Are There Improvements that Can Be Easily and Quickly Made Without Buying More Stuff?
I appreciate that there are many people on this forum who have put a great deal of thought and effort into how to improve their audio systems. Most of the discussion relates to upgrading equipment. This is natural as most people here want to improve their music experience, and better equipment is a way to do that. I’ve taken advantage of this and made 5 or 6 upgrades over the last year! The result has been great! But are there some simple steps that can be taken that can be overlooked by someone who is newer to audio?
As examples I’ve read that facing a sub towards something like the back of a couch will improve its sound. And for rooms with bad effects that can’t be fixed, move the listening position closer to the speakers.
‘What is your best tip for improving sound quality without buying anything?
A few things that I can add to the equation: When the sub-bass is good on a recording, it sounds really, really good. I think if every recording was as good as the best ones I’d always have tremendous sub-bass. I’m listening to MQA on Radio Paradise. My SMSL M400 DAC shows that it’s playing at 44.1 kHz. My speakers are powered so my amplifiers are plugged directly into the wall. My listening position is 10ft from my speakers - is that considered near field? |
@mikelavigne Stunning room and system!! By comparison, it makes me want to turn my room into my insurance company for vandalism. Well played (literally), sir. Thanks for sharing. |
Depending upon how long all of the speaker & interconnect cables have been in place, I’ve found that removing them & cleaning both the cable terminations & the jacks on the speaker or electronics & replacing them can make a positive difference.I just use rubbing alcohol & cotton swabs on wooden sticks designed for this. Let any residual alcohol evaporate ( which it will pretty quickly) before re- connecting. I know there are specialty products for this but this seems to work just fine. |
Much good advice already. I suggest playing something with a strong bass line. Walk around the room and mark EXACTLY where the bass sounds strongest. Move your sub to that spot. Check for improvement. Repeat with other subs, if any. Move a bookshelf onto the wall opposite your speakers. This will suppress high frequency reflections, and may make the sound more focused. Keep it that way if you like the effect. Good luck and enjoy ! |
