Try the CARA software to guide speaker placement. It has a steep initial learning curve and requires hours of "work" at your pc but, if you consider how many hours you'll devote to listening in the future, the investment in time is well spent. My best CARA tips: 1.) make the effort the accurately "build" your particular loudspeaker, if not in the (very sparse) existing list; 2.)weight
"frequency response" a 10 and the two other variables 1 or 0 when running the positional optimization part of the program; 3.) also, when running positional optimization, run SEPARATE trials for bass, mid and treble frequencies, with the goal of getting a position where the "quality" percentages agree most closely. To accept an "optimized" position derived from the full frequency spectrum of your speakers (I found) can hide potentially terrible acoustical performance in one or more smaller frequency bands.

Again, just my 2 cents.

John

jb0194 August 29, 2003 15:39

If your listening room has been chosen, address its acoustics before any component change, to REALLY hear what your existing system can do. Besides, it should be very cost-effective. I wish I'd have learned that one much sooner!(Rives "Room Acoustics" forum on Audio Asylum helped me greatly). Source would come next (a recent $500 cd transport mod convinced me once and for all of the validity of the "source first" approach). Though I've become a real believer that cables are a "component", I'd leave cable upgrading until all the other pieces have been assembled to your satisfaction. Incrementally stepping up in cable quality as I improved other components cost me a lot. I would have saved a bundle if I'd left that part of system building for last.

Just my 2 cents.

jb0194 August 29, 2003 04:01