2-way monitors: horizontal vs. vertical positioning?

[rikki rivett]

In this months ADAM A7V review https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/adam-audio-a7v, Bob Thomas writes "I prefer to position two‑way loudspeakers horizontally whenever possible, as I feel that this improves the subjective integration of the high‑ and low‑frequency drivers".

comments?

Internet searches I did result in a general opinion that "In most instances, you should have your studio monitors placed vertically. Sideways monitor placement causes stereo image issues, phasing and comb-filtering that become noticeable when turning your head. Most studio speakers are designed to be upright, so for the best results, keep them that way."

Found this YouTube video which discusses the topic and the variables involved nicely (also for 3-way monitors) :

https://youtu.be/AS5GcerSUzY

cheers

RR

[Drew Stephenson]

Yeah, I was a bit surprised by that as well.

[Hugh Robjohns]

He's Scottish...

As he says, YMMV...

I think his point is that if sitting close to portrait speakers you can become aware that the HF is coming from a different location to the LF.

By rotating the speakers to landscape that problem reduces or, as Bob says, you may perceive 'better integration'.

However, you may also perceive some coloration around the crossover frequency due to comb filtering since the distance between ear and tweeter and woofer is very different compared to portrait orientation.

The greater the spacing between tweeter and woofer, and the closer you are to the speakers, the worse the coloration will be in landscape compared to portrait.

But this is all a matter of compromises and it depends which parameters and characteristics you prioritise.

Personally, if I thought driver integration was an issue with the speaker in portrait (the way the designer voiced it) I'd get a different speaker — either a smaller one or a dual concentric.

[Bob Bickerton]

I think his point is that if sitting close to portrait speakers you can become aware that the HF is coming from a different location to the LF.

I'd like to hear more.........

Given we are far more sensitive to placement in the horizontal plane (because our ears aren't positioned on the top and bottom of our heads, I'd have thought the opposite would be true..... but then, I probably need to think it through some more.

Bob

[DC-Choppah]

Adam audio describes the issues when you mount your monitors wrong. Basically you would have to sit perfectly still to use your monitors in the wrong orientation.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bZp2_bJi3a4