z28ster Posted February 2, 2001 Share Posted February 2, 2001 I am a new owner of Klipschorns which I am using as mains for my home theater. I have been told that my room is bad acoustically because it is square. The room is 24'x24' with a ceiling sloping from 8' to 12' in the center. The room opens to the kitchen on one side. Every speaker I've owned seems to lack bass when played in this room compared to any other room in this house. Is it true that a square room like mine is bad, if so why and what if anything could be done to help improve it? Do these speakers have to go flush against the wall in the corners or can they be out a few inches and angled to a sweet spot 18' from the front wall where my couch is located? I have allready noticed that these 2 speakers out perform the 4 speakers doublestacked that I previously was using.(15" 3 way 102db sensitivity 90 lb. powerhouses) So I am very impressed with these and want them to be all they can be. Any advice or tweeks would be appreciated. Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowooo Posted February 2, 2001 Share Posted February 2, 2001 z28ster....Squared rooms can be detrimental to the sound of your system, but there are many things you can do to counter this. The first and most important element of any room is the flooring. Nice, thick padded carpet is a great starting point. Sloping ceilings can be awfully tricky, your going to have to experiment a little there. Another important element is glass/windows. If possible you want to stay away from pointed your speakers toward large windows or doors. If you have no choice you'll have to put up some nice curtains or vertical blinds. I prefer placing my speakers on the long wall of a room but your not going to have a choice there. Others on this board will be able to help you more with you questions on your klipschorns, but I do know that you need to have them flush to the corners for optimal low frequency response. GOOD LUCK, oh by the way, the simplest way to describe why square rooms are not optimal is all the sound meets in the middle of the room. You have equal surfaces for all the reflections therefore it forms a box like atmosphere of sound. I'm sure someone can explain it better than that. I did notice you said the room is open in to the kitchen so that might be a plus. Later.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilH Posted February 2, 2001 Share Posted February 2, 2001 z28ster: It is a benefit that you have an opening to the kitchen in regards to the standing waves creating a "null" in your square room. The K-horns do need to be flush in the corner as tight as possible. Many on this Bulletin Board even seal it in the corner with rubber,etc. The K-horn uses the room as an extension of its folded horn woofer, so your corner is actually part of that horn...that is why it needs to be a tight seal. Congratulations on your new acquisitions and welcome to the sound of Klipsch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Garrison Posted February 2, 2001 Share Posted February 2, 2001 z28ster, You have another advantage in the sloping ceiling. Sound wave bouncing off a surface will interact with the other soundwaves in a room. Where the peaks of the waves overlap, the sound will be louder. Where the valleys overlap, the sound will be lower. The problem with a square room is the these interactions between the peaks and the valleys will be at the same frequency between both the front / back walls and the left / right side walls. If the room dimensions are not the same, and not exact multiples of each other, then different frequencies will be affected front to back as opposed to side to side, which serves to reduce the impact of this interference. However, sound waves are not 2 dimensional, they are 3 dimensional, and your sloping ceiling will play a role in spreading out these peaks and nulls over a broad range of frequencies. This is exactly the same as having a room with an 8 foot high ceiling, but walls that are not parallel to each other. As Phil noted, the opening to the kitchen will also help. Plus, 24 X 24 is a BIG room. Whatever effects you find yourself dealing with should ( ) be restricted to the lowest bass frequencies. Ray ------------------ Music is art Audio is engineering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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