• WANTED: Happy members who like to discuss audio and other topics related to our interest. Desire to learn and share knowledge of science required. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!

First REW in room Measurements. How do they look?

OP
MetalDaze

MetalDaze

Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2020
Messages
94
Likes
65
Don’t give up now, you’re just getting started. Less bass is unacceptable! Keep at it. :cool:

I couldn't agree more! Lol. The train keeps on rollin'. We'll find that sweet spot at the next station.
 

Jas0_0

Active Member
Forum Donor
Joined
Oct 3, 2019
Messages
285
Likes
513
I suppose while I'm being honest, but risk being exiled I'll let the cat out of the bag.
I sort of prefer the sound of my system without the EQ...?

With EQ enabled I can say I believe it's more accurate. Without EQ, although there are some ups and downs in the low end room response. It sounds more "lively" (but less accurate). This is probably leaning into the gray territory of pleasurable 2nd harmonic distortion. I also have been listening to my system this way for years, and my brain needs more time to 'break in' to the corrected room response.

Have you tried adding a bass shelf via the RME’s Bass/Treble controls? You may already know this, so apologies if you do, but psychoacoustic research finds most people prefer sound that measures with a gentle downward slope from bass to treble frequencies. So when you kill the low frequency peaks created by your room, you might end up missing some bass.

Using peak filters to even out the response (as you’ve done) then uniformly raising the whole low frequency response with a bass shelf might give you back the sound you like - only better.
 
OP
MetalDaze

MetalDaze

Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2020
Messages
94
Likes
65
Have you tried adding a bass shelf via the RME’s Bass/Treble controls? You may already know this, so apologies if you do, but psychoacoustic research finds most people prefer sound that measures with a gentle downward slope from bass to treble frequencies. So when you kill the low frequency peaks created by your room, you might end up missing some bass.

Using peak filters to even out the response (as you’ve done) then uniformly raising the whole low frequency response with a bass shelf might give you back the sound you like - only better.

Excellent suggestion. Thank you. I was sort of? doing this (but rather blindly) - by adjusting the subwoofer volume level on my pre amp in the analog domain. This sounds like a much more precise approach which wouldn't require me to constantly adjust the level according to the source material while the EQ is engaged.

I was probably aware at some point that the RME did this since I read the bible it came with. But with all other things in life happening at once. I Completely forgot about it. I really should keep the manual on an end table in the listening room. You know.. for light reading.

As if the friends I have visit don't already think I'm insane :p
 
OP
MetalDaze

MetalDaze

Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2020
Messages
94
Likes
65
Happy holidays everyone! Back with an update after a move.

The new room is a more favorable shape, rectangular and roughly twice the volume from previously at 23'7'' long x 12'4'' wide x 7' 7'' tall. A bit of a lower ceiling but it's a finished basement so that's to be expected. Along with the walls and floors being solid CMU and 100% reflective. The ceiling is drywall.

The speakers are set up full range on the short wall around 2' 8" from the wall, and 3' from the side walls. The back wall is 13.5' from my listening chair and I am 7' 8'' from the speakers. (10' 2'' from the front wall) The subwoofer is positioned at the front left corner about a foot from the wall in either direction, just behind but still very close to in line with the speakers. I still do not have any EQ implemented beyond what's available in the RME DAC (needs further adjustment) and the PEQ on the sub (finalized).

The new measurements show a better looking FR graph, albeit with a peak and resonance around 50Hz even after PEQ, and a drop off in the sub bass pressure since my single Rythmik L12 can't properly sustain the new room volume:

001.jpg


002.jpg


The resonance is better seen in waterfall & spectrogram visuals:

004.jpg


003.jpg


According to 'amroc' the worst offending node(s) seen here gather in the four corners of the room:
51.21 HzG1#1-1-0tan

I ordered a few more monster bass traps to stack in the corners from GIK acoustics, for more square footage absorption in the larger space. But they are several weeks out in production so I won't see them for over a month, and then some. I need to add a second Rythmik L12 which I can get much quicker than the panels I ordered to restore sub bass response as well as try to knock out that peak and resonance. The RT60 is great until 60Hz where it laughably goes vertical, and off the chart.

So where do I put the second subwoofer? Do I move the corner loaded sub? I had it between the mains before and there was a lack of bass around my listening chair, hence the corner move.

Research suggests the most effective solution is opposite diagonal corner so I can try starting there. Thankfully I can set the two subs individually at the back for phase and PEQ while listening to music. But for HT my receiver only has distance for 1 sub. It has 2 sub outputs but technically it is only a 7.1 receiver, not 7.2. So placing the second sub as equidistant as possible from my chair in the opposite corner makes the most sense to me as a solution to all of these things. Unless I'm missing something? Which is why I'm here!

Any help is appreciated!

Cheers
 

Attachments

  • 004.jpg
    004.jpg
    213.4 KB · Views: 50
Top Bottom