EricB

Theoretically..

If two different speakers had an identical response curve, would they sound identical as well, in the same room?

Just a thought.

SHS

Re: Theoretically..

I'll take a stab at this. There are a few other variables besides the speaker itself.
1) The room would have to be completely symmetrical.
2) Doors, windows, walls/ceiling/floor of different stiffness/construction, openings in all of above, items in the room, all have to be considered.
3) You would have to be placed equidistant from the speakers.
4) the speakers would have to be placed symmetrically in a mirrored placed in the room.
5) Your hearing would have to be identical in the left and right.
6) Airflow in the room
7) Speaker cables identical and connected well

Then they should sound and actually reproduce identically (within the accuracy specs of the amp/source/speaker of course) with the same db and frequency emanating from them.

......variables!!!

Tony Genovese

Re: Theoretically..

No. The other aspect that you need to consider is dispersion.

Marc LaPalme

Re: Theoretically..

every speaker is different. unless they are the exact same speaker they will sound differently.

Tony Genovese

Re: Theoretically..

And even if they are the exact same speaker, if the manufacturer doesn't match the speaker to tight tolerances, they will sound differently.

MaxL

Re: Theoretically..

sorry scott, but i sort of disagree with your list.

if we have 2 matching fronts, we have two speakers with matching response curves. while you are absolutely correct that those considerations you listed will affect the sound we hear, most of them will affect it about equally as that sound gets from the speakers to our ears. if you were correct, anyone in an asymetrical room with anything but perfect room acoustics would need a team of acoustic technicians to set up two stereo speakers to sound the same. i think most of us can agree that our matching speakers do sound the same, especially if they are of decent quality/ craftsmanship. (yes, cheap speakers whose cones are inconsistently manufactured may display discoloration between two of the same drivers.)

there is a simple test for this. take a mono recording or listen to a stereo recording in mono. the signal sent to the speakers will be identical. is the sound the same from both speakers? the stereo image should present everything coming from dead center, no sounds favoring stage right or left. again, room considerations may affect your soundstage, but not really speaker coloration unless there are extreme in-room factors (or you have super-human hearing powers).

this method would also be the easy way to test the OP theory. here's my response to that:

1) let's assume that the response curves are actually the same. (many graphs are created using somewhat different methodology, and therefore represent different facts).

2) a response curve, however it's made, tells us about quantity of sound not quality. we know this speaker puts out a sound this loud from this distance at this frequency given a signal of this much power. we may make inferences about overall sound based on the curve, such as a slow rolloff at 17khz might make for a warm overall sound. but the curve can't tell us about distortion anywhere, tightness, strain, openness, detail, clarity, muddiness, voicing of any description, etc.

3) rather than room considerations, it is the other physical diffferences in the speakers themselves that will make them sound different. the cabinet materials, shape and size, the drivers, the cone/ dome size and materials, surround materials and stiffness, etc. all have affects on the sound we hear. in an anechoic chamber two different speakers with identical freq. resp. curves will sound different assuming some of these other variables are different.

the short answer to th OP then is no, almost definitely not. but as the saying goes, even a blind zombie finds a brain every now and then. it could happen, but luck would have about as much to do with it as matching freq resp curves IMO.

HT: Marantz SR8000, PSB Alpha B fronts, Alpha C center, CSW New Ensemble surrounds, Martin Logan Dynamo Sub, Philips DVD, Sony CRT TV

Stereos include vintage Sony receivers/amps into vintage AR and KEF speakers.

SHS

Re: Theoretically..

I guess it is one of those arguments that could go around and around. I see your point but I think you are referring to similar sound not "identical" sound.

All of those variables and more will effect the sound from one extreme to the other. I agree that you will not hear most of them, however, they do have an effect. The accumulation of these effects begin to be noticeable. Just like if you have one speaker too close to a wall or corner, it most likely won't be too noticeable until you hit volume levels that cause reverberation or coloration of the sound.

I humbly bow to the experience of others here though, they have much more than theory to draw from.

MaxL

Re: Theoretically..

i won't claim to be an expert... but i will claim to be right .

by your definition of identical sound, no two speakers anywhere have ever sounded identical. this is, if nothing else, due to the constantly changing magnetic fields moving around and through the planet as well as the gravity of the sun, moon and other celestial bodies that pull on the magnets and coils in our speaker drivers. no, even your average college campus wouldn't be able to measure these effects in a meaningful way, but I know they're there!

the reasons i listed for speakers sounding different actually cause speakers to sound different, regardless of room acoustics. what you have talked about are reasons why the same speakers may sound different in a real room. as i said already:

Quote:

...you are absolutely correct that those considerations you listed will affect the sound we hear...

the point is, this is not one of those questions that is a matter of opinion. there's no around and around. this is a theoretical question. the part of the question that specified "in the same room" i read as a room that does not affect either speaker differently. it's a yes or no question. the answer is no, they would not sound the same. of course somewhere around 1% or less of the time that answer would be wrong because the speakers would sound the same and that would be a fluke. what i have tried to do is list the some of the top reasons why that answer is likely to be no.

i am fully capable of being wrong too.... ask my wife.

HT: Marantz SR8000, PSB Alpha B fronts, Alpha C center, CSW New Ensemble surrounds, Martin Logan Dynamo Sub, Philips DVD, Sony CRT TV

Stereos include vintage Sony receivers/amps into vintage AR and KEF speakers.

Jacob C

Re: Theoretically..

there are lots of factors, many of them mentioned above.

Jacob
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SHS

Re: Theoretically..

I would be willing to bet that with most well built speakers that are not made to be left or right biased you would not be able to pick out the difference by listening in a blind test. ie; swapping speakers back and forth. Admittedly there would be some speakers that some people could tell the difference with just listening, those of more acute hearing and tone sensitivity.

Now, measuring the differences is a different discussion altogether.

The question was "would they sound identical as well". My EX-wife says I think I'm always right.....hmmmmm, maybe hence EX.

My answer be YES, most of the time, with a few caveats.