sound suggestions for an irregular room

[mridulgoel]

hi all,

i've been reading posts on this forum for a few months now and finally decided to join the family, so here i am.

Welcome...

i'm looking for a sound system to go with my sony 37 lcd that could provide for a mix of everyday tv viewing, music and movies. for music, my use would include the following: worldspace (50%), ipod (30%) & audio cds (20%). i like listening to the following genres: rock, fusion, ghazals & hindi movie numbers. my movie watching pattern is 70% xvid avis (from usb) and 30% dvds. for everyday tv viewing, i would want to hook up the sound system with tata sky but i have apprensions about it. for music channels & movies, it could provide a better listening experience but for everything else, it could get too loud.

Thats a good briefing, would be of help, but one thing what we would like to know, is that what is your combi of Music vs Movies, should it be considered as 50:50 or so... or what is it...as per your above statement, i think its more of music, say 70:30...

1. i'm planning to arrange the setup in my living room which is roughly l-shaped. please take a look at the attached floorplan (not to scale). room dimensions are mentioned on the plan. the preferred location for the lcd & seating is also marked on the plan. given the space and the location, what kind of speakers should i be looking at? would towers be better, or book shelves?

See what basically you are lookin in, and the location setup you have, i personally will prefer that you look in for Bookshelves... Get some 5.5" Driver in for fronts, and some 4.5" drivers for rear... 10" Sub with 100w RMS will be more than enough, and Center Speakers...

2. i'm planning to have a wooden laminated flooring in the living and dining (l).would that have a negative/positive impact on the sound?

Wooden Flooring will defenitely help your bass level...its on a positive side...

3. what is the impact of different type of seating on the sound? how is the sound affected by solid wood furniture vs. say, recliners/leather/faux leather?

For your location, dont waste on Recliners, instead go in for some good sofa sets..

4. i'm currently looking at a startup budget of 50-60k. with that, i'm planning to get a avr & a pair of towers. i'll later be adding a sub and surround speakers. reading the threads on the forum, i'm looking at denon 1509/marantz 4001 and wharfedale diamond 9.5/mordaunt short avant 906i. is that a good choice given the room size/shape? do you have any better suggestions?

Thats a wonderful idea, but what i can see is, that you are loosing on selection...
Before deciding on to the speakers, there are number of things to be considered...and then look in for the selection..
Moreover, get the cabling done for 5.1 setup...

please let me know your thoughts on the above.

cheers!

Ok now, tell me one, thing...see thats for sure that you will not be able to cover the area to get the proper effects..
But, what i will suggest you that you should even consider a pair of speakers in the Dining area..
You most probably will be purchasing a 7.1 amp...as very few models are available in 5.1 mode..
and when you are doing in the same, then why to waste to two channels..?
The benefit of the same will be that, in case you are looking in for listening to music, while having dinner or something, then only those two speakers can be switched on with your TV, or only Music, so you will not miss those effects..

Think it over, and dont hurry up to get in your selection..

Thanks

Mridul

 

[venkatcr]

Mridul:

You are a bit late with your suggestions . rydhun has already completed the auditioning and has ordered the stuff.

Cheers

 

[rydhun]

Mridul:

You are a bit late with your suggestions . rydhun has already completed the auditioning and has ordered the stuff.

Cheers

Well, apparently the dealer has some issues with availability of speakers, discussions are on. So I could be back to analysis phase, in which case the suggestions/advice will come in handy

 

[mridulgoel]

Mridul:

You are a bit late with your suggestions . rydhun has already completed the auditioning and has ordered the stuff.

Cheers

venkat

u knw, tht i dont give suggestions as in for a individual..
apart from this guy thr r many whu are reading this thread...
so they will get the benefit...

and any how...i dont care if anyone is interested or not..
i see a querry i fulfill it...simple.. so maybe someone else be benefitted with tht..

 

[gobble]

I was quite impressed with the Norge 1000, however the simple "lab" equipment looks and lack of a remote didn't go well with my wife.

I think the Norge website says remote is optional for the 1000 .. maybe you should call the dealer and doublecheck?

Regards

 

[rydhun]

Well, apparently the dealer has some issues with availability of speakers, discussions are on. So I could be back to analysis phase, in which case the suggestions/advice will come in handy

I went in for Diamond 9.5 & Norge 1000 amplifier, got delivery yesterday.

 

[rydhun]

I think the Norge website says remote is optional for the 1000 .. maybe you should call the dealer and doublecheck?

Regards

Dealer wasn't aware of the remote option, he suggested I check with Norge directly.

 

[gobble]

I went in for Diamond 9.5 & Norge 1000 amplifier, got delivery yesterday.

Great!! whats the first impression? Hope you are enjoying the sound. Whats the CD transport you got?

Cheers

 

[rydhun]

Great!! whats the first impression? Hope you are enjoying the sound. Whats the CD transport you got?

Cheers

Sounds great! I've connected the amp to the DVD player, TataSky & WorldSpace. DVDs & audio CDs sound awesome, I can feel a HUGE difference in SQ (was using the TV speakers earlier). With TataSky, some channels (HBO, Star Movies, VH1, MTV) are sounding much better than the others, which are just sounding louder. With WorldSpace, it's great overall, but lower frequencies are causing a different problem (read below)

I don't have a dedicated CDP, am using a Sony DVD player.

