SCALE
The proper scale of the music soundstage is an important part of creating a realistic sense of "being there". Looking up at a large beautiful high def image on the video screen begins to seem unnatural after a while if you are listening down to a knee high musical soundstage.
Match the scale of the soundstage to the visual image! Tall LineSource speakers will produce the full height perspective of the original event.
ACOUSTIC ADVANTAGES OF FRONT PROJECTORS
Their time has come. Front projectors are making huge strides in their image quality and along with LED, LCD and plasma TVs, have removed the big box (rear projection or CRT) sticking out from between the speakers.
This development is important to music lovers because a ceiling mounted projector and front screen get rid of that huge mass of vibrating panels and reflective surfaces between the speakers which is a rear projector or CRT TV. In other words, getting rid of the big box in favour of a wall mounted screen will distinctly improve soundstage depth and focus to the benefit of both music and home theater sound. This also means the big cabinet housing a TV should go as well.
TUNING FOR MUSIC
If you are tuning your system for music, get the main speakers as far out ahead of the plane of the scrren as possible to reduce reflections. If you are listening to music with no video, you can experiment with ways to try and neutralize the degrading effects of the screen. Moving the speakers out, or draping a comforter over the TV should improve things.
Remember, you are not trying to reproduce the sound of a movie theatre in your home because the sound in a movie theatre is vastly inferior to most good high end home systems. Going to a movie may be more fun as an event but technically, the home systems are pulling away from the large theaters.
ROOM PLACEMENT
R630v3, R645v3 (Full Range) Designed to be placed some distance out from the back wall (3’ to 6’) and the side walls (2’ to 4’). All of these distances are relative to the hardness or softness of the room. More air for hard rooms, less for soft. The ample bass output of the R645s allows them to be located far from the walls for maximum depth of stage. The listening position should be between 1 and 1.5 times from the speakers to the distance between the speakers.
LineSource Monitor
Exactly the same placement as for the R630s except these will be setup for soundstage only. The bass will come from sub-woofers which will be set up separately. This is the ultimate in flexibility. In small rooms, the LSM may well have enough bottom end for most music applications especially when placed near a wall in corners.
LineSource Reference
Our new Coaxial Ribbon LineSource designs come in at higher price levels than we have occupied before but they offer significant improvements in both fidelity and practicality over most loudspeakers, regardless of price- conventional or planar - in most listening rooms. They are just as electronics friendly as our other speakers and thus, for $15,000 total system cost, it is possible to attain ultra system performance. These absolutely must be 2+ feet out from the front wall to avoid a cavity effect - trapping side radiation against the front wall.
Being modular and totally scalable, ceiling height is the only limitation. If you have a big room with a tall ceiling, these will likely light it up better for you than any loudspeaker system on the planet.
SUBS
The subs should provide solid bass to less than 20Hz in room. The key elements in integrating a sub seamlessly are picking the location with the fewest room modes (i.e. smoothest and deepest response at the listening seat) and crossing over low enough (40-60Hz) to avoid muddy mid-bass and localization of the sub. A sophisticated electronic/digital crossover is very valuable in this area either in your processor or in the subwoofer itself. Or, externally in the case of the Behringer DXC2496 or DEQX systems. Experiment with reversing the phase in every different location. This will help eliminate ‘fat mid-bass’ and maintain the speed of the system. Another very easy and first class solution? ROOM CORRECTION! Multiple subs spread around the room will produce smaller room modes, be naturally smoother and make far less work for the room correction system and the amps.
PLACEMENT - THINGS TO AVOID
Avoid placing the listener’s head close to a hard rear wall. Reflection from the wall will play havoc with both imaging and bass response. If the listening position must have a wall right behind it, cover the wall with Sonex, a heavy curtain or a tapestry laid over fiberglass or foam acoustic insulation etc. Whatever the method, the listeners ears must not be subject to a strong, direct rear reflection. Don’t place one speaker beside a reflective wall and one with open space to the side. Try to make the acoustic floor plan acoustically symmetrical for both right and left sides. If there is open space on one side try to simulate space on the other with absorbent material on the wall, plants etc. Avoid putting large objects in between the speakers. If a large TV or equipment rack (especially with glass doors is placed between the speakers, try to have the object recessed as far as possible. If the object is close to the same depth plane as the speakers, both horizontal and depth elements of the soundstage will fall short of the speakers potential.
