Good sound in a small room, possible?

[GennadiyKorol]

Good time of the day everyone,

Right now I am having a pair of RSX-4's as fronts and a Tannoy TS8 subwoofer. I will be moving into a new flat soon and the only room which could be used for music listening/theater is going to be about 3 x 4 meters (roughly measured with my long steps, it might be less).

I plan to put a computer table, some chairs and maybe a little sofa in one edge of the room, the speakers would be placed near the opposite wall to allow at least 2 - 3 meters of space before them.

Is it possible to get a decent sound in such a small room? I am not sure I will find money or time to do serious acoustic treatment but I am looking into hanging a couple of carpets on the walls of that room. Will this help to tame the sound reflections? If so, could you please tell me which way to hang the carpets is preferable and what material to use for the carpets. Any other suggestions are also welcome.

Also I've been looking into upgrading my fronts to something floorstanding like RF-15 / RF-52 or RF-62 but now I'm not sure. Wouldn't this be an overkill for such a small room, considering I have a sub (given I want to upgrade it to something more powerful, TS8 gets distorted even at medium volume right now)?

Thanks for all help,

Gennadiy

[WMcD]

I see that no one here stepped up to give a reply.

I use larger speaker (Forte II) in a slightly larger room (an office). They work well.

My thought is that you can get good results. There is no reason to "paint the devil on the wall."

It is true that large room will reinforce bass freqs and the game there is to make that reinforcement work out evenly. But then people conclude, quite incorrectly, that small rooms always compromise bass. Not so. Particularly if you have a sub. Please note that systems in automobiles can have very good performance.

It is my thought that you should to set up your system in the new flat and determine what you hear. In my experience, and comments I've read, it is important to get a somewhat symetric set up. Speakers about equidistant from your seating area, and the speakers equidistant from walls and corners. No one can predict a given room and set up from afar.

Theory says that a piece of carpet 1/3th inch thick or so, will not absorb much of the sound energy. But others may comment.

Gil

[GennadiyKorol]

Thanks a lot for your reply Gil,

I have already ordered RF-52, as RSX-4 with a sub were a mistake for music listening (right?). Going to use RSX-4's as surround speakers in the same small room.

I plan on pretty much putting each RF in the corner of the room and be sitting near the opposite side of it, this is the only way to create some space for the speakers.

So if carpets aren't a good solution is there any special acoustic garment one could take into account?

I've heard it's important to use some acoustic treatment in small room with Klipsch speakers, because of precise (and therefore sometimes harsh) treble. But I myself have close to no experience with acoustic treatment and its effect on the sound..

Thanks again,

Gennadiy

[WMcD]

http://forums.klipsch.com/forums/t/103644.aspx

Here is one thread. There is at least one farther down the Architectural section. If you hunt around you will find many comments.

You should find some commercial products in your market. Home made items use a thickness of fiberglass wool or semi-stiff fiberglass board. Generally the thicker the material, the lower the frequencies which can be absorbed. A simple carpet is not nearly thick enough.

There is one school of thought which is highly scientific. I.e. you must use expensive test equipent to figure out the problem, and then test and retest with different materials and locations. It is hard to argue with precision.

OTOH, it is my belief that many rooms are so far from good that a few panels can make big improvements.

You might try an elementry test of your listening room. Stand near a wall and give on sharp hand clap. You may well hear a "booiinnggg." You may hear something similar doing the same in the center of the room. This is a slap echo or flutter echo. Even in a small room the you will probably get some odd reverberation.

The echo is a sign of a problem.

Gil

[JohnA]

Acoustic panels can be attractive and absorb echos and control reverberation.

http://www.drillspot.com/products/66019/Industrial_Noise_FWP24G_Decorative_Fabric_Acoustic_Panel

You can also make your own using ductboard and the fabric of your choice.

http://www.industrialinsulation.com/fiberglass_ductboard.htm

I planned to build my own, but found my room did well without them. It might sound better with them, but I'm satisfied as it is.

[picky]

Is it possible to get a decent sound in such a small room?

Example: 10-1/2 ft W x 19 ft L x 7 ft H room, RF-7 based 7.1 Reference Series Surround system.

Answer: YES!

Proof?....

[colterphoto1]

Glenn 'Picky'- the KING of the small room sound!

Yeah, it ROCKS!