Studio Monitor in the home

[DavidF]

Most contributors with the larger studio monitors seem to have them right down on the floor. Given the weight and height-vs-listening position, this is no doubt the best compromise. What then is the preferred set-up for the larger studio monitors in the home, especially trying to balance the bass with the system sitting on or close to the floor? How about in relation to the front wall as to the stereo imaging?

David F.

[boputnam]

Hey, David...

Actually, for the large-format Studio Monitors (at least as far as the perfectly designed 4345 is concerned... ) floor-standing is best for sitting position, as the UHF and HF are at/near ear level. Perfect, I say...

For the "bookshelf" format Studio Monitors, these are often improved, so say many Forumites, but raising off the floor using stands. This improves bass definition, and certainly will improve imagining same-same, but getting the HF closer to ear-level.

Purists prefer either to be positioned well in-front-of the wall, to minimize unwanted coupling. However, therein lies a battle with our ever-supportive wifeys who insist on some decorum to it all...

[Robh3606]

Hi David

Set them at a height that works best in your room and get an adjustable gas cartridge chair. I have one that give me close to 12" height adjustment. I can adjust the chair to the speakers I am listening too. The large formats you want to be at slot height. On my 2344 set-up at the axis of the 10" and the horn and my XPL clones with the 093ti midrange at ear level. Works real well. I like to keep things except subs up off the floor. Just a quirk of mine. I can't see raising up a pair or 4345 as Bo says set-up to be right from the get go. Keep them far away from the wall?? I would figure most were designed to get some boundry reinforcement especially with soffet mounting. Only way to find out is give it a try and see what works.

Rob

[Chas]

David,

My DIY 4333's have integral bases to raise the MF/UHF to about 35" at center from the floor, which coincides with my ear height when seated. They are located well forward from the back wall -about 6 feet - and about three feet from the side walls and are toed-in. The side walls that are close to first reflection are treated with three Sonex panels, the ones that have about a 1" wedge size.

I don't have the wifey acceptance factor Bo mentions because they are located in a basement listening room. She just shakes her head the odd time (very rare) she visits!

I prefer to handle LF via active xover at 100 Hz to a separate pair of 8.7 cu. ft. woofer cabinets, (two Altec 414Z's per cabinet- soon to be converted over to 2235's). This way I have a lot of flexibility in positioning to work with LF room interaction on the low pass and best stereo positioning for the high pass.

[Charley Rummel]

Hi, everyone:

My front left, right and center speakers in my sound room are positioned such that mid and high frequencies are a little higher than ear level when seated. The rear left and right are multiple drivers with the mid and high frequencies about 10 inches higher than ear level. The room (in the basement, as stipulated in the Audio Appreciation Treaty Act of 1992 between my wife and myself - actually, more of a mandate from the wife!) is approximately 12' by 16' with an 8' ceiling. The front left and right speakers, L65 Jubals, are in the room corners aimed at the listening area; the front center channel, an Electrovoice Regency enclosure housing an Altec 604C, is in the center of the wall, almost pushed against it; finally, the rear left and right multi-units are upside-down on top of the main console cabinetry at the back of the room, with the woofers positioned up against the ceiling (contributes to an overall enhancement of the sound quality) and the mid/hi frequency units aimed perpendicular from the wall. Since I don't believe in the concept of a separate subwoofer farting away in some inconspicuous part of the room, it is not an issue.

The only acoustic treatment in here (also happens to be my home office) is the acoustic ceiling and some upholstery on some chairs. The floor is cement with tiling. We gave up on carpeting years ago between the occasional basement seepage and the cats taking a leak on it.

To me, since sound usually doesn't occur in a perfect environment anyway, why should I go to sooooo much trouble to create a sterile environment. Besides, the semi lively room acoustics (though I'm thankful I was able to put in a decent ceiling) adds some character to the sound. Also, I’d rather have it sound like they’re playing live in my basement rather than try to make my basement sound like a venue or concert hall somewhere else.

Regards,
Charley

[DavidF]

Originally posted by Robh3606
[B]I can't see raising up a pair or 4345 as Bo says set-up to be right from the get go. Keep them far away from the wall?? I would figure most were designed to get some boundry reinforcement especially with soffet mounting. Only way to find out is give it a try and see what works.

Thanks for input guys. I follow on the “standard” setups for room installation. My queries are to try to cut down on some experimentation, and box cutting, i.e. narrow baffle or large baffle, woofer coupled to floor or well off the floor, etc. One current project is to extend a 3-way to a 4-way (all direct radiators). More to Rob’s point above on the intended location for monitor types, it seems that some location (soffet, wall-ceiling, floor wall) may be designed into the crossover tuning. The larger monitors all have large baffles so maybe the narrow-baffle droop moving down from 1000 Hz to lower midrange is avoided but this would “push” a lot of lower mids a forward radiation. Add the proximity to the floor and I wonder about a thickness in the ranges of bass-into-mids. Boomy voices and all that. So, this is where I am coming from on how these large-baffle designs handle imaging and positioning close to boundaries.

DavidF

[Tom Loizeaux]

I think raising the "smaller" studio monitors (4333, etc.) up a foot or two would only improve the sound. It would probably give you a little less boominess and, as it's been said, raise the tweeters up to ear height. These studio monitor were not really designed to sit on the floor. Raising them to soffit height was only done to clear the window looking into the studios.
I'm even considering making low stands (a little under 1 foot high) to get my 4343s up just a little...and these are the tallest of the large studio monitors!

Tom

[Alex Lancaster]

You could also try angling them up like the L200 and L300.

[Robh3606]

Hello Tom

I am with you on the stands. When I get my 4344's up and running I was going to make stands between 10-12" and angle them back a bit depending on where the 2405 ends up.

Rob