Some Comments About Speakers_23; Tonal Balance; Speaker Placement - Rotel RSP-980 Owner's Manual

RSP-980
Conseguentiv, you'll find that the characteristics of the original
recording will have a larger influence on final sound quality than
they could if subjected to highly artificial manipulation.
The On-Screen Display's labels (MUSIC, JAZZ, CONCERT, and
STADIUM) only hint at the acoustical characteristics typical of a
particular venue. Please experiment to see which setting is most
pleasing to you.
The only exception to this rule is our recommendation that you
play all Dolby Surround-encoded sources using the Dolby Pro
Logic mode. This insures optimum decoding accuracy and the
most realistic recreation of the acoustic space intended by the
source's creators.
Whether you choose to add THX enhancements to Dolby Pro
Logic decoding is up to you. We suggest that Dolby Pro Logic
alone will work very well for properly encoded audio-only
sources and that you reserve THX circuitry for audio/video
sources.
Some Comments about Speakers
Your speakers are the single most important component in deter¬
mining its ultimate sound quality. Where you put them in your
room is the most important decision you can make after you get
everything home.
Rooms are very tricky. Essentially a resonant system (a mass of
air bounded by walls, floor, and ceiling), all rooms influence how
sound waves spread out from the speakers and how we per¬
ceive the result.
The following comments won't turn you into en acoustics expert
but they will supply some thoughtful clues on how to proceed. Of
course, we realize that the practicalities of daily living will guide
your choices as much as anything else but we thought you'd ap¬
preciate some basic background to get you started.
As with everything else in the realm of home entertainment,
you'll need to experiment a bit to get the best results. But if you
relax and enjoy the opportunity to learn a bit, you'll drastically
improve your system's ability to deliver what it's capable of.
Have funi
Tonal Balance
Choose your home entertainment system speakers carefully. At
Rotel, we consider wide frequency response (with or without a
subwoofer), smooth octave-to-octave tonal balance, low distor¬
tion at normal operating levels, clarity, and definition absolutely
essential. High power handling may also be desirable but this is
a judgement call you need to make for yourself,
if
you anticipate
shaking the foundations of your home, you might consider THX
certified speakers as they have been tested at high volumes and
will probably satisfy even gourmand-sized sonic appetites.
All speakers, especially the Left Front, Center, and Right Front,
should match each other in tonal balance as closely as possible.
In fact, these speakers should be acoustically identical but this
is a difficult goal, particularly if you buy a center channel
speaker from one manufacturer to complement a pair of main
Left and Right speakers from a different manufacturer you al¬
ready own. Ask your dealer for assistance here.
The bestwayto judge tonal balance is, surprisingly enough, not
to use music or a movie soundtrack at all. These sources change
too rapidly to allow us to judge tonal balances accurately. In¬
stead, use the RSP-980's test tone generator or an unmuted FM
tuner set to a frequency between actual broadcasts. In either
case, you'll get a "rushing water" noise that will show speaker
differences very quickly. If you're choosing a center channel
speaker, use your main speakers as a reference: Pick a center
channel speaker that sounds closest to them in sound quality.
You'll be surprised at the differences you'll hear but we suspect
that you'll find this time well spent.
Surround speakers present different challenges. In general, you
don't need to match tonal balances as critically as you should for
the front speakers. (After all, the very shape of your ears means
that you hear sounds from the rear differently than you do
sounds coming from in front of us,j However, that doesn't mean
you should choose inexpensive speakers for surround informa¬
tion. They should match the front speakers as closely as possible
to ensure smooth "pans" (transitions) from front to surround
channels. Similar tonal balances between front and surround
speakers also increases the effectiveness of the THX Timbre
Matching circuits for even more realistic spatial reproduction.
What will you gain with properly matched speakers? The most
important is a far better chance to create a seamless and coher¬
ent soundstage where side-to-side and front-to-rear movement
is smooth and undisturbing. Sonic images will remain at the
same apparent height as they move from side to side across the
front and a Ferrari will not suddenly sound like a Lamborghini as
it moves from right to center.
Proper speaker selection and matching is one of the not-so-
subtle but often overlooked things that distinguish truly fine from
merely acceptable systems. Ask your Rotel dealer for assistance
here. It will be worth iti
Speaker Placement
Speaker matching is not the only critical task ahead of you.
Proper speaker placement is equally important! In fact, some
would argue that placement is even more critical. We'll let the
experts argue this one but we will say that proper placement is
often the difference between mediocre and superb sound.
The good thing about proper speaker placement is that it doesn't
cost extra. After all, you already have the speakers and the room
they're going in. The trick now is to put the speakers where they
and the room will best complement each other.
Front Speakers
Start with the main speakers. They should flank the monitor but
have enough space between them to allow the center channel
speaker to function effectively. Also, remember not to place the