A perfectly square room is difficult, with regards to standing waves(peaks/nulls) and modal ringing. I've been stuck in an acoustic nightmare of a room, do to an expensive divorce, for the past 25 years. My 1.7i's are in a smallish room(12' W X 14' D), with Auralex 2" Studiofoam Wedges, covering the wall behind my listening position, from 2’ above the floor, to the ceiling, with LENRDs flanking them(to eliminate all the slap-echo/room overload). They are toed in, 3’ from the front wall, tweeters outside, and where the rear wave hits the wall, I(years back) placed a sheet of 4" pyramid foam, which seemed to enhance sound staging. My seat is at the apex of an equilateral triangle, 7’ on a side(from the planars' centers) and 4’ from the back wall. Kind of near-field listening, but- the illusion of life-sized sound stage, excellent tonal balance and rock-solid imaging, is addictive. There are a few cheaper alternates, on eBay, to the Studiofoam and LENRDs, that I have no doubt would work nicely. Of course, the room has to be dedicated to listening(ZERO WAF). (https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2380057.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.X2%22+wedge+ac...) and (https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw=2%22+wedge+acoustic+foam&_osacat=0&_from=R40&_trks...)
In case you’re interested in trying the pyramid foam trick: http://foamforyou.com/pyramid_foam_tiles___sheets.htm#4 The 2’ X 4’ sheet, is just right for behind(centered about ear level) a 1.7i (2 sheets = about $36.00) . Happy listening!
speaker and seating position for magnepans
14x14 room and will get sound treatments later but now it is bare walls. stereo setup with magnepan 1.7's. i have read different things in various threads. most recent theory i've read is speakers close to side walls and at least 3 feet from front wall. seating spot 1/3 from back wall. what are your suggestions? thanks for your replies.any additional advice on sound absorption for my setup is appreciated.
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My feeling is that creating a 10ms delay between the sound from the rear of planars and that from their front is the first priority. Anything less than about 10ms, and the rear wave is not perceived as ambiance, but rather as part of the direct sound---a smearing of it. Our ear/brain requires a 10ms separation between two sounds to recognize them as separate events. Since sound travels at approximately 1’ per ms, to create that 10ms delay between the sound from the front of a planar and that from it’s rear reaching the listeners ears, the planars need to be no less than 5’ in front of the wall behind them. It takes the rear wave 5ms to reach that wall, and 5ms to return to the planar. It then continues on to the listener, who perceives the 10ms delayed rear wave sound as ambiance, rather than part of the direct sound, as a smearing of it. In a 14’ room, with the planars 5’ out in the room and 8’ from the listening position, that leaves 1’ between the lp and the wall behind it. Unfortunate, but the lesser of two evils; that is, if one makes the 10ms delay the first priority. Absorption on the wall behind the lp is then required to prevent reflections off making the wall’s presence known to the ear/brain. Also unfortunate is the fact that there is undoubtedly a room node located right where the lp then is. |
I suppose, in light of all that, I know why the pyramid foam, on the wall behind the Maggies, works so well. I only have my own excellent results and the opinion of everyone that's heard my system lately(mostly pros of one stripe or another), to go by. I learned, many decades back, as result of setting up so many live music venues, a sound booth(or listening seat) placed against a back wall, never works well with regards to critical listening. Also: That no two rooms are alike. Actually, if one has the room, 10’ should be the minimum, from the back wall, for best bass reproduction. I have no doubt, there are many that prefer what they hear, seated against their back wall, given the huge bass peak, in that position. http://arqen.com/acoustics-101/speaker-placement-boundary-interference/ |
Hanging anything soft(blankets, curtains, etc)in your room, is bound to affect something, soundwise. Various thicknesses, shapes and densities of foam, are chosen to target certain frequency ranges. ie: I chose the 2’ X 4’, 4" pyramid foam, to diffuse the very narrow back wave of my Maggies, and minimize any reflections. I wouldn’t expect a thin, flat mattress to have much overall effect, BUT- you have nothing to lose by experimenting with it. |