Distance of speakers from wall behind them

I had thought I heard Paul say 4 feet to place speakers from the wall behind them.

This article says no more than 60cm (2 feet).

how do you guys have yours placed relative to the wall behind them?

Thank you -I’m sure this has been covered before

I would think it certainly would depend on the speakers, the room, your frequency balance taste, etc.

In my two systems with speakers (both are Decware HR-1) in two rooms. . . one are about 20" from the wall, the other about 25". . . . I can get a more amazing soundstage moving them further into the room (when my wife is not around) but I lose bass weight.

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There is no “one size fits all” on this. My speakers are 7 feet from the wall behind.

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Thanks
Mine about 4 feet now
Do u measure from front of speaker ?

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I have subs x 2
Would think that would help compensate for loss of bass from having them further out into room

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Could be. I have very little experience with subs, have never felt the need for ultra low bass, it’s mid bass and low bass that I feel the loss for. Experiment and see what sounds best, your ears will tell you.

My measurements were from the rear of the speaker.

Bingo.
You can achieve better imaging with the main speakers further out and not suffer bass loss with the 2 subs located where you like their sound.
And yes, my measuring is from the front face of the tweeters.

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However far the distance you place from the wall behind the speakers… the real goal is to get a precise distance from the front speaker baffle to your ears…always measure from the front baffle to your ears as close as possible (I use a laser ) because most room boundary’s are not square…The best possible imaging will result by following this rule of placement !

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This is an infinitely complex subject that will change your sound more than cable or equipment changes IMO. I would research this:

WASP(Wilson Audio Setup Procedure)
Cardas Speaker placement
Acoustic Fields Two Channel Speakers - System setup in your room.

I sure had lots of fun and frustration but it’s all free to try.
Cheers

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Thanks all
Mine are about 4.5 feet from back wall (using the front of the speakers )
With 2 subs.
It sounds great
Funny thing about this hobby.
You think things are great but then u read something and suddenly you think things aren’t great

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As others have commented it is system and installation specific. There is no one size fits all, no matter what others may lead you to believe. Once speakers are in a general spot where the sound comes together for you very minor adjustments may help further improve the sound, tighten up images, and open up the soundstage. It’s really on you. George Cardas had a general rule of thumb that may help you get started, and I do recommend it as a starting point.

Cardas Speaker Placement

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51" (measured to the speaker back surface). But, my ‘back wall’ isn’t easy to define. It’s a combination of plasterboard wall and nearly ceiling to floor windows offset from those plasterboard support columns by a good 1 1/2 feet. 51" references the distance to the windows. Like many others, the geometry of my listening environment is irregular because I don’t have the luxury (I wish I did) of a dedicated listening room. It’s a complex combination of living room and kitchen (with island) that imposes constraints on what I can do with speaker placement. Oh, my large monitors (Salks) are rear ported, which means placement by ear has been focused on how to best deal with that rear port for best bass performance. None of this will be relevant for any elses environment or equipment. And we haven’t gotten into the complexity of open-back dynamic speakers or bi-polar panels.

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7ft. Would love to have 14ft as I know a setup like this :wink:

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Roughly 4 feet, measured from the tweeter.
But as most have advised, experiment.
I can predictably change the bass response (depth vs definition), soundstage depth by moving my speakers closer or further away from the wall. It’s fun and it’s free.

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With my system in a 15ft x 25ft L shapped room …setting out my
Focal Aria 948s 8ft from wall as measure from front of speakers…

Over time have tried from up against wall moving them little a time
away from wall would yield better bass definition as well as overall
sound scape…Setting my speaker out this far and about 8ft apart
has worked out wonderfully well…

Having the room size to do it is a big plus for me…

As always ymmv given room shapes and sizes we have to adapt to.

Best wishes everyone

Paul says “start at 4 ft” then move back, forth, out, in, until it sounds right. Then work on toe in. Then work on the room. Rinse and repeat, again and again, until it’s just right. That’s when you buy new speakers :slight_smile:

My Maggie LRS’ are 52" from the wall; their predecessors (Wharfdale’s) were 31" and much closer to each other.

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Thanks for bring the toe in factor does make a significant
contribution to focus and soundscape…toed in to focus
18" behind my listening position…

In addition to toe in…tilting speakers back 1-2 degrees does
(in my case) a lot for soundscape to develop…

Best wishes

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Thanks for all the replies

are you measuring from front of speaker?

I would add Jim Smith’s, “Get Better Sound” to this list.

It’s an excellent and easy to follow reference resource and Mr. Smith is all about “playing the room”.

Highly recommended (@gd7288).

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