Try this free tweak - Speaker Slumber Party!

I have Owens-Corning 703 panels on either side of the speakers, plus I have graciously volunteered to "store" the outdoor deck pillows all over the listening room when not in use. Does it make a difference? Not nearly as much as the 703s. Having guests over for listening sessions helps. All those bags of fluid help absorb and diffuse the sound! One friend loves to lie on the floor between the speakers. A tangent, but I love how non-audiophiles have interesting preferences for listening positions. 

Absolutely, Eric.  Room acoustics do matter...the smaller the room, the larger part they play.  At first glance though, the 'pillow project' seems to skate on the edge of WAF and how ones' spouse might react.  There's alternatives...borrowing an indoor laundry drying rack and tossing a heavy blanket over it could work just as well and might prove a bit more portable.  Not to mention variable in its' 'profile'.

'Omni fan' that I am, room reflections from a pair can make or break the illusion that they create, in some ways much greater than a direct radiating speaker pair.  The same hard vs. damping issues exist, but are exhibited in a different way.  If one has the luxury of a dedicated space for ones' audio, it becomes a little easier to adjust and control.  If not, and the system has to coexist with the normal trappings of a household, or a space of odd dimensions, similar issues rear up.  The 'best average' is what one hopes to accomplish....

Creating a 'dead zone' between speakers is an interesting experiment to perform....a 'negative' version of the center channel one sees in AV systems.  Breaking the 'merge' of the speaker pairs' 'center' imaging, playing with the effect just because one can just to see what happens can be very instructive.

My personal approach is to 'ignore the room' to some degree.  I'm running front and rear omnis, creating a sound field that I can control what happens in the center.  Room reflections tend to be overwhelmed by the direct radiation within.  An odd approach, perhaps, but it does interesting (to me) effects to imaging that can be controlled to some degree....

My 'experiment in progress'...that, and concocting a really nice DIY Walsh. *G*  We all have our goals....;)  Everyone's got one....mine's just...different.

Yes, it IS an important idea and a fun test.  Everyone who has not addressed this already should try it out.

@asvjerry

Thanks so much. I don’t really mind it, but I do worry so many will pile on and discredit an important idea. The same people who will spend endless quantities on fuses and quantum room purifiers are sometimes exactly the same that refuse to consider room acoustics at all.

I think that the pillows on the floor is a really good _experiment_ (not installation) because you can hear a change in tonal balance happen, despite them not being in direct line of reflections. As others have pointed out, the sound we perceive is not like light from a laser beam.

How quickly and smoothly different bands in the room decay has a major influence on how we perceive the smoothness of the frequency response. It's a very inexpensive, and temporary (unless you have a very large dog) experiment.

:)

Best,


E

Best Capt. B. vid I've seen. *G*

Eric, y'know, overall you're one of the most thoughtful posters here on AG...and I really appreciate your presence, but with this suggestion expecting 'us' to not crack wise and get goofy on you....*shrug*

I'm pretty 'odd', granted, but I'd stop short on it.  If I followed through on your suggestion, my spouse would call the guys with that long-sleeved coat with the straps and buckles...after 35ish years, she's way tolerant of me, but I know when to NOT do 'something'.  *L*

Room treatments, sure.  Bedroom disassembly, Nooooo.....

I have my own system inspired by Captain Beefheart’s drummer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpHgG4jILa0 I use a pair of XL Depends which are quite effective in absorbing room reflections!

@erik_squires 

"  The point is..... just close your eyes and try it. :) "

I dont need to try it as the room has acoustical panels and a thick area rug.

the pillows would cover up the rug, and annoy the golden retriever who has been trained to lie in the best acoustic configuration sideways on the rug

I moved on to the harder stuff. A mattress.

Riley,

The point is..... just close your eyes and try it. :) Listen for yourself. :) Play a little and try things you may not otherwise.

Pillows on the floor can be a really interesting learning experiment, especially between the speakers. :) They can demonstrate how timbre can be shaped unexpectedly. :)

Best,


E

i would look at using blankets on walks as a temporary thing vs using pillows on the floor .

i think most members here are aware or use room treatments of some sort.

Actually, not sure if it ultimately helps, but I have stuffed animals and hard-stuffed pillows stuck behind some Owens 703FRK panels in my front corners.  Figure more cotton-based stuffing would be better for lower frequency response. lol.

E, Totally humour. Not discounting your pillow tweak. : )

It is just something to try, not to live with guys.

And while I appreciate the humor, unlike most tweaks, this is based on science and experience. I'm hoping that trying out something for free will help people discover the importance of room acoustic treatment, and seek solutions from reputable providers.

Best,

E

Erik, please, please don't add to the things that need tweaking and long, critical listening sessions.

I'm worried about the fabric of the pillows. Cotton over silk? Synthetic to eke out the best bass. Sub fabric frequencies....Egyptian cotton over Chinese silk???? I really don't want to collapse the soundstage with cheap imitation crap.

Will Higher thread count induce earlier fatigue? 

The size...do Kings knockout Queens? Game of Thrones I do not want in my listening room.

I've been researching filler...Mr. My Pillow swears that his are washable and readjustable. Does this require a burn in period after each wash?

Will Bamboo sound too harsh since it is sustainably farmed and not wild grown????

Does Memory Foam and cooling gel make for deeper blacks?

And does one's head positon on the pillow need to be in the sweet spot???

That's what I've been doing all along. 
Doesn't everybody?

My wife yells at me for effing up the bed.