help with eltax monitor III speakers..

[slack]

i just bought a pair of eltax speakers second hand off ebay. What HiFi gave them 5 stars, and a lot of user reviews were very positive as well. Problem is, mine sounds horribly boomy and bloated. i checked them with a tone generator from my PC, and they resonated greatly between 100Hz and 200 Hz. This results in a hollow boomy sound, making bass guitars and tom drums sound bloated and hollow. I am not being oversensitive, they are so bad that i have to set the 125Hz graphic equalizer in windows media player to the very minimum, while keeping all the other frequencies flat, before they sound remotely decent.
Does anyone have any idea what is the problem?..is it the speakers, (they are crap) or i've got a bad pair, or my equipment?.. i'm running them with a Sherwood av receiver RD 6103 and normal speaker wires.

Thanks very much!!

[Debbi]

Danish made and similar in sound to Monitor Audio per friend of my brother who owns millenium series....his complaint is low efficiency..... with the severe problems you have, I'd open them up and make sure someone didnt blow the original drivers and replace them with mismatched generics. Aside from that, the company needs a name change....sounds like some kind of laxitive to Americans.....

[slack]

thanks for replying, i was beginning to feel a bit lonely here..: ))

i've already opened it up, everything is stock and original. To try and remedy the boom, i've tried to fill up the speaker cabinets with some old cushion stuffing i had lying around. The result is a slightly better, sounds less hollow and echoy and boomy.

is there any other way of reducing the excessive response around those frequencies (100 -200 Hz)?..is the sound due to the cabinets, or the resonance of the drivers?

Sigh, initially i thought they were a great bargain, now i am beginning to think they are a great mistake. Another thing is, how can What Hi Fi give these speakers 5 stars?..true, the mids and highs are smooth, and the soundstage is acceptable, but the upper bass/low mids are unforgivable. Sometimes i wonder is they rate speakers according to the manufacturer, ie speakers from established and reputable brands always get good ratings no matter how crap they are.

Ok, enough complains from me. Hope someone else has some opinion or idea to share!

[This Guy]

Try different speaker locations. A move of even a few inches could make all the problems go away. So Just try a bunch of locations in your room. You could try getting some fiber glass stuffing and stuff them heavily. If they have a port you could try stuffing it. At this point, you should try everything. Make sure your receiever doesnt have a bass boost setting on or anything as well.

-Joey

[slack]

Thanks for the suggestions!! i've stuffed the cabinets up so tight that the midrange was beginning to sound a bit laid back. I've also blocked up the ports and set the receiver to source direct, bypassing all tone controls. The result is a slight improvement, but the hump is still glaringly obvious.

i guess i'll have to learn to live with it. Maybe get a sub to fill out the low bass, hopefully the hump won't sound so obvious then.

[Debbi]

Frankly something is wrong here.....this company would not have been in business this long if the problem you describe is the norm....make sure the problem is not just in one speaker by changing them left to right and borrow a friends reciever for an hour or so and make sure that is not the problem.or if you cant do that, try using the "b" speaker terminals just for kicks..you should'nt have to stuff these things like a turkey to get acceptable sound..

[slack]

i don't have b speaker terminals, but i tried using the rear channels (in stereo) instead of the front channels of the amp, they sound the same. is there any chance that the receiver or the cables may be at the root of this problem?..some problem of the receiver or speakers not matched in impedence?..i have read that too low a damping factor can cause the bass to be 'loose'. That would mean i have to try them with with another amp, which is quite unlikely, unless i sell my receiver (on ebay) and get another one, hopefully an integrated amp.
Another possibility might be because i am playing music from my laptop soundcard, which is not the best source. I am quite at my wits end.

i hate to think that these speakers can be so terrible flawed, for they look well designed, from the crossovers in the speakers etc.

[sailorbob0125]

I have pair of these speakers ' ilove them,I use them with Chord Rumour speaker cable.i bought a single pair of used for £28.00 'worth every penny.hope tis helps,Regards Bob.

[blackraven]

Do you have them in the corners of the room, if so try moving them out from the corners. Also, what are they sitting on? Nice heavy speaker stands make a difference.