Top Ten Speaker Tips

HOT TIP # 1:  Not all speakers are designed for the same purpose.  For smaller spaces, small bookshelf or satellite speakers that are unobtrusive fit the bill.  But the trade off is bass response.  In general, the smaller the speaker the less bass it will have.

HOT TIP # 2:   Careful of those tower speakers – some tip over quite easily, causing safety issues, especially if you have dogs or kids.  And some stand fine on concrete or wood floors, but are flimsy on carpet.  Check before you buy (do they come with a stand or bracket?).

HOT TIP # 3:   Try listening to your speakers at night with the lights off and a "blue screen" on your television (usually you can get a blue screen generated from your VCR or DVD player when it is not playing).  The lack of visuals gives you a keener audio sense, and the blue hue gives a cool, relaxed atmosphere.  Try it, you'll think your speakers just turned into a million bucks. 

HOT TIP # 4:   In general, you don’t want to put to much power into your smaller speakers, and you don’t want to not put not enough power into your larger speakers.  Find out how many watts your receiver or amp puts out (rms), and look for speakers close to this power rating.  Be sure to check the power rating at the impedance you need (for example, the amp may be rated at 320W at 4 ohms and 200W at 8 ohms).  If you are using an 8 ohm speaker, this is the rating to look at.  Also, you need to look at whether it is stating peak watts or rms (root mean square - basically an average) wattage.

HOT TIP # 5:  Frequency response.  The range of human hearing is typically 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz.  However, this range can vary based on a person’s heredity, age, etc.  Some experts argue that frequencies outside this range can effect the overall sound in subtle ways.  But why buy speakers that can reproduce 40,000 Hz tones when your CD only plays back to 22,000 Hz?
A typical equalization (EQ) setting for many users is for higher bass and treble (effectively lowering the mid-range section).  This is because many speakers tend to sound muddy in the midrange.  That’s why there are some great sounding 2-way speakers out there.

HOT TIP # 6:  Placement of your speakers:  Generally, you get the best stereo imaging by facing your main speakers directly forward.  However, since the high end (tweeters) are highly directional, you may need to direct them more toward the listener (ear level) if the high end response is weak.  The speakers should be at or near ear level were practical.  Experiment with the distance between the two main speakers for best stereo imaging.  This will depend on how far back from the speaker you will be listening from. 

HOT TIP # 7:   Subwoofers:  Every great system needs a subwoofer, right? Maybe,  but not necessarily.  Depending on the main speakers you buy, you may already have all the bass you need for your room size, especially if you have EQ or bass controls on your amp.  Buying a sub in this case may make your room sound too boomy and muddy, and your wallet lighter.
But if you have to buy a sub (and by all means do, it helps the industry grow), buy one at least that goes down to 40Hz and has an adjustable cutoff point to match your mains (make sure is inputs are compatible with your receiver/amplifier's output).

HOT TIP # 8:   Speaker Wire:  While it is true that you can actually measure the minute differences between the performance of heavier gauge wire to lighter gauge wire, even an experienced listener cannot notice the difference in many cases.  Unless you have a $20,000 system and your cable is your weakest link, don’t spend the extra cash for those “super” cables.  #18 gauge wire is fine with runs under 20 feet.

HOT TIP # 9:   Impedance (basically resistance with a frequency dependent phase element):  Cheaters, cheaters.  If you compare a 4 ohm speaker and an 8 ohm speaker side by side using the same amplifier, the 4 ohm speaker will sound louder.   This is because the 4 ohm speaker is drawing more current from the amplifier.  That is also why you should make sure your amplifier is rated to handle 4 ohm speakers or else you can blow your amplifier.  Most A/V receivers will shut down at impedances below 4 ohm.
So, if you’re comparing speakers, make sure you are comparing apples to apples (the same impedance).  If this is unavoidable, just keep in mind the reason for the loudness difference.  This is but one trick the retailers can play to make one speaker sound better than another (intentionally or not).

HOT TIP # 10:   Center Channel Speakers.  This is one of the most critical choices for your home theater system.  If you don't have the money or the system to buy a center speaker that is sonically matched to your main speakers, it is recommended to use your television speakers or the “phantom” setting on your receiver for the center channel.   If your television, big screen, or plasma display has the capability of using its speakers for the center channel (and more and more are), use it (since you can’t get more “center” than this).  If you must buy a center channel, again, they should be sonically matched to your main speakers or else it will be a crap shoot on whether it will sound right or not.  A great option is to buy three pieces of the center channel and use two of them vertically for your main speakers.  These will be sonically matched, plus these "vertical towers" result in excellent stereo imaging.

BONUS TIP #1:   Driver Material Types.  Like all consumer products, these products are subject to their seller’s marketing campaign.  This may include fancy words or trademarks that actually mean nothing at all, so be careful of this Acoustifluff^tm.  Here are some common materials:
Glass fiber cone – Typically lower SPL, but with less distortion (than paper).
Paper cone – High SPL, but shorter life and generally more distortion.
Polypropylene (P.P.) – Low distortion, long life.
Inverted dust cap – Usually not as clean midrange, but retail stores like it so that people don’t go around denting them in.
Dome tweeter – Higher SPL (than a paper cone tweeter) at the upper end of the frequency range.
Horn tweeter – More efficient, high SPL.  Usually has background hiss, though.

  BONUS TIP #2:  Want MORE POWER AND MORE DISPERSION on your home theater Center Channel?  How about 4 times the power and twice the dispersion?  Hook up four (4) 8 ohm center channels at once to your amplifier using the attached instructions (PDF).  You can also use this wiring technique for pro speakers or any other speakers.