NEWB question : Why do you need to plug the rear ports? (1 Viewer)

[JonathanC]

Just wondering, I have 2 titans and 2 atoms approx 2 inches from the wall and was wondering what plugging the ports would do to the sound. Also why is it recommended that you plug the ports? Could someone expand on this? Thanks.

Edit: if I have a crossover cutting some of the low bass say at 100hz would that allow me to run the speakers near the wall?

 

[JonathanC]

anybody? :frowning:

 

[Jeffrey Forner]

I'm no expert, and this answer is just a guess. If the ports in the rear are left open, the sound that comes out of them will bounce off the wall and color the sound. In other words, sound bouncing off the walls equals bad.

 

[Kerry Hackney]

I'll give it a shot... plugging a ported speaker changes the bass extension characteristics. Normally a ported speaker has a fairly fast rolloff below the tuning say 24db/octave or 4th order. The port extends the lower range that the design is capable of. When you plug the port it reduces the range and makes the rolloff more gradual... maybe 6db/octave. Sealed designs tend to protect the driver from over extension better and have a lower system Q than a ported design. Or they may sound tighter. It is generally not a good idea to place a rear ported speaker very close to a wall as it loads the port and reduces the bass extension.

The bottom line is you can't hurt anything by plugging it so try it to see if you like the sound better. If the sealed version can go low enough to get to the sub crossover frequency it shouldn't matter that much one way or the other. The bass may sound a little tighter with it plugged but it depends on the individual speaker. Way back when, a lot of speaker designers wrote off ported designs as un-musical. A lot has been learned in the years since, and there are very good designs from both camps. Let your ears decide.

 

[JonathanC]

Thanks alot, now i just have to get some plugs to try it out but as it is now I don't think it sounds bad this is why I was wondering what all the fuss about, it actually sounds great. But it doesn't hurt trying, thanks for the information.