New system, need new room where do I start ?

[Dvddvd]

Hi all, I've just bought a new hifi after many years only having an AV system.

i bought Bryston Bp 25 pre, Bryston 9b power amp and Kef reference model 2 speakers.

i wired it all up and was a bit disappointed with the sound, it lacked mid bass, and bass. Tried lots of different CD players and cables and then realized it was the room!

i put some test tones on and a 100htz test tone when sat down reads 70db on my spl meter stand up and it reads 90db hold the meter to floor and it reads 90db very extreme ! The same with lots of frequencies non existence in my seated position . I don't want to move my seated position but it seems at the top of room you get bass, floor level you get bass but not at head height.

its a dedicated listening room so I can play around a bit but where do I start ? I've seen acoustic panels but how do I know what size I need or where to put them ? Any good room eq sites ? Do I need bass traps ? Ceiling panels ? Do I need to deaden the room, etc etc any ideas thanks

 

[CnoEvil]

When I had a similar issue (Kef 205/2), it was due to a suspended wooden floor. I'm not saying that this is your problem....but if you have this type of floor, it could be.

 

[Dvddvd]

Hi i have a solid concrete floor, with laminate flooring and a large rug just in front of speakers. The room is 10 foot by 15 foot, with the speakers firing down the room, they are at the 10 foot end.

 

[ifor]

Are they rather too large for the room? Some standmounted speakers might be more appropriate.

 

[Vladimir]

Move your listening position back or forward. You could be sitting in a bass suckout. Also tripple check you haven't mistaken the polarity of the speaker cables. Getting them out of phase with new gear is very frequent mistake.

 

[steve_1979]

Rooms have peaks and nulls in the bass frequencies that are dependant on your position relative to the room. I know that you don't want to move your seating position but I'm sorry to tell you that moving your speakers and/or your listening chair is likely to be the only real solution.

If you're sitting with your head in a null you need to move.

Also as Vlad has said: check that your speaker cables are the right way round.

 

[Dvddvd]

The null seems to be halfway in the height of the room, going forward or back you are still in the null. So it's either sitting on floor or sitting on top of some steps! I had some other speakers before and they did not have the same problem ?

Would putting acoustic clouds on ceiling help or acoustic wall panels, etc help ?

 

[steve_1979]

Can you raise or lower the speakers a bit?

 

[Al ears]

I feel you're going to spend a fortune trying to modify a room to suit your speakers but that, to my mind, you are going about it the wrong way.

Play with bass traps or whatever you like but you will probably be better off finding speakers that suit the room.

 

[Dvddvd]

But surely a speaker is a speaker, they all give a flat response or try to, and it's the room that plays with that flat response ?

Also they all have a different frequency range some go down to 27htz some go down to 50htz etc which is a reason to chose different speakers for you size of the room, also some put a slight signature onto the flat response and some people like one sort of signature and some people like another type, warm, clinical etc etc.

i like the sound of the speakers, love the clarity, love the pin type focus, love the imaging. But I just want to hear the full bandwidth and it's the room stopping me hearing it?

i always thought bass traps were to stop booming bass, it's quite the opposite mine is getting killed somewhere in the room. Would carpet change anything, I have laminate over concrete at the moment thanks

 

[ifor]

http://arqen.com/acoustics-101/speaker-placement-boundary-interference/

how are your speakers placed with your quite small room?

 

[Dvddvd]

They are firing down the longest length of the room, the previous speakers worked fine in the room, only thing that's changed is the height of the speakers these are floor standers the others were Kef Thx speakers and where placed a little higher I suspose because they were on top of my AV cabinet which used to be full room width.

 

[ifor]

They are firing down the longest length of the room, the previous speakers worked fine in the room, only thing that's changed is the height of the speakers these are floor standers the others were Kef Thx speakers and where placed a little higher I suspose because they were on top of my AV cabinet which used to be full room width.

How far apart are they? How far from the side walls are they? How far from the back wall are they?

Kef recommends at least 6 to 10 feet apart. I'm not sure what they say about distance from walls, but worth checking. My guess is that if you check this out you'll find they're not suited.

 

[Dvddvd]

Hi they are 7 foot apart, they have a boundary device fitted if you are using them near walls. The wall to the rear of the speakers is a padded wall. I have heard speakers which are to big for a room, and results in boomy bass, this is the opposite and no bass? I will try to raise them a little and see what happens thanks

 

[steve_1979]

They are firing down the longest length of the room, the previous speakers worked fine in the room, only thing that's changed is the height of the speakers these are floor standers the others were Kef Thx speakers and where placed a little higher I suspose because they were on top of my AV cabinet which used to be full room width.

*preved*

Try moving them around and even changing the height of your speakers to see what effect it has.

I know that this is probably easier said than done with floorstanders but it's be best to isolate and confirm this as the cause of the bass issue before you spend money elsewhere.

 

[rainsoothe]

Hi. Check GIK Acoustics. I was considering acoustic panels at some point, but money problems and lack of wall space stopped me from doing it. But they did a thorough evaluation of my room (I sent them a floor plan and pictures) and recommended some variants. Professional acoustic treatment should solve your problem, and they were very friendly and helpful. I think they have both US and UK hq, so make sure you contact the apropriate site.

 

[Dvddvd]

Hi thanks I have been looking at gik acoustics. I just tried my AV amp through the speakers, it's a pioneer lx86 with room eq . When I played walk on the wild side through the AV amp and with direct mode selected ( no eq) it sounded as my pre amp sound, no bass etc.

But when I turned on the room eq on the AV amp suddenly the mid bass and bass appeared ? This is without having my subwoofer switched on ?

 

[rainsoothe]

Hi thanks I have been looking at gik acoustics. I just tried my AV amp through the speakers, it's a pioneer lx86 with room eq . When I played walk on the wild side through the AV amp and with direct mode selected ( no eq) it sounded as my pre amp sound, no bass etc.

But when I turned on the room eq on the AV amp suddenly the mid bass and bass appeared ? This is without having my subwoofer switched on ?

Ah, I think there might be something that works like that - some people on this forum have had great results with it. DSP Antimode something, it's called. You could look into that as well. I think it works like a DAC / equalizer or something, after setting it up to detect the modes in your room. I was tempted to get one as well at some point, 'till I found the right setup for my tastes and room.