Who positions their speakers straight ahead (zero tow in) and why.


I’ve been experimenting with toe in and tweeter position (inside v. outside) for my LRS and ProAC Studio 3 speakers. My listening position is about 8.5 feet from the speakers front surface.

In both cases I ended up with tweeters on the inside and zero toe in. I like the more immersive soundstage I get with zero toe in. I sacrifice a little of the lock in for the center image.

Zero toe in also makes my sweet spot for listening a little wider.

Sorry about the incorrect spelling and the missing question mark in the subject. I couldn’t edit the subject.

g2the2nd

Anyone else here experimented with asymmetric speaker toe-in?

@bolong

Well, I am. My room is large but asymmetrical, so I thought it was worth trying. I am far from done, but at this point my left speaker crosses ~2 ft in front of my head while my right speaker crosses approx 1 ft behind my head. They’re about 15 ft away from the front wall. I would say this is the best they’ve sounded so far.

 

I've owned three pair of Vandersteens and believe Richard recommended straight ahead.  But he also recommended some distance from sidewalls which is addressed by others here.  

Some other speakers I've owned worked best  aimed just behind my head.

So another vote for "depends on  the design of the speaker and room set up".

I have Maggie 3.7i and regular 3.7s before that. In about 10 years, I’ve tried everything I could think of, and with these speakers, movements of 1/4 inch make quite a noticeable difference. I’ve ended up with the tweeters out and very little toe-in, about 1/2 inch, just a couple of degrees. They are on the long wall of a room that is 14x18 x 8 feet with wide doorways on each side of the Maggies. Audiophiles who visit comment on the wide, deep and tall soundstage with nearly pinpoint imaging. After 50 years in this hobby, I am a very happy man!

My listening living room has one feature that throws another wrench into the equation - adjustable sidewall "vanes" in the form of adjustable room window/door slats - the old fashioned wooden slats that can be angularly adjusted with the pull of a cord. Most of the these "windows" are actually full length so there is plenty of slat real estate to play with. All of the windows in the room then become adjustable sidewalls (and rear walls,) and with the slats in the horizontal position, which lets into the room maximum daylight there is a big sonic difference compared to say the other extreme - all slats closed - or any slat angle in between.

Behind the window slats are double pane gas filled insulated glass windows and doors and this introduces another effect in general. Also, even when the slats are fully closed - making the room somewhat dark - the slats are still ridged enough that reflections are still modified. These old fashioned slatted windows and window/doors are beginning to fall apart, and my wife has suggested they be replaced with fabric covered slats which would probably be more acoustically agreeable to play with

Point is having sound diffusers that are adjustable on the fly does make for more ways to tweak. There is nothing new about this idea. I can think of more than a few audio heads who use slatted windows as acoustic playgrounds, but it was an option that was "inherited" with the home - not purpose built for acoustics. It does beg the question as to how many suppliers of acoustic room panels have some sort of option like this. I couldn't find any online.