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Meanwhile, time marches on and self-powered speakers have found their way into recording studios and my own home system. In an age with well-executed DSP for level, delay and polarity compensation and parametric EQ on a chip, why on Earth would any manufacturer with state-of-the-art aspirations continue to shove passive capacitors, coils and resistors between a power amplifier and the speaker drivers? It’s practically barbaric. My “system“ consists of an Apple TV 4K, a Sony smart TV, a Dolby Atmos processor and 7.5.4 powered speakers and subs. Only the subs and the front left and right speakers sit on the floor, and I don’t own any speaker cables.
Why "on the floor" if you can place your amps beneath the floor? I once heard a setup with the monoblock amps mounted down in the cellar, just beneath and behind the speakers. The rest of the equipment (including turntable) was off in another room. Makes a lot of sense to me if you spin records and have mono amps!
Why not put it in the hole in the shelf directly behind? Looks like it is made to fit. It would save you stepping over the thing to get to records. I'd also run the speaker cable along the skirting board, to make sure I didn't get my foot caught and come a cropper.
Obviously, people can do what they want, I know it is a fashion of sorts, but there are hazards associated with wires snaking and amps on the floor, especially if people come round or alcohol is involved, more so if there is stuff you/others want to access behind the equipment.
I view any type of dedicated hifi stand as pointless ephemera, TT stand excluded. My 11 boxes are shoehorned onto a laid on its side IKEA bookshelf with zero concern for anything beyond reaching the switches. I'm not a hifi shop, why worry about displaying it nicely.
I view any type of dedicated hifi stand as pointless ephemera, TT stand excluded. My 11 boxes are shoehorned onto a laid on its side IKEA bookshelf with zero concern for anything beyond reaching the switches. I'm not a hifi shop, why worry about displaying it nicely.
Meanwhile, time marches on and self-powered speakers have found their way into recording studios and my own home system. In an age with well-executed DSP for level, delay and polarity compensation and parametric EQ on a chip, why on Earth would any manufacturer with state-of-the-art aspirations continue to shove passive capacitors, coils and resistors between a power amplifier and the speaker drivers?
I can understand passive speakers, if you sit at a desk. All powered monitors make some kind of noise (sometimes transformers, mostly hissing). In the best monitors it is quiet enough not to easily notice, but in very quiet rooms it will be above the noise floor, and noticeable, if you have sensitive hearing.
I can understand passive speakers, if you sit at a desk. All powered monitors make some kind of noise (sometimes transformers, mostly hissing). In the best monitors it is quiet enough not to easily notice, but in very quiet rooms it will be above the noise floor, and noticeable, if you have sensitive hearing.
This is not necessarily true, from a practical standpoint. There are tons of passive speakers whose amplifiers are quiet enough that hiss is only audible from a few inches away from your ear (like mine.) And if you use very efficient passive speakers, you’re probably going to encounter audible noise from a power amplifier. Besides, hiss will be LESS audible from a few meters away, not more audible.
Does furniture between your main speakers not cause additional reflections or baffle diffraction issues, even when the furniture is flush with the fronts of the speakers?
The reason audiophiles put their stuff on the floor is because they can't find audiophile grade duct tape to stick it to the ceiling. Which reminds me I need to patent cryogenically frozen duct tape and sell it for $500 bucks a roll.
Ironically they like to elevate their speaker cables *off* the floor made with audiophile grade wood. Reminds me of being a kid and running those bright orange hot wheels tracks all over the basement floor.
On a semi serious note, why do we keep our AV gear Horizontal? One thing I learned in data centers over the years and seeing a lot of expensive stuff over heat and cause data loss is large circuit boards last longer in a vertical position. Why? Convection. All my AV stuff is kept vertical no matter how goofy it looks. I've never had an amp or receiver or separate go bad. Maybe its luck, but all my audio buddies who shove their gear on tight horizontal av shelves end up griping about problems down the road. I wouldn't keep a 2U server housed like that without active cooling.
