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Should audiophiles be disappointed?...

I have read several reports on CES '04 and it seems to me many speakers were dependent on room treatments to realize their potential. Am I in the minority... if I'm going to pay $10-25K for a pair of speakers I would expect the design and execution of those speakers to sound outstanding in any environment and without costly room treatments to enhance their performance! Not too mention the fact if I'm laying out that kind of money I would expect the speakers to play all types of music with equal aplomb, which is not the case in some designs. I understand nearfield concepts, defraction and other room environmental conditions, but come on. If I was a speaker designer my goal would be to create a design that would sound superb right out of the box (& get better with time) and require very little set-up and tweaking.

It's discouraging to me to hear the variation in sound based on set-ups for so many of the speakers showing at CES. Maybe I expect too much, or perhaps the audiophiles of this world are expecting too little. Good speakers should sound good anywhere?
128x128dawgbyte
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vedric
46 posts
 
Read up on Dynaudio DDC. 2nd paragraph of this link gives a brief description. I believe the product brochure has a more detailed explaination.

http://www.dynaudiousa.com/products/confidence/c2/c2ovr.htm

Vedric
rives
953 posts
 
The room is in some respects an extension of the speaker. The speaker moves air, and the boundaries of the room affect the air in one way or another. You need the room interaction or you would not have the kinetic energy of the speaker--i.e. most speakers don't sound too good out in a corn field. However, untreated or poorly designed rooms with bad modal response in the bass region will lead to disaster, and what's worse, is that typically the better the speaker the greater the sound degredation from the room. We think of the room as the invisible component--the first thing you start with and the last thing most people think about. The only speaker that won't have interaction with the room is the one that doesn't move air in the room--basically that leaves you with headphones.

We were in 7 rooms at CES and THE Show and it was predominantly the speaker manufacturers that invited us to be there, knowing full well that the room would take away what they had intended for their design to deliver. Keep in mind, room treatment including devices like our PARC are not compensating for speakers or for electronics. They are compensating for the room--to create positive interaction with the room rather than negative--thus allowing the equipment to perform as it should.

You might want to visit our website. Rives Audio There is an educational section that has quite a bit of information on different types of room interaction and solutions.
slappy
903 posts
 
Hey Elizabeth!!!

Im sure you have heared of those poor bastards who get hit my lightning twice?
I wonder if they have ANY faith in the direction of thier luck and play lottery.

hahahahaha

I jump in on the office pool every now and then. Just cause i KNOW i wont win, but i would be pissed if i diddnt play one day and they all DID win. And im sure it will be the one time i dont play.

hahahahahaha

The only thing i think is dumber than playing the lottory is those people you see at slot machines. Pump in a buck, press a dollar. pump in another buck. press a button.

I know where my luck lies. No point in me gambling. hahaha
dawgbyte's avatar
dawgbyte OP
325 posts
 
Thanks guys, I knew I was swimming up stream on this one from the very beginning! Thanks Rives I'll take a look at your site and see if I can't pick-up some tips.
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