However, I'm getting a lot of vibrations in the house on lower frequencies. Windows with loose window panes are rattling, am trying to find a simple way to fix this. Suggestions?

I'm also getting a very audible vibration sound from the amplifier casing. First, I thought its happening as I've placed the amp in the cabinet which may be causing pressure to get built up. I did try to keep the amp on top of my cabinet, but the vibration didn't go away. From what I can understand the vibration seems to be coming from between the right feet of the amp and the wooden base of the cabinet, though I'm not sure. The only way I could make the vibrations go away was by placing the amp on a thick fabric mat/rug. I wasn't sure if it's recommended to place a mat below the amp, so removed it. Any suggestions to fix this?

 

[gobble]

The amp cabinet needs to be on spikes. I heard a substantial improvement in sound after putting my equipment on spikes. A lot of "flaws" I attributed to my "budget system quality" simply disappeared.

You can buy 4 large speaker spikes at Mr. Murthy's shop "Tools n Trade" on Commercial street and use stick-on to attach them to the cabinet.

The bass problem is more difficult will require roughly 6 feet long and 4 feet wide cylindrical bass-traps at the corners of your room.

You are experiencing the effects of resonance and reflections. Do you recall how the sound of a scooter or vehicle changes when passing a narrow causeway or tarpaulin sheets placed vertically on roadsides? Ex: The Bangalore Metro construction sites? Under the open skies without 4 walls, you still detect that the reflections of sound waves change audibly the quality of sound. You can imagine what happens in a closed room with a loud amplifier.

Welcome to world of room acoustics. The journey has just begun... and you thought it was all over?

Cheers

 

[gobble]

Windows with loose window panes are rattling, am trying to find a simple way to fix this. Suggestions?

Also instead of spending $$$ to tinker with your audio, fix the window panes for $. And anything else that is resonating around the house

Cheers

 

[rydhun]

The amp cabinet needs to be on spikes. I heard a substantial improvement in sound after putting my equipment on spikes. A lot of "flaws" I attributed to my "budget system quality" simply disappeared.

You can buy 4 large speaker spikes at Mr. Murthy's shop "Tools n Trade" on Commercial street and use stick-on to attach them to the cabinet.

Just to confirm: you mean putting the amp on spikes, right, not the wooden cabinet (entertainment center) that the amp is sitting in?

Also, speaker spikes are provided with the 9.5s but I haven't fitted them as I have wooden laminate flooring. Do you think fitting spikes under the towers will help reduce the resonance?

 

[rydhun]

Also instead of spending $$$ to tinker with your audio, fix the window panes for $. And anything else that is resonating around the house

Cheers

The simplest solution I can think of is to fill in clay-like-substance (can't recall what it's called) in gaps between window panes and window frames. Do you think that'll work?

 

[gobble]

Just to confirm: you mean putting the amp on spikes, right, not the wooden cabinet (entertainment center) that the amp is sitting in?

Also, speaker spikes are provided with the 9.5s but I haven't fitted them as I have wooden laminate flooring. Do you think fitting spikes under the towers will help reduce the resonance?

The cabinet holding your music source, amp etc needs to be on spikes.

Spikes are a must on speakers too.

HTH

 

[gobble]

The simplest solution I can think of is to fill in clay-like-substance (can't recall what it's called) in gaps between window panes and window frames. Do you think that'll work?

Clay like substance sounds about right, but one needs to use the right technique and method too I guess. Better check some DIY sites for the right approach.

Regards

 

[rydhun]

The cabinet holding your music source, amp etc needs to be on spikes.

Spikes are a must on speakers too.

HTH

The cabinet is really heavy, made of solid wood, I don't think it can stand on spikes

 

[marsilians]

The cabinet holding your music source, amp etc needs to be on spikes.

Spikes are a must on speakers too.

HTH

Don't use spikes on laminate as they are meant for carpeted floors. Rubber flooring is better. they control vibrations better and also provide a much better grip.

This goes for anything on laminate. Rubber is suited for the so called hard floors.

 

[rydhun]

Rubber flooring is better. they control vibrations better and also provide a much better grip.

This goes for anything on laminate. Rubber is suited for the so called hard floors.

Should I look out for rubber bushes, or is a thick rubber sheet better? Any minimum recommended thickness? Can rubber be used under the amp too?

P.S: Reminds me that I've seen rubber sheets used as cushion while fastening heavy machinery to the ground. Is that done to dampen the vibrations too?

 

[gobble]

Hi Rydhun

How heavy is heavy? How large is the cabinet LxBxW ? You can get spikes with 4 inch diameter at the base tipped with a ball bearing if you wish.

The idea is to minimize contact with the ground from where the sound waves travel up, so fastening it to the ground will not help. The rubber mat may absorb some but not all the vibrations.


Regards

 

[rydhun]

How heavy is heavy? How large is the cabinet LxBxW ? You can get spikes with 4 inch diameter at the base tipped with a ball bearing if you wish.

The dimensions are 5ft (L) by 1.5ft (W) by 1.5ft (H). The weight would be >15Kgs. The cabinet is sitting on base of two wooden strips 1 inch thick running along the width.

The idea is to minimize contact with the ground from where the sound waves travel up, so fastening it to the ground will not help. The rubber mat may absorb some but not all the vibrations.
Regards

Just for my understanding, if the base is heavy & stable, how does minimizing surface area of contact with the ground help reduce resonance?