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Why are tweeters so high off of the ground in many tower speakers...

...when most peoples ears are much lower when seated??

I've read many times that the tweeter should be at approximately ear level.  Well, I am 6 feet tall, and sitting straight up on my couch my ears are about 40 inches off the floor, lower of course if slouch.  My Artemis - Eos speakers have the tweeters at 45 inches high, so not too bad, but many others that I've seen are 50 inches high and more and I don't understand the designer's thinking.   Is a 10 - 12 inch difference in height acceptable or should the speaker be tilted down, which I think would create a whole new set of issues.
aigenga
imhififan's avatar
imhififan
2,218 posts
 
An opposite example:
 dynaudio consequence
http://elitechoice.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/dynaudio-consequence-ultimate-edition.jpg
erik_squires
16,560 posts
 
This is what tilting is for. :)

You can use this to your advantage. Normally (with exceptions!) speakers are designed with the listener on tweeter axis. Some adjustment however is quite pleasant, season to taste. You can do this by either toeing in/out or tilting the speaker back and forth.

There’s no requirement that the tweeters have to point parallel to the floor, so the actual height does not matter.

There are exceptions, I _believe_ the B&W 802s measure / sound much better below and off axis than they do straight ahead, by a lot.

Some speakers are designed with the mid-woofer at ear level.

What’s important is not 100.00000% perfection, but rather, getting an image and tonal balance you personally enjoy listening to as long as possible. Listen and judge what is best for yourself.

Best,

E
ricred1
2,065 posts
 
Sorry, I can't answer your question,  but I can say the Artemis EOS were one of my favorite speakers I've ever owned.
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geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Depends on the radiation pattern. One assumes the on axis response of the speaker measures or at least sounds flat when the listener is seated. There are so many room acoustics factors that complicate frequency response of any speaker as to almost make the question mute. Oops, I mean moot. 

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