Wilson Electronics Sophia Series 2, Owner'S Manual, Page: 17 / 66

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W i l s o n A u d i o S p e c i a l t i e s
sion until there is an obvious interaction with the opposite wall in front
of you and mark this point with tape. The four pieces of tape now form a
rectangle that establishes the Zone of Neutrality for the loudspeaker lo-
cated on that side of the room. Using the four marks as your guide, tape
an outline to define the boundaries of the rectangle.
6. Repeat this process for each speaker location individually. These are
your Zones of Neutrality, one for each channel.
Theoretically, the Zone of Neutrality for any room runs like a path, parallel to the
walls all around the room. Adjacent to very large windows and open doors, the outer
edge of the Zone of Neutrality moves closer to the wall and becomes wider. If you
were to extend the inner and outer boundaries of the Zone for the sidewalls and the
front wall (behind the speakers), they would intersect. After you complete this proce-
dure for the other loudspeaker, you will now have two rectangles, one on the floor on
either side of the room.
Section 2.2 - Room Reflections
Note: The following section contains general information on room acoustics and loud-
speaker/room interaction. The concepts outlined below are equally relevant when
dealing with multi-channel audio or home theater. The careful application of these
concepts, as you evaluate the acoustical characteristics of your own room configura-
tion, will allow you to optimize the performance of your Sophias.
Slap Echo
Probably the most obnoxious form of reflection is called “slap echo.” With slap-
echo, primarily midrange and high frequency sounds reflect off of two parallel hard
surfaces. The sound literally reverberates back and forth until it is finally dissipated
over time. You can test for slap echo in any room by clapping your hands sharply in
the middle of the room and listening for the characteristic sound of the echo in the
midrange. Slap echo destroys the sound quality of a stereo system in two ways:
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