HELP!!!!!

[archive]

From: "Manuel Lopez Ateaga" <simcom@v...>
Date: Mon Feb 12, 2001 5:28 am
Subject: HELP!!!!!

I have a very annoying problem with my speakers and my room. There is
a range of mid bass tones that seem to reverberate with the room
where the speakers are.

Usually, I can equalize it tot he point that I can make it almost
inperceptable when listening to a particular CD or watching a movie,
without sacrificing the bass "boom".. but in most cases, such as in
the "Fifth Element" DVD, the bass in the movie gives way to really
annoyinh and unwanted reverbs... and no matter how much I EQ, I
always end up either missing out on the "nice" bass in the movie or
listening to a disgusting hummmmm all through the bass-filled scenes.

I realize the room where I have my speakers is awkward and uneven,
and that probably influenes the result, but I am unable to change the
shape of the room or the layout...

The question is... is there a solution to reducing the hum from
certain bass levels or am I stuck with not being able to enjoy movies
and music the way I want them to?? Would it be good to change the
woofer?? maybe even change the crossover so that I can cut the upper
bass signal at a lower level.

I have a Pioneer SX303R (no Dolby, no Surround, no nothin... bought
it a week before the Dolby version came out.. d'oh), a Yamaha EQ-70
eqalizer (great piece of hardware), a JVC XL-V131 CD player (old but
the best I have ever seen), a Kioto DVD2001MP DVD player (cheap,
good, and packed with goodies), a Panasonic NV-HD640 Stereo HI-FI
VCR, and Sony KV-2140RWP TV (also an oldie.. but what an image). All
backed up with a pair of Optimus STS1000 as "front" speakers and a
pair of modyfied Altec Lansing 56 speakers (I eliminated the "woofer"
on them to avoif famaging it more than it already was.. and left the
tweeter sounding full blast. It seems to fill the room quite a bit).

The room is shaped as in the attachment. As you can see, on of the
speakers aims right at the bed... and I beleive the space under it is
causing the problem... but I have stuffed it with clothes and stuff,
and I still get the same problem.

Please.. any help would be great.

[archive]

From: SRF7@a...
Date: Mon Feb 12, 2001 5:07 pm
Subject: Re: [acoustics] HELP!!!!!

In a message dated 2/12/01 12:30:19 AM Eastern Standard Time, simcom@v...
writes:

> The room is shaped as in the attachment. As you can see, on of the
> speakers aims right at the bed... and I beleive the space under it is
> causing the problem... but I have stuffed it with clothes and stuff,
> and I still get the same problem.
>
> Please.. any help would be great.
>

You could use one of the spreadsheets on the studiotips.com site to calculate
the modes and the Sabine content of the room. The source of your problem
will probably become apparent ... like the two flat, untreated sidewalls have
a 40 Hz mode and are strong 1st reflection points at the listening position
from the speakers. In this case the solution might also be pretty straight
forward ... a pair of deflection / absorbing panels on the sidewalls.

You could try and design / build it yourself, but for watching movies your
best time /money return might be to just buy a home theater - room treatment
package from a manufacturer. This sort of stuff is covered pretty well on
the web sites of a number of acoustic treatment manufacturers. Try a search
for various acoustic treatment / diffuser / bass trap key words and any
companies folks want to recommend.

You should be able to find a package for a few hundred dollars that makes a
giant difference.

Scott R. Foster