Studio Speaker Placement: How to Position Your Monitors Properly

[@StevenM.Pereira-jr6qz]

I love your straightforward style and no nonsense approach. Also it's easy to see you share accurate info and don't waste time.

[@ILOVEDRAGO]

what? he fokking told the history of the brand KRK and fo the that speaker placement is important up until 3:32 ! We fokking ALREADY KNOW that is important, that is why we watchibng te damn video!

[@SonicScoop]

Comment with your questions and observations! Just will be reading and replying all this week. Here are those core principles for you: 1. Listen and experiment! 2. Strive for symmetry. 3. Fire the "long way" down the room when possible. 4. Avoid danger zones, including 25% speaker placement, 50% listener placement, and corner loading. 5. Start with decent compromise positions, like 20% speaker placement and 35%-40% listener placement. From there, move your speakers, listen and experiment! *Remember!: This is a starting point, not a finishing point. In many smaller rooms, you may find the speakers have to move even closer to the walls for the best set of compromises. So: err on the side of moving your speakers even closer to the walls from here as you listen and experiment.* 6. Factor the "equilateral triangle rule" into your starting point for speaker placement. Begin by striving to get as close to the same distance between your speakers and your listening position as you can. *Remember!: Breaking this guideline is OK. Many mixers find they actually prefer to place their speakers a bit closer together. So: err on the side of bringing your speakers closer together when breaking this rule.* 7. If you have to setup your speakers against the wide wall, firing the "short way" into the room, you may find that your speakers and chair have to get even closer to the walls, and that your listening position may end up relatively close to the speakers. In smaller wide rooms, start with your speakers and chair 20% away from the front and back walls, and experiment from there, moving the speakers and chair closer to their respective walls as needed. 8. For square rooms, try the 5:8 ratio to minimize room modes and nodes and avoid "doubling up" on the intensity of your acoustic issues. 9. For L-shaped rooms, experiment with speaker placement in both the wide angel of the L, and a narrower end of the L. Acoustic treatment may mitigate the high-end and midrange problems associated with placing speakers in the wide part of the L, while allowing you to avoid a speaker placement that is too narrow. 10. See Rule #1! *Be sure to listen and experiment!* Remember that the 20% position is offered as a *starting point* for experimentation, *not a final position*. In many rooms, the speaker setup may benefit from going out closer to the walls. If your speakers get too close to the walls, you may experience a general boost in low end, and issues in the upper bass, but this may be mitigated with EQ and acoustic treatment, and can be a good compromise. More on this in the next two episodes!

[@longjohnsonshagwell3377]

do you like the krk monitors? I hear a lot of people saying they are not neutral especially in the low end and mid range.

[@BarryH54]

This video is filled with a lot of useful information presented in a professional, yet informal, manner.

[@roberthowells7652]

Excellent beginner guide in clear concise English

[@Globe-Vibes]

I don’t have the luxury of treating a room. Long gone are those days of me alone in my crib. Kids, full time job etc. I needed a quickie to fix my set up. This video was helpful .. for just the 20 minutes or so of adjusting and testing sound quality, I noticed improvements. Will play around with set up some more. Thank you

[@tilersun]

I find mixing low frequencies on headphones fixes a lot of the issues with sub, which tends to be the major problem with rooms. The rest is never really a problem if you have decent enough symmetry. In saying that, again, rough mix in the room and finesse it through headphones works well.

[@valleywoodstudio7345]

Cool video. An interesting thing is when the speakers are too far apart you can over mix the phantom centre. Too close you can undermix. I've discovered with my Genelec 1030a that to err on being closer together makes for better translation on vocal balance. When I had them perfectly aligned with equidistance etc my mid range centre was always louder on other sources. Of course this could be related to size and function of the room. Especially noticeable when doing a quick reference on a single mono full range speaker and back. Small point, but good to illuminate that the 30-40% rule keeps the listener within antinodes of the first 3 octaves!

[@nimbus1r]

great vid, extremely useful as a first timer with monitors

[@Honzinus78]

I follow all the instructions and placed my monitors (Yamaha HS8) the long way down the room and 20% rule. It didn't work. The lowest frequences were probably multiplied and there also was some kind of resonance in a left spekaer. It means that I was unable to get the same bass response from both speakers. This issue was most noticable in a kick drum. I finally manage to get my set up right by placing the speakers closer to my treated back wall down the short way the room. It was the only position where I was able to get the same bass response. My room is more than 50 % treated and it has a huge curtain accross the window and some bass traps. I also found very useful to bring my speakers closer together!

