Reviving older ESLs - burn-in required?

[Ingo]

Just a quick follow-up on the case: I have now

• been fiddling for weeks with speaker placement, although I am quite limited by the room here (mainly I cannot avoid sitting close to the back wall)
• done the "active conversion" with a separate Crown amp feeding the woofers directly
• done some burn-in by playing music even when not at home

Things clearly got better to a point that I don´t think anymore that something is physically wrong with the speakers and the refurbished panels. With the right music, the speakers now sound great. What does still bother me:

• the music only comes alive at higher levels. When playing at low to moderate levels, the music still sounds dull and flat.
• the sweet spot is incredibly narrow. Moving the seating position by a mere 10 centimeters or simply leaning forward changes both the imaging and the tonal balance.
• the speakers are useless for background music away from the listening position - think AM radio with some added bass...

But I guess I will have to live with those drawbacks - nothing you can do here, right?

 

[Leporello]

the music only comes alive at higher levels. When playing at low to moderate levels, the music still sounds dull and flat.

Is there any reason for not listening at high levels, for serious listening? You may just be dealing with the Fletcher-Munson effect.

A narrow sweet spot is definitely a speaker placement issue, assuming both panels are radiating normally over their entire area (which you can check with a calibration microphone, or your ear). The curved panels are capable of better. You can send pictures and descriptions of your room and setup but to a certain extent you're on your own. Room and speaker interactions are complicated. There is no substitute for experimentation. If everything you've tried doesn't give satisfaction, try something else.

If there is absolutely nothing you can do about sitting close to the "back wall" (I assume the one behind you) that is a major problem. You're getting early reflections behind you, greatly confusing the imaging