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Speakers on the long wall

My Vandersteen 2Ci speakers are now on the long wall of a 13' x 20' room with a 7' 7" ceiling, roughly centered on the wall and about 10" from the front wall, with a TV between them. The listening position is about 9–10 feet away, on the opposite side of the room in front of three windows, and one of the short walls has a 6' opening into the kitchen.​

In a previous setup the speakers were on the 13' wall and sounded excellent, but returning to that arrangement is no longer possible. With the current long‑wall placement, the sound is shallow, a bit lifeless, and the soundstage is poor. This seems to point strongly to room interaction.

This seems like the kind of room many have successfully tamed with careful placement and treatment, so practical advice on how to proceed with room treatments and positioning would be very welcome.

Vandersteen 2Ci, McCormack DNA‑0.5, Marantz CD player.

scooterbug
scooterbug's avatar
scooterbug OP
16 posts
 

Excellent analytical information that I can use as a baseline.  Thanks for taking the time to do so.  

By chance, are there any plans on how to design or make diffusers or absorbers?  Although when reality sinks in the other half will want something "not ugly".  It would be a lot to ask,but ideally plans with acoustic plots with absorption over frequency would be interesting to work with.  I would assume there is software to simulate a room and then add the details of an absorber and/or diffuser.  Much like a ray tracing program.

tcutter's avatar
tcutter
439 posts
 

Vicoustics has some not-unattractive options.

 

Regarding overall room treatment, you really have gotten some great advice about what to place and where. Absorption at first reflection points and diffusion throughout the room as you can fit it in. Try to be symmetric. Good luck.

elliottbnewcombjr
7,869 posts
 

You might try DBX Cross Dispersion Toe-In when watching the TV, sitting off center

https://www.audiogon.com/systems/11516

mattw73
196 posts
 

Seems like you lost your closer side wall reflections. In my experience some speakers perform better when actually having those side reflecting points..& some do not. 

Good informative points & opinions shared here. I need to try some of this. 

 

lanx0003
2,004 posts
 

Op,

ABfuser and TAD are hybrid absorber/diffuser panels available on the market, but they tend to be expensive. You might want to consider a DIY approach using bookshelves. Consider multiple tall (84-inch), 5-shelf bookshelves along the back wall. Use the lower two shelves and stuff them with R23 Rockwool (6″ thick, ~$2.50/sq. ft.; I think it works better than fiberglass). You can cover the Rockwool with fabric or place decorative items in front so it doesn’t look unattractive—decorations can themselves act as partial reflectors. Use your imagination.

Use the upper three shelves for books, placing them in varied orientations. Again, be creative. To recap: the bookshelf serves as a free and effective diffuser. When the lower compartments are stuffed with thick R23 Rockwool, it can help absorb low frequencies while simultaneously deflecting mid-to-high frequencies at and above listening level. 

In a constrained space, the long wall setup is tougher, at least for me.  I feel for you.  Good luck and let us know what you end up achieved.

 

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