acoustic treatment?


trying to optimize listening space in a new apartment. have no choice but to place pair of nolas close to wall; rear of tower is about 10 inches from back wall. still in break-in period and already love the sound. curious about how to optimize sound, particularly low end. low end appears very powerful in between and behind speakers (closer to wall), but appears to dissipate in front. i'd like more kick from normal listening position. is this something wall treatment could address? curious what's best to place on area behind speaker to optimize performance across spectrum.

thanks much.
joneschrisa1f4
You may be experiencing quarter wave cancellations off the rear wall (= comb filter at listening position) and room modes.

Quarter wave cancellatons (troughs and bumps) can be reduced by moving the speakers away from the wall. Unfortunately, due to the proximity of the speakers to the rear wall....it will be very hard to damp the acoustic excitation of this wall with acoustic treatement (most studios prefer to soffit mount because of this almost intractable problem).

Acoustic treatments for bass require a lot of treatment to be effective. (Wall behind your head and corners are most important)

You could try moving the speakers along the wall such that they are away from corners and so that they are nolonger symmetrical with respect to side walls (this may help even things out in the bass)

If you have the placement right then you should be able to walk around your room without experiencing huge swings in response; walls and corners should all still sound reasonably ok (some variation due to room modal response is unavoidable)....at this point if you are still unhappy with the sound then consider acoustic treatment and an EQ.