Do you prefer your speakers accurate/flat or "colored"?

[jumpnblues]

Discuss...

Oops, almost forgot...I like mine as accurate or flat as possible so as to establish a "baseline" in case I need to tweak them or dial them in a little. I don't like to begin with a "colored" speaker because sometimes you can't dial the coloration out. But that's just me and my ears. There are no right or wrong answer on this. It's all preference. Just thought it would make for an interesting discussion.


Tom

 

[j_garcia]

I would imagine most people would tend to prefer a more accurate speaeker vs a colored one, however nearly every speaker has some coloration to it period. I listened to a lot of speakers before ending up with what I have and I chose them because that is the sound that I like. If you look at their measurements, they are rather flat, but that doesn't translate to a flat sound.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I would like my speakers to be 20Hz - 20Khz +/- 3dB on-axis and +/- 30 degrees horizontal/vertical off-axis.

And I would like my speakers to sound GREAT to my ears.

 

[GranteedEV]

I guess if i was building a speaker/listening room, cost/size/weight no object my goals would be something like:

All drivers perfectly level matched (this means the tweeter is not run a db or two high or low, which is true of many +/- 3db speakers)
+/- 1.5 db on axis anechoically from 20hz to ~10000hz, and then maybe a 3db rolloff towards 20000hz, and 12db/octave rolloff below 20hz (or not! LOL! Infinite baffle flat to 5hz!)
Few response losses off axis (up to 75+ degrees even)
good polar response. I would even consider a 5-or-6-way speaker for this, if it weren't so complex
capable of doing 115db anechoically without compression or distortion... and lower bass (20-40hz) capable of 120db territory...
No box resonance. I prefer any warmth to come from the source and room interaction.
quick anechoic decay / ambient in-room decay

 

[gmichael]

Shooting from the hip, I’d say that I’d like my speakers to measure as flat as possible, on, or off axis. In reality, the speakers that have sounded best to my ears have been those that are about +3db in the midrange area.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well, okay, I like my speakers to have a +6dB around 20Hz-80Hz.

 

[GranteedEV]

Well, okay, I like my speakers to have a +6dB around 20Hz-80Hz.

To be fair, movie content with explosions etc is run hot as it is from the source, so if you`re flat, the sub bass would still be like 10db hot on average... Musical content IMO should be flat, but with extended dynamic capability.

 

[lsiberian]

To be fair, movie content with explosions etc is run hot as it is from the source, so if you`re flat, the sub bass would still be like 10db hot on average... Musical content IMO should be flat, but with extended dynamic capability.

Yeah but nothing is like deep bass hitting. It is mythical.

 

[Patrick Butler]

Yeah but nothing is like deep bass hitting. It is mythical.

10db hot dates back from the mythical Dolby Pro Logic days.

 

[3db]

My PSB T45s run exceptionally flat for a speaker in this price range. I'd prefer a speaker that is flat beause for the exact reasion the OP mentioned, easier to dial into a room.

 

[JerryLove]

If we start with a flat speaker (and a smooth roll-off past flat) we can adjust to taste with an EQ. The same is not true for one with spikes and dips.

 

[Pyrrho]

Discuss...

Oops, almost forgot...I like mine as accurate or flat as possible so as to establish a "baseline" in case I need to tweak them or dial them in a little. I don't like to begin with a "colored" speaker because sometimes you can't dial the coloration out. But that's just me and my ears. There are no right or wrong answer on this. It's all preference. Just thought it would make for an interesting discussion.


Tom

Most people will tell you that they want a flat frequency response. However, if they are listening to two speakers in a store, they may not actually pick the one with the flattest response as the one they like best. That can be due to many things, such as actually liking some frequencies boosted or cut, or due to other characteristics of the speakers. A lot of people like exaggerated bass, for example.

And as j_garcia pointed out already, speakers do color the sound, so it is going to be a matter of which way you want your sound colored. There is no such thing as a speaker with a perfectly flat frequency response.

 

[TLS Guy]

Well, okay, I like my speakers to have a +6dB around 20Hz-80Hz.

No wonder you don't like B & W. That is a terrible fault in a speaker system.

 

[Boerd]

Hifi is about accurate reproduction - flat signal in = flat signal out; I like flat response and wide dispersion; phase accuracy too.

 

[JerryLove]

Most people will tell you that they want a flat frequency response. However, if they are listening to two speakers in a store, they may not actually pick the one with the flattest response as the one they like best.

Based on Harmon's studies: when doing blind A-B, people with generally prefer the speaker with the flattest off-axis performance.

As for music to preference: that's why so many CDs are not mixed for accuracy.

 

[Davemcc]

I guess I'll be the first to admit that I like speakers with a coloured sound. From what I've read of the speakers I like, it's the British sound I prefer (whatever that means). When I bring my speakers home, I run them flat...no processing, no Audyssey, no Eq. I guess that's because the speaker I choose meet my preferences out of the box. Not that I haven't tried the processing and eq options in the receiver but I can't find a way to make them sound better to me than they do flat.

This seems easier and more pleasing to me than buying a technically perfect set of speakers and modifying the heck out of the signal to make it acceptable.

 

[JerryLove]

One problem would seem to be that what the speaker makes and what you hear may not line up. The speaker that sounded great when you auditioned may have a problem with standing waves in the listening room: or odd room harmonics might make problems.

We can, of course, attempt to treat a room to match what the original listening environment was; but that seems a little rough given that audition rooms will not be identical either.

And heaven forbid your tastes, or hearing, change.

But it's apparently worked for you: and I certainly cannot argue with success.

Out of curiosity: what do you consider the "British Sound"? I have both 801 Series 2 and Nautilus 801's, and both measure quite flat on-axis above 1KHz (I haven't yet done accurate woofer measurements to tell you where they remain flat to, nor much in the way of off-axis measurements: I am still getting my sea-legs here)

 

[jumpnblues]

I guess the bottom line is (predictably)...if it sounds good to you it is good?


Tom

 

[Kitsum]

I guess the bottom line is (predictably)...if it sounds good to you it is good?


Tom

That's only if you are an educated-critical-experienced listener. Otherwise BOSE is great too.

 

[GranteedEV]

I guess the bottom line is (predictably)...if it sounds good to you it is good?

no.. if it sounds REAL then it's good. Now if you don't don't know what real sounds like, you'd have a tough time judging. To be honest, I do many a time.

The reality is many speakers are made to "pretty" up some sounds but that in turn messes up others badly.