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Quick update on where i am with things. |
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apj
New Member Joined: 23 Jun 2021 Location: N. Lincolnshire Status: Offline Points: 21 |
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Posted: 12 Jul 2021 at 11:56pm |
Hello, you may or may not remember me asking about a headphone amp for the chord qutest a while ago now, i've decided after hearing some very cheap and old bookshelf Yamaha speakers from a "piano craft" stereo system that my mum used to own that i would very much like to go down the speaker route.
This is obviously much more expensive and complicated at least in my eyes, as much as i'd love to own some Slee stuff at the moment it's not the greatest option for me financially (sorry Graham) but i know that i would like to build a system around the Quad S-2 speakers then upgrade source gear in the future i'll most likely get a Quad Vena II to go with them initially since it seems budget friendly and compact. I'll probably have lots of questions for you guys if that's okay because i'm clueless when it comes to speakers. First on the list is room treatment, do i need it for nearfields? What kind should i get? (My room also has a slanted roof on either side which apparently makes stuff 10x more difficult) This will be a desktop setup first thing to buy on my list is some isolating stands because my desk tends to vibrate in bass notes which could be messing up some of the sound i think. Anyway don't want to ramble if you have any advice it would be much appreciated because as i say i'm clueless.
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Ash
Senior Member Joined: 18 Mar 2013 Location: Dorset Status: Offline Points: 4334 |
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I mount speaker drivers in cardboard boxes or on cardboard open baffles. It is rigid so it keeps its shape and is low mass so doesn't store much vibrational energy, so deadens acoustic re-emissions. My ceiling is polystyrene tiles and my floor is thick carpet/underlay. My room is a small rectangle and I listen to the drivers fairly nearfield to keep SPLs down. I raise the drivers a bit to reduce desk reflections and keep them away from the walls and corners to hear the unaltered sound as much as possible.
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We do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
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apj
New Member Joined: 23 Jun 2021 Location: N. Lincolnshire Status: Offline Points: 21 |
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Thanks i'll give that a try im definitely going to get some acoustic panels for around the speakers and maybe some bass traps for the corners to make sure i don't wake anyone else up do you think its worth it to put one behind me on the wall across my room about 4m away?
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Ash
Senior Member Joined: 18 Mar 2013 Location: Dorset Status: Offline Points: 4334 |
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First of all, try various things that are free or inexpensive and that can easily be altered to experiment with what makes the biggest differences. Adding a bit of clutter/irregularity to a room may help to break up reflections. In my mind, the three main ways to deal with speaker interaction with the room are isolation, scattering and absorption. So lower dB SPLs by sitting closer to the sound source, good separation distance from the room boundaries, isolation from the surface it is placed upon, room objects to absorb/disperse vibrational energy.
Then you just need some well engineered speaker drivers and ideally a parametric EQ to flatten the response so all frequencies have roughly equal emphasis.
Edited by Ash - 13 Jul 2021 at 7:38pm |
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We do not see things as they are. We see things as we are.
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discrete badger
Senior Member Joined: 14 Jul 2009 Status: Offline Points: 479 |
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I'd gently suggest, with nearfield, not bothering with panels and bass traps, at least initially. The volume will be low enough, and the room boundaries sufficiently far away, that it could make little difference.
The biggest bass issue, as has already been identified, is going to be the resonance of the desk surface (presumably wood), and the wall behind the desk (assume there is one). So speakers which control their cabinet resonances well will help, as will decoupling them from the desk surface as much as possible, both mechanically and with some distance (stands), and keeping them away from the rear wall, if possible. If they have to be close to that wall, avoiding rear ports may well be more helpful than wall treatment. Some speakers have poor directivity, which is to say their response characteristics change radically when heard off-axis. So positioning/angling/aiming such that the tweeters/ribbons are pointed at the ears may be more important for such speakers. The Quad S2 is rear-ported. I'm not personally familiar with IAG's current box offerings but they seem well-received, and the designer is an industry veteran who knows his stuff. However, slightly above this price bracket - or within it, if a used pair is acceptable - I'd also be considering another rear-ported speaker, the KEF LS50, which IMO has excellent cabinetry, good directivity, and rather good SQ for the money.
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