Don’t make assumptions or expect the speakers to work well just because they are setup roughly the same way they were in a friend’s sound room or the dealers demo room. Your room is unique. It has different dimensions, furnishings and its boundary walls are made of different materials.
Once you understand the trade-offs, the key to success is experimentation. Try various positions and listen for the differences on different pieces of music. Even a change of two inches one way or the other can result in dramatic improvements at the listening position. But be careful when moving the speakers, they are tall and heavy! Don’t install the spikes until the best position is found. If you run into problems, call Newform for ideas. With the vast majority of rooms, a 90% setup can be achieved very quickly with the final 10% coming with small tweaks over the break-in period.
Once you have optimized placement, it will be possible to forget about the loudspeakers and enjoy the music to its fullest.
Happy Listening!
See also: The Right Loudspeaker.
Most people are on the Newform site because they are looking for superb musical results at a reasonable cost. The worlds of audio and home theatre are changing rapidly but there are several trends apparent.
DIGITALIZATION
Both the music and video chains have gone digital. This is important because the price/performance ratios have begun to change dramatically just like computers.
As the amplifiers go digital, they become vastly smaller and given the DSP advantages of the digital chain, the face of audio has changed dramatically. Room correction and digital crossovers offer great advances with no cost in transparency.
Spend what you are comfortable with but don't go overboard and don't buy "futures".
VIDEO
Video projectors have in the past suffered several problems when considered for home theatre systems. The first is cost and the second is performance. That is changing. Very high performance projectors can now be had for $1500, where $20,000 was the price of admission 5 years ago.
Newform Research is very happy to see video projectors and flat screens displace traditional big box TVs because getting rid of 2 to 3 cubic metres of reflective glass and resonant plastic panels between the speakers can only improve the audio performance of any system. Certainly, this is a view held by every high end loudspeaker manufacturer.
Expert advice is great if the expert understands their subject and if you can understand the expert. We have a great deal of experience in making our loudspeakers perform extremely well in all kinds of audio/home theater systems in all kinds of homes. Add to this board rooms, public assembly rooms and open areas as well as small theaters and arts centres.
In addition, the characteristics of Newform loudspeakers which allow them to perform so well in the home also allow them to perform extremely well in small to medium sized public venues. Instead of audiophile terms like "transparency" and "detail", Newform LineSources used in public areas deliver very high levels of intelligibility and smooth, even sound in the room both side to side and front to back.
The Newform site is designed to clarify the issues involved in achieving great sound for the buyer in his own room. Understand the factors which affect the performance of an audio system and what you are expecting from it and the choices are a great deal easier to make. We are here to offer the best tools and advice to help you quickly sort out the room acoustics and loudspeaker system interactions.
NEWFORM RIBBON LOUDSPEAKERS
Our new technology Ribbon loudspeaker systems offer the transparency, detail and soundstaging of the classic electrostatic and ribbon loudspeakers in much smaller, stereo, THX, DTS, and Dolby Digital compatible packages.
Listening room and amplifier friendly, Newform Ribbons redefine the state of the art in loudspeaker design, combining plug and play ease of use with uncompromising fidelity.
Newform offers internationally reviewed and acclaimed loudspeaker systems, loudspeaker kits, and bare Ribbon midrange tweeters at amazingly low factory direct prices which include UPS delivery in North America.
Our Ribbon midrange tweeters and kits are used by hobbyists and custom installers around the world. Newform's focus is on practical excellence and simple designs for the purpose of providing great dynamics and unmatched soundstaging focus in your listening room. Performance, yes. Bafflegab, no.
These new Ribbon technology Loudspeakers are uniquely well suited to producing superb fidelity in stereo and home theater systems both now and in the future. Our scaleable Ribbon Loudspeakers will simplify your system installation and greatly improve its performance. We will help you with your project.
All Newform Research Loudspeakers are covered by a 5 year warranty and have a 30 day "Let's Make Sure" money back guarantee.
CABLES
Analysis Plus Very well regarded and reasonably priced. Buy through their dealers.
Nordost Very high quality cables. Buy through their dealers.