What are the pros/cons of both front and rear ported monitors?

[EPC]

^

 

[MattJ]

In my experience, front ported speakers are somewhat less demanding in room placement, owing to the port facing into the large area of the room. The caveat with that is that port noise (if there is any) will be directed right at the listening position. Rear ported speakers should have less audible port noise, as the port faces away from the listening position. The caveat is that distance to the rear wall becomes more critical as the port may "overload" the bass if too close. I would assume that group delay may also be somewhat worse with a rear port, but I am unsure how audible group delay is at bass frequencies in any case.

 

[DVDdoug]

Technically, I don't think it makes much difference in a well-designed speaker (unless the speaker is very-close to the wall). At 100Hz, the wavelength is about 11 feet and low frequencies tend to be non-directional.

It's probably mostly because there is more room on the rear-panel or maybe the manufacturer thinks it looks better if you don't see the port.

 

[MZKM]

Front ported bookshelf speakers typically are taller, to fit the port.

 

[MattJ]

How to Get the Most Out of Your Rear-Ported Speakers

There's a lot of information out there - good and bad - about optimally placing your rear-ported speakers. We try to dispel some myths and give you some easy to follow advice on getting the most out of your rear-ported speakers.

us.kef.com

 

[puppet]

One con I can think of with a rear port is that it might end up being in a straight line with the backside of the woofer cone.

 

[Katji]

Ohh, that is probably why my Edifiers have oval ports - at the back.

 

[puppet]

The oval ports probably break up the port harmonics.