[@SonicScoop]

You could be getting very different bass response out of the two speakers of the two walls are made of different materials. For instance, if one of the two walls is concrete, or adjacent to a brick wall and the other isn’t, that could be the root of the problem. Thick concrete or brick walls can be more reflective at low frequencies than drywall on studs. Hope that’s helpful, and glad you found a solution! -Justin

[@pathfinder_official1526]

thanks for this video, my room is too small but moving the table with monitors and pc monitor away from wall a bit, and realizing i can move my chair back just to sit and listen here and there while mixing is what I learned from this. Thanks!

[@ImRichardShepherd]

Great video! Thank u! Made a big difference in my untreated living room/temp studio space!

[@smsy1756]

From the way you start you video talking I felt that you are really expert I’m gonna be really happy to learn from someone like you i put this video to watch later to watch it again and I liked and subscribed to your wonderful channel THANK YOU 🙏

[@zacharymiller7763]

Great video Justin. Awesome info. I know how a treated room has enhanced my mixing and you certainly made great sense of its importance.

[@antonyharding5360]

Justin you're the man, dood.. Seriously, thank you for your educational advice.. Regards Antony, Warrington England..

[@theHAL9000]

Super informative video. Provides great info for doing speaker set-up armed with a broad sense of getting the most out of your space and equipment. Thanks!

[@SonicScoop]

Exactly what we like to hear! Thanks much. So glad to be useful.

[@tommckeown6970]

Justin, I ran into a problem that might be of interest to some . I did follow the math precisely, yet when I used Sonarworks, it showed a huge dip at 90hz. I found that the reflection off the wall caused a null due to the speaker location being 1/4 wave of 90hz from the wall. The round trip was a 1/2 wave and caused the 12dB dip. Fortunately, I ran across a manufacturer that said to try to get the speaker closer to the wall so the null would be at a high enough frequency that the broadband absorber would be able to correct it. That got my problem down to a 6dB dip. I thought that was interesting. I'm sure I confused everyone with my explaination but it really helped my speakers.

[@JustinColletti]

Yes, there will always be tradeoffs and compromises! This is why 20% is a just a fair starting place, not a final placement. From there you will want to follow principle #1: Listen and experiment-most likely moving the speakers closer to the walls. If you get too close to the walls, you can have a general low end boost that you can help correct with EQ, along with a notch or boost at a higher frequency that you may be able to address with acoustic treatment. If you have more to spend or room building and acoustic treatment, a professional designer would likely place the speakers at something like a 20% distance (or a bit less) from the walls, and then create some tuned bass traps to deal with the node or mode that is most excited in the best compromise you find. This can also be done DIY, though the learning curve is a bit steeper than for building more general “broadband” absorbers. If you have less to spend, moving the speakers close to the wall and using simple broadband absorbers plus EQ could be a better bet. It can be less expensive, and there’s much less of a learning curve for the DIY approach here as well. More on both these approaches in the next two episodes! One fairly ideal way to avoid both these sets of problems is to soffit mount the speakers directly into the wall! This is the most expensive solution of the three, but is popular in large studio control rooms. Thanks for sharing your story and I hope that helps!

[@motafov]

how cool is this guy on a scale of 1 to 10? 11? seriously, great vid, tx!

[@keithforrester82]

Nice to get some actual measurements and maths to base decisions on!

[@TazzSmk]

check REW, there is a room simulation tool, to get a better idea what to expect :)

[@philtowers1392]

@ 10 mins. He moves sideways and you realise there’s a whole head of hair back there. Excellent reveal.

[@beatweezl]

Caught that too.

[@ramonloera360]

😂

[@synerg1st]

Saw it at 4mins lol

[@piperofsimms]

I'm so much more intelligent now. Beautifully done, interesting and informative. Thank you very much.

[@connect_music_yvr]

This is a seriously great series. Thanks so much!

[@ianscreamsvideo]

Nice info! You kind of remind me of Bob Ross Happy trees mixed w William Shatner in your speaking style. Very calming and yet confident.

