How big is your listening room?

[kemmler3D]

I thought it would be interesting to have some data on ASR users' rooms, since it comes up a lot and as we know determines a great deal about what systems ought to be recommended. Unfortunately it's hard to collect this information properly in the forum's multiple choice poll format, (each dimension matters, hard to have a range of options for 3 different questions) so I figured it would be much more effective to use a Google Form.

The ASR Room Size Survey

It's an anonymous poll with mandatory questions about room size, plus some optional questions about acoustics, asethetics, background noise, etc.

I'll share the data and a little analysis once enough responses are collected. Could be interesting!

The poll is totally anonymous, I think this is important as some might be reluctant to share if they feel their room is particularly large or small.

This information will be interesting for its own sake, but could also help smaller manufacturers or researchers who don't have the resources to collect their own data. Perhaps more importantly, it could correct misperceptions among manufacturers who don't bother to collect data in the first place.

 

[Ron Texas]

Not big enough. My version of ideal is large enough to get the speakers 2M from the side and back walls, a 3M ceiling, and enough room behind the LP to avoid an audible reflection. I believe the listening tests done by Toole were in a fairly large room and that may explain why members' in room measurements are so different from what the amazing Klippel predicts.

 

[JeremyFife]

Too small, and my only option for speaker placement is asymmetric with one speaker too close to a corner. Oh, and they have to be wall mounted, too high (angled down). Oh, and the only seating option is against the back wall!
Sounds surprisingly good all things considered

Could be so much better

 

[kemmler3D]

Not big enough. My version of ideal is large enough to get the speakers 2M from the side and back walls, a 3M ceiling, and enough room behind the LP to avoid an audible reflection. I believe the listening tests done by Toole were in a fairly large room and that may explain why members' in room measurements are so different from what the amazing Klippel predicts.

I'm in a similar boat. I think many of us aspire to have a "proper' listening room (with speakers well away from walls) but far fewer have a line of sight to actually putting that in place. I just signed a mortgage for a house that will never realistically have speakers 2m from the back wall, for example...

Maybe if this supposition turns out to be real, and the industry realizes this, they'll invest more in cardioid designs and ART-style DSP...

 

[JayGilb]

My room is way too small, but what it lacks in spatiality, it makes up for in SPL.

 

[Mart68]

Other than price, a good space to put the hi-fi in was my only consideration when buying a house. So even though the house is small the room is quite large, with a concrete floor.

Ideally it would be bigger but I didn't have that much money 25 years ago and I can't be bothered to move again now.

 

[Sokel]

I'm in a similar boat. I think many of us aspire to have a "proper' listening room (with speakers well away from walls) but far fewer have a line of sight to actually putting that in place. I just signed a mortgage for a house that will never realistically have speakers 2m from the back wall, for example...

Maybe if this supposition turns out to be real, and the industry realizes this, they'll invest more in cardioid designs and ART-style DSP...

I just submitted.
As long as I read my room (dedicated) is considered large-ish (about 80 m²).
Speakers are far from side walls BUT I like the big side for positioning,and that gives me about 1.5 meters for putting the speakers from the back wall and about 5 meters from the front (MPL is about 2.7 meters from speakers so front wall is about 2.5 meters from my back).
On top of that is irregular,there's no parallel walls exept from ceiling and floor.
Good thing I can do whatever I want in it,it's in the basement of my detached house with 70 cm walls of reinforced concrete and SPL bothers no one as the rest of my house is on the other floors.
All that for stereo,I don't care about more speakers

So no fairy tale,it's RT for example cannot be less than 500-600 ms across the spectrum by any means logical (it would take a gazillion of treatment) and small speakers and stuff sound like a candle in the dark (despite the fact that I hired people to fix it for me in general) .

Every room has it's horror stories I guess.

 

[NIN]

My room is around 40m2 (430 square feet) and rather good (low background noise, acoustically fixed which also suits my aesthetic taste).
If I would dream I would like a even bigger room (may be 60-75m2 / 650-800 square feet) but the sound and how the room turned out is so good I don't really looking for a change.

