Pockets of Sound (1 Viewer)

[Mark_Be]

I have the following equipment and setup for my entry into the HT hobby...

Equipment:
Sony STR-K840P receiver
Sony micro speakers (SS-MSP2 for R/L fronts and surrounds; SS-CMP2 for center; and a Sony sub-woofer)

Setup:
Not optimal but I have to deal with a family room setting where the Panasonic 53" TV is in a corner of the room so the R/L front speakers are actually about 3 feet closer to the listening position than the center speaker or TV and the surrounds are directly on the side of the listening position. The front L/R and surrounds are on the floor. Distance for the speakers from listening position is about 15 feet for front right (left is about 2 feet closer)and surrounds are about 7 feet from listening position directly to the side. I have set the menu options on the receiver to match this as much as possible.

My problem is that the surround speaker effects seem to be more like pockets of sound or pinpoints of sound when the effects come from them instead of feeling like I'm immersed in the sound of the movie. Unfortunately, the only comparison I have to my setup is a friend's house where the setup and speakers are MUCH better quality.
Kind of hard to explain but my system gives the sensation that the effects "travel" from the surround speakers to the front speakers instead of just being a seamless flow of sound.

My question is...will an upgrade to better speakers help this situation or is the setup of the room really the biggest problem. Hopefully, speaker upgrades will help as that's something I can do something about but I'm pretty much stuck with the room setup.
I know from reading the FAQs that my setup isn't optimal but I wanted an opinion of whether the speaker upgrade will make a noticeable difference with regard to my problem.
Thanks again,
Mark








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[Brian Johnson]

Have you bought a SPL meter yet? Just to ensure the same sound levels produced by each speaker.
Also, which direction are the rear surrounds pointing? Towards the front of the room? Facing each other? I found the best sound when they were facing each other at the sides (however I recently rigged a 4-rear surround setup with two facing each other on the sides and two pointing to the front, much better in my opinion)

 

[Mark_Be]

Thanks for the reply Brian...
I don't have a sound meter yet but a friend of mine does and I plan on using it. I did experiment with rear speaker placement and direction some more after reading your post and I think it sounds a little better with the rear speakers slightly behind me (still considered "side" placement according to the manual that came with the system) and pointing at an angle intersecting in front of the listening position.

Do you think an upgrade to the speakers will still improve on the "seamless" sound I'm after?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[Brian Johnson]

I was hoping others would chime in here =)
Maybe your buddy will bring his speakers over to let you compare.
I re-read your post. What do you mean by "the speakers are on the floor" I think all speakers are supposed to be at least ear-level if not higher.
I too hated being able to pinpoint the surround effects. The best placement I found with the 2 rear surrounds is slightly behind and above the listening position with the speakers facing directly at each other. You may feel that you need to point the speakers towards you (I did) but the placement I suggested was the best way I found to eliminate the problem.

 

[DarrellP]

You probably need to adjust the center speaker delay setting. Adjust it + - 1 ms per foot of distance that it is further/closer than the mains.

 

[Greg_R]

I haven't seen your speakers but you mention that they are 'micro' and that they are on the floor? The tweeters must be at ear level to image properly. Get some stands if this is not the case. Also try to keep the speakers at least 3ft from the front wall...

 

[Mark_Be]

Thanks very much for the help guys!
I will try raising the speakers to ear level as right now I have them literally sitting on the floor. These are micro Sony speakers so they are very small and by sitting on the floor, they are probably at least 4 feet lower than optimal. I also moved the surrounds to a position behind me and I agree that did seem to help.

Darrell,
Not sure how I can make the delay adjustment you mentioned unless that is accomplished with the "distance" setting in the menu of my Sony receiver. I only get an option for L/R distance (which I averaged at 15 feet) and a setting for center distance (which will only let me set for a distance CLOSER than the L/R speakers). The manual says the center should never be farther away than the L/R but in a corner of the room, I have no choice.

Is this distance setting what you were referring to?

Thanks again for all the help...I really appreciate it!
Mark