[@SonicScoop]

Check out part 2 on acoustic treatment here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZovFm2CamM2Sack

[@CamiloVelandia]

These help so much. I just got an Apollo x8, and it came with free KRK 5 G4... I'm impressed! I had the 2nd generation and these are awesome. The app and the new back screen are an amazing addition

[@RLAYY]

Thx much for this one . Gave me alot of insight . Since im in the process of remodeling my room / studio .

[@thatchinaboi1]

I have my setup placed in the living room close to a corner, but I have no issues from doing so. The speaker closest to the corner is about a foot and a half away from either wall of the corner, but not the same distance to either wall. The not placing a speaker in the corner does not apply for all situations. And obviously the proximity to the corner matters. Not to mention distance is relative. :)

[@flexxer2000]

Thanks for your advice really glad that my speakers are in the right position Stands really make a great difference

[@facelessproduction]

Greatly appreciated! Thanks for the FREE app 🙏👍

[@uriel-heavensguardian8949]

Thanks for the awesome information! My question is. Laying or standing, which is best for monitors.

[@SonicScoop]

Thanks! Whichever way aligns either the “focal point” (or the tweeters) with your ears. The focal point is usually roughly halfway between the main driver and the tweeter in a 2-way design. Though some people prefer to have the tweeter pointing at their ear. So a lot of this depends on how high the speakers will be relative to how high your head will be. Hope that helps! -Justin

[@ItsSamboHere]

this is great, proper detailed and you've covered a variety of rooms and the best tips for them! Thanks so much, onto the acoustic treatment video now :)

[@ItsSamboHere]

@Kacy Skovlund fake messages to anyone reading this^^^^^^

[@maxmus9854]

Great information! Thank you!

[@angustmcd]

excellent video. good brevity with good detail. hard to find balance with tutorials. excellent.

[@ronwess]

Just got my first pair of monitors and speaker stands so I thank you 🙏 for your tutorial on monitor placement, PeaceLove&GodBless

[@epicon6]

I have a 6x5 meter room and my speaker's manual recommends at least 1.5m to the wall so that means if i place them there they are exactly at the forbidden 25% spot :) and if i move them any farther from the wall my listening position is at 50% of the room :) Also if i would turn facing the longer side and place them 1.5m from the wall my listening position is right in the middle of the room :) And to my understanding if i place the speakers closer than 1.5m to the wall it's going to affect 60-160 frequency range badly and if it's closer than 0.5m it's still going to affect lower than 60hz sounds and my speakers play clean signals down to to 38hz. I've settled with having them 1.3 meters from the back wall so my listening position is at 38% and i'm pretty happy with it but some day i'll buld the perfect studio :)

[@TecNickelSwag]

Thank U So Much!!!! This series is awesome!

[@ZAYAZOfficial]

Great video! Thanks for the heads up on the KRK app 🙂🤘

[@jamescollins69]

Dumb q from someone getting started: I have a very weird room I'm using to produce music in: the room is an odd shape, the height of the ceiling changes drastically, the room layout cannot be changed as it's a communal area and I'm not moving my workstation because there's nowhere else for it, there is no symmetry in the room (I have a window behind me on my right hand side, and two doors leading to other rooms to my left), and essentially one speaker will be in a different "acoustic environment" to the other. Hiring a studio is out of the question lol I suppose I'm asking how much I should try to stick to these principles when I'm already starting with a severe handicap

[@bdrigg]

Good stuff, thanks!

[@nextgenhype6488]

Awesome video! Keep up the good work👌

[@Dmaccabees]

Great breakdown 🔥💯🔥

[@kirkyardley761]

Could you put plywood over window with foam, thick curtains and then put a panel over it? I imagine that’s overkill but I never understood just keeping the windows and changing the ideal listening situation because of it

[@joejones4237]

thank you for doing these amazing videos. I was close but great to make better changes , Thx

[@Yahoomediaclub]

Great explanation and video...learned more here..

[@smashsystem]

Great information. Many thanks.

