Aural hallucinations & the alchemical art of tweaking

[Charlie Jefferson]

Mmmm, I inadvertently moved my speakers an inch or two away from their usual toed-in position today to gain access to a defunct phone cable. I'd been distracted by my two year old and forgot to re-position them prior to playing some music.

I was playing the new Midlake album and thought how sonically lustrous it sounded but having no previous listening "memory" of these songs thought nothing other than how good it all felt. Switching to a much listened playlist (Belle&Sebastian, Bread, Wilco, Mozzer, Duckworth-Lewis et al), I was simply astonished by the new sounds gushing forth from familiar recordings.

Is it possible the moving of the speakers by such a small degree is responsible for such a difference in sound?

Do my ears deceive me? Am I hearing things? Well maybe and, indeed yes is the equivocal answer.

 

[idc]

Just goes to show how sensitive our ears are to sound quality. I can well believe a very small change can reap big dividends.

 

[chebby]

Charlie Jefferson:Is it possible the moving of the speakers by such a small degree is responsible for such a difference in sound?

Yes.

Which is why I like 'un-fussy' speakers. (Ones that don't require millimetre perfect positioning and don't have a very narrow 'sweet spot'.)

What made you 'toe' them in in the first place? (I am assuming some previous experimentation with positioning led you to have them like they were before your fortuitous 'accident' today.)

 

[plastic penguin]

Recently I moved my speakers a few degrees inwards and noticed a slight change in character. I found that firing straight ahead, especially playing DVD's, it gave greater virtual surround sound and sounded a tad brighter. Toed in a smidgen and the imaging is slightly sharper. Couldn't believe such tiny adjustments could make a difference.

 

[Anonymous]

I decided to consciously toe my speakers in an extra few degrees yesterday. Definately a different sound and one I'm enjoying more at the mo. I'll change back in three months and prefer it again. Change, change, change.

 

[Charlie Jefferson]

chebby:
Charlie Jefferson:Is it possible the moving of the speakers by such a small degree is responsible for such a difference in sound?

Yes.

Which is why I like 'un-fussy' speakers. (Ones that don't require millimetre perfect positioning and don't have a very narrow 'sweet spot'.)

What made you 'toe' them in in the first place? (I am assuming some previous experimentation with positioning led you to have them like they were before your fortuitous 'accident' today.)

I think my recent toe-in position was based on my brother-in-law's recommendation when he helped me load my Partington stands with tubs of metal filings a few months ago. Prior to that I'd had them slightly toe-d because I read somewhere my particular model of B&Ws were best heard in that position.

A fortuitous accident indeed. Sounds great. Loads more mid-range and overall presence at low and mid-level volumes. Haven't had chance to give it a real blast yet.