Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Audio Discussions
In the Thread: The not-so-big listening room
Post Subject: Finding and (starting to) deal with room energy.Posted by Paul S on: 8/25/2007
Cool morning and some great music early, but things got worse as the temperature rose.
I finally +/- gave up on just listening to music and started listening to the ingredients, and then I started to move around the room as I listened.
Based on a sense of congestion (mostly when it's hot...) and certain dynamic issues I think I recognize, I wanted to experiment to find out how much reflected energy was at work and how much cancellation and augmentation was taking place at different spots in the room.
On a hunch (OK, more than a hunch) I started out by standing on my chair so my head was in the "first reflection" spot on the ceiling.
Well, that woke me up! There was probably about twice the mid/upper-mid energy up there than I had at my listening spot! In fact, there was WAY more energy up there, period! I wish I could sit on the ceiling!
I tried draping a couple of towels on the ceiling fan that happens to be beween the speakers right at that spot (married guys, don't try this at home!), and it worked well enough to listen through the Everest/Stokowski "Till Eulenspiegel" and "Don Juan"; and it's hot out. Not bad, at all!
I am not sure it fits here, but I have also +/- plugged my BR slots, and the bass in this room now better extends the Lowthers. I do not seem to lose any extension in this room (from the vent plugs), which is about what I suspected.
In the past I have used lightweight "Homosote" panels covered with fabric by spacing them just off the walls. I have also made "cylinders" with chicken wire and lined 1/2 - 2/3 of their circumference with fiberglass insulation, and coverd them with cloth, for "tuning" corners (just rotate the partial cylinder to taste). These can be effective room treatments, but my wife absolutely hates this stuff! She just laughed at the towels on the ceiling fan today, because she knows I know better than to leave it there! I have never tried it before, but we have quiote a few tall wooden sculptures that might do in the corners. (BTW, my wife would shoot me if she knoew I was thinking of using the art as room treatment, even though she is at peace with the idea that most of the listening room has to be free of large sculpture and concommitment bases.)
So, I wonder how she'll react to the "sails"...
Best regards,
Paul SRerurn to Romy the Cat's Site