'For optimum performance, Klipsch suggests placing your speakers at least...' [Archive] - Audio & Video Forums

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Tetsuro
11-28-2007, 04:54 AM
'... 60 cm from the wall'.

Would I have problems if I place them at 14/15? I have to renounce, eventually, to Klipsch?

basite
11-28-2007, 05:54 AM
speakers are always happier when you place them further away from the wall...

if you place them too close to the wall, you will get muddier bass because of reflections (same with placing speakers in corners), and you will lose depth in your soundstage...
especially with ported speakers and even more so with speakers that have a backfiring woofer...

Keep them spinning,
Bert.

Tetsuro
11-28-2007, 06:02 AM
Bert, please, give me a more focused reply.. do you think that I have to renounce on them since I will have no more (and that's a big 'no more') than 14/15 cm? Why produce 'booshelf' if they can't stay to a bookshelf? I must place mine speakers on mine desktop.

I have two alternatives (firstly Monitor Audio and eventually Wharfedale) but these Klipsch really catch mine attention.

This is it:
http://xs.to/xs.php?h=xs321&d=07483&f=fcdgfc.jpg

Feanor
11-28-2007, 07:05 AM
'... 60 cm from the wall'.

Would I have problems if I place them at 14/15? I have to renounce, eventually, to Klipsch?

Virtually all speakers are designed to be place at particular distance from the wall. The laws of physics apply here: bass is boosted if the driver is closer that 1/2 wave length from a reflective surface; (at 80Hz, this is about 2m). The speakers designers aim to optimized the bass response for at a given distance from the walls, and corners provided additional boost.

People sometimes plug the speaker vents in order to reduce the lower-end response. This sometimes works well, but there are a lot of variables and the results are unpredicatable. Of course, this isn't an option with closed-box speakers.

Many professional monitors have built-in settings to accomodate proximity to walls, but this is rare in the case of home speakers. Here is an example of a pro speaker with these settings; look at the manual and note the "Room Compensation" settings ... Behringer TRUTH B2031A Studio Monitor (http://www.behringer.com/B2031A/index.cfm?lang=eng) Note that these are "active" speakers, that is, they have their own, built-in amplifiers.

Tetsuro
11-28-2007, 07:19 AM
Yes Feanor but at which minimum distance from a wall can a rear ported bass reflex do well? Because I must understand if I have to turn back to the MA's front ported reflex or if I could go ahead with those Klipsch. Mine heart sounds Klipsch, but if they will not work well in mine situation I have to renounce...

Tannoys says 50 cm (even if they are front port), I have placed them at 10.

Beside I think that with MA's mine amplifier will struggle. :(

Feanor
11-28-2007, 07:26 AM
Yes Feanor but at which minimum distance from a wall can a rear ported bass reflex do well? Because I must understand if I have to turn back to the MA's front ported reflex or if I could go ahead with those Klipsch. Mine heart sounds Klipsch, but if they will not work well in mine situation I have to renounce...

From what I've heard 15cm is sufficient to permit the vent to work properly, but as I've tried to point out, vent operation isn't the whole story. As to whether the Kipsch will work well enough at that distance, only in-room experimentation will tell for sure.

Tetsuro
11-28-2007, 07:33 AM
From what I've heard 15cm is sufficient to permit the vent to work properly, but as I've tried to point out, vent operation isn't the whole story. As to whether the Kipsch will work well enough at that distance, only in-room experimentation will tell for sure.

I hope you are right. :cornut:

kexodusc
11-28-2007, 07:45 AM
Think the key here to remember is the recommended distance is for optimal performance.
Feanor's right - the vent doesn't need much room at all - and even then only at louder volumes. More room is better, but you can get by.

In all likeliness, the speakers will sound pretty good regardless of how close they are to the wall, and you will likely have to accept a compromise with just about any speaker if 15 cm is all you have. No, they won't sound "optimal", and they might very well sound noticeably worse than having 2 feet of room behind them. Since that's not option, there's not much point worrying about it. You could consider "on-wall" speakers, but then you are incorporating a whole other set of trade-offs.

I have a set of bookshelfs on my computer desktop. They are about 10 cm's from the wall or so, rear ported. This a big no-no. But that said, I am so close to the speakers when I listen that reflections aren't a big deal, and I don't need a lot of volume. Sometimes we just have to live with the compromises. The functionality of my office outweighs my desire for proper placement and room acoustic treatment. So I live with it. Know what? They sound pretty darn good!

Tetsuro
11-28-2007, 08:14 AM
Yes I fell like tou Kexo, even mine Tannoys were rated at 50cm but they sounded good at 10 cm, I don't think that those new speakers even if rear ported will sound so bad at 17 cm.

Thanks guys, you are 'valuable' (don't know if it's the right term :p ).