[@ChrisKerryAudox]

The bad guy from karate kid 3 really has turned his life around 🤣

[@thepreseason]

Hey Justin, great room setup video, big thanks. Im having some trouble figuring out the ideal setup for the den-studio in my new apartment. Dimensions are 150 x 75 inches. Figured I'd be setting up long-ways. Mainly wondering how far the speakers should be from the sides walls/corners. Getting some heavy bass build up at the moment

[@DarayaVahu]

*About the 25% rule from the sidewalls, how is that for the monitor when they are at the 30 degrees angle, do you count that to the center of the woofer of the center of the monitor cabinet?* My room is 270cm wide, I have my Rokits on the sides of my iMac which makes them 88cm from the sidewall to the center of the woofer which is 32% but that's because of the angle to the center of the monitor cabinet is about 29%, length of my room is 360cm and my listening position is about 28%, 25% with head leaning on hand at the desk, it's the proper triangle, can't get the monitor closer because of the screen and can't get them further apart because the sweet spot would be too far from the desk. I have to have a bed and closet and they are one each side. Also, my desk is standing one so from floor to the center of woofer is 168 (121cm desk + desk stands + auralex MoPAD tilted 8 degrees down) which is 33% from the ceiling. That's probably one of the worst scenarios but on Sonarworks Reference frequency response curves are exactly the same for right and left at least, previously I had corner desk which supposed to be the worst actually the frequency response was flatter only under 300Hz slight mismatch the biggest variation was at 150Hz, one side +3dB the other -3dB, and overall there was less bass which I thought corners supposed to make more 🤔

[@ontogeny6474]

Thank you so much for this info. Much appreciated!

[@sometroii6561]

Thanks Gaston!

[@mateomrak4414]

Thanks for a ton of useful info! I have a quick question though. Curious do you have any advice how would you position them (or what to avoid) in the attic rectangle room when one long wall has a 45° angle from the roof.

[@bitflux2]

very dense video, love it

[@kaystrings]

This Video is very insightful

[@ShredderTainment]

Very helpful! Thank you! If I line my walls with clothing, and costumes, wigs, some inside wooden standing closets, does all that help with sound diffusion? The room is square but the studio desk off to one corner & is multi-layered, slightly facing both windows...I will aim for that 5:8 ratio you mentioned for speakers. 😉 thx again!

[@kofiassor2164]

THANKS jUSTIN

[@thatchinaboi1]

Parallel walls is not an issue because the speakers are supposed to be towed in. I feel people always seem to overlook this fact when talking about parallel walls in terms of the room acoustics of a speaker.

[@SonicScoop]

I see why you might think that, but unfortunately, it's not quite correct. Even with the speakers tilted inwards, parallel walls still have the effect of exacerbating low frequency standing waves in the room compared to non-parallel walls. Also remember that very low frequencies are basically omnidirectional, so tilting speakers has no real effect on them. Hope that helps! -Justin

[@thatchinaboi1]

@@SonicScoop Yes, sorry I was referring to the side walls in terms of high and mid frequency reflections. :)

[@ovniciusmusic]

hey mate!!! thanks a lot for all!! can you help with that?? i do have a window on the side of the room , located at the side of my chair, that is on the 38% ... what could i do on that window (not breaking it xD ) ... if i put the window behind the desk the wide part of the room would be by the sides( thats u say it is dangerous) ... and also my wood room has that celling , in that shape / would be better this angled stay behind me or in the front of me?? big thanksss n wishh an answer !! bless up yaaa for all

[@aurelialunceford2696]

I bought an audiologist booth that is 5x5 feet and 6 feet tall. It has a glass door and two 2x2 ft windows. Is there any hope for this room to work as a monitering room? It is soundproof --completely treated with acoustical foam --except for the glass windows and door? If I put a sound panel on the door and windows and set my speakers at 50 % and my head at 90% could it work? What would happen if I opened the door and placed an acoustic panel outside my booth. Would the 10 inch lips on each of the 2 sides of the door cause mayhem?

[@socksumi]

Speakers that measure flat in anechoic conditions will sound necessarily bright in typical listening environments.

[@davefalk335]

So my issue, is my 7x11 room I has two walls that are all window (Sliding glass doors), and the other 2 walls are brick. I have my desk in front of the 7 ft glass window wall (with full length cloth blind) and to the right of the desk is a 11 ft glass window wall (with full length cloth blind). The left side of my computer desk is the brick wall and the back wall (opposite of desk) is also brick with a wood door to get inside the house.

[@TheChadPad]

What if you had to mix in a corner? How would you go about treating that part of the room to compensate?

[@ShriiDev]

Thank you. Good video.

[@PatTagudar]

On the 5 / 8 rule and speaker distance from the back wall... Can the distance from back wall be compensated by using absorbers on the back wall behind the speakers?

