Thiel speakers from just outside the listening room, you’ll see that there are some space restrictions - the floor standing speakers can’t really go much further back towards the screen wall because then the right speaker is blocking the entranceway into the room. That’s why you just pulled up close to the edge of the sofa. However, impractical terms ends up being a non-issue since the position of the speakers pulled out from the wall that much our ideal for me - I get the extremely smooth response and sense of immersion that I’m looking for. So even without the room issues, the speakers will probably end up exactly where they are in any case. Instead of sliding the speakers back-and-forth, my listening sofa is on big floor sliders, and therefore I’ve been able to easily slide the sofa back-and-forth within a couple feet to dial in my listening position with respect to the speakers. As of late I have arrived at a 7 foot listening distance to the Joseph speakers, which are spread about 8 feet apart. Normally, I have tried to split the difference between the immersion and south stage size I want to experience but also the focus and density of imaging I also want to maintain. Moving closer to the speakers, slightly trades off image focus and density - moving further slightly trades off immersion for more focus and density. However, once I started employing a curved diffuser between and behind the loudspeakers that was game changing! That diffuser adds focus in density to the images, so that I can now sit closer to the speakers with that cinema scope spread between the speakers for immersion, and yet the images in that vast space are really dense, palpable and focussed. It as close to the best of all worlds that I’ve heard yet in a system. So I’m very happy. I also helped things along last year by experimenting with tons of different footers and different materials between my loudspeakers and the carpeted wood floor they sit on. I ultimately ended up with a thick granite base, which is a sandwich of granite and sound damping material, with the speakers using iso acoustics Gaia footers on the back, and on the front speaker spikes into hockey pucks to get exactly the front angling I want, and then the granite base is sitting upon four corners of hockey pucks with iso acoustics floor spikes beneath. The result was a combination of tightening up of the bass, refining the tone and timber, and raising the speakers so that the sound stage creates a more realistic height, and sounds even more vast.
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Dear @treitz3 : I don't have a dedicated audio room and the nearfield seat position is the best trying to listen as in a "free space " where the room stays out of " consideration ", yes I know that's just a dream but is all I have. As you I don't listen always at near field position. Even all what involves my room/system I could think is a system with very high resolution and acceptable quality level performance. Main characteristic is an almost non-existent elctronics/speakers noise floor where I or any one can't detect it even with the volume wide open and with the ear at 10 mm. from the silk dome tweeters. From there the speakers 95db efficiency helps to have that quality level to the listen reproduced sound, any kind of MUSIC at any SPL. No it does not have the " immediacy " that only horn driver has but at least " approaching " it.
For me that immediacy is an intrinsical characteristic of live MUSIC at nearfield position where between you and the source exist only " the air " and is from here where the other live MUSIC characteristics are developed through those whole instruments/source transient responses. Only an opinion. Yes, my system is a full range one and has external powered subwoofers, even that it does not has any external hi-pass cdrossover for the main speakers where the audio signal could be degraded and this no/hi-pass it's because I took advantage of my Levinson monoblocks original design where the amps are coupled by an input cap and it's through this input cap where the high-pass is " happening " at around 80 hz In that way the speaker/subs signal comes directly from my Phonolinepreamp to the amps and subs. Other characteristic in my system is that the elctronics it does not use any input connector for the electrical power and neither input fuses: both " elements " generates some kind of different type and level of added noise.
In the other side the noise floor enviroment is something that I learned to " disappears " when in listen sessions where in your system is just truly non-existen ( I envy you about. ). " That was the absolute best I have ever heard a near field setup. ", that's for sure and maybe only a few in the audio world can have same kind of outstanding experience in their own systems. Congratulations "! !.
You are rigth, we all are in the " hands " of the whole recording engineers and yes what we all listening in our room/system is a far-away " approximation " of the live recorded MUSIC and my main target is to stay "truer/nearer " to that " approximation " trying , between other things, to put at minimum any noise/distortions developed at my room/system adding the less and losting the less too. My very long trip in the audio world looking to listen MUSIC was and still is a learning one trying to scale step by step to the next level of that audio/MUSIC learning ladder till we find out " total " satisfaction " according each one of us audio/MUSIC targets and priorities. Ok, those it what I want to share here.
@milpai " With the right setup you would have the perception of depth with vocals (most of them) near the front and the instruments either on the sides and/or behind - depends on the recording. " obviously with out that black paint/fabric on place. I agree with you and yes @gdaddy1 needs to works with because IMHO his room/system has a " problem " that till today was not yet detected, this is part of the " learning ladder ".
R.
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