LSiC Observation

jrlouie

Hi all. Just wanted to post something I noticed that may be of help to others. I was tinkering around one night with the crossover settings on my 990. I flipped it up real high on the center channel (150-200 Hz) and for some reason it sounded cleaner. So, tonight I ran some tests with frequency sweeps and noticed that the top of the sweep (not sure the frequency but it is a subwoofer crossover sweep so it isn’t very high) was very bloated when the crossover point was set to say 60 or 80 Hz. When I flipped it back up high to 150 or so, the sweep sounded very consistent/flat. Now while watching TV, dialogue seems even more clear.
So, I tested a bit more. I put an NHT SB3 (sealed enclosure bookshelf) in place of the LSiC. No matter the crossover point, it sounded very flat/consistent on the sweep. I put an LSi7 in place. Once again bloated unless the crossover point was set really high. Then I hooked up the LSiC and placed it on top of my audio rack (less enclosed) and bam, sounded much more flat/consistent.
One other thing I tried was stuffing the ports of the LSiC. This seems to tame some of the bloatedness when in the TV stand, but it still wasn’t as good as the sealed enclosure NHT or when LSiC was on top of the audio rack.
I'm thinking the ported LSiC enclosure is resonating somewhat in my TV stand. This was a surprise to me because my stand to me seems pretty open anyway. Maybe by raising the crossover point so high I am moving those resonating frequencies to the sub, where they don't overly resonate and muddy things.
That's about the only thing I can think. Maybe I'm wrong. But if you think you might have a bloated/muddy center channel, you might what to test it out. It’s not ideal, but interesting nonetheless.
Here’s a pick of my setup.

cfrizz

Nice setup JR.

Dennis Gardner

Your stand is evidently affecting the sound of the center. The rear power ports are designed to extend the bass but any type of enclosure or stand may have adverse affects.

You may also have issues with how close to the wall your right channel tower is. If movies are your only source, you may be okay, but for music, I would spread things out a bit and toe them toward my seating.

jrlouie

Dennis Gardner wrote:

Your stand is evidently affecting the sound of the center. The rear power ports are designed to extend the bass but any type of enclosure or stand may have adverse affects.

Agreed.

Dennis Gardner wrote:

You may also have issues with how close to the wall your right channel tower is. If movies are your only source, you may be okay, but for music, I would spread things out a bit and toe them toward my seating.

Yeah, I wish I could. It wouldn't pass WAF factor (although I don't have a wife or family in my apartment). Someone needs to come up with an acronym for the girlfriend/roommate factor It would make the entrance to the bedroom door on the left too narrow. I need to move

jrlouie

cfrizz wrote:

Nice setup JR.

Thanks!

wallstreet

I'd say xover the center at 150 and move on until you have a better front stage to deal with. You've got so many hard surfaces, you most likely have some standing waves/reflections impacting sound quality. Have you tried some acoustical treatments?

JimBRICK

that tv is awesome, sony sxrd tvs rule

jrlouie

wallstreet wrote:

I'd say xover the center at 150 and move on until you have a better front stage to deal with. You've got so many hard surfaces, you most likely have some standing waves/reflections impacting sound quality. Have you tried some acoustical treatments?

No. Considering I don't even know if I'll be here past June, investing in acoustical treatments aren't logical. Most definitely once I settle into somewhere that I know I'll be for a while, softer surfaces will be more prevalant.

jrlouie

JimBRICK wrote:

that tv is awesome, sony sxrd tvs rule

Thanks! Yeah, I like it. Amazing picture smoothness yet extremely detailed. Their only flaw is that some TV's have exhibited color uniformity issues. Mine has not. Hopefully they will never develop I have had friends come over and say they're buying the exact same TV because they have not seen anything better.

cfrizz

If there is one thing Sony knows how to do, that is make nice tv's!