Does anyone else prefer a dipped midrange?

[terryforsythe]

Then you have a bit of asymmetry in the setup. If possible and with "permission" I would look if there is any way to alter position of things such that the coffee table blocks the floor reflection only and not act as first reflection from the speaker to ear. It seems that the right speaker is rather close to the coffee table to get such reflection?

I have two speaker positions I use.

In the wife friendly position, primarily used for background music, the speakers are pushed back against the wall, and the right speaker is near a corner. The coffee table is about equidistant between the speaker and where I sit. I have two Direct Live profiles set for this position using their "wide imaging" arrangement.

In the wife unfriendly position, used when she is not around and I want to just sit down for a listening session, I will pull the speakers about 55 cm from the back wall and move the right speaker further away from the staircase on the right, so it is just near the table right-back corner, which I often cover with a blanket (on a couple of occasions I actually moved the table, but it is a bit heavy). This puts the speakers equidistant from my listening position. I have two Direct Live profiles for this position set using their "focused imaging" arrangement.

 

[Thomas_A]

I have two speaker positions I use.

In the wife friendly position, primarily used for background music, the speakers are pushed back against the wall, and the right speaker is near a corner. The coffee table is about equidistant between the speaker and where I sit. I have two Direct Live profiles set for this position using their "wide imaging" arrangement.

In the wife unfriendly position, used when she is not around and I want to just sit down for a listening session, I will pull the speakers about 55 cm from the back wall and move the right speaker further away from the staircase on the right, so it is just near the table right-back corner, which I often cover with a blanket (on a couple of occasions I actually moved the table, but it is a bit heavy). This puts the speakers equidistant from my listening position. I have two Direct Live profiles for this position set using their "focused imaging" arrangement.

I think you could benefit from measure with REW and see what you get; frequency response with short window and the ETC. Reflections arriving from the front within 2-3 ms should be eliminated or damped. It cannot really be adjusted for, since such reflections interferes with directional cues used in stereo.

 

[Chromatischism]

I’m not saying a flat speaker will measure flat in the listening position.

What I’m saying is that no matter how the measurements looks like from the listening position in a regular house curve measurement, you are sure your speakers measures flat in an anarchic chamber. Then you should never make any digital correction above 500 Hz because from around that frequency, and up, you will already perceive the flat response of the speakers/the direct sound (at a normal listening distance).

We perceive the balance of it all - the direct sound, the early reflections, and sound power. This is the basis for room correction. I know Toole is against it, and I have the utmost respect for his work, but the logic just doesn't work out there. The CTA-2034 standard does not say that only the direct sound matters. In fact, it argues the opposite. Yes, room correction is a bandaid on a bad listening environment, but it can subjectively improve sound quality. Because of this, I can't agree with "never above 500 Hz".

 

[Thomas_A]

My take is that if a real source, like your own or other peoples voice, sounds "wrong" or uncomfortable in the (living) room you are spending quite some time in, you need to work on the acoustics in that room. If no problems with that, I would want my voice sound the same trough the speakers as in real life in that room. Thus, assuming a linear recording chain, I would not change a linear reproducing chain either, except for those disturbing room peaks and dips that mostly are below 200 Hz. This is however a bit from the subject of "midrange dip", which could be anything, or those small corrections 1-5 kHz that may or may not be done due to the stereo errors.

 

[jsilvela]

A speculation here: I've been learning about the Fletcher-Munson curves, loudness contours in old amps and modern revamps like Dynamic EQ.
From looking at the F-M graphs, I think that if you lower the volume "flat" as done by most amps, then you're comparatively lowering the bass and treble and boosting the midrange.
Perhaps if you listen at low volumes, a flat-midrange speaker would result in comparatively boosted mids?
Could explain the OP's preferences for a dipped midrange when listening low?