[@michaelrussell8442]

Any special advice treatment wise or other for a 6 sided room? Almost rectangular but the far wall has 3 sides concave like this /-----\ with pretty wide angle about 140 degree. Each has a large window. Speakers currently placed on the 3 sided end of the room.

[@JustinColletti]

Yes! This is what many people call a “bay window”. Make this the front wall-the one *behind* your speakers. Three reasons: 1. Windows are reflective at high frequencies and transparent at low frequencies. Speakers put out very little high frequency behind them. 2. Windows are pretty to look out of. 3. It makes it much easier to avoid assassins. You’ll see ninjas and snipers coming, so you can do audio in peace and prosperity.

[@ka-li7271]

@@JustinColletti even if it's looking out into the road? Won't I annoy all my neighbours !? (would it be much louder outside compared to running the speakers across the other wall to wall perpendicular to the windows?)

[@djvidual8288]

Great stuff!

[@MadazzaMusik]

Im gonna have to break every rule in my room

[@GatticaKid]

Hi what about a rectangular room that’s 11’x9’9” and has an inclined ceiling? GIK let me know I should place them mm away from front the wall. Maybe 20% from side walls?

[@FullContactDrummer]

I'm going to be able to build out my studio from scratch in a basement. Where can I find ideas for rooms in a square area?

[@diabmourani9601]

what do you think about a 50 50 80 degrees triangle for monitor angle ?

[@D2LocTv]

How Can I Connected 2 pair of Monitors With My Apollo twin pro.

[@gurnaamsingh7674]

Hi, I watched your whole series on this, very very in-depth, absolutely brilliant. I just have one question, I am able to keep 20% distance from the wall to the front plate of my speaker however I use three 24 inch screens, (I originally thought I may have to use two, to keep the 30-degree angle or keep the distance from the walls) but for me to stay the in the "sweet spot" I have to angle the speakers at 40 degrees. is this an issue or would it be better to stick to the 30 degrees? I would be around 40cm in front of the sweet spot. I'm happy to send you the plans if that makes it any better. Thanks in advance.

[@Jonathandavidk]

I need help. Which should I choose: 1)I can set up speakers with a window behind them, but speakers will be pointed at the short wall of my rectangle room. 12 ft. 2)I can go the long way (17 ft) , but I’ll have 2 windows on one side of the room and no windows on the other side.

[@voltmaster7727]

What about proper placement for a subwoofer ?

[@sarahX..]

what about vaulted ceilings ? does it make much difference whether the speakers are placed on the parallel wall or the triangle wall ?

[@wiggesobk]

Very helpful video. Does the app also works with other speakers like the Yamaha HS7?

[@KiLLJOY1056]

Anybody else excited to get youre new monitors? I am lol

[@salvatorepanzali3660]

Hey Justin, i have a question.. do you get a noise in general even if your krk a not attached to your audio card.

[@zaoria123]

Starts at 3:56

[@JasonFerguson1283]

Thank you KRK! Lots of helpful tools/info!

[@JasonFerguson1283]

Ah, I didn’t know about the focal point!

[@Rappermand99999]

Is that 20 percent out to the nearest point of the speaker or the cone?

[@SonicScoop]

The speaker cone :-) Or more accurately, the "focal point" which is generally located between the two drivers. But just using the cone is going to get you pretty darn close! Very best, Justin

[@Allan-et5ig]

sonicscoop - Short of having sound on sound magazine fly from England to my home - this was the best! Are you ever available to take emails proper?

[@SonicScoop]

Absolutely. Email anytime at Justin at sonicscoop

[@Allan-et5ig]

@@SonicScoop Thank you; I will.

[@tomburden]

Great tips. I am a little weary of using the phones mic as a real time analyzer. I don't think the frequency response is very flat on the cell phone mic.

[@tomjones5418]

Tom Burden ya, how does the app know if the return results are off or good because of the mic, room or speakers? Hmm. An external mic with a known good response might be somewhat ok but obviously not as trustworthy as a real analyzing system. I've never looked in to cellphone mics much so I can't comment on their accuracy except that mine doesn't seem to be very flat or full. I already googled cellphone mic response and read a little but didn't get any definitive info yet. Then I got board and continued watching this. :)

[@tomburden]

@@tomjones5418 Awesome video. I appreciate all the videos you have done. Very valuable information.

