Question about flooring and speakers

[Tin Ear]

While I suppose I am not entirely new to AV, I am new to this forum so ... hi .

I am in the process of going from carpet to slate flooring in my living room, which is where my rig resides. I figure I pay the bills and should not be banished to the basement . We use the system mostly for movies, but do listen to some music as well.

Anyway, I guess I should describe my setup, then my room before I get to the question:

Receiver: Yamaha RX-A2010
Television: Mitsubishi WD-82740
Front Main Speakers: Martin Logan SL3
Front Presence Speakers: None
Center Chanel Speaker: Martin Logan Theater
Side Speakers: None
Surround Speakers: Martin Logan Script
Surround Presence Speakers: Martin Logan Motion C (single, center mounted)
Subwoofer(s): Infinity PS210 (x2) flanking each Front Main (outboard)
BluRay: Samsung BD-e6500
Broadcast Source: U-Verse with Motorola box

Full system on HDMI, hardwired to home network, and misc power and cooling components.

My room is a bit strange and my house is modern with a VERY open floor plan. I am missng a wall on the entire right side, which is why it is impossible for me to run any side speakers (unless I put them in the ceiling ... nah). My room is 25 feet long by 25 feet wide ... sorta, as there is no real wall there on the right as described above to define the width. 10 foot ceiling.

My TV and components are sunken into an opening the wall donated by an old wet bar which we have removed. The SL3's sit outside the opening in the main room a good 10 inches from the rear wall with the subs just outside of that location, firing directly into the listening space.

Here is my question. I know the acoustics of my room will be changing quite drastically when I go from carpet to slate floors and have already purchased a big area rug to help compensate for that. I currnetly run the SL3's on the supplied Martin Logan spikes, which are quite long and spike them directly through the carpet to the subfloor. I could use some advice on whether I should leave the spikes on them and simply go with some of those little metal pads (spike shoes I believe some call them) or should I swap out the spikes to the also included flat pad feet that came with the speakers? I would also like to hear input on whether I should just keep the 2 subs I have directly on the floor or what benefits there may be to going to some kind of stand or platform I have seen discussed here. Thanks for any advice you all can provide.

 

[j_garcia]

In either case (carpet or slate), I would get Auralex Grammas or Subdudes for the subs. Yes, I would keep the spikes on the mains and get something to put under them.

http://auralex.com/sound_isolation_gramma/sound_isolation_gramma.asp

IMO, the speakers should be more than 10" from the wall; more like 2ft might be better, but ~10" is a good start and obviously depends on the real acoustics of the room, but generally, further from the wall is better.

 

[Tin Ear]

Thanks for the input Mr. Garcia . What benefits do you think I would get from the Auralex products? The Gramma seems almost the perfect size.

FYI, the BACK of my mains are about 10" from the wall. That makes the ESL panels about 24" from the wall, net. It seems to be a pretty good placement for them. I've tried to move them farther away than that without much real improvement ... although that too may change with the new flooring.

 

[lsiberian]

The iso pads give you isolation from the structure. I notice a reduction in sound transmission and a tightening of bass. They also makes shifting the sub very easy. Another alternative is to use rubber feet. I personally have loved my Gramma ever since I got it like 4 years ago.

 

[j_garcia]

Thanks for the input Mr. Garcia . What benefits do you think I would get from the Auralex products? The Gramma seems almost the perfect size.

FYI, the BACK of my mains are about 10" from the wall. That makes the ESL panels about 24" from the wall, net. It seems to be a pretty good placement for them. I've tried to move them farther away than that without much real improvement ... although that too may change with the new flooring.

Yeah, I was thinking the panels being further might be OK, which is why I said it is hard to really comment on without actually hearing the setup. I haven't owned electrostatics, so I don't know the best way to set them up.

I don't use a Gramma with my current sub (tried it, doesn't need it due to the design), but I got the same results as Lsiberian with my previous sub. It cleaned up the upper range considerably and helped it sound cleaner overall. Auralex is just an example, there are other ways to achieve similar results including DIY.

 

[Tin Ear]

Thanks, I'm a big fan of DIY in many cases (where I can at least hope to come out of the other end with a professional looking example). I will do some research here and see what it yields.