General Asylum

General audio topics that don't fit into specific categories.

Return to General Asylum


Message Sort: Post Order or Asylum Reverse Threaded

IT'S ALIVE!

108.23.163.118

Posted on November 15, 2014 at 16:20:28



Amazing how new flooring changed the personality of my modest rig.
Naked without furniture after a cleanup.


This layout ultimately won't be the permanent end result due to realistic/practical living requirements. Room is getting a makeover.
However it ends up, an area rug and a couple of things will "tune it up"
nicely.

Room is very "live" as it had partial carpet over wood berfore. My subs "hot spots" are different with actually "tighter/realistic" tone.
Didn't expect to hear such a dramatic difference.

Almost as if I have a new system.





 

Hide full thread outline!
    ...
RE: IT'S ALIVE!, posted on November 15, 2014 at 17:13:39
AbeCollins
Audiophile

Posts: 46196
Location: USA
Joined: June 22, 2001
Contributor
  Since:
February 2, 2002
Very nice floors, not to mention the cool audio gear. ;-)

When I first moved into our new home with hardwood floor in my smallish office listening room, I noticed how 'alive' it was. Placing an area rug in the middle and near my desk helped a lot.



 

RE: IT'S ALIVE!, posted on November 15, 2014 at 17:32:10

Thanks.
Funny thing, with the tarps it sounds fantastic. Couple of days ago, room was a disaster!

At some point, gonna plug in the Fender 65 Deluxe with the trashed LP!
Should sound nice as well.

 

RE: IT'S ALIVE!, posted on November 15, 2014 at 18:47:37
fantja
Audiophile

Posts: 15486
Location: Alabama
Joined: September 11, 2010
Beautiful pic!

 

Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 15, 2014 at 21:01:21
Michael Samra
Dealer

Posts: 36118
Location: saginaw michigan
Joined: January 30, 2005
I know you can get real oak flooring but it's horrendously expensive.
"For every complex problem there is an answer that is clear, simple, and wrong" H. L. Mencken

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 16, 2014 at 05:38:04
You think oak flooring is expensive?

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 16, 2014 at 07:24:45






It's just a laminate-however one of the nicer ones-50mm tongue/groove. Does look remarkably "real"

Did wonders for the overall sound of the room.

Here's the REL view

 

Nice job., posted on November 16, 2014 at 08:24:24
mark111
Audiophile

Posts: 4699
Joined: April 12, 2002
There are big differences between the various laminate floorings.Yours looks great.
enjoy,
mark

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 16, 2014 at 08:28:48
My vote is for the American Walnut. Wow! Cost multiplier of 3. A wallet emptier for sure.

I think I saw some stuff at 4-5. Beautiful, but OUCH!

I wouldn't even allow anyone in the house unless they took their shoes off with that REALLY nice stuff!

 

Is that a 45 degree corder on the left with, posted on November 16, 2014 at 09:21:35
Awe-d-o-file
Dealer

Posts: 21037
Location: 50 miles west of DC
Joined: January 10, 2004
a fireplace? They suck, I have one and it ruins that sides image. Well it makes it inferior by a lot to the pother side. I have found ways to beat it with treatments. I have a fireplace insert and would like to remove it and the 45 degree drywall corner wall and return it to a 90 degree corner with a freestanding wood stove instead.

A wood stove would be more efficient than the insert by a good bit and the true 90 degree corner would be great for the system. Someday I will.


My 45 degree wall is 9 feet long. I think from another picture you showed only the fireplace is 45, not the wall, I can't tell.

ET


ET

"If at first you don't succeed, keep on sucking till you do suck seed" - Curly Howard 1936

 

Carpets can be so, uh, loathesome. Nt, posted on November 16, 2014 at 09:29:47
Nt

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 16, 2014 at 09:35:13
I remember installing select maple engineered flooring in my previous house just prior to selling it and still cry thinking how little money I got for the house with all the improvements I made.

Sigh...

Walnut is very nice BTW. If only my wife would allow me to redo the floor in the main bedroom with it. I would probably go with oak though as that is what is everywhere else hard woods are found in the house just for the sake of uniformity.

Your floor looks good BTW acoustically, nothing an area rug will not fix.

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 16, 2014 at 10:24:13
"I remember installing select maple engineered flooring in my previous house just prior to selling it and still cry thinking how little money I got for the house with all the improvements I made."

I feel your pain.

Living over over the original 1918 planks and they were quite tired.
My prior setup produced reasonably realistic music, the new floor upgrade significantly improved things overall.

Till the novelty of it the gets old, I have essentially upgraded my speakers, amp,sources and cables!


I can now obsess on a nice cart upgrade for the table!

 

I prefer a hard, reflective room to start out with..., posted on November 16, 2014 at 11:27:07
It's easier and more economical to introduce absorptive elements into an overly "live" room than it is to add reflective elements into an overly absorptive or "dead" room.

With bare floors and hard walls we start out with a clean slate.

 

I have a similar situation in the sense that..., posted on November 16, 2014 at 12:06:11
Jimmy C.
Audiophile

Posts: 661
Joined: March 21, 2001
the R speaker is relatively close to the side wall (maybe 3 ft), and the L speak is somewhat open to a larger area... I'm amazed that there is no "pulling" of the soundstage... you have any issues with that?

 

RE: Is that a 45 degree corder on the left with, posted on November 16, 2014 at 13:11:15
I guess from the photo is does look like it could be a fireplace.

The architecture of the place is a 1900's craftsman with lots of funky detail long gone. It's a built in study/desk. Pre workstation. you can't see from the pic but there's perfect dimension shelf for LP storage.

 

RE: I prefer a hard, reflective room to start out with..., posted on November 16, 2014 at 13:17:14
I agree. The overall tone of music has improved a huge amount.

Just a few strategic touches and the room will sound as nicesd as it looks.

 

RE: I have a similar situation in the sense that..., posted on November 16, 2014 at 13:24:20
I had an opposite situation before the floor upgrade. Had a right leaning system.

With the floor upgrade surprisingly eliminated it. Also tightened up the REL's already crushing bass.

 

RE: I prefer a hard, reflective room to start out with..., posted on November 16, 2014 at 13:41:14
That's very true. I'll add that one glaring problem of many home hi-fi rooms is poorly balanced acoustics. Whether frequency ranges or locations, absorption and diffusion aspects of a good room will be balanced in a desirable and cohesive manner.

A related problem is overly "dead" rooms. It seems that in the hi-fi enthusiast's world, absorption is the word of the day when it comes to acoustics, especially in home theater design. That could not be more wrong. A proper balance among absorption, diffusion and "liveness" is needed, and that often means a more live room than what people think.

But, this isn't news. Audio/hi-fi enthusiasts are typically much more interested in equipment than acoustics.

:)

 

RE: Is that new floor real oak or is that covering?, posted on November 17, 2014 at 02:37:42
wangmr
Audiophile

Posts: 2410
Location: Downtown
Joined: November 29, 2012
who cares - as long as you can confuse the system into thinking it's real, ha.

roger wang

 

Page processed in 0.043 seconds.