Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Rate Thread
Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4
New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
#167953 05/11/07 12:40 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
S
strat63 Offline OP
frequent flier
OP Offline
frequent flier
S
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
I just got a pair of M3's and am very dissappointed at the lack of bass. Obviously I don't expect it to be overpowering but it needs to be there in the mix somewhere. I've also been auditioning the Era Design 4 which is much smaller but it has impressive bass response.

Do these speakers require much break in time? I've read many posts where people where blown away by the M3 right out of the box. I was hoping for the same feeling.

On the plus side, the speakers look very nice in the cherry finish. If the sound comes around, I'll be a happy man.

D

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
strat63 #167954 05/11/07 01:40 PM
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 16,441
shareholder in the making
Offline
shareholder in the making
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 16,441
The speakers require no break in time. Can you tell us about your setup? How big is the room? How are the speakers arranged? How far do you sit from them? Are they connected to a receiver, and if so, is any sort of crossover enabled? There are many variables to work through here.

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
pmbuko #167955 05/11/07 01:55 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
S
strat63 Offline OP
frequent flier
OP Offline
frequent flier
S
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
Here's the setup.
Cambridge Audio 540a V2 integrated amp
Cambridge Audio 540a CD Player
Audioquest cables

Speakers are placed 6' apart, about 18" from rear wall, 5' from side wall. Main listening position is about 7' from speakers. The room is rather big and doesn't lend itself to many different configurations.

This setup worked great with the Era Design speakers I mentioned above. I have no choice in crossover using my integrated amp.

D

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
strat63 #167956 05/11/07 02:12 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
S
strat63 Offline OP
frequent flier
OP Offline
frequent flier
S
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
I do want to add that the M3's do sound good. They are very clear and detailed in the mid's and high end. It just appears that the bass sits back in the mix a little more than I expected.

I'm also noticing that my setup is not very forgiving to less than stellar recordings.

D

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
strat63 #167957 05/11/07 02:40 PM
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 853
aficionado
Offline
aficionado
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 853
Quote:

Here's the setup.
Cambridge Audio 540a V2 integrated amp
Cambridge Audio 540a CD Player
Audioquest cables

Speakers are placed 6' apart, about 18" from rear wall, 5' from side wall. Main listening position is about 7' from speakers. The room is rather big and doesn't lend itself to many different configurations.

This setup worked great with the Era Design speakers I mentioned above. I have no choice in crossover using my integrated amp.

D




Moving the speakers to 4-6" from the backwall should give you some low frequency boundary reinforcement.


John
Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
jakeman #167958 05/11/07 02:55 PM
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,351
connoisseur
Offline
connoisseur
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,351
I second moving the speakers further back. About 6 inches from the back wall is good for increased bass response.

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
ravi_singh #167959 05/11/07 03:06 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
S
strat63 Offline OP
frequent flier
OP Offline
frequent flier
S
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
I'll give it a shot. Thanks for the suggestion.

D

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
strat63 #167960 05/11/07 03:10 PM
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 320
devotee
Offline
devotee
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 320
Take a look at this graph of the Era 4. The - 3dB roll off appears to be around 80Hz (I'm eyeballing it), but there is a pronounced hump in the 100Hz to 200Hz range. That could account for some of the perceived difference.

The M3s actually go lower (closer to 60Hz), and have also have a hump, but again lower than the Era 4 as seen in this M3 graph [Crud, that only gets you to the M3 page, but click on the link labeled Graph in the specs section]. On paper, you would think the M3 should outperform the Era on the low end. But there may be some midbass emphasis in the Era 4 that you prefer.

Do you really have the M3s set up in the (exact) same place you had the Era 4s? As was mentioned, you could definitely move them closer to the wall to gain some reinforcement. But it could be that you just prefer the sound and character of the Eras.

Rich

Last edited by samandnoah; 05/11/07 03:13 PM.
Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
samandnoah #167961 05/11/07 03:26 PM
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
S
strat63 Offline OP
frequent flier
OP Offline
frequent flier
S
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 10
Rich,
Thanks for the info. The M3's are in the exact spot as the Era 4's. I'm going to try to change the placement to see if I can get the bass a little closer to my preference.

I really want to make the Axioms work because they are about half the price of the Eras. It might just be that I like the others better but I'm going to take advantage of the 30 days just to make sure.

D

Re: New M3's lacking low end. Any suggestions?
samandnoah #167962 05/11/07 03:31 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 10,490
Likes: 116
M
shareholder in the making
Offline
shareholder in the making
M
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 10,490
Likes: 116
Richard is right. And what's important to note is that the Era 4 response was measured quasi-anechoically. The M3's response was measured anechoically. So the M3 has much better low frequency response. Moving them closer to the wall should improve the bass.

Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4

Moderated by  alan, Amie, Andrew, axiomadmin, Brent, Debbie, Ian, Jc 

Link Copied to Clipboard

Need Help Graphic

Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics24,940
Posts442,457
Members15,616
Most Online2,082
Jan 22nd, 2020
Top Posters
Ken.C 18,044
pmbuko 16,441
SirQuack 13,840
CV 12,077
MarkSJohnson 11,458
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 386 guests, and 4 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Newsletter Signup
Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.4