A question about Real Traps

Cyto- Thanks for the update.

Glad to hear your issue has been identified!

Bhouser: Actually turns out I have an amplifier problem which is being resolved, not a trap problem...

Cytocycle-

I agree with your ideas - the Quantity and Type of Traps used is very important in this situation. I was amazed when changing out just ONE LE trap (the only one on the right) for a standard Mini made such a difference.

In my case, the right speaker was the one that seemed to weaken, or at least lose noticeable focus and stage width, and it is the one closest to the sidewall and 1st reflection trap. That's where the standard Mini is now that seemed to fix the issue. I may even try an additional Mini on that side to see if it further improves the sound and widens the stage beyond the wall.

Keep in mind that I don't have as many traps as you do, and my room is a large rectangle - 30' x 20' with an 8'-15' vault. So, the effectiveness of my traps is probably not as obvious as yours. The system is against the short 20' wall, and I sit 11' back from the speakers, directly below the peak of the vault. The system and seating area are offset to the right because the main entry door to the house is far left on the same wall as the system, hence the different distances to the sidewall 1st reflection points.

You may want to start removing traps on the side that has the issue one at a time. Or - since you have several versions to work with - move the versions around into different positions. Maybe you will find that one sidewall needs less total traps then the other. If removing alot of the traps corrects the imbalance problem you are focusing on, but makes the room too lively again, then hopefully you can add them back in a combination that would be a great compromise of dampening and balance. The RealTraps guys should be able to take you further towards the best setup if you can eliminate this issue first.

Guys- If you get the chance to experiment, and find any tangible results with different positions and/or versions, please update this thread. We all need more info about the 'Black Art' of sonic room correction!

You must have the HF versions of the traps, which absorb, talk into the trap and see if it aborbs and then go talk into another one of your traps.. the non-hf are reflective and you will hear it bounce back into the room. Also you might have dampened too much with something else. you could try live end /dead end and remove all aborbtion either behind the speakers or listeners.. you can put in diffusion if you have the space.

Bhouser: I have 13 realtraps and I have been thinking the problem was with my speakers or electronics as I am getting that same one side balance. It has been driving me nuts I even replaced the resisters in both of my Wilson Watt's!! I am running 4 Mini-HF in the first order reflection points and Jumbo Traps in the 4 corners, plus 2 mini-traps hanging in the front ceiling... any suggestions in how I should start to figure out which traps are doing it. My room is symetrical (Rectangle) and the only thing I can think of is that one of the HF traps is 3' farther back on one side of the room...

Bhouser: Thanks for posting your experience! I was about to get my wilson dealer out here to see what is wrong with the speakers.. now it makes perfect sense.

Since nobody else is answering, I will offer my feeble suggestions.

First, what version(s) of Traps do you have?

I have Real Traps, too - 2 each of 3 different versions (2 standard Mini's, 2 Micro HF's and 2 Mini LE's). Remember that the HF's are designed to affect MUCH more then just bass frequencies. The LE's are designed for 'Home Theater' installations, I guess due to their size and shape.

I was getting a weird result when using the LE's at the first reflection points, with each LE standing upright parallel to the side walls. This combination seemed to 'suck' the right-to-left balance towards one side, almost like the right speaker's tweeter was partially blown or wired out-of-phase.

Given that my room is not symetrical, the Speaker-to-Trap distances are unavoidably different, so I thought this was just a room issue. But, I replaced the right Mini LE with a full-thickness, standard Mini, and the problem dissappeared.

I guess my point is, you may want to experiment with moving different versions of Traps into the locations that you found to be the most effective positions - such as replacing an HF model with a standard Mini, or even use a Micro, etc. The improvement in my situation was immediately apparent.

Beyond that, I would HIGHLY recommend talking to the guys at Real Traps before attaching wood to the front of the traps. It may totally negate their sonic value, and could even damage or discolor them physically.

Hope that helps, and Good Luck with your experimentation...
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