Any reason not to place stand mounted speakers upside down?
I ask because, for example, Harbeth perform best when the tweeters are at ear level, but I have some very good stands (Osiris!) that are taller than ideal. So, if I were to place them upside down...
Apparently Alan Shaw sees no problem, but points out that the bass would be boosted. I'd be interested to hear other views.
Lak has given you the best advice. I have the HL5+ and I use Skylan stands that are specifically made for my Harbeths. However, I had them build mine 2" shorter because of my somewhat low seating position. Perfect!
Id say close to zero [conventional 2way/3 way] speakers designed to be vertical can work properly sideways (rotated 90 degrees or horizontal). The reverse is also true, very few designed to work horizontal can work vertical. You must be aware of the speaker dispersion pattern and the designed orientation. Think about headlights in your car that are designed to be wide and not "tall"-same idea. Waveguides and driver interaction at crossover (when they are both playing the same thing) determines this dispersion pattern and tweeters usually need to be physically directly above the driver it crosses over to. There are some exceptions, but few. Upside down is at least vertical, so you can at least figure out someway to make that work- most of the time. But beware of energy hitting the ceiling just as you would energy hitting the floor in the "right side up" orientation (why rugs make so much difference). Reflected energy is usually the source of most problems with speaker/room interaction and severely affect speaker imaging.
This shouldn't be that difficult. Put your speakers on a platform of books at the recommended height and compare the sound vs having them on the too-high stands. Listen to them upside down. Choose the configuration that YOU like.
Trusting your own ears, appears to be forbodden in audio forums.
It's not like driving a car in public, so do what ya like. I especially give props to all posters in virtual systems. Some rigs, just by looks are STELLAR setups, Others....do what they like!
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