I have just moved, and for the time being, because of the size/shape of my room, I have to put my speakers on existing shelves. There's a lot of conflicting advice on how best to do this. Some say to give them as much space as possible - others to wedge them in with books. I have also read that it's a good idea to fix them to the shelves with Bluetack - others say to rest on foam. Have any of you done this successfully, or know what really is best ?
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When should you upgrade your hi-fi? How to control ‘upgradeitis’
Positioning Speakers on Shelves
- Thread starter Excitable Boy
- Start date
scene
Well-known member
Blutak to provide sonic isolation from the shelf, and to try to reduce vibrations are good. As for the maximum space vs. packing them with books, to some extent it depends on the speakers - actually, what speakers have you got?
scene
Well-known member
Excitable Boy:KEF Q300s - fantastic !
OK - front ported, which is good. But WHFS&V's review, seems to think they sound better in a little space, which is not so good - when we're talking about shelf-mounting, which unless you've got very deep shelves, means they'll be quite close to a wall. Though, the Q300's can be wall mounted. Hmm. Think I'd compare packed in tightly on a shelf, with blutak under, compared to wall mounted, with a bit of space.
OK - front ported, which is good. But WHFS&V's review, seems to think they sound better in a little space, which is not so good - when we're talking about shelf-mounting, which unless you've got very deep shelves, means they'll be quite close to a wall. Though, the Q300's can be wall mounted. Hmm. Think I'd compare packed in tightly on a shelf, with blutak under, compared to wall mounted, with a bit of space.
Hi there, an interesting dilemma and one I am having similar thoughts about.
How would something like the KEF Q300s (or Dali Lektor 1/ Avi Neutron 5 etc) sound on a very heavy side board, with some Blu tac or more likely isolation pads?
I am thinking of changing my setup (due to family addition) so that I can enjoy music again without worry of damaging gear.
Also, can anyone comment if walled mounted speakers actually sound any good? IE how does this affect the sound compared to being on stands? What is compramise? I wouldn't want to trade in or buy new gear if the benefits aren't there!
I currently have Arcam AVR 280 / Marantz DV6001 and B&W MT20 with Pair of M1s on sideboard and sub as well. These don't sound that great at low volume and are not full sounding as stereo speakers as you would expect to a degree. I would also consider something like arcam solo if much better source / amp than I have now. I think seperates are off the menu for now :-(
I would love to hear any ideas / advice as this must be a common problem out there!
Cheers
Ambrose
How would something like the KEF Q300s (or Dali Lektor 1/ Avi Neutron 5 etc) sound on a very heavy side board, with some Blu tac or more likely isolation pads?
I am thinking of changing my setup (due to family addition) so that I can enjoy music again without worry of damaging gear.
Also, can anyone comment if walled mounted speakers actually sound any good? IE how does this affect the sound compared to being on stands? What is compramise? I wouldn't want to trade in or buy new gear if the benefits aren't there!
I currently have Arcam AVR 280 / Marantz DV6001 and B&W MT20 with Pair of M1s on sideboard and sub as well. These don't sound that great at low volume and are not full sounding as stereo speakers as you would expect to a degree. I would also consider something like arcam solo if much better source / amp than I have now. I think seperates are off the menu for now :-(
I would love to hear any ideas / advice as this must be a common problem out there!
Cheers
Ambrose
The_Lhc
Well-known member
scene:Excitable Boy:KEF Q300s - fantastic !
OK - front ported, which is good. But WHFS&V's review, seems to think they sound better in a little space, which is not so good - when we're talking about shelf-mounting, which unless you've got very deep shelves, means they'll be quite close to a wall.
You'll need deep shelves just to get them on, they're massively deep speakers, to get them on safely (ie not hanging dangerously over the edge) and have any space behind them I'd have thought the shelf would need to be at least a metre deep.
OK - front ported, which is good. But WHFS&V's review, seems to think they sound better in a little space, which is not so good - when we're talking about shelf-mounting, which unless you've got very deep shelves, means they'll be quite close to a wall.
You'll need deep shelves just to get them on, they're massively deep speakers, to get them on safely (ie not hanging dangerously over the edge) and have any space behind them I'd have thought the shelf would need to be at least a metre deep.
Blackdawn
Well-known member
Ambrose:
Hi there, an interesting dilemma and one I am having similar thoughts about.
How would something like the KEF Q300s (or Dali Lektor 1/ Avi Neutron 5 etc) sound on a very heavy side board, with some Blu tac or more likely isolation pads?
I would love to hear any ideas / advice as this must be a common problem out there!
Cheers
Ambrose
If your going for the Dali Lektor 1 or 2 models you just need one screw in the wall and that is it. I have tried this with good sucess on the Lektor 2 model. Saves worrying about shelving and wall mountings.
Hi there, an interesting dilemma and one I am having similar thoughts about.
How would something like the KEF Q300s (or Dali Lektor 1/ Avi Neutron 5 etc) sound on a very heavy side board, with some Blu tac or more likely isolation pads?
I would love to hear any ideas / advice as this must be a common problem out there!
Cheers
Ambrose
If your going for the Dali Lektor 1 or 2 models you just need one screw in the wall and that is it. I have tried this with good sucess on the Lektor 2 model. Saves worrying about shelving and wall mountings.
Thanks for your reply Blackdawn.
Can you explain further how to wall mount without a bracket? Do I need to buy anything additional to the speaker?
What are plus / negative points would you say from speakers being wall mounted please? I really have no idea!
Would the Lektor 1s sound good in a 15ft square room (fill room with sound) wall mounted with my AVR280, Marantz DV6001 & MT20 sub?
If not, what speakers (wall mounted) suggestion please????
