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My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 4:18 pm
by Daniel Quinn
Following a momentary lapse of reason , I have acquired a partner and 3 step children and lost my bachelor pad with 5m[w] x 9m[l] x 3.5m [h] living room dedicated to hifi.[ see picture elsewhere on the forum] :o :doh:

This weekend Sonia [ this is the name given to my hifi by the aforesaid four :snooty: ] and I relocated to an adult room which is virtually a square box 3x3x3, bar the bay window . The sound is currently unsatisfactory . :violin: :x
My homemade speakers which were lovingly built upon principles advocated by the doc [ series wiring no crossover on bass drivers etc ] are too large and remain in storage . They have been temporarily replaced with Wharfedale diamond 10.3, bought solely because I am impatient needed something for xmas , had reasonable reviews [ yep i did say that ] and were only £85 clearance from richer sounds [ no boxes or dust covers ]
They don’t sound to bad – only listened for ½ hour, but voices are good, there is detail, perhaps not as much ? and nuance and inflection on voices and plucked instruments . Drums sound good and dynamic and i can pick out the different types of drums being hit by Collins , alas the soundstage is piss poor , there is a central image , however , there is no extension beyond the boxes and air between instruments is none existent , its throwing the sound at me currently . I am on the verge of giving up and learning how to build a sovereign style breeze block room in the garden .

However ,at present and before i take apart the diamonds and hard wire and simplify the crossover my immediate problem is that the pink triangle subchasis bounces with every footfall.
I have sunk Phillips head screws in to the wooden floor which is fitted on to a concrete floor . The oak table , is fitted with spikes and these fit in to the phillps heads in the floor . on top of the table sits a marble stone square separated from the table top by plastic blobs the pink sits on top of the marble separated by 3 pieces of plastic at each back corner and the middle . The pink as no base plate .

Any and all ideas accepted gratefully , bar a wall shelf and move back from whence one came .Forget about it and watch tv for the next 15 years or buy some headphones are the only two so far .

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 4:24 pm
by Dr Bunsen Honeydew
I am afraid the answer is wall shelf, though some have had success with a paving slab, but that depends on how much movement there is in the floor. You should have bought a pair of these JPW minis we keep going on about (see wallace), they are far more open than Diamonds.

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 5:19 pm
by Daniel Quinn
Dr Bunsen Honeydew wrote:You should have bought a pair of these JPW minis we keep going on about (see wallace), they are far more open than Diamonds.
i looked at them and also those gromit just bought , but I couldnt get any guaranteed for x-mas and they also introduced the secondary issue/expense of stands .The 10.3 are small floorstanders and do have a simple crossover . I have a feeling there will be lots of ins and outs over the next year or so .

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 6:05 pm
by Dr Bunsen Honeydew
Well DQ join in the system review thread and give us the low down of how you got here - not the relationship that is :whistle:

There is always Image that is my last resort, but then she smiles and cuddles me and I do as I am told.

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 7:56 pm
by wallace
Just say the word Danny Boy and i can get my spare pair of Mini Monitors to your house by UPS in two days time.Packing them up will give me something to do tommorrow while her indoors goes swimming.You can stick em on top of the 10.3's.You never know ,you might like them,and it would stop you worrying about the rest of your problems for a bit. :lol: Serve you right ,should have kept it in your trousers :hand: :naughty: :violin: :whistle: :dance:
Mind you i also have a spare pair of Alesis Studio Monitor One Mk2's,but i will want some money for them.....but not much..

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 9:10 pm
by applemarc
I have a really nice pair af AR18s in nice 80's teak

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 2:11 pm
by Daniel Quinn
Wallace , Mark ,thank you for your kinds offers ,but i going to see what I can do with the Dimonds over the xmas period . its all a learning experience after all. I may take you on your offers in the new year though.

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 6:53 pm
by wallace
Well have fun,and considering that you have previous for self harm,be careful with that soldering iron. ;)

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 7:05 pm
by applemarc
Yes no trips to the Hospital needed over the next week or so

Re: My hifi is a disaster 1 problem at a time .

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:19 pm
by guydarryl
Hi Daniel,

Sorry to hear about your music problem (but congratulations on the family!).

Perhaps stating the obvious but have you tried the various permutations of speaker placement that the bay allows in you 3x3 box? If nothing else it wil give you something to play around with for no cost.
Before we extended our front room we had a similar situation and I felt that putting the speakers in the bay worked well, both in terms sound and use of space (now we have a much longer room I prefer the speakers "firing" down the length of the room).

Best wishes. Guy.

Whoops! just read the "user review" thread, and given your comments regarding your earlier interest in tweaking I would assume that you will definately have played around with the position of you speakers.