Flat screen between speakers, again.


I know this has been discussed before, but after reading most of the somewhat recent responses to similar questions I still need to pick your collective brains.
To mitigate the TV's impact, I am considering building a panel that would cover the TV when it's not in use. The panel would be a 2.5' x 4.5' diffuser or absorber. Ideally it will hang above the TV when I am watching TV and would lower down to block the TV when I am listening to music.

My question is whether this is a viable solution and, if it is, would I be better served with diffusion or absorption?


128x128tony1954
Tony - where are the speakers located relative to the position of the screen? Is the Screen mounted on a wall?
I concur with mijostyn.
When I had my speakers on either side of my screen they were ~8" in front of the screen. Experimentation demonstrated to me that there was no change in sound quality when the screen was blanketed.Your situation may be different and some reasonable suggestions for experimentation have been given.In the end - if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
The other place I tried the GIK panels was perpendicular to the wall behind the TV (and hence also to the TV itself), with one side edge of the panel touching the wall, and snugged as close to the edges of the TV as possible.  This was more effective than panels sitting directly in front of screen and nearly as effective as 45 degree positioning described above.
@tuzarupa
The rear of my speakers are 22" in front of the TV and the speakers are spaced only slightly wider than the width of the screen.

The TV screen is angled slightly down to align with me when seated. Another member extolled the virtues of simply angling the screen upwards to direct any reflections towards the ceiling. He said that this simple solution yielded significant improvement.
@mijostyn
I already have absorption panels behind the speakers and will be adding additional panels to the first reflection points when I figure out how to do it properly. One side is open to my dining area and the other side is a glass patio door.
I take the cushions off of my love seat and place the back cushion in front of the cabinet holding the tv and the bottom cushion in front of the screen. It covers the 55” screen very well and it is 4” dense foam. I don’t know for sure if it helps, but it draws attention away from my aluminum foil helmet.

Seriously, I do you use the cushions and it does tame the highs and improve the soundstage depth.