Time-alignment of Speakers

[Venere]

Originally Posted by chessman

If it helps, Dave Wilson also believes in propagation delay.

Ever see a Wilson setup with the subs in front of the mains?

[srosenberg]

Originally Posted by chessman

srosenberg, what are you using to delay the signal on your mains?

I am using an electronic crossover - XTA DP224 - to high pass the mains, low pass my sub, and delay the signal to the mains. I started with the minidsp but was not pleased with how it sounded. The XTA unit is dead silent and completely transparent.

[srosenberg]

Originally Posted by crwilli

On the surface, I can simply tell the MEN220 exactly where every speaker is and forget it.

However, If I understand Barry Ober's direction correctly, the system needs to have the sub fire well before the mains - equal to about 10' due to inherent delays within the JL sub electronics.

Therefore, If your mains are at 10' away, the sub needs to be at your listening position in order to be synced. That is not ideal for lots of reasons. In my case the sub is 7' away from the LP and my speakers are 12' away from the LP.

To effect a delay of the mains relative to the sub of 10' I need to have the sub fire earlier by setting its distance in the MEN220 to the distance of the mains (12') - the distance the sub is already closer (5') + the desired mains delay (10') = 17'.

I am open to learning if that is all wrong but it seems logical to me.

If your sub is 7' from the primary listening position and the mains are 12' from the primary listening position, I would start with a 7 msec delay on the mains relative to the sub and optimize from there. ie, set the mains to 12' and the sub to 19'.

[chessman]

Originally Posted by Venere

Ever see a Wilson setup with the subs in front of the mains?

I've seen propagation delay settings on his flagship speakers.

As to sub placement, that will vary by room and purpose.