Set up and speaker placement, what's that?

[Rainman]

I have a question for everyone on this forum since I have never been able to get an answer from anyone on the other forum...
Why is it that so many people completely ignore proper set up and speaker placement when it is the most important thing when it comes to getting the most from your system? I have never been able to understand how so many people who consider themselves to be "audiophiles" can completely overlook and disregard something so important.

Rainman

[Bill Cain]

It's called ego.  Too many folks think they know it all.   
The more you REALLY know, the more you realize you DON'T know.

Bill Cain

[Kingman]

I think that most let the living arrangement dictate speaker placement rather than the opposite. Few are fortunate enough to have dedicated audio rooms which are based on solely a listening environment. I would love to pull my sofa out from the wall 3 feet to produce a more perfect sweetspot but I think it would look odd to most. My 2 cents.

[Anders]

I agree with Bill.
The more i've learned from people and on my own the more I realized what I don't know.

Anders

[icravcarver]

I agree - if I had a true room that I could just use as my "Audio Den" then I would try and establish the best possible arrangement of speakers in relation to the room and to listening position.  However, my rig has to share the rest of the room with my computer and fireplace just off my kitchen, so I made sure I adhered to as many of the rules for placement, with regard to the SDA effect, and made sure it sounded good where I placed my chair. 

I am as far from an audiophile as you can get, I just like to think of myself as a dabbler who was fortunate enough to score some halfway decent gear over the course of 30 or so years since I took interest in stereo equipment.  I do have to say, I feel my system puts out some great sound, by my standards, and that is what counts.  Maybe someday I'll be able to place the stereo in a room where I can experiment with exact placement of my speakers and my chairs position off the wall won't matter because it will be the only two items in the room!  (Wow, it is nice to dream!  ).

Neil

[Rainman]

I agree - if I had a true room that I could just use as my "Audio Den" then I would try and establish the best possible arrangement of speakers in relation to the room and to listening position.  However, my rig has to share the rest of the room with my computer and fireplace just off my kitchen, so I made sure I adhered to as many of the rules for placement, with regard to the SDA effect, and made sure it sounded good where I placed my chair. 

Maybe someday I'll be able to place the stereo in a room where I can experiment with exact placement of my speakers and my chairs position off the wall won't matter because it will be the only two items in the room!  (Wow, it is nice to dream!  ).

Neil

Just because you may not have a "dedicated" listening room doesn't mean you can't get more out of your system with some time spent on getting the most out of the speaker placement in your existing room. This is exactly one of the things I have been trying to get people to look into...
You will likely be shocked at how much more you can get from your system if you are willing to spend some time, possibly hours experimenting and working with what you have in speakers and room conditions.
Just because there are other things in the room doesn't mean you can't make some big gains in sound stage and imaging if you are willing to have a go at it. A little toe in or out, a small change in chair position, or something as simple as closing a curtain can pay off Huge! So spend some time moving stuff an inch here or there and let us know what happens!

Rainman

[OldiesButGoodies]

I agree.  You can always place acoustic material strategically to deal with wall reflections,  and use bass traps (rolled up rugs?) in the corners if that bass is out of whack.  If you have the 'I-think-I-am-a-genius' problem (I do),  it helps to bring a friend in to look at your layout with a fresh perspective.  Tom dropped by my house,  looked at the setup, and made some speaker and furniture move suggestions that fixed a lot of problems.  Best audio investment (cost me nothing) I have made for that room.  It sounds ten times better than before.  So keep trying - the magical speaker position and toe-in is somewhere in there (once you find it make sure you get the gps coordinates, in case your wife decides to move stuff to vacuum the floor!).

OBG

[Slim-Shaddy]

With our room and the furniture we chose there is no way to have permanent speaker placement equal good sound. My solution was to move one speaker over a few feet to block the entry door whenever I'm ready to sit back and enjoy tunes. I just have to make sure the dead bolt is locked so nobody swings the door into the speaker. I'm lucky enough to have light enough speakers to move one 5 or 6 feet without throwing my back out. This may not work if I had something like Tom's VMPS's or Bill's SDA's 

[OldiesButGoodies]

I agree with light speakers being a plus - when I owned the Magnepan Mg12s the fact that I could move them into their prime locations in two seconds and keep them next to the wall the rest of the time made them easier to accept by the wife - and the sounds was spot on,  no compromises. 

The VMPS - will they ever emerge from the restoration state?  Tom says Carverfest 2011...   will see.