I count myself lucky to have a 7.1 setup in my living room with a sub out in plain sight, but like most households it meant compromise to reach the minimum WAF. The rear and surround speakers are in the ceiling, my center channel is way too high, and then the obvious.... I don't have speakers out on stands. They are neatly tucked into a piece of furniture which limits the size and speaker design I can use. This real world compromise is something Gene and Hugo often consider in their youtube videos when reviewing or educating us, their adoring public.... okay their workday procrastinating public... whatever.
I would love to upgrade my speakers, but I just don't know what I'm getting into. I watched the SVS Ultra bookshelf review recently, but will they work for me?
How about a video educating us on bookshelf speakers in this common real world application?
Types of questions to cover:
What is really happening when a rear bass port is crammed into furniture like this? If plugging the port is an option, what does it do to the sound? How does the speaker / drivers compensate? Would a good quality front port speaker be a better alternative over plugging the port of a better quality rear port speaker? I assume bookshelf speakers are designed with rear ports because of the limited real estate on the front, but my Swan Diva's manage to have a front port while incorporating the same size woofer and tweeter as the SVS Ultra in virtually the same size box. So why would designers settle for building a rear port bookshelf speaker that won't perform as well when used in a bookshelf or entertainment center as the name would suggest is their intended application? Also, bookshelf speakers are usually 2 way design. Do the typical 3 way do a better job separating sounds, but usually not implemented on a bookshelf because of space concerns? Educate us please!
