Monitor placement

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Potsy24

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I'm considering wall mounting my monitors in a control room that doubles as a family room. I have a desk that's on wheels, which I place about 8' from the wall when mixing. I want to mount the monitors on the wall to create an equilateral triangle. I have an electrician friend that will install outlets behind them, and I will wire wall jacks for the audio signal. The bass ports are in the front. Two questions:

1. Just so it will look less strange when not in use, I was thinking of mounting the monitors higher than ear level and angling them down. Is this a bad idea sonically?

2. Is there a cheap alternative to the omnimount? I really like the design, but they seem overpriced for what they are.

Thanks!
 
i'm not an expert, but i've heard having your monitors against the wall is a bad idea. why not get stands and move them out when you mix like your desk?

and i think also i've heard that they should be ear level to be able to hear the best mix, and the triangle should actually meet behind your head. and also, if your ceiling height is low and ear level means they're in the top half of the space, lower is better.

this is just what i've heard, like i said i don't know why any of this applies, just stuff i've picked up off this board from different people.
 
I have also heard the two points braden described. I have read from multiple sources that many manufacturers design their monitors so that the optimum placement is when the tweeters are at ear level.

As for other options, you could build you own monitor stands on the cheap...though they wouldn't be as convenient as having a rolling desk.

http://mysite.verizon.net/homestudioguy/id44.html
 
Hmm... thanks for the input guys. I think I'm ok to put them against a wall. I'm pretty sure the against the wall theory only applies to monitors with bass ports in the back. Also, the manual for mine (Event TR5) says it's ok.

I like having them farther back too. I know they're designed to be nearfield monitors, but my mixes have come out so much better since moving to a larger space where my monitors weren't right in front of me. I use a subwoofer too, and I think a big part of the improvement is that the low frequency waves have space to develop now.
 
Potsy24 said:
I'm pretty sure the against the wall theory only applies to monitors with bass ports in the back.
Click to expand...

Not so, it applies to all speakers. Mounting speakers inside the wall is good, though most people can't do that easily.

The advice you got about tweeters needing to be at ear level is also correct.

More here:

How to set up a room

--Ethan
 
Thanks Ethan, I've now figured out where I should be seated in the room based on the 38% rule, etc. My goal is to be able to put the monitors on a shelf or stand that I don't need to move. Then, all I have to do to change from family room to control room is wheel out my desk.

How close to the wall can I get away with for the monitors? Is there a general rule?
 
As explained in the link above, the only way to know the best place for the speakers is to measure. From that article:

you can experiment with different speaker distances by sliding both speakers along each axis while you measure the response.
Click to expand...

--Ethan
 
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