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Strange Klipsch thing

I stopped by a local shop this afternoon because the guy had recently set up a two channel room. At the moment he's carrying Cary amps - which I use at home - and Klipsch speakers. He had an SLI-80 integrated run through the big Klipschorn speakers placed in the corners. What I heard was an enormously wide soundstage with exceptional image height, BUT, the whole thing sounded like it was being projected onto a perfectly flat wall. Not so much as a shred of stage depth. Is this fairly common with Klipsch speakers? It really seemed like an odd effect. Not my cup of tea at all.
grimace
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,983 posts
 
FWIW: the reason reflected sound can contribute to soundstage is due to the way our ears hear. Our brain makes a copy of an initial sound and compares it to others coming in. If the others are delayed versions of the original, the extra information is used to get a better understanding of where the sound is coming from.

So its not a coloration, and speakers are designed all the time to take advantage of it, and is why getting the speakers out into the room a little can help out the soundstage.
volleyguy
789 posts
 
MrDecibel
I will have to try that as I am finishing off a basement to get the most out of these speakers. I just take it as a weakness of the horns projecting sound forward.
mrdecibel
3,067 posts
 
Volleyguy. I understand that horns have a different projectory pattern, but with proper room set up between speakers and listener, and, room tweaks, they can do it all. On many recorded performances, my system disappears, and I achieve excellent stage height, width and depth......with of course those other wonderful attributes that horns can bring...........later...MrD
learsfool
1,215 posts
 
I agree with Mrdecibel - I have a pair of Cornwalls, and even against the wall, I have excellent soundstaging. The bass is also quite a bit better when they are against the wall as opposed to out from it a little. Unfortunately, in my room I am unable to try them in the corners, so I can't speak to that. I do have a friend who has a single Klipschorn in a corner for mono listening, and there is definitely no lack of bass or depth of stage in his room, which is not treated.
blkadr
739 posts
 
"Depth" is engineered into recordings. Stereo is not sinply two channels as most already know. Without some degree of reverb voices sound dry and without dimension. Engineers "build soundstage".
On the other hand, sound "lives" in space, An anechoic chamber would make a sad listening room.
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