[@JustinColletti]

That wasn't me, but a fair enough answer nonetheless! While the iPhone mic isn't going to be perfectly flat, you could get a reasonably flat frequency response from a tiny electret condenser like the kind that can be built into a phone, and the maker of the app could also account for any frequency skew inherent in the microphone as part of its recommendations. I'll ask the folks at KRK whether they know how far off the frequency response of different phones are, and whether they tried to account for this in the app. I'd wager that they did, but will follow up when I know more for certain.

[@tomburden]

@@JustinColletti Opps. I wasn't paying attention. I just hit reply. I also have used an EMC8000 measurement mic with roomeqwizard with great results. Roomeqwizard is popular with the home theater community but still works great for looking at the bass frequencys. I checked the room with my sub at different crossover frequencys it was amazing seeing the difference between a 120hz vs 80 hz crossover. 80 hz ended up being the flattest for my space. Anyway love the channel. Keep making great vids. 😊😊

[@adc5698]

4 minutes of INTRO, man go straight to the point... 4 minutes saying , man just explain with no so much intro time. So frustrating

[@mtz5438]

For reals I was cooking while his 3 way video was playing, and he kept repeating the same thing after 9 minutes 3 times, I thought the video was replaying on its own.

[@ShaneFontane]

I was thinking the same thing... fwd fwd fwd

[@dox1755]

TOP COMMENT.

[@blakeunderwood1075]

Let him get his money. At least the content is free.

[@TheSpeedyr6]

This is the worst instructor boring as fuk

[@jonasbechly4081]

I have the problem, that i have windows on my right side and i cant go with it in front or behind me. Do you have a trick for me`?

[@blacklavatv]

Justin the main man again! Great videos again

[@JWhiteEnterprise]

I see in studios some engineers have their monitors standing up straight or sideways. Does this matter? Should we be putting our monitors sideways when mixing?

[@SonicScoop]

That really comes down to getting the tweeters to an appropriate height. If the tweeters are going to be too high if they are placed upright, then they will want to go on their sides. If they are going to be too low if they are on their sides, then place them upright. I hope that helps!

[@JWhiteEnterprise]

SonicScoop Thank you Family

[@KwamenaA]

Also you can have them upside down if the tweeters are two high (with the tweeter on the bottom). I would avoid putting 2-way speakers sideways because you'll mess with your stereo image when the tweeters are not symmetrical. In 3 way speakers that are sideways it's still in the middle.

[@DiegoRodriguez-vx6ys]

Gracias hermano!

[@JohnSmith-of4vh]

What do you recommend UNDER your speakers?

[@colinclarkmusic]

You said 25% from the side walls but the diagram showed 25% from the back wall.. avoid 25% from both?

[@Frankkazanable]

Thanks a lot for mentioning L-Shape rooms. I have no choice other than working in our L-Shape living room and the problem is where I can place the monitors is from one side next to the window and from the other side next to the kitchen entrance (The kitchen is open from the other side) what do you suggest I do?

[@thatskao.]

I have a question since I'm not sure how to position the speakers in my home studio: I have an almost square room with a big sunken double window (2x1,8m) on one of the shorter walls. The problem is that this window isn't centered on the wall. Since you are emphasising the importance of symmetry, where would you place the speakers in this case: 1: place them in front of the window thus have them not centered. 2: place them in a centered position, thus having one speaker in front of the window and the other one in front of the wall. I'd appreciate your opinion. :) Greetings

[@kentgoodall2516]

Whats the deal with putting your speakers on there side always wondered Is it a good thing or bad move

[@SonicScoop]

It can be useful of it aligns the tweeters or “focal point” of the speaker better with your ears. If your speakers are too tall standing up straight and the higher frequencies aren’t hitting your ear properly, lying them on their side can be good. Hope that helps! -Justin

[@turn4turn595]

I'm only 10 minuets into the video and every danger zone you listed describes my tiny 10x12 room. Even my window position isn't ideal. Can I just use one Studio Monitor and place that in the room and run mono thru it? I haven't bought anything yet but I'm getting tired of using headphones.

[@vuch9802]

My listening room is in a loft with three walls. What is the best way to set up my system in this situation?

[@JupiterStudio1]

Hi.. what do you think about the Rokit 5 g4 and the g3??

[@Sydhavsportalen]

Great video. I have the problem with the L shaped room so that one of my speakers is close to the wall, and the other one is not. You say in the video that it gives some issues with the low end. My question is this: will a subwoofer solve this problem, or maybe some of the problem? Can you maybe make a video about subwoofer placement as I am thinking of getting one for my KRK's.

