Acoustic setup for 8" amplified studio monitors

[Dude1]

Hi guys,

I just bought a pair of supposedly kick-ass Adam A8X amplified studio monitors for my relatively large living-room.

As I find their sound very disappointing with songs that I usually love, I allow myself to consult the community.

What would be your hints for a step-by-step acoustic improvement, provided that the possible adjustments are:

- The 3 "screws" at the back of each speaker (high shelf, low shelf, tweeter level)
- The distance/position of the speakers in relation to the room walls and corners
- The equalizer on the computer
- Any physical acoustic modules I could add
- Any software you may think of
- Anything else I may have forgotten

As you can see on the pictures, the speakers are placed in a slightly narrower part of the room (3.5 meters wide at this point, 12 ft) and the rest of the room is about 5 m x 10 m (17 ft x 33 ft)

Thanks a million in advance
Ant

 

[c7sus]

No set of speakers is going to sound "kick ass" in that untreated room.

If I was going to treat that room I would start with corner traps that go from floor to ceiling made with 4" soundboard insulation like Knauf or Corning 703 or Rockwool. Then I would make 4 more absorbers 2"x24"x48" and put two of them on the wall behind the speakers and one on each side. Mount them halfway up the wall.

That amount of absorbtion isn't going to fix everything going on in that space, but it should help tighten up the third of the room where your speakers and chair are located.

Another rug between the bed and the chair would probably help too. That room is one giant reflection of audio waves.

Stand in the dead center of the room and clap your hands. Hear the result? That's called flutter echo and the more of it you can tame in your listening space the better off you will be.

http://audioundone.com/do-it-yourself-bass-traps

http://www.realtraps.com/art_tuning.htm

http://johnlsayers.com/Recmanual/Titles/Acoustics1.htm

 

[Armistice]

Why have you bought studio monitors? I see no recording equipment in the room. Studio monitors are designed to be flat in response and allow recording engineers to make decisions about tracking and mixing music, they're not intended to be used as hi fi speakers and will disappoint, usually, in such usage.

The fact that you call them "kick ass", for a start, makes me wonder why you've bought them in the first place? What are you recording?

Perhaps you should answer that question before worrying too much about how to improve your room. If you've bought them for their intended purpose, then read the stuff C7sus has linked above. If not, take them back and get hi fi speakers.