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Dunlavy SC-IVa Set up help

I have been playing with various speaker placements for the last several months and just can't seem to get the speakers to sound right. The frequency response bouncing all over. When I get the midrange to sound good, the bass sounds weak. When the bass sounds good, the midrange is lacking. The room size is 12x21 with the speakers on the short wall. Seeting possition is about 17feet from the front wall. I have to use the short wall because the room is also used for HT. My pre amp is an aragon soundstage and my amp is a pass labs x350. CD Player is an Anthem CD-1

Anyone in North Jersey (Rockaway) care to give me a hand ? I will supply the beer and load the grill with dogs & burgers.

Thanks,
Mike
mcreight

Showing 3 responses by 9rw

9rw's avatar
9rw
318 posts
 
I wonder what John Dunlavy or some of the people who used to work for Dunlavy (like Drew Rigby) would say about Sean's suggestions. My guess is that they would be horrified.

I also wonder if Sean has ever owned the Dunlavy SC-IV/A. I have, and the speakers gave me spectacular results -- even when set up on the short (15 feet) wall. I used some room treatments, placed them out in the room about three feet and the sound was very good. Also, these speakers are very efficient and do not require monster amps to sound fantastic.
9rw's avatar
9rw
318 posts
 
Somehow, I don't think John Dunlavy cared much about cosmetic appeal. That's one reason Dunlavy is out of business. And the owners manuals for his speakers sure don't suggest anything like what Sean is advocating.

Even in my previous house, with a room that measured something like 14x19, I had the SC-IV/A's on the short wall and the sound was spectacular. The bass extended into the 25 hertz range and the speakers vanished better than anything I'd ever owned (including Merlin VSM-SE, ProAc 3.5, Quad, Acoustat, Totem Mani-2 and several others). Before purchasing the speakers, I talked to Dunlavy's Drew Rigby, and he assured me that my relatively small room would not be a problem. In fact, I got much better bass in that room than I got in my 15x24 room. So Rigby was right.

As for amplifiers, one of Rigby's personal favorites for the SC-IV/A was the Rowland Model 2, which is rated at 75 watts per channel. That's hardly a monster amp.
9rw's avatar
9rw
318 posts
 
Danlib1: Please enlighten us.

I know a lot of audiophiles who liked the sound of Dunlavy speakers but hated the fact they were so big. And that's why they wouldn't buy them. And some people thought they looked too plain and wanted something "fancier" for their money.

I also know that there were other reasons for Dunlavy's demise, like maybe Dunlavy wasn't the easiest guy in the world for dealers to work with. And some people thought he should use more expensive and exotic drivers. Regardless, I'm not contending that placement isn't vitally important. I'm just questioning some of Sean's recommendations.
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