System calibration question relating to rear speakers

[Skav]

Hi

Tomorrow my SPL meter should be arriving and to get ready, I want to ask this question in preparation.

The rear speakers are much closer to me than the front 3, therefore the sound is quite "in your face" and distracting.

The purpose of an SPL meter is to make sure all speaker volumes are level so what happens if the rears are still too distracting?

I currently have them down by 10Db which is enough for me to hear the effects but at a more ambient feeling, which from what I know, is what they are meant to achieve.

Another quick question, is it a rule of thumb to have the tone/treble down before the halfway mark, resulting the sound to be dulled down instead of being "high pitched"?

I read this somewhere and wanted to know if this is true.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[mtrycrafts]

Hi
Tomorrow my SPL meter should be arriving and to get ready, I want to ask this question in preparation.
The rear speakers are much closer to me than the front 3, therefore the sound is quite "in your face" and distracting.
The purpose of an SPL meter is to make sure all speaker volumes are level so what happens if the rears are still too distracting?
I currently have them down by 10Db which is enough for me to hear the effects but at a more ambient feeling, which from what I know, is what they are meant to achieve.

You really need to match levels in all channels. Also, make sure the receiver has the right distance for each speaker for the right time delays.
Then, give this setup a try.
Be advised, some soundtracks in the surround are more than just ambiance. They cam be as loud as the front.

Another quick question, is it a rule of thumb to have the tone/treble down before the halfway mark, resulting the sound to be dulled down instead of being "high pitched"?

I read this somewhere and wanted to know if this is true.

Thanks for all the help!

No, that is not a rule of thumb. I would gather that by being down, you mean down from the detente neutral position? That is where you start, in the neutral position and alter it for taste, or if you are doing it with instrumentation.

 

[Skav]

Thanks for the reply.

I have already set the distance to 10.00 m on each speaker. In the instruction booklet, it said it would be displayed in feet but I guess not. 10.00 m is the maximum length I can set it to.

The rears are about 6 feet from me and front are about 12.

I understand effects sometimes are more than just ambience, I just don't like the direct radiating(I use monopole speakers) effects which can be easily localized. It distracts me.

I realise dipoles would be more to my taste in my case but need to save money up first.

Turning the volume down on the rear speakers eased this frustration but I suppose this is going to defeat the purpose of me using the SPL meter, right?

I guess I'll have to try to live with it for the time being.

Alternate placement for experimentation is out of the question.

 

[ozdvduser]

I have already set the distance to 10.00 m on each speaker. In the instruction booklet, it said it would be displayed in feet but I guess not. 10.00 m is the maximum length I can set it to.

The rears are about 6 feet from me and front are about 12.

- 10m is around 33 feet
- set your fronts distance to 3.66m & rears to 1.83m
- to convert feet to metres divide the feet by 3.28 (feet per metre)

 

[ScottMayo]

Thanks for the reply.

I have already set the distance to 10.00 m on each speaker. In the instruction booklet, it said it would be displayed in feet but I guess not. 10.00 m is the maximum length I can set it to.

The rears are about 6 feet from me and front are about 12.

A meter is about 3 feet. You've told the receiver that all speakers are about 30 feet away. Try 2.0 rear and 4.0 or 5.0 for front.

You can improvise a dipole's effect by putting a cylindar, like a fat cardboard mailing tube, directly between you and the speaker tweeter, about 1' from the speaker. When I say "improvise", please don't take it to mean anything but a very hacky tweak. This is not a true dipole, but it should mess with your ability to localise the speaker a little. No guarantee that it will improve things, but it's an inexpensive experiment.

 

[MDS]

In the instruction booklet, it said it would be displayed in feet but I guess not.

Many receivers will allow you to switch between meters and feet and I would expect that info to be in the instruction booklet too.

 

[Skav]

Hello, thank you for the replies.

I'm sure most of you think I'm a dork now for setting the metres at such a higher distance but I'm no good with maths plus I did it with a tape measure and the metres on it must have been wrong or something....or most likely me not reading it right.

Unfortunately, there is nothing in the booklet to switch it from metres to feet but it features a diagram of the display showing Feet.

Odd. Anyhow, i'll get around it.

I will correct the issue and thanks for the idea about the dipole effect idea, Scott!!

I will give it a shot.

 

[darien87]

Hello, thank you for the replies.

I'm sure most of you think I'm a dork now for setting the metres at such a higher distance but I'm no good with maths plus I did it with a tape measure and the metres on it must have been wrong or something....or most likely me not reading it right.

Unfortunately, there is nothing in the booklet to switch it from metres to feet but it features a diagram of the display showing Feet.

Odd. Anyhow, i'll get around it.

I will correct the issue and thanks for the idea about the dipole effect idea, Scott!!

I will give it a shot.

Just an FYI: I'm not sure about your receiver, but my Denon just uses the distance measurement to set the rear speakers delay. It has nothing to do with the actual volume of the surrounds. I would assume most receivers would be the same.