speakers not loud enough

[highfigh]

At that time I had a huge speaker system in the basement. There used to be an advert for Memorex tape, in those days, that said: - "Is it live or Memorex?" A wine glass would shatter as a singer hit a high note.

One night on our basement the system shattered a glass bowl containing peanuts. And everyone asked "Is it Memorex?" No it wasn't, it was reel to reel Ampex Grand Master on this tape recorder.

The point I'm trying to make is that a party is a difficult audio environment and precious few domestic speakers will cut it. Certainly no bookshelves that I'm aware of.

Bookshelf speakers with a sub can work but the transition needs to be done correctly. It's usually not the same as large woofers in the right enclosure, though. It just can't sound the same.

So, you didn't like the emery cloth Memorex sold? IMO, the only thing that stuff was good for was lapping tape heads before polishing.

 

[yepimonfire]

interesting about the memorex logo, i used to buy memorex tapes in the 90s and memorex CD's in the early 2000's and always wondered what was up with that logo.

 

[bandphan]

A pair of Genelec's DSP8260a (self amped) or Seaton Sparks would have played loud

 

[TLS Guy]

They need to be stand mounted, why is that outside your definition of bookshelf? IMO, any speaker that needs a stand, aside from short stubby stands, would be classified as bookshelf. I've got a pair of Boston Acoustics HD10 bookshelf speakers with a 1" tweeter, 6.5" woofer, and a 10" passive radiator and they are taller than 2 feet, but they need a stand.

Well that would include a number of pretty large speakers, that I would not call bookshelves. I think to be a bookshelf it has to be of a size that can be put on a book shelf with a straight face.

 

[markw]

AR 3's were considered bookshef speakers. That would imply some serious bookshelves.

Nowas]days, I think the terms "bookshelf" and "stand-mount" are used interchangably although I would think "bookshelf" would rule out any rear-ported speakers.

 

[Seth=L]

AR 3's were considered bookshef speakers. That would imply some serious bookshelves.

Nowas]days, I think the terms "bookshelf" and "stand-mount" are used interchangably although I would think "bookshelf" would rule out any rear-ported speakers.

Darn it, I guess I should set my Infinity IL 10 speakers on the floor.

 

[iluvsound]

Thanks

Everyone thanks for your valuable input. So is the conclusion that if I had a subwoofer along with the system, the sound from my speakers would still sound good while people were talking? I did notice that the lack of bass immediately after I turned the volume up, which did not happen normally when I listen to it on my own. Also the thinness of the sound has to do with the fact that the speakers are low end? I was looking at a pair of energy RC-10 previously but did not go for it because of its price. Would they perform more satisfactorily at a party of medium size than my sony speakers? Or tower speakers are the only way to go?
PS I owned a pair of infinity 162 last year and i also remember playing music on them at a party with about 30 people in a large room. There was also the problem with the fullness and loudness of the sound no matter how much volume I increased. And I did have them with a subwoofer but my previous receiver did not have any subwoofer terminal(it was instead connected to the speaker terminal) and only had 50 watts per channel.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

A few fat friends beat about any acoustic treatments I have ever tried.

Add 25 people and I doubt that would hold up. People are great bass traps. The problem is, if you stand people in corners and various parts of a room, you need to actually want those people to be there.

 

[3db]

I got this pair of sony ssb3000 bookshelf speakers (8 inch Kevlar woofer and a mid driver), which is supposed one of the best values you can find. When I listen to it on my own, the volume of the sound is sufficient and can be deafening. But last night I tested them at a party with about 25 people. I had to turn the volume almost to the max to hear any decent sound from the speakers. There was no distortion but the sound became very thin and did not generate any surround feeling as the voice of the crowd just smothered the sound of my speakers. My receiver is pretty good, it is Onkyo TX SR500 with 85 watts per channel. So was my speakers limiting the sound?

Too sum up the points made so far, bodies absorb low acoustic energy (bass) and inefficiencies (power handling/capabilities_ of your receiver/speakers prevent it from overcoming the acoutic mass and the background noise. The question you may want to ask yourself is...is it that important to you for your system to play strongly at parties? If you find yourself always entertaining, I'd recommend some Cerwin Vegas as they are great party speaker capable of very high output with very little power applied to them BUT at the expense of sound/tonal accuracy.

 

[GO-NAD!]

Too sum up the points made so far, bodies absorb low acoustic energy (bass) and inefficiencies (power handling/capabilities_ of your receiver/speakers prevent it from overcoming the acoutic mass and the background noise. The question you may want to ask yourself is...is it that important to you for your system to play strongly at parties? If you find yourself always entertaining, I'd recommend some Cerwin Vegas as they are great party speaker capable of very high output with very little power applied to them BUT at the expense of sound/tonal accuracy.

I agree with the recommendation. In a party atmosphere, who'll notice any loss of SQ? Maybe the golden earred snob who owns only tube amps, sitting by himself, sneering at the audio equipment.

 

[highfigh]

Everyone thanks for your valuable input. So is the conclusion that if I had a subwoofer along with the system, the sound from my speakers would still sound good while people were talking? I did notice that the lack of bass immediately after I turned the volume up, which did not happen normally when I listen to it on my own. Also the thinness of the sound has to do with the fact that the speakers are low end? I was looking at a pair of energy RC-10 previously but did not go for it because of its price. Would they perform more satisfactorily at a party of medium size than my sony speakers? Or tower speakers are the only way to go?
PS I owned a pair of infinity 162 last year and i also remember playing music on them at a party with about 30 people in a large room. There was also the problem with the fullness and loudness of the sound no matter how much volume I increased. And I did have them with a subwoofer but my previous receiver did not have any subwoofer terminal(it was instead connected to the speaker terminal) and only had 50 watts per channel.

The thinness of the sound can be from several things, including the massive clipping your amplifier was doing at the time. Remember- clipping produces harmonics of the original frequencies and since there's nothing keeping the tweeters from reproducing this, it comes out. Also, distortion in the bass range will come out through the woofer (if the original frequency is low enough and if it's somewhat higher, it will be in the mid-upper audible frequencies. Also, if you really want to play it loud, 85W isn't enough. While it's true that doubling the power would only give you another 3dB, it would also delay the onset of distortion, so 85W from a 170W amp will be cleaner than 85W from a receiver that's pushed to its limit.

To get real full-range sound, you need a woofer. A 6-1/2" speaker isn't a woofer, it's usually called a 'mid-woofer' or 'mid-bass driver'. Sure, it does some bass frequencies but not well.

Cranking a small amplifier to its limit is like trying to tow a bus uphill with a VW Bug. It may get there but it ain't gonna be pretty. Power is power, regardless of its form. To make loud music, you need to move a lot of air. Small speakers can't do this. Look at the speakers if you go to a live outdoor or arena concert - you won't feel much if they don't have a large number of woofers but it will be loud. The reason it's loud is that they're using enough amplifiers to produce tens of thousands of Watts of power. Also, how much power and how many speakers are needed is determined by the size of the space, how reflective the surfaces are, the distance from the speakers to the listeners and the number of occupants.