Thanks
Ambrose
Can you explain further how to wall mount without a bracket? Do I need to buy anything additional to the speaker?
What are plus / negative points would you say from speakers being wall mounted please? I really have no idea!
Would the Lektor 1s sound good in a 15ft square room (fill room with sound) wall mounted with my AVR280, Marantz DV6001 & MT20 sub?
If not, what speakers (wall mounted) suggestion please????
Thanks
Ambrose
Blackdawn
Well-known member
Ambrose:
Thanks for your reply Blackdawn.
Can you explain further how to wall mount without a bracket? Do I need to buy anything additional to the speaker?
What are plus / negative points would you say from speakers being wall mounted please? I really have no idea!
Would the Lektor 1s sound good in a 15ft square room (fill room with sound) wall mounted with my AVR280, Marantz DV6001 & MT20 sub?
If not, what speakers (wall mounted) suggestion please????
Thanks
Ambrose
One of my rooms is 15 ft x 13ft so similar to yours. I was using the Lektor 2 speakers in this room (larger than lektor 1) and felt they didn't produce a large enough sound, however was using on dedicated stands filled with atabites and not the wall. Now I'm using much larger speaker with 8 inch drivers made by Pioneer, and the result is much better. IMO the Lektor 1's would be too small for this size room but depends how loud you listen. The Lektor 2s are great for bedrooom or small lounge room. With the addition of the sub you talk of you may find the sound just fine, but I expect you'll miss a bit of midrange.
Positives of wall mounting - basically just to get the speakers out of the way, save space and easier to get to the desired height. Cheaper than buying speaker stands.
Negatives - the speakers may need a bit more space around them, may get some boom even with smaller speakers. sound quality may be reduced due to the close proximity of the walls and your neighbours may find the extra noise on the wall annoying!
Have you considered floor standing speakers? These would be good in the larger room.
The Lektors have a wall mouting bracket on the back of each speaker. All you need is one screw/wall plug for each speaker. The speaker just slots onto the screw which holds it in place. Luckily they don't weigh much unlike my RB81's.
Thanks for your reply Blackdawn.
Can you explain further how to wall mount without a bracket? Do I need to buy anything additional to the speaker?
What are plus / negative points would you say from speakers being wall mounted please? I really have no idea!
Would the Lektor 1s sound good in a 15ft square room (fill room with sound) wall mounted with my AVR280, Marantz DV6001 & MT20 sub?
If not, what speakers (wall mounted) suggestion please????
Thanks
Ambrose
One of my rooms is 15 ft x 13ft so similar to yours. I was using the Lektor 2 speakers in this room (larger than lektor 1) and felt they didn't produce a large enough sound, however was using on dedicated stands filled with atabites and not the wall. Now I'm using much larger speaker with 8 inch drivers made by Pioneer, and the result is much better. IMO the Lektor 1's would be too small for this size room but depends how loud you listen. The Lektor 2s are great for bedrooom or small lounge room. With the addition of the sub you talk of you may find the sound just fine, but I expect you'll miss a bit of midrange.
Positives of wall mounting - basically just to get the speakers out of the way, save space and easier to get to the desired height. Cheaper than buying speaker stands.
Negatives - the speakers may need a bit more space around them, may get some boom even with smaller speakers. sound quality may be reduced due to the close proximity of the walls and your neighbours may find the extra noise on the wall annoying!
Have you considered floor standing speakers? These would be good in the larger room.
The Lektors have a wall mouting bracket on the back of each speaker. All you need is one screw/wall plug for each speaker. The speaker just slots onto the screw which holds it in place. Luckily they don't weigh much unlike my RB81's.
Thanks for taking time to reply Blackdawn.
I did have some floorstanders (spendor s5e) and traditional Stereo setup (Naim nait 3 and Naim cd5i) a couple of years back but moved house and have a son now, so not an option for a number of years. I really miss my old setup and kinda wish I had only replaced speakers rather than going down AV route.
Aim now to have a reasonably good sounding system wothout too much cost, that fits in with lifestyle. Not that staightfoward!
I might consider Lektor's on sideboard (subject to home trial) if these offer good improvement over using a pair of B&W M1 sorround speakers.
Alternatively, I would start saving for something like AVI Neutron 5's or secondhand DB1+ for wall mounting. I just wonder if my Amp and dvd player would sound good with them? budget lowish £300-500.
I like the idea of getting good speakers, even if better than rest of system, and I can look at building up traditional Stereo amp and CD player at a later date. Just as long as sounds decent now.
Has anyone else tried AVI Neutron 5's or secondhand PMC DB1+ with AV setup? I did home demo DB1+ and they were very very good, although I don't think I had rest of system to do justice at the time.(pre naim system).
Cheers
Ambrose
I did have some floorstanders (spendor s5e) and traditional Stereo setup (Naim nait 3 and Naim cd5i) a couple of years back but moved house and have a son now, so not an option for a number of years. I really miss my old setup and kinda wish I had only replaced speakers rather than going down AV route.
Aim now to have a reasonably good sounding system wothout too much cost, that fits in with lifestyle. Not that staightfoward!
I might consider Lektor's on sideboard (subject to home trial) if these offer good improvement over using a pair of B&W M1 sorround speakers.
Alternatively, I would start saving for something like AVI Neutron 5's or secondhand DB1+ for wall mounting. I just wonder if my Amp and dvd player would sound good with them? budget lowish £300-500.
I like the idea of getting good speakers, even if better than rest of system, and I can look at building up traditional Stereo amp and CD player at a later date. Just as long as sounds decent now.
Has anyone else tried AVI Neutron 5's or secondhand PMC DB1+ with AV setup? I did home demo DB1+ and they were very very good, although I don't think I had rest of system to do justice at the time.(pre naim system).
Cheers
Ambrose
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