I now have my SPL meter and using the Avia disk have now balanced my speaker levels manually (but have left the EQ settings to what ever the Yami selected). A couple of observations when using the test tones:
1) The vol levels were not toooo different from that the Yami Auto setup did
2) You can really pick the defused nature of the QS8 over the direct radiating front stage.
3) The cross over for LFE from the speakers to the sub is perfect at 80mhz…well I can not pick the transition!
After all this I now know why the sub is causing me grief. I still have to have the EP500 turned way down both in the Amp and at the back of the EP500 to have it “balanced” according to the SPL readings. Unfortunately it is all too obvious that much of the recorded sound levels were the vibrations from my doors, windows, light fittings, wood floors, glassware and even one of the walls felt compelled to join the fun at different frequencies.
I am amazed at how poor my room is at handling LF and now terrified that there is no easy fix!
I’d characterise this room as acoustically “hard” as it has
* a suspended floor boards (eg build on footings),
* front and back “walls” are wooden sash hung windows / doors (with only light weight curtains),
* the right hand wall is that “fake” wood panelling attached directly to the frame,
* half the left hand is opens to the dining room with the other half leading to a hallway that can be closed off by French style doors that also rattle like a banshee, and
* at least the ceiling is of old style heavy plaster / fibre.
Any advice over either moving house of completing gutting the room would be gratefully appreciated!
I’ve even thought I could ditch the whole setup for a Bose Cube or even those US$70 Radio Shack speakers that I saw when getting my SPL meter today. Imagine the bliss, I could go back to the “good old days” where:
1) I didn’t have to re-rip all my music to a lossless format (because let’s face it MP3’s may sound good in your car or portable player but just suck with the Axioms)
2) I was never annoyed (because I never noticed) the dynamic compression on some CD’s (what are they thinking when the master some of these!)
3) I’d never head of sibilance and that some artists really need to be more careful in making their recordings
4) FM was high fidelity
5) My family and friends didn’t think I have some weird sonic compulsion
**** Ignorance was Bliss! ****
