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Proac owners......advice please

I am runinng an all solid state Electrocompaniet system; DMB 120, 4.7 Pre & EMC MKII. I recently purchased a pair of Proac 2.5's.

I will tell you that the speakers now have about fifty hours on them. Cabling is all Nordost Red Dawn at this time. The room size is approx 17'x 24', with a 12' cathedral ceiling. The good; we have big sound stage, we have wonderful mid range with very good rhythm & pace. Please play the Dixie Chicks again!
The not so good; The bass gets dominant from time to time. I won't say that it's boomy; it's like blowing a low note through an empty paper towel holder. The highs or vocals during the playback are just not on the same level when this happens, & my ear goes straight to the bass. I might add that the vocals could be a little smoother. Maybe my room is the problem? Maybe the speakers need more break-in time?
Before I consider room treatments & the likem,has anyone experienced a similar situation or could you suggest a different cabling option? I am fairly new at high end passion...so I really need someone that is famliar with these speakers or has owned solid state with the Proac's- what have you done to get the best possible sound out of them?
I know many of many of you state that Proac's sound is the best with tubes --and ARC is also a great match. I did try an ARC LS 16 pre this week with my amp, but the match wasn't that great. I do think that I would like to stay with solid state for a while, but I am hoping that you can make suggestions about how to achieve a better sound quality with my current components or alternatives that will enhance it. Thanks!
ronkng
yashu's avatar
yashu
196 posts
 
Hi,

I have had proac 2.5's for many years and could not be happier. I also use a SS integrated. Started with the Krell KAV 300i and have now traded up to the Jeff Rowland Concentra 2. Both of these amps sounded great with the 2.5's but the Concentra is warmer and more tube like.

I do know that these speakers need MANY hours to break in and sound right. 100 hours minimum. You must also have these speakers far enough away from the rear wall or the bass will be overwhelming and not so nice. Mine are 4 feet from the rear wall and 3 feet from the side wall. They sound wonderful this way. Move closer to the rear and the bass gets stronger.

Keep with them. They are incredible speakers and you will love them when fully broken in and placed properly.

Louis
jsbail
368 posts
 
You have a big room for that equipment.
Is your problem at high sound levels? If so, your amp could be clipping.
aniwolfe
762 posts
 
Before you go crazy figuring out what to do next...That mid woofer takes a looooooooonnnnnnnng time to break in. I would give it a least 200hrs maybe even more.
ronkng OP
12 posts
 
I have the speakers 3 ft. 4 in. from the back wall (can't go out farther due to cable length), 4 ft. from the sides & the speakers are 6 1/2 ft. apart. My problems are not at high listening levels. My volume levels are usually at 9 o'clock; cranking it up to me is between 11 and 12; everything seems to run out of steam past this point. I don't want to push it more in order to avoid clipping.

The amp is rated at 120W at 8 ohms, 240 @ 4 and 350 @ 2.

If I am going to need 200 hrs. break-in time, I think I'll borrow a friend's 5-disc player for awhile.
alcides
44 posts
 
It's probably your room. I have the same issue with my 2.5's. No matter where I moved them, I could not get rid of the bass boom without room treatment. Bass traps is what it took. I lean 2 down-sleeping bags in their stuff sacks up against the inside of each speaker. That plus some other traps in the corners finaly tamed the bass. I think it's the combination of a rear port tuned so low, plus it's hight withnin the speaker cabinet that causes so many problems. I'm starting to think that the best solution will be getting a pair of subs, and crossing over the 2.5's from 80HZ down.
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