A real room quandry...

[bakerman]

You wanted suggestions so here goes... If it were me I would use the built-ins for storing my equipment, place the speakers on either side of the fireplace, have the sofa face the fireplace, and move the piano to the wall where that piece of furniture is to allow a flow through that area.

[Freestone]

I absolutely would try to flank the fireplace with the speakers.

Put another seating area on the other side to get the light.

[jwhite613]

Originally Posted by bakerman

You wanted suggestions so here goes... If it were me I would use the built-ins for storing my equipment, place the speakers on either side of the fireplace, have the sofa face the fireplace, and move the piano to the wall where that piece of furniture is to allow a flow through that area.

+1

[Clarifixer]

The only thing with flanking the fireplace with the speakers is I'd be right back with having one wall on the right and open space on the left. The view of a crackling fire whilst listening would be wonderful, though. Compromise........yikes!

Great input, folks. The more options, the more confusion, but ultimately the better decision.

[mbovaird]

Originally Posted by Clarifixer

The only thing with flanking the fireplace with the speakers is I'd be right back with having one wall on the right and open space on the left. The view of a crackling fire whilst listening would be wonderful, though. Compromise........yikes!

Great input, folks. The more options, the more confusion, but ultimately the better decision.

I would suggest the speakers go where the two chairs are now.....in other words, if you are facing the fireplace, the wall to the right. Here's what would help: Dimensions. How wide is that wall? How far back would you be from the front of the speaker, assuming you leave 2-3 feet BEHIND the back of the speaker? We are trying to achieve a 82% ratio as a starting point.

Mike

[jimtranr]

If SWMBO consents to the move and you're considering configuring the system centered on the fireplace, keep in mind that the reflective surface of fireplace brick or whatever presents its own issues. I know--I have to deal with a ceramic-tiled one between my speakers (and an open space part way on one side and windows on the other and some other stuff you don't want to hear about). The only satisfactory sonic solution I've found is to place a couple of 11"-diameter traps atop the hearth, one of them at the midway point of and behind the speaker plane (recognizing that in doing so my SWMBO may never again make me a chocolate whipped cream cake).

One other potential issue in that room is your console piano. I have a lower-profile spinet along one side wall near my listening position, and I've had to trap it to minimize sympathetic-vibration "ringing," especially during room-energizing medium-loud to loud passages.

That said, it looks as if that room presents far less acoustic liability than the system's current placement.

[GIK Acoustics]

For the record, I think you could achieve similar results in both rooms. The only problem is treatment seems less possible in the lit up room due to windows. But if diffusors and panels can still be used in there, you could simply do treatment on stands to distance them some bit away from the windows. You'll likely still need panels in on stands in the room with the fireplace too, so...

Personally, I'd rather listen in the lit up room though both rooms are beautiful. You could focus most bass treatment on the ceiling as to not take away from the views, and minimally treat the side areas. Maybe only treat first reflections and nothing else on the side walls.

[Antonmb]

A beautiful place. Here's another option if the fireplace room doesn't work out. Install remote operated cellular shades, they will give you some absorption and dispersion. Lutron has battery-powered shades so you don't have to run new wiring, and the remote will allow you to adjust them from your listening seat - lower for serious listening, raise them when you're done. Make them translucent so you still get some light, and let your significant other pick them out.

[Clarifixer]

Update--My wife is cool with changing the system location to the fireplace room! Dang, what a woman.

Originally Posted by mbovaird

I would suggest the speakers go where the two chairs are now.....in other words, if you are facing the fireplace, the wall to the right. Here's what would help: Dimensions. How wide is that wall? How far back would you be from the front of the speaker, assuming you leave 2-3 feet BEHIND the back of the speaker? We are trying to achieve a 82% ratio as a starting point.

Mike

The total room width with the two chairs and cabinet is 19 feet. However, the door way is a wide 5 1/2 feet, so the actual reflective wall is 13-1/2 feet. Obviously the speakers would have to be placed strategically along that solid wall. I can go as far as 4 feet from the wall to the speaker face, although the Snell C/IV's I'm currently using call for less with the rear firing tweeter. (Opens wallet and watches funds fly off to audio la-la land)

The depth of the "room" (i.e. the fireplace wall) is 16 feet although there is no actual back wall until the previously mentioned window wall 33 feet away. So even with the speakers 4 feet from the front wall, I'd still have 12 feet to work with from the speaker face to the "back wall."

jimtranar--Egad, I can't believe I didn't think of the piano ringing sympathetically. That could be fairly major! Thanks for pointing that out.

[mbovaird]

Originally Posted by Clarifixer

Update--My wife is cool with changing the system location to the fireplace room! Dang, what a woman.



The total room width with the two chairs and cabinet is 19 feet. However, the door way is a wide 5 1/2 feet, so the actual reflective wall is 13-1/2 feet. Obviously the speakers would have to be placed strategically along that solid wall. I can go as far as 4 feet from the wall to the speaker face, although the Snell C/IV's I'm currently using call for less with the rear firing tweeter. (Opens wallet and watches funds fly off to audio la-la land)

The depth of the "room" (i.e. the fireplace wall) is 16 feet although there is no actual back wall until the previously mentioned window wall 33 feet away. So even with the speakers 4 feet from the front wall, I'd still have 12 feet to work with from the speaker face to the "back wall."

jimtranar--Egad, I can't believe I didn't think of the piano ringing sympathetically. That could be fairly major! Thanks for pointing that out.

Given that you will want some space behind the speakers and to the side of the speakers, I think positioning the speakers against that wall (if you're looking at the fire place, to the right) is the best.

Move the speakers 3 feet out into the room (back of the speaker to the back of the wall is 3 feet). Set the speakers so that they are 10.66 inches apart (measuring from tweeter to tweeter).

Ideally, move the gear to where the piano is and move the piano to the room with all the glass. If this isn't possible, then put the gear between the speakers....but do realize, this will have some negative affect on sound diffusion.

Mike