Open Baffle Experience

I purchased Spatial Audio X5 open baffle speakers about two years ago and can honestly say I will probably not go back to a box speaker.  I belong to an audio club and have listened to multiple box speakers and some open baffle speakers at their homes and at audio shows and I simply prefer the sound of open baffles.  Of course there are many box speakers that I've really enjoyed and also some open baffle speakers I did not.

But in my opinion the way an open baffle projects the sound reminds me more of how live music sounds.  And bass frequencies just sound faster and more detailed than most box speakers I've heard.  The problem with the bass is not that it's coming from a box it's that most people's rooms have many bass resonances that are difficult to control.  Box speakers excite all six room nodes while open baffles project a figure 8 pattern and only excites two nodes, the front and back walls.  I was astonished how much cleaner the bass presentation was when i purchased my open baffles.  Previously I had used some well regarded floor standers and monitors with subwoofers and could never get the quality of bass I'm getting now.  Also the midrange sounds more open due to the lack of box effect/influence.

It's true open baffle bass is not as powerful but in the case of the X5s the oversized woofer is self powered by a Class D amplifier which includes DSP and a level control.  So I can adjust the bass exactly to suit my preference and room.   I'm getting flat bass into the upper 20s which is more than sufficient for music listening and no longer use my subwoofers as they detract from the bass quality.  If I ever move my system to a larger room I would maybe purchase open baffle subs if necessary.

Nearly all of the audio club members who've listened to my speakers agree that they are special speakers and previously would have never even listened to an open baffle speaker due to previous misconceptions. A few have already purchased them.

It's true you do need at least three feet distance from the front wall but I've also had any of my previous box speakers at least that far away from the front wall and usually further out than that.  I have a difficult room in a basement and have very little need for my room treatments any longer as well although I've kept some on the front wall for diffusion.

@holmz 

Ok @kenjit you seem hung up on the back wave being opposite polarity from the front wave. Then in the other time domain thread you mentioned how all speakers were not right.

is it more important that:

1. The back wave be in the proper polarity with the front wave?
2. Or… that the front wave is in the proper polarity with the signal?
3. Or… does none of it matter?
4. Or… does all of it matter?

Yes I do believe that the back wave needs to be in correct polarity as front. As you know, aboslute polarity is inaudible but with an open baffle, you have both waves occuring simultaneously. It is difficult to avoid the consequent cancellations unless you physically separate the two waves. That is the whole point of having a box. 

Let’s see here — on the dipole side we have Nola, Vandersteen, Spatial, Magnepan, Martin Logan, SoundLabs, etc, and on the other side we have…kenjit.  Hmmm.  I for one would love to see kenjit debate the great minds behind all these very successful speaker designs.  That’d be a real hoot.

kenjit Its apparent that there is something you don't understand.

It has to do with the human ear/brain system.

When the ear hears a sound, a copy of the sound is made and the ear/brain system looks for other examples in near-time. If it finds an example that is delayed by about 10 mS or so, it can use that for echo-location.

That sounds a bit like a Helmholz radiator?

Let’s see here — on the dipole side we have Nola, Vandersteen, Spatial, Magnepan, Martin Logan, SoundLabs, etc, and on the other side we have…kenjit.  Hmmm.  I for one would love to see kenjit debate the great minds behind all these very successful speaker designs.  That’d be a real hoot.

I doubt it would be a hoot.

A debate is not just about being impassioned about the topic.
One actually needs to provide some compelling argument.

Yes I do believe that the back wave needs to be in correct polarity as front. As you know, aboslute polarity is inaudible but with an open baffle, you have both waves occuring simultaneously. It is difficult to avoid the consequent cancellations unless you physically separate the two waves. That is the whole point of having a box

You kinda cannot have it both ways… where you:

1. Argue that the polarity out the front is inaudible and doesn’t matter.
2. Argue that the polarity out of the back is suddenly of utmost importance… and more important that the polarity out of the front.

I mean you can argue that, it is just hard to abide it as a rational argument that is anything more than “Like your opinion dude.”