Speaker placement: Your favourite shortcut?

here are the steps I normally follow:

1]look at the user's guide for manufacturer's recommendations[toe in or not to toe in,distance from the wall etc]or if it is not mentioned,call the designer yourself.

2] look for reviews of the loudspeaker.Check how the reviewer set up his,bearing in mind his room,acoustic treatments equipments etc...

3]use a sound pressure meter. radioshack makes a popular one,I personally use the pro version.Everybody should own or be able to borrow easily

4]use the ears for the last few millimeters of fine tuning with the help of setup discs like the xlo etc

4]sit and enjoy !!!!!!

I put those plastic glides under the speakers to easily move them small increments until I get the imaging and soundstaging like using recordings I am highly familiar with.

I've had good success starting with either "thirds" (speakers placed one third of the room length, seating at two thirds) or the Cardas ratios for placement. Then use complex acoustic music with good soundstaging (orchestral or large ensemble jazz) to spend time listening and moving the speakers and the listening position. Once an apparently optimal location is found that provides smooth even frequency response (which is what all those ratios are about), I then work on finetuning lateral spacing and toe-in. Marking the speaker location(s) with masking tape before repositioning is a big help in keeping track of the positioning experiments.
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I agree completely with Rushton, I use this method in my own system and with every pair of speakers I've had in my room.

To my ear this works perfectly.

I'm with Rushton and Albert...good advice

Dave

High Rushton your agreement with Mr. Cardas is usually right for my preferred listening position. I have to similarly agree with Mr. Porter and Dave.
I must add that I have a dificult to Cardas place my speakers in my WAF system (Rush you never saw it) The room is about 30+ feet in length but only 10 Feet in width the end are an open entrance to a small office and the other a large window set up. The height is 8+ ft. Get this the entire wall which the speakers fire into the long wall is a monstrous mirror. Hey it came with the house. The equipment rack is a danish modern maple expandble multi compartment piece. It is maybe 24 inches in height, is 12 feet or more, and two feet deep. The speaker are placed at the ends over 2 feet into the room so it should be terrible. Echos, reflections booming bass and all because I invested nothing by way room treatments, of course no soundstage right??? You guessed it, nope no reflection lord knows why and it stages well. Beats me but if think I jest ask Slipknot or Trelja.

Rushton,
I used to use the methods you described[which I think are the most well known methods]until a chance encounter with a very nice prominent surgeon in Germany.He has ,to my ears,the best system I have ever heard in My life{and believe me,being married to a Japanese ,and having spent some time in Japan;there are many really good systems there}.Those are the steps that were recommended by him.

You would be surprised at how much easier and faster it would be with the help of SPM,and how different it would be from the Cardas ratio.It always give the most 3-D image,in my experience,and I have recommended the methods[very simple and quick too!!!]to many friends..

Give it a go,and let me know what you think.

CHEERS.

For a "short cut" as you asked, I use a set up disc...not sure who made it, but there are a few out there.

But, that is for short cuts, use the above methoeds to really get it right.

John