Speaker Height Help!!!

len-morgan · Post by **len-morgan** » Wed Apr 26, 2006 6:34 am

I need to figure out how high to mount my speakers and I don't want to bother Steve with ANOTHER PM. My situation is a little different since I have 3 "speakers" on each monitor. There is a tweeter on top, a 6.5" woofer in the middle, and an 8" passive radiator at the bottom. I'm not sure whether I should line up the middle of the passive radiator to my ear height or to the middle of the "true" woofer.

Any help would be appreciated (I'm going to be cementing my speaker pillars together in the morning and I need to know when to stop!

Thanks!

len

camistan · Post by **camistan** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 1:55 am

Hey Len

Wish I could help you on this one but I'll have to leave that for the experts. I plan on doing the same thing (building a concrete piller) for my speakers so I'll be following what you do with great interest. The only one I can think of that may be able to help is Aaron.

Hope you get the info you need soon.
BTW...where is Steve? I believe he had computer problems...that still the case?

len-morgan · Post by **len-morgan** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 2:08 am

Thanks for the reply Stan. I was beginning to think it was my breath! I hadn't heard from anyone about this.

Saturday we are going to start doing the pilars (we got the framing for the speaker walls done last night). I don't think the pilars are going to be much of a show but I've got what I think is a neat idea for mounting the speakers themselves to the pilars that you might be interested in.

The basic idea is that on the top cinderblock, I'm going to embed two anchor bolts and then when it cures, bolt a "table top" of wood to those bolts. This platform will be wider than the pilar and I'm going to put 4 long carriage bolts (two on either side) and then put on some lock nuts, washers, another wooden platform, and then more nuts and washers.

This top plate is what the speakers are going to sit on. Since there are 4 bolts/nuts on it, I should be able to adjust the top plate for not only height but also plumb and level just in case the cinderblocks are a little off. This arrangement allows me to use common cinderblocks and not have to comprimise the speaker height (because the ideal height might be more than 3 blocks but less than 4). Keep your fingers crossed that it works as well in reality as it does in my mind.

len

David French · Post by **David French** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 3:13 am

Len, that's witty what you plan to do with the platform!

I would build the stands such that your ear falls between the midrange driver and the tweeter.

len-morgan · Post by **len-morgan** » Sat Apr 29, 2006 3:18 am

Thanks for the reply David. Since you're the closest to an expert that's weighed in on this, I'll go with that measurement. But I'm still going to make my shelf "adjustable" just in case. Besides, I may change my monitors some day and this would allow me to adjust for them too.

len

len-morgan · Post by **len-morgan** » Mon May 01, 2006 11:50 pm

If you want to see the speaker pilar construction and my adjustable shelf, please see my studio build thread.

Post by **John Sayers** » Tue May 02, 2006 12:30 am

It works out at 4 feet typically. Too low and they fire into your Screens and the back of the console. The container studio is 4 feet. If you want them higher at 5 ft you have to lean them forward.

cheers
john

len-morgan · Post by **len-morgan** » Tue May 02, 2006 12:49 am

John, I guess my question is "what" works out to 4 feet? The middle of the speaker? The tweeter? Woofer? Bottom of cabinet?

I know this is talked about elsewhere but as I said, what makes my situation a little different is that I have a "true" woofer and a passive radiator woofer and I didn't know which one of these I should be lining up with. I think my "adjustable" pilars allow me enough range that I could cover either contingincy but I don't want to waste a big piece of MDF for the baffle if I'm going to have to move the hole again because I've got them at the wrong height.

len

AVare · Post by **AVare** » Tue May 02, 2006 1:52 am

Easy point to use is the tweeters. That is for speaker height.

Don't get too hung up on it being exact. How many ahve identical heights so that their ears are in exactly the same location?

Post by **John Sayers** » Tue May 02, 2006 9:46 am

I meant the bottom of the cabinet Len.

cheers
john

knightfly · Post by **knightfly** » Wed May 03, 2006 11:03 am

For modal considerations, use the center of the ACTIVE woofer - don't put it at a half-way point between ceiling and floor, or you'll likely fry your speakers before you get enough low end. As to "aiming", the tweets are MUCH more directional so they should be aimed at (or close to) a spot about 10" behind your head (since you'll not be the only listener, and this widens the sweet spot)

BTW, computers are fixed; available time for projects isn't, however, so I'll probably be somewhat scarce for some time to come - PM me if you need quicker response, and include a link to your thread so I can answer publicly... Steve