Posted by Lew on October 08, 2002 at 08:15:31:
In Reply to: I disagree. The Speaker / The Room / Headphones ? posted by Terry Koehn on October 07, 2002 at 15:48:51:
if you are saying that room treatments are a crap-shoot, I agree. Nevertheless, ESLs sound "better" (i.e., more exciting, more like the real thing, more ambient) in a room damped to suit the user's taste than they would sound "outside" or with zero reflection of the rear radiation back into the listening environment. Possibly, low bass performance (only) WOULD benefit from zero effect of the rear radiation, since bass cancellation would be avoided. I do remember years ago someone writing about installing a big flat ESL panel in the wall of the listening room, such that the rear of the spkr was actually outside the house! As for me, I use two large sound-absorbing panels per side, mounted on the rear wall of the room, with the M1s situated about 5 feet forward of that wall and toed inwards slightly. I built the panels myself; each one is about 2 X 7 feet in size. The panels deliberately do NOT cover the whole back wall; some wall-space is left bare in order to allow for some reflectivity. Between the spkrs is a fireplace. I use nothing on the wall above the mantle of the fireplace, except maybe a painting that is somewhat reflective. With this set-up, the spkrs could still overload the (22X15X9) room with bass, until I accidentally discovered that an antique rosewood chair placed behind one spkr did wonders to smoothe out the bass hump. Then I placed another identical chair behind the other spkr, and I have been happy ever since. (This is the really lead-like, dense rosewood that one usually cannot find in new furniture.) I am thinking about adding some RPG diffusers on the wall at the opposite end of my room, behind the listening position. On the floor is a 100-year-old Chinese rug, 11X14 feet on a 22X15-foot floor, and under the rug is a double layer of jute padding. Along the side walls of the room there is a double door into our dining room on one side (which I keep open for best sonics) and a long floor-to-ceiling window covered with translucent drapery on the other.