 

[Ken1951]

I guess I'm not, nor have ever been, a "true" audiophile. I love music and have had what's in my mind decent stuff since the spring of 1971. I have never been at all concerned with selecting a home for a "listening" room. I see pictures of such rooms that have only one seat and they seem to me so sad. But each to their own.

 

[Chrispy]

I got some error at the end of the google process, tho. Not sure it went thru.....

 

[kemmler3D]

I got some error at the end of the google process, tho. Not sure it went thru.....

If you PM some of your answers, I can check the form to see if it got recorded, if you want. These forms are usually pretty reliable, odd...

 

[kemmler3D]

I love music and have had what's in my mind decent stuff since the spring of 1971.

To me that's the core "qualification' for being an audiophile. In my mind it means caring about the sound quality in addition to whatever your feelings about music are. In theory an audiophile might not even like music, they might only listen to books on tape or watch movies... but they can still pursue good sound.

Nearly all audiophiles love music, but IMO the core of it is simply a level of interest in achieving better sound. I don't think there's such a thing as a "true" audiophile. If you take it to extremes, that doesn't make you more of an audiophile any more than jumping off a cliff makes you a "true" skier.

Perhaps a crazier, wealthier (poorer) or more serious one, but not categorically different.

 

[Waxx]

I live in an old medieval farm complex (converted to houses) so rooms are small and walls are thick brickwork largely. My room is to small for what i want, but here in the (protected) region, Le Pays Des Collines (in Hainaut, Belgium), i can't have much bigger without spending fortunes as prices are rather expensive. But the view and atmosphere of my region is also important.

 

[Chrispy]

If you PM some of your answers, I can check the form to see if it got recorded, if you want. These forms are usually pretty reliable, odd...

I just did it again and got a confirming message this time....

 

[Scgorg]

When I bought my current apartment I specifically wanted something that could be used as a listening room, so low sound transmission between units and a dedicated room was highly wanted. Ended up using the larger of the two bedrooms as my listening room. Ceiling, floor, and walls (except one) are concrete. Impact transmission losses are pretty low (footsteps can be heard rather well), but airborne transmission losses are high, owing to the very high mass of the concrete construction. I have never had any noise complaints from neighbors in the years I have lived here, and haven't felt that I am limiting my listening levels.

The room is treated.

 

[NIN]

I guess I'm not, nor have ever been, a "true" audiophile. I love music and have had what's in my mind decent stuff since the spring of 1971. I have never been at all concerned with selecting a home for a "listening" room. I see pictures of such rooms that have only one seat and they seem to me so sad. But each to their own.

One can have a listening room that are for more than one seat and nice to hang out in (IMO). Here is a picture of mine (a couple of years old, got new speakers and a framed poster in the back now).

 

[Todd k]

I have a large room 18 x 24’. I have a sloped cathedral ceiling with a catwalk and steps that dissects the room in the front door area of room. I always wondered how the room would measure and thru finding ASR and fiddling with REW and the help of our fine member sarumbear I was finally able to learn I have a nice measuring room. The Revel Salons 2 and two honking 15”monoprice an a dual 15” custom Tyler Acoustic sub I think help the room.

 

[JeremyFife]

One can have a listening room that are for more than one seat and nice to hang out in (IMO). Here is a picture of mine (a couple of years old, got new speakers and a framed poster in the back now).

Nice room!

 

[JayGilb]

I have a large room 18 x 24’. I have a sloped cathedral ceiling with a catwalk and steps that dissects the room in the front door area of room. I always wondered how the room would measure and thru finding ASR and fiddling with REW and the help of our fine member sarumbear I was finally able to learn I have a nice measuring room. The Revel Salons 2 and two honking 15”monoprice an a dual 15” custom Tyler Acoustic sub I think help the room.

Nice looking room and a really flat measurement !

 

[kemmler3D]

We are up to 36 responses, not bad for the first day. I think it would be great to get >100 responses to get a more robust analysis.

Anyone can respond, whether you normally post here or not. Break out those measuring tapes, folks!