Michael, the spacers are for tuning the bass and should be room, amplifier, and set-up dependant....so there is no 'right' amount.
when i had WP6's i started with no spacers but kept fighting a mid-bass 'hump'. my room was only 12' wide and the speakers were very close to the walls. i inserted both additional puppy spacers and this reduced the mid-bass hump considerably.
some amps will cause heavyness in the bass and require raising the speakers. when moving the speakers closer to a wall ot farther away you may find that lowering or raising the speakers may get you more neutral in the bass.
what another user does won't help you much unless their setup and room is identical....the key is understanding cause and effect. the floor is a room boundary; in fact the most prominent one. as you move the woofer closer or farther away the bass will load up or lean out.
the speaker is more stable without any spacers.....that would be a practical advantage to not using the spacers. |
Mikelavigne: Well stated! remember that if you add spacers you need to adjust the rear spike on the Watt according to the manual. |
cytocycle,
what do you mean by the rear spike on the watt? |
Mike,
Thanks for your input. Back when I first got the puppy's I had one spacer not two in and it was too boomy. However since then I have put absorption panels on the ceiling as well as wall behind speakers in addition to thick floor rugs. So now I began to wonder if I should try going back to one spacer. I think it will still be too boomy but just was curious as to whether most people end up happier with none, one, or two. You are very right its room and equipment sensitive.
Michael
p.s. I am too chicken to change the spacers on the puppy's with the wife and was hoping people would say don't bother. The store installed the speakers and adjusted the spacers originally |
Karmapolice: The top head unit has a spike in the back that your Wilson kit comes with 3 different sized to aim the Watt Down or Up based on the distance (there is a guide under the watt that has the distance grid used to select spike height based on listening position.
The manual outlines this, do you have the manual? |
KarmaPolice
I by far had the best results with WP7 with removing the puppy paws entirely (heresy I know) and placing them directly on svelte shelves. Not only could I move them around more frequently to dial them in to what I felt was getting the most out of them, but this seemed to provide a flatter response in my room and the imaging improved rather dramatically. I understand that using supers is even better but they were a little to tall for my comfort level. You also must adjust the rear watt spike if you go to this setup for phase integrity since the whole getup is a lot lower. |
Cytocycle,
I do have the manual and was wondering is that someone who is never done before can do easily (remove the watt from the puppy)?
Michael |
cytocyle,
I looked at the manual and noticed that for my listening position of 10 feet away at ear height of 38 inches with two spacers it corresponds in table 5 of the manual to the number 4. I believe that its a rating from 1-4 based on spacers, ear height, and distance. It was interesting that at ear height of 38 inches with a listening position 10 feet away, the number 4 was the rating for the table whether one had o spacers, 1, or two spacers.
I am hesitant to pull out the watt to see the distance guide and examine whether the rear watt spike is the right one only to find out it was.
Michael |
Piece of cake, the Watt is about 60lbs, first disconnect the cable and pull it to the other side of the handle, the silver metal bar is actually a handle as wilsons watts were designed for portable recording monitors that acutally sat on the ground. pull it back slightly from behind (1/2") and then lift the back up with your fingers on lip of the midrange driver and lift it off, there are three spikes under the watt and metal slides on the puppy for it to rest on. this makes it easier to move the wilson speaker around.. another trick if you are going to mess with the spikes is to bring out your wilson plastic bags and lay the puppy down on them otherwise if you set either speaker on carpet the velcro will grab it and it will take 3 people to pull the speaker off and break the velco seal with a plastic knife. also there is a lip on the top of the puppy that you SHOULD NOT GRAB when moving the PUPPY's around as this can break, use the port and the lip around the drivers.
Since your have pulled the speaker check out the bottom with the black panel, and that is the location for the replaceable resisters should you over power the speakers and one doesn't sound as loud as the other (I'm doing this weekend) Also if you want to attentuate the tweeter or mid, you wilson dealer can change these values.. These are amazing speakers the more I listen to them and learn about them.
Stop by your dealer and have him show you how to remove the watt from the puppy there.. you will feel alot better doing it once on his.. but it really is no big deal other than realizing how heavy they are! |
Thanks Cytocycle for all the help!!!
Michael |
cytocycle,
one other question....is it easy with the help of another person to simply lift the speaker and remove one of the two puppy spacers?
If its nothing more than tilt the speaker and unscrew it and take it off I can experiment easily and painlessly. I don't want to have to take off the whole puppy paw and reinsert...that is much more of a bother
Michael |
Yes, I just went from 1 spacer to no spacer. The sound tighten up with more depth, and hi-frequency clarity. I do not hear any abnormalities with a midbass hump. Only positive gains for me. I have hesitated for a couple months doing this, worth it to try. For my setup: Krell AMP, watt/puupies 7's 130" apart, 60" from back wall, sitting position 144" away a definite improvement. |
Wsill, I have couple questions on your speakers placement. 60" from back wall, is it measured from the woofer to the back wall or the back of the speaker to the back wall ? Aslo, what is your listening room's dimension ? Thanks ! |
Mbi, Actually my sopeakers are 68" from rear wall as measured from wall to front inner edge. Speakers are on the "short wall". My room is 19'6" x 24'. 9' tray cieling in middle, 8' around the perimiter. If I move speakers back towards the wall, I loose some soundstaging. I was plannng on going through the placement evaluation again soon. The placment both front-back, side to side of these speakers has a profound effect on the soundstage, more so than others I feel. Close ie less than 3' enforces the bass too much. Moving to no spacers really made an improvement with overall solidity. |
