Newest piece of equipment: A couch!

Over the weekend my wife and picked up a new-to-us couch to replace the old thing we used to sit on.

I've found that my music listening experience since then has improved, and not just because I'm more comfortable, but because the height of the couch puts me more in the vertical sweet spot than the old couch did.

The setup instructions on my Epos ELS-3 speakers say that the best imaging occurs when you can just see the tops of the speakers from the listening position. Well, with the old couch I could just see the tops of the speakers, but now I can see a few degrees more and it really seems to make a difference.

There's a lot of discussion here about speaker placement, but very little of what I've seen has included a vertical component, except perhaps for the rule of thumb that ones ears should be at the same height as the speaker's tweeters. This rule of thumb doesn't hold, apparently, for my setup.

The unfortunate part about the new couch is that it is high-backed which means that I'm no longer in line of sight (line of hearing?) to the rear speakers, which is a bummer. I've thought about moving the couch back slightly and moving the rears forward and pointed them more towards the couch. I've also thought about laying them on their backs to get an indirect effect off the ceiling. Another idea is to get something to raise them up higher. I'd appreciate any thoughts that others have about rear speaker placement with a high couch...

 

I've played around a bit with the placement of rear speakers in my home theater/multichannel system. I found that, at least in my room, the best placement for the rear speakers is at or somewhat above ear height, pointed at the sweet spot and well out to the sides but only a foot or so behind the listening position (in my case, mounted on the side walls). IMO, rear wall, ceiling and floor positions are inferior, particularly for multichannel music (though acceptable for movies).

 

If you are no longer in line-of-sight to the rear speakers the couch will be absorbing some of their sound. The high frequencies coming from the rears will probably be reduced in intensity. When the rears only do ambiance this shouldn't be much of a problem, but when the rears do discrete instruments you may think they are slightly dull sounding.

If you raise the rear speakers enough so that they become line of sight the sound coming from the rear will also be coming from above. You may or may not be sensitive to this.

I wish I could suggest a sure fire solution to the problem. How about sitting on a pillow for serious listening so your ears are above the back of the couch?

 

My new couch moved me closer the sweet spot, but it is also a higher back and the direct sound boucing off the leather is a bit much.
On the bright side (not the sound), it keeps sitting straight up and not slouching. A good thing for those extended listening sessions and/or movies.

Brian

 

Since I'm put in the mood by much more than just the music, have to say that good seating is defintely a part of the mix!

Hope you can solve your little problem. Maybe Mirrors?

 

BTW, guess a couch falls into the category of a software upgrade

 

When I first went searching for a proper listening chair, I experimented with the height by moving my head up and down until I found the best spot. Then I measured that distance from my ears to the floor and used it when I went shopping for chairs. Everybody thought I was crazy in that nobody seemed to think a few inches would make much of a difference, but of course it did and does. Your ears consider everything, so let them be the deciding factor.

 

It's a rule of thumb because it works! Unless the speaker manufacturer specifies otherwise, having your tweeter at ear height is best.

 

It's a rule of thumb because it's a good starting point... in the same way that the distance between the tip of my thumb and my first knuckle is a good starting point for measuring 1 inch...

In terms of the rear speakers, I definitely noticed a big difference when listening to the Buena Vista Social Club DVD-A in m-ch this morning... I'm thinking of raising the speakers as a starting point. Previously I had my speakers arranged almost like the diagram you find inside every SACD case, so a little more trial and error is in order...

 

I also listen with high-back seating. If the rear speakers are slightly higher than your head, mostly off to the side and just slightly behind you, you may be able to find a happy medium where there is a direct unobstructed path from your ears to the speakers.

 

Dolby recommends this, FWIW........

I don't know if this is of any use to you guys but here is a link to Dolby's recommendation for speaker placement.
http://www.dolby.com/consumer/home_entertainment/roomlayout.html
I have my surrounds set up to their spec., sounds good to me.

 

What you need is a dentist's chair. There may be some used ones on eBay.

 

audiophile couches and chairs

 

Great chart, and illustrates what I was trying to say. Because of the shallow angle between the listening position and the rear speakers (what I was referring to as out to the sides and only slightly behind the listener), it is possible to use high back seating without obstructing the sound from the rear speakers.