I have Apogeen Mini-Grands, and my leather Ottoman is very detrimental to the sound. I would think that would be true with any planar or planar-hybrid speaker. It does not severely compromise my Von Schwiekerts, but the drivers are not nearly as close to the floor. It really depends on the type of speakers and how close the ottoman is to the speaker. Obviously if you listen in the nearfield and the ottoman is blocking a driver it would be very bad. Just put a box where the ottoman would go and have a listen for yourself
What s in front of your chair?
I'm condsidering putting an ottoman in front of my listening chair, but am concerned about sonic effects. However, could an ottoman be beneficial as a low frequency absorber? If so, what type of ottoman would be best? I'm thinking cloth covered with natural stuffing, i.e. wool or cotton. Has anyone experimented with this? I guess anything would be better than a glass table. I just don't want to buy something then not like it because once it's in, it will never leave(SO). Hey, maybe there's a product in this thread for some ingenious furniture maker: Audiophile Ottomans, $10,000, Chairs, $15,000.