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Subwoofer
Subwoofer placement can frequently be a trial and error affair as bass energy set up "standing waves" in most every room.
These standing waves can cause areas with too much bass, areas with too little bass, and areas in between. You may have to
move the subwoofer and or the prime listening area to improve the bass response. Be aware that every surface you place the
woofer close to (one wall, floor, two walls in a comer) will increase the overall apparent bass in the room. But this can
potentially lead to boomy and muddy sounding bass.
When connecting any speakers, be sure to read the instruction manuals that came with the product and check your power
amplifier's instruction manual for proper hook-up of the loudspeakers.
* Speaker type and placement are probably the most important aspects of a good system. For optimal sound quality
the speakers "must," sound the same all the way around.
To prove the point, I give you this example: If different types of speakers are used on a two channel stereo system
one would expect the soundfield, which is spread across the left/right channels (left right axis), to be affected.
Imaging will likely be very poor to non-existent, the center image will bleed towards the left or right at certain
audio frequencies, and the sense of depth will likely be lost.
With a Surround system unlike stereo, you are reproducing a three dimensional soundfield with the added
dimension of front to back. When mismatched speakers are used on the fronts and backs of a surround system,
the front/back sidewall imaging will be affected similar to the mismatch across the front stage when mismatched
speakers are used on a two channel stereo system.
The "match" of the center front speaker is even more important. It must sound the same as the left and right front
speakers or imaging across "the most important" frontal soundstage will suffer. Most manufacturers offer speakers
specially designed for the center front, most of them work well but some of them do not have the same angle of
dispersion as the left and right speakers and may not give a seamless blend with the left and right front speakers.
If it is not possible to match all the speakers on your system it is a good idea to use speakers from the same
manufacturer because speakers from the same manufacturer are usually "voiced" to sound similar. If different
speakers are to be used on your system, just realize that you are into a compromise situation and do not expect to
obtain the best possible performance.
Take my word for it "there is absolutely no substitute for matched speakers" all the way around!
The position of the speakers is very important.
I like a big sound field that wraps all the way around the room! If room size permits, I recommend that all the
speakers be positioned equal distant from the listening position (sweet spot).
I position the front, side, and back speakers as wide as space permits. I point the left and right fronts a little
wider than I would for a stereo system. The object is to go for width here to obtain good sidewall images.
The center speaker will "fill in" for the center front of the sound field.
I position the two back speakers so they aim directly towards the sweet spot in order to give good fill in the center
back portion of the room.
If optional side speakers are used I place them as wide as possible and point them directly at the sweet spot. In
small rooms sometimes the side speakers sound better lying on the floor and pointed straight up. Speaker height
should be adjusted so the midrange (or full range driver) is positioned near ear level (for the seated position) or a
little higher, and the speaker pointed down so it is directly in line with the listener's ears.
I prefer to position of the back speakers a little higher towards the back corners, and all the way into upper
back corners if the room is small. Vertically and horizontally the back speakers should be aimed directly towards
the sweet spot.
Subwoofers usually sound best positioned against the front wall or in a front corner. I prefer two subs, one
positioned on the left side and one in the right. Connect them to the subwoofer output jack with a "Y" cable.
Make sure to use the same settings on both subs.
Summary of Contents for FAP V1
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