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Would something like this 30”x30” diffuser work well behind a pair of MMG’s that will already be a little too close to the front wall?
My modded MMG’s will be arriving tomorrow and I’m just looking at all my setup options. I already have a couple of 5’ palm trees to go back behind them since this bottom picture was taken, but I wonder if this type of diffusion is something I should consider also.FYI, Those are 1’ squares on my floorplan and everything is to scale, just as I posted with some other questions a few weeks ago. Also, the big gray squares on my floorplan behind the speakers are a representation of the 30x30 panels and how far they would stick out, 9”.
Thanks! David
Follow Ups:
I want to thank all of you very much for your suggestions. I've been playing with this setup in the little spare time I've had the last few days. Long story short, I'm simply blown away by these speakers. Still some more to tweak before I start a new thread about my setup, but I wanted to let you all know that your input was very much appreciated.Thanks! David
PS I'll go ahead and atach some pics of where I'm at as of today at lunch. As you can see, I'm only about 2.5' from the front wall, but it still images like nothing I've ever heard. I may try moving the loveseats completely out tonight and pull the speakers out some more to see where that gets me.
This pic is actually 3 pics spliced together right from the sweet spot, my seat. :)
behind the speakers to a diffuser.If the maggies will be any closer than this, put the thickest absorbers you can bear to see directly behind them.
Put the diffusers behind your listening location instead.
Alternatively, use a 30 degree or so angle to toe the maggies in, and leave the wall behind live. This will give listeners off center a better stereo effect.
Having played with Maggie placements as close as three feet to the wall behind them in smaller rooms that permitted no more than that set-out distance, I've found that while absorption only may impart an "audiophle" sense of depth, it also tends to reduce if not kill "air", rendering a darker than natural presentation that becomes evident with extended listening...and that a modicum of diffusion in that "behind" space restores what's lost.The results, of course, will depend on a number of variables--room size, shape, wall texture, furnishings, listening position, etc.-- that render a categorical "you have to have this many feet out for x type of treatment" problematic.
1) Remove the foam absorber beneath the screen.
(2) Take two diffusors (whether the quadratics shown or some other diffusor type) and join them back to back so that the diffusor side faces outward (perhaps easier to do with the quadratics if you build a "1x6" (3/4" thick x 5-1/4" deep finished size) open frame to mount them to--on the front and back sides of the 5-1/4" deep frame.
(3) Center the two-sided diffusor on the floor between the MMG's about a foot and half behind the speaker plane, with one diffusor side facing the front wall and the other side facing your listening position. Position them so that they're as tall as possible-- without, of course, obstructing your view of the screen, though the taller they are up to the height of your raised MMG's the better for serious listening. Since they're semi-portable, you might move them in and out of the center position, depending on whether you're listening or viewing.What you should hear is a focused "phantom center" that renders the overall soundstage more cohesive. This may help ameliorate the adverse effect of the love seats (they're not really that effective as first-and-second-reflection-point absorbers, since their mass and length kill too much reflection rather than randomize it).
Re the foam absorber beneath the screen: I'd get rid of it in any event. A lot of experimental listening has convinced me that the midwall center requires a combination of absorption _and_ diffusion to preserve natural liveness while dealing with undifferentiated straight-on reflection.
I built a pair of quadratics (18" x 36") to mount centered between my IIIA's at the first reflection point. I found they do a fine job of diffusing the sound throughout the room and blending the low, mid and high frequencies into a more coherent whole. The overall soundstage is a bit more forward now too.
steve
The quadratic residue diffusors are a great idea. I would want them at seated ear height and to the inside of the panels if possible, as the first backwall reflection that arrives at your ears isn't off the wall right smack behind the panels but about 1/3 of the way in towards the midpoint between the two speakers. Looks like you may have something on the wall there, so that location may not be possible.
Isn't toward the middle between them in the dipole null zone if they have much toe in?I've got 4'x4' skylines (4 together in a square) behind mine, but I only extended a bit past the edge of the speaker much like your original picture since I thought the front/rear cancellation would negate the need for centered diffusion.
I'll have to check the big dipole room treatment site I found again.
Thanks for the reply Duke. Actually, your suggestion is exactly what I had in mind. I already cut my screen down in size and moved it up about 6 inches, so if I installed the diffusers just below and just outside each bottom corner of the screen, that should put them right at the backwall reflection.If I do this, maybe then I'll squeeze the speakers in a little and move the palms I mentioned into the back corners.
Just so you know, the black area you see beneath my screen is just some absorbing foam, so it's completely removable if I need to.
I know you have spent a lot of time in anticipation, I'm not sure how the speakers are going to respond with them being right on top of the loveseats.From the diagram you show them just about touching.
Will you be moving them out of there?
Are you going to raise the MMG above the couch?After all the trouble you are going through for side and back treatments, you still have to consider whats directly infront of them.
Yeah, I know that may be a problem, but the MMG's will be raised upright and vertical on DIY stands, and the loveseats are very low to the ground with the legs removed. As you can see from my current speakers, the actual drivers are all completely above the arm of the seating. The way the loveseats are, they actually work very well as mirror point acoustic treatments. :) I really don't think any of the actual MMG panel will be covered, although it's tough to see that from these pics.That said, I am flexible with the seating there, so I will experiment when the speakers arrive.
Oh yeah, one more thing. I had to fuse two pictures together to get a single image of my front wall. I know it looks a little funky, but you get the idea. :)
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