How to Judge Loudspeaker Sound and Accuracy

[James Fee]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/122138.html' target='_blank'>http://forum.ecoustics.com/bbs/messages/34579/122138.html</a><br /><br /></div><i>"What do we really mean when we talk about "loudspeaker sound"? We've said it - we've heard it - but what should a good loudspeaker sound like? If we are being true to the goal of seeking higher fidelity, then an ideal loudspeaker should have no "sound" at all. In other words, it should be completely transparent, an open door to the musical performance. An accurate speaker's role is to replicate--precisely--the sounds of musical instruments or voices exactly as they were present in the original source recording. The speaker shouldn't add any sound of its own--it shouldn't make strings and violins sound screechy or edgy, nor should it artificially add bass emphasis to male singers' voices so they sound too bassy or "fat" (a common fault of many speakers)."</i><br /><br />Trying to figure out the best sounding speakers is one of the hardest things to do. Everyone has their own opinions about what sounds good or what sounds "natural". On top of all that, we usually end up listening to speakers in showrooms that don't accurately reflect our home theater setups. Yikes!

[Bob12]

There used to be a chain of stores called CMC in the central US. They marketed everything audio from consumer grades to high end stuff. Their catalogs had very well thought out guides for selecting various components. Though is been quite a few years, I do remember a couple of things they said about speakers.

1. Listen specifically to the treble, cutting out the bass and midranges, if possible. Walk side to side in front of the speaker. If the trebles change dramatically as you walk to the sides, consider a different speaker.

2. Reverse the process and listen to the bass When your ear(s) is directly in the line of fire of the woofer, the bass should remain clear and not "boom" or muffle.