Planar Speakers and Diffusors

@ozzy That is incorrect. The back wall reflection is their one big weakness. The design is so successful because it limits reflection from everywhere else except the back wall. Instead of having to worry about four walls, the floor and the ceiling you only have to worry about the front and rear walls. Line sources also project sound better. 

Sound diffusers are best used to kill echos, but again they only work well at higher frequencies. Bass traps are a total and complete waste of money. Four subwoofers is the best solution for bass problems. 

Analog crossovers, as you noticed are insufficient. The crossover has to be digital to do everything it needs to do. The problem is now you need four DAC channels instead of two. The MiniDSP crossover is excellent except for those DACs. You can use a MiniDSP SHD Studio and two stereo DACs, but that is going to cost $6 K. The DEQX Pre 4 is way more powerful than the MiniDSP, has fabulous room control functions and great digital bass management. It also Streams and has a MM phono stage designed by Dynavector. I own the Pre 8 which is the same unit with a 4 way crossover. You can triamp your speakers and run subwoofers. I just got a pair of step up transformers. Once I build the complete MC transformer I will comment on the phono stage. It will be a bit as I am still waiting for the Permalloy shielding. 

mijostyn,benanders

Thank you for your comments they are welcome and interesting but seem to be off track from my original question.

I have learned that keeping my system simple is the best way. I no longer have a dac, preamp, etc. The signal goes from my Lumin X1 to my mono blocks- Clarisys speakers, which have internal crossovers for the treble ribbons and the midrange/woofers ribbon.

I guess each type/brand of speakers has its own set up values and to me, the Clarisys speakers play best with minimum room treatments. BTW, my ceilings and walls are all internally insulated and covered with double 5/8" drywall. The floor is concrete covered by carpet with no padding.

I am interested in diffusors because from what I have researched they are supposed to make the soundstage even larger. But I don’t know if that would be a plus, thus my initial post and question.

ozzy

@ozzy, I like your approach of diffusing rather than absorbing the backwave. Ime the backwave energy of a good full-range dipole can be very beneficial, but you want to preserve its spectral content rather than degrading it by using absorption, which will remove the shorter wavelengths moreso than the longer ones.

When you say that you want "to make the soundstage even larger", that can imply different things. Strong early same-side-wall reflections tend to widen the soundstage, but dipoles have a null to the side so that may not be practical. Greater soundstage depth and/or an increased sense of immersion in the acoustic environment on the recording is imo more likely to be feasible with appropriate frontwall treatment.

I think you said your speakers are about 30" from the side walls. How much distance between the backs of your speakers and the wall behind them? Ime this distance plays a significant role in perception because it strongly influences the time delay between the first arrival sound and the strong onset of reflections.

You mentioned that Clarisys uses a reflector behind their speakers at audio shows. Imo that makes a lot of sense. Have you heard them at audio shows? If so, what did you think? And, what do they suggest for your situation?

I might be able to make some general suggestions based on your responses to these questions, but imo making specific acoustic treatment recommendations is something that I’ve learned to leave to the pros because they can make a MUCH bigger improvement than I can. If you don’t have anyone in mind I recommend Jeff Hedback of Hedback Designed Acoustics, he’s a multi-award-winning studio designer who also does home audio, and he’s still affordable. He works remotely.

Duke

dipole speaker dealer for 25 years, multidirectional speaker manufacturer for 16 years

audiokinesis,

Thank you for your response. To answer the questions posed:

The speakers are 60" from the front wall, 30" from sidewall, no toe in. I have never heard these speakers prior to purchasing them. They have a very wide soundstage. Unless the music comes directly from the left or right channel you cannot hear the speakers individually.

SunCoast has advised using large plants behind them for diffusion (on the cheap side).  I am always looking for ideas to improve, thus my question.

ozzy

@ozzy brush this by the guys at GIK if you haven’t yet.
This is tricky and no two listening rooms are the same. Send pics and dimensions to GIK. Their recommendations for me were spot on.