TOBYJUG - You stress some good points. Speakers should be perpendicular. Bob Robbins suggests this otherwise it impacts upon imaging. I keep meaning to put a spirit level on mine but your rod idea would be even better. Also rake should be identical in my experience. The reason I stressed to avoid symmetry is that some odd shaped rooms might demand it and the key thing is “use your ears”. In both my rooms my placement ended up symmetrical.
Getting there - needs a means of clamping the head so it can’t move at all.
TobyJug - I would reserve this treatment for her indoors if she threatens to get the vacuum cleaner out or is walking around on her mobile phone (or maybe for timmo1341).
In due course I would be interested in other users experience of the “sweet spot”. I now have no sweet spot or more accurately with the soundstage everywhere is a sweet spot!
I heard the mention of 1/2 inch in the video, not 5 mm. Half an inch is 12.5 mm, and I can confirm with my system, that 1/2 inch matters. 5 mm, not so much. Perhaps with younger hearing, that would have been the case.
I did find that this alignment eliminated the smalll sweet spot I had and expanded it to more of a soundstage. I can sit on either end of the two person love seat and hear a very nice sound stage, with the vocals in the center. I no longer have to sit in the middle of the love seat.
Bailyhill
Certainly when I first got into hifi the Sweetspot was more obvious, but going up in the ranks and learning what my ears like - that spot has grown in size and width. Putting on a track with acoustic instruments mainly playing and leaving the room, and still have the over all noise resembling those instruments as if they were actually in the room is important for me. Tone and dynamics being just as vital as soundstage.
Getting the right speakers set up right is just another way of eliminating the variabilities that can affect enjoyment from track to track. I was once going around shifting speakers on an album by album basis which had me more concerned in how an album sounded - rather than sitting back and just enjoying it.
…. rather than sitting back and just enjoying it.
I totally agree. I now never touch my set-up. I have got rid of vinyl, cassettes and CDs on my digital system. I have nearly 19,000 tracks on my Serviio media library, have programmed Serviio with 200 Internet Radio stations and BubbleUPnP also gives me access to Qobuz streaming using their hi-res Studio option.
My digital streamer, Naim amps and PC server are locked away in a cabinet.
I have two devices - BubbleUPnP on my £50 Kindle Fire tablet to select my music and a remote volume control.
I just listen - whether it be 1920s jazz with surface noise because they re-recorded after the masters were thrown in the Mississippi during the depression, 1930s blues, 1950s jazz, early rock n Roll, rock, the latest James Taylor or classical works.
I feel my system is the best I can get it and the music is the best it can be for its genre or time.
If something is not quite right - it is them not me.
In my book that is what my system is for - as you say “listening”.
(I think this speaker placement was one step in achieving this situation).
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Interesting video, I’ll certainly have a play with rake angles.
Vocals are not quite absolutely central on my system, a little off to the right. Would that be toe angle or rake that needs adjusting? Or both!
naim_that_tune - It sounds like the toe-in but follow the step-by-step approach.
Do not touch the rake until you are OK with the bass on left and gate/hinge for the right sounding good. The rake controls the soundstage height etc.
I find that music from Tidal is generally correctly centred or occasionally just a little off to the left, music from the NAS is usually a bit more off-centre left. Fixed with a tweak to the balance in Audio Settings in the app, depending on source…
Vivianbl
It it worth paying $50 for the book?
Re: No!, Found that the “book” was just a few pages of notes.
Vivianbi - I think you may be getting confused with the free booklet.
I queried it with Bob Robbins directly who responded
“the setup guide is a 13 page PDF thoroughly describing the steps to be followed. It includes descriptions of what to listen for and what adjustments to be made based on what you hear. It represents not only all I learned during my training at Sumiko, but also the refinements I have made over the last 13 years of practicing with my system and the numerous sets I have done for my customers. No diagrams, one photo at the end of an excellent set. With its’ purchase, you can also contact me whenever you have questions or run into difficulties during your setup.”
Sounds about right to me - do you really want a 200 page set-up guide?
What is meant by the gate hinging? I dident quite get it in the video. Also, should you unplug the other speaker when adjusting each in turn?
What is meant by the gate hinging? I dident quite get it in the video. Also, should you unplug the other speaker when adjusting each in turn?
Hollow - I think you need to watch the video a few times to get the hang of it. The key part of the process starts about 35 minutes in from my recollection. It is a while since I set my system up so cannot remember all the details so I do not want to confuse you. (the gate/hinging is when you toe-in the right speaker to centralise the image).
I would never ever unplug the speakers when the amp is switched on.
The Chicago CES was also the winter show, and winters in Chicago tend to be quite unpleasant.
[Simon-in-Suffolk]
Tracks 2 and 3 of the playlist are the ones for the set-up and are the two tracks suggested in the Bob Robbins video.
2. Ballad of the Runaway Horse - (Album: Jennifer Warnes\Famous Blue Raincoat-20th anniversary edition).
3. Tootie - (Album: Hootie & The Blowfish\The Hootie & The Blowfish Collection).
Once you get it “right” check out the results with your normal music catalogue.
AND hopefully you never have to listen to the “runaway horse” ever again!
Gate hinging ? I have found it useful setting up a jig of sorts laid out on the floor between the speakers. Mostly a large frame with a centre marking and two glass shelves left over from an old audio rack either side. I set up both speakers with the back inside footer against the back outside corner of the glass or another small square object if I want more distance between them and line them up so the middle centre marking is pointing towards the intended listening spot and both speakers equal distance. When setting up toe in on one speaker you can easily mirror the angles.
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In my time the CES show was in June in Chicago. And, yes it was still cold. As we say about places like Buffalo and Chicago–it has 2 seasons. Winter and the 4th of July–when its hot as the devil.
Bailyhill
Paul _C
I bought the “book” which, as you say, is a PDF document 6page double sided. Works out $70AU.
I found the Jim Smith Book and DVD really useful- covers a myriad of suggestions to getting better sound. Cost is the same.
If the book is the same as this
Someone is cashing in, this was circulated on a certain US based forum some years back, it was free advice at the time.
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Reading through that guide it sounds to me as the “anchored” speaker has no toe in and only the other speaker is adjusted for toe?