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Soundstage and the effect of the rear wall

I'm a little confused about how the distance that a speaker is from the rear wall will effect the quality, depth, etc of the soundstage.
Due to practical considerations my speakers are placed on shelves, which are mounted to the wall. There is only about 1"-2" between the back of the speaker and the wall. I realize that this will tend to enforce (or maybe exaggerate) low notes to a degree, but with these speakers I am not all that concerned about this. I am more concerned with trying to optimize this system's soundstaging/imaging abilities and how the close placement to the rear wall might effect that, if in fact it does. Or does that low note enforcement effect soundstaging in some way?

Should I treat the rear wall behind the speaker in some way? If so, would it be better to absorb or diffuse for this purpose?
Thanks, Jb3
jb3

Showing 1 response by elevick

elevick
2,636 posts
 
First of all, are your speakers ported? If they are rear ported, you have problems. Many speaker companies have made speakers that are meant to be bookshelf or wall mounted (Soliloquy Sat-5).

You will get better soundstage by moving the speakers out into the room. Since that isn't possible, I would recommend several things: 1-make sure that the speakers are the furthest item sticking out from the bookshelf-you don't want stuff (including the shelves)to block the sound waves. Very full bookshelves will help also. This will eliminate a lot of reflections and help eliminate vibrations. Finally, if you want to go hard core, cover the rear wall with soundproofing material.
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