Laying Ascend Speakers on side/horizontally?

[dlca1]

Hi All

I recently purchased a LG OLED television and am now trying to improve my audio setup too. The folks over at avsforum have pointed me to towards several of the ascend speakers. I was hoping to get some help here specific to the ascend speakers.

Question 1: I have about ~10 inches of clearance between my television and table. Also looking to keep them relatively close to the wall. ~8 inches. The left speaker would be in one corner of the room.

Are any of the ascend speakers a good choice for my constraints? (Either by laying speakers horizontally+possibly rotating tweeters or buying multiple centers?)

Thanks in advance for any tips/advice,
dlca1

Background/Details:
- Budget-- Have flexibility here. Looking for good value, but am not an audiophile. Maybe <$1000 for speakers + center, but willing to spend for the Sierra-2's if that ends up being the ideal solution. The Sierra satellites sound very interesting, but am not sure about expected pricing/availability.
- Watch TV/Netflix (70%) + listen to some music through Spotify/Amazon Prime/etc (30%)
- Yamaha RX-A1000 Receiver (Hoping not to replace/upgrade this)
- Want speakers that will sound nice anywhere in the area, not just directly in front of the speakers.
- Room (family + kitchen) is about 38' x 18'
- Have an old Energy XL-10 sub that I am going to upgrade. (maybe one of the Hsu's or Rhythmik)
- Have two young kids (2,4), so safety is a priority. (No floorstanding speakers or stands)
- Doesn't require optimal placement far away from wall. (I am about to return a set of Elac B6/C5 because they sounded boomy when placed underneath the television.)
- ~<10" horizontal clearance. (Have a little wiggle room)
- I like the ability to hear dialogue and enjoyed addition of the center when demoing the Elacs.
- WAF/Aesthetics are a plus
- I've posted pics of the tv area and layout in the first post here.
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/89-spe...l#post40526906

[Mag_Neato]

If you are restricted to placing the speakers at the back of the table than I would not spend a lot on better speakers. That's going to kill any speakers performance right off the bat. If you can pull them forward so the baffles are aligned with, or better yet, slightly extended past the front edge of the table then you will reap the benefits of nicer speakers.

In your case perhaps a sealed speaker would be best, like the HTM-200's.

[dlca1]

If you are restricted to placing the speakers at the back of the table than I would not spend a lot on better speakers. That's going to kill any speakers performance right off the bat. If you can pull them forward so the baffles are aligned with, or better yet, slightly extended past the front edge of the table then you will reap the benefits of nicer speakers.

In your case perhaps a sealed speaker would be best, like the HTM-200's.

Thanks for the feedback Ed. Is your recommendation because

1) The back-ported speakers are too close to the back wall

or

2) Putting speakers at the back of any table to keep them away from toddlers (even if I changed out with a shallower table) will kill any speaker performance. The only solution is to keep them flush or extended past the front of the table or get a sealed speaker?

[Mag_Neato]

Thanks for the feedback Ed. Is your recommendation because

1) The back-ported speakers are too close to the back wall

or

2) Putting speakers at the back of any table to keep them away from toddlers (even if I changed out with a shallower table) will kill any speaker performance. The only solution is to keep them flush or extended past the front of the table or get a sealed speaker?

Since you need to childproof the setup, having them near the wall may be your most logical placement option. A sealed design may eliminate at least one negative, i.e. boominess. I would try to at least elevate them from the tabletop with some type of foam/rubber bumpers/feet.

[davef]

A sealed design may eliminate at least one negative, i.e. boominess.

Incorrect. 8 inches is PLENTY of clearance for just about any rear ported speaker. Please refer to my prior post regarding this issue: http://forum.ascendacoustics.com/sho...2683#post52683

A sealed design, provided that it has the same F3 as the ported speaker, will sound just as boomy - assuming, of course, that a ported speaker even sounds boomy in this setup.

[Mag_Neato]

Incorrect. 8 inches is PLENTY of clearance for just about any rear ported speaker. Please refer to my prior post regarding this issue: http://forum.ascendacoustics.com/sho...2683#post52683

A sealed design, provided that it has the same F3 as the ported speaker, will sound just as boomy - assuming, of course, that a ported speaker even sounds boomy in this setup.

I stand corrected! Whatever you end up with, getting them away from the tabletop will be the best thing for maximizing their performance. .

[Todd WI]

Hi dlca1,

Placing speakers in a multi-use room is always tough, the constraints of your room and family make it particularly tough, but you already know that. So it's all about compromise. If I had your constraints, i think I'd try selling my wife on wall mounted speakers above the tv. It would be rather ugly visually, but less so sonically than speakers at the back of table or a sound bar. Mounted above the tv the kids would be protected from the speakers and the speakers would be protected from the kids.

Fwiw, I really like the Sierra 2s.

Todd

[davef]

I stand corrected! Whatever you end up with, getting them away from the tabletop will be the best thing for maximizing their performance. .

Full agree with this, however keep in mind that placing the speakers towards the back of a tabletop, as has been described, will hurt performance equally for any speaker. So, in a nutshell - the better the speaker, the better the system will still sound

[dlca1]

Full agree with this, however keep in mind that placing the speakers towards the back of a tabletop, as has been described, will hurt performance equally for any speaker. So, in a nutshell - the better the speaker, the better the system will still sound

Thanks for all the feedback everybody. It really is cool/humbling to have Dave responding to the posts!

I've been demoing speakers and one nice benefit is that it is getting the wife and I to want to listen to more music. My wife played viola through college. The toddlers are asking for songs too. I'm willing to invest in a costlier pair of speakers if it makes sense. I'd like to find the right setup where I'm satisfied and won't have upgrade-itis and keep feeling like something is missing.

I've tried out the Elac B6/Elac C5 and the NHT SuperOne 2.1's/TwoC and Martin Logan Soundbar

- The B6's sounded fine and had impressive base for a bookshelf, but were boomy in my setup. I originally thought my subwoofer was causing the problem, but unhooked it and was still hearing the same thing until I moved the speakers out.
- The NHT's sound nice and clear, but are definitely missing something without a good sub.
- The MartinLogan sound bar is fine and does a reasonable job when watching TV. I like that it takes up minimal. However, for playing music, I keep wanting that fuller feeling and larger soundstage.
- I know this is a complex equation and a large part of my dissatisfaction is probably due to my room constraints and not having an appropriate sub.


What I'm looking for:
- Something that sounds nice/full while in the family area or breakfast area.
- I've noticed I've been playing music louder and louder to try to appreciate the speakers. I would like to find speakers that sound good at lower levels. I read the Sierra RAAL might help with that.
- The GLOWING reviews of the Sierra-2's keep tugging me towards them. I've never heard them live, but really enjoyed the various youtube videos I found such as this one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RIgJlWHQnI



Questions:
- Due to my room constraints and placement at the back of the table, am I likely to keep running into similar dissatisfaction even if I got the CTM-340's or Sierras? (In other words, do I really need to consider a different placement (such as mounting) instead of forcing speakers where I'd like them)

- Could I get away with one 15" sub? The area is about 5500 ft^3, but there is a big entranceway that opens up into another large room. I know the Rhytmiks are highly recommended, but I'm leaning towards the HSU's for pure $$ reasons.
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[Todd WI]

Hi,

It's your room and your speakers, so you can obviously place them where you want to. Putting them at the back of the table will give you a first reflection off the table that may or may not be an compromise you are willing to accept. If you still have any of the speakers you tested, I'd suggest listening to them at the back of the table and at the very front of the table, preferably with the speaker slightly extending beyond the front of the table. Do you hear a difference, and if so, are you willing to accept that difference?

Todd