[@JustinColletti]

Hey Kjartan, thanks for the question. To clarify, you’d actually have more problems in the high and mid frequency is in that scenario than in the low frequencies when it comes to the coherence and symmetry of the stereo field. But fortunately, those issues are relatively easy to take care of with acoustic treatment, compared to low frequency problems. It’s harder to pinpoint the location of very low frequencies in the stereo field, and frequencies in the bottom end tend to be more omnidirectional. So the lows and their reflections-while always a very real concern-are generally less of a factor from the perspective of getting good perceived symmetry in the stereo field than the mids and upper frequencies are. If you do find that the low end feels like it’s really “leaning” toward one side or the other (which is not that common) then this is indicative of a major standing wave / reflection problem in the low end that is causing a really, really huge boost or null for one speaker but not the other. This is probably best addressed by moving the compromised speaker to a better position, rather than by adding a sub. Don’t get me wrong-There are good arguments for using subs from people who prefer them. I just don’t think they make a good bandaid for acoustic problems. They can often exacerbate them! The major potential benefit is that subs can potentially help you get better performance out of the system, by allowing it to be cleaner, louder, particularly in the midrange, effectively turning a 2-way system into a 3-way system. This means you’re not driving the speakers near their max capacity where they can become increasingly non-linear, causing compression in the midrange and smearing of the transients and the like. But if you’re losing low end because of poor speaker placement or room acoustics, I’d suggest dealing with that first! Placement, treatment, and potentially, EQ, are the places to start. Resources put into moving the speakers or adjusting the room first will often do you a LOT more good. Once you’ve got the room and speaker placement dialed in, adding a sub could potentially make you like your system even more, depending on your tastes and budget. But it’s just not a great (or cost effective) solution to acoustic problems in my opinion. With all that said, a sub potentially gives you the option to find one single spot that works well for all your lowest lows, allowing you to eliminate the most compromised lows for both your speakers. So theoretically, sure! It could work to help stabilize things a bit in an L shape. If you try it, let me know how it turns out! But there’s a couple problems there: if your low end problem is above the crossover point for the sub, it won’t do you any good there. On the bright side, if your major low end problem is at say, 70Hz, and you’re able to eliminate 70Hz coming out of your main speakers, *and* put the sub in a place where all the frequencies it handles are well-balanced, then it could potentially help, yes. The second danger there, is that this is very hard to do in an untreated room! In my experience, adding a sub to a poor acoustic environment is likely to *reveal* more acoustic problems than it solves. Personally, for tracking and mixing, I’d rather not hear 50Hz than hear a really really compromised version of 50Hz which could lead me to make really bad decisions about the lows :) In my opinion: First get the room and main speakers working as well for you as you can, and then if you want to add a sub to improve the performance of the system further, go for it! Just don’t think of a sub as an EQ boost for the lows. For that, use an EQ :) (A good room EQ solution will often recommend a different EQ for each speaker.) And address the room and speaker placement too. Some slightly more advanced concepts there, and a very long answer, I know, but I hope that helps! This could be its own video honestly!

[@Sydhavsportalen]

Justin Colletti this might be the longest and most comprehensive answer ive ever got from youtube. Thank you. I might need to read your reply a few times to fully understand it all but i will try to treat the room first then. Maybe add a sub later on. I still think you could do a great vidie about how to add a sub to the studio. There are so many questions that comes to mind. 🙂

[@alexd0103]

How about having the speakers over 25% from the side walls? Is there a general limit on that? Due to the position of the door in my room my speakers will have to be more like 30% in from either wall.

[@xavieralberto1176]

Are you, at some point going to address placement of dipoles?

[@electedmusic7685]

hi, a question, why is -20 db selected to measure? it's just for mixing right? If I want to measure my room and monitors, to listen to music alone, do I not select -20 to measure up to 85dbs?

[@davidhasselhoff3090]

okay but what if you have a small room?

[@maxblum4233]

I understand the 20% rule on the x axis. If the room is 100" wide and 200" long, I want to put the speakers 20" from the side wall. Do I then ALSO want to put them 40" from the back wall, ideally?

[@beatweezl]

I heard that it's not good to have your speakers equidistance from the back wall to the sides. But maybe at that distance it will matter less.