Baffle step compensation. Personally, I've never heard of it. Sounds like BS to me. But fortunately, I have had the oppurtunity to audition speakers made by Ascend Acoustics in my home. They were the fifth set of speakers tried out by me. Two sets were brands bought at local big box stores. And the two other sets were bought by internet companies. None of them survived the 30 days. One of the companies had the best fit and finish you will find on a speaker in there price range, and A-one cutomer service as well. But I found the sound of music coming out of their speakers to be unsatisfying to my ears. All of the other systems I returned were five speakers. After that many returns, I did get tired of boxing them up to ship or haul them back to the store. I began to think that maybe the wife was right. Maybe I am a nut. I decided to give Ascend a shot. Only this time would be different. I would only order four speakers. I was getting tired of boxing up speakers. Well the two Sierras arrived, along with the two HTM 200's. To make a long story short- MY SEARCH IS OVER. I am not a nut after all. These four speakers blow the gonads off the other one's I auditioned. They are excellent for home theater and MUSIC. THANK YOU DAVE!!!!!!!!