Initial GMA Europa impressions and a few questions

Chris,

2003 manual.

Distance in feet you are from the front of the speaker/ Stands are this much below ear height

5 ft./5 in.
6 ft./6 in.
7 ft./7 in.
9 ft./ 8 in.
12 ft.+ / 9 in.

If stands are too tall/short, tilt Europas forward/back with 1/4 to 1/2" shim at the rear/front edge.

For listening standing up, Europa's sound best 36-42 in. up off floor.

Anyway, adjust the speaker height for maximum clarity considering all instruments.

[Note: As for myself, during break-in, I didn't want maximum clarity--too harsh. So, I used the wedge technique to angle upward. Worked well. Now, I want maximum clarity.]

Rear wall 24" min. to front of speaker. More is better.

From side wall to outer edge, 18" min. /more is better.

Toe in speakers so that they aim at the shoulders, not into the ear. You should see 1 in. of the enclosures (inner) sides from the listening chair.

Separation. Distance from outer rear corners from one speaker to the other should be equal to the distance from the mid point of this same rear corners line to the listener (make sense?). There are some specialized circumstances where they might be closer (loudness due to center reflection--e.g. TV). Do not separate the speakers more than this distance.

I hope that helps until you get the manual.

Glad your enjoying the product. I have spoken with Roy many times and he claims the Europa is more sensitive to interconnects than speaker wire. I did some experimenting and he's right(isn't he always?) Cables make a huge difference on these speakers. Try a few different ones.

In their fully broken-in state, would you GMA and Europa owners
describe these speakers as being forward sounding, i.e., front row
perspective? I ask because I have heard so many great things about
these speakers, and the Europas are so affordable, but I strongly prefer a
more distant perspective (middle of orchestra or back 20-30 feet in the
jazz club). What do you think?

Also, which stands are you using with the Europas? Are any of you using
adjustable-height stands?

Thanks Montobo. Just the info I needed. I just added a good pair of very solid stands and they made a nice difference. I now need to start refining speaker position.

Drubin,
I find it a tad hard to answer your question. The Europa's play back whatever was recorded as it was recorded. Some recordings seem to be more in your face than others. Some lack bass definition, some don't. Some seem more layed back. I think the speaker does what it's supposed to: That is, it reproduces exactly what is on the recording. Great recording? Great sound. Less than perfect recording? You hear that. Let me add that no recordings I have sound bad on the Europa's........some just better than others. You know the old cliche "Accurate speakers sound terrible on rock music"? Not so with the GMA's. I honestly think it's more a time/phase issue than anything else. I sold retail audio for 10 years. Looking back on all the products I had labeled sounding "Bad", I now can attribute phase problems to all of them. From mass market Japanese amps with high negative feedback loops, to the vast majority of cassette decks with head alignment problems, to the original 44.1K cd players to 95% of multi-way speaker systems. One thing in common: Phase problems. I think phase problems are VERY audable...but also very much misunderunderstood. Keep in mind that Roy designed these speakers to have the LEAST amount of phase shift in the human voice range. Anyone here NOT love the Europa's human voice reproduction? Hope this helps.
Dale