Planar speaker placment guide!

I asked about this in another thread. I just saw that you had posted to this thread. I'm glad to hear you are having some success.

Nasir;

I think you'll find absorbers are better than diffusers. If nothing else, absorbers are more easily built so they cover a broader spectrum than diffusers. I used extra thick wool carpet underlayment from a natural fabrics carpet store and significantly improved clarity and imaging from my Martin Logan ReQuests.

Few of us have a room big enough for a dipolar speaker, they need to be far from the wall behind them to work correctly. A good absorber will make that distance appear infinite.

Sound Labs makes a good absorber/diffusor, unfortunately like most Sound Labs products they are not inexpensive. These people http://www.atsacoustics.com/ have a reasonably priced product, less than ideal they do provide good improvement per dollar spent.

The wife was away for a week, so as the saying goes ( more or less ) " When the cat´s away, the mice come out to play " needless to say that the ESLs were so far out into the room that the 2 real cats had their usual playing area reduced to crawling space!
So, with a glass of red wine in one hand and the amplifier remote in the other, I hit the play button and left everything to the physics of acoustic waves.
After 2 days ( or rather nights ) of disturbing the neighbors the Finals were not much better sounding than their original position.
Opening a bottle of different wine, I hit on an idea: " Never mind the physics, lets be ignorant and put aside the no-no´s of speaker placement." I pushed the speakers back into their original spot and reduced the leaning angle that their original stands were designed for, and had them almost parallel to the wall behind them facing straight out ( no toe in ) and was rewarded with an immediate improvement.
Next day, without the wine now ( yes, I know changing scientific conditions like this can seriously compromise test results ) I leaned the speakers forward even more so now ( I checked it with a laser beam ) the reflections from the middle of the speaker would travel up and hit the listening spot well above the ears.... the sound got better still and in fact the CD test tones gave the best all round results I have managed so far.... the only down side being that the speakers were not stable enough to be left unattended for long periods. So I will have to work on a new base for them.
The lady of the house was not back yet, so I toed in the ESLs quite a bit, so much so that laser beams from the centers of the speakers would cross in front of my nose. I had read somewhere that some reflected energy is beneficial and is better than none at all. Maybe by chance I got that ratio right, because it is by far the best placement position for my listening room and I am enjoying my listening experience. The test tones results for this position is more uneven than the last one but the sound is quite convincing and I really want to enjoy my music for the moment!
So the moral of the story is not to drink while listening but rather try breaking the rules a little as they might work for your system in the listening space, GOODLUCK!

Nasir;

Only one rule really matters. "Does it sound good to you?".

Follow that rule and you will end up with a fine set up for the owner, the hell with anyone else.

Hello Friends,

I have question for Magnepan MG-20, if I store the speaker for long time lets say more than 4 years and use it after that, would the storing affect the speaker performance? And do I need to remove the tweeter or leave it intact with speaker?

Im asking this because I have been told storing speaker can damage it and should be used all the time. I want to store it because I moved to small place temporary.

I appreciate you opinion.
Thanks to everyone.

Sorry I posted my question here, but I felt no need to open new thread for storing! Unless its worth it.

K-High Fi

As long as you store the speakers in a fairly good environmentally controlled area ( like not in a hot/cold attic or damp basement), there should be no more detrimental effect on them than if you had them in active use in your living room. Such things as capacitors degrading or foam surroundings rotting should basically happen at the same rate, whether the speakers are in use or not. Proper storage conditions are the key.

With Maggie 20's, BOSE 901's, B&O towers (what kind?), Infinity towers and JBL monitors that's alot of vintage speaker hardware for your one room. What do you plan to do with all of it?
Bill

Thank you Bubslewis very much for reply. :) Sorry! All other speakers are sold, I list them here because I thought I could share experience with others. Hmm, I will update the informations.

About the tweeters! Do I need to remove them and put them back in their original tube box or its fine if I leave them with the speakers?

Thanks for helping :)

Hi im Neo im just new here. i would like to ask can the musical fidelity A1x drive the magnepan mg 1.6? thanks..

Not only do dipole speakers require a lot of space behind them, but bass damping and diffusion as
well. A large room is also a important factor for
great bass, sound-staging and imaging with dipoles.
I have 6' behind the Martin Logan Summits and
9' behind the Magneplanar Tympani IV bass
panels with bass traps with reflective membranes
that prevent early reflections and comb filtering.
The room is 29' long x 19' wide x 11' cathedral
ceiling with large bass traps placed in all corners,
mid points of walls and mid range traps spaced
evenly 3' around the entire perimeter. The speakers
are placed on the long wall which gives a
enormous sound-field and imaging that is superb.
With a center channel speaker as well as 4 rear
speakers and 4 side speakers, this arrangement
gives one the feeling there actually in the hall (venue)
where the recording was made. Where I sit has
large bass traps directly above and traps behind
as well to also prevent bass buildup and early
reflections.

revive

Sorry need five posts lol

I'm running 2+2's in my big room which is 34'3"x90' cieling is 10'3" for 16' and then goes to 12'3" the rest, I have the 2+2's 16' off the back wall and 8' from the side walls. I sit 70' from the speakers. I get over a 100db easily, the sound is the best I've ever heard from an acoustat, I consider them the best overall speaker I have. I have Apogee Diva's, Apogee Scintilla's 1 ohm, Apogee Duetta Sigs, Infinity RS4.5, Infinity QLS-1, Carver amazing platuimn oak, and more. The 2+2's really dominate in large space, the bass they can produce is almost unbelievable at large distances and tight and fast, also they don't beam in this enviroment either. Like to try 20.1 maggies and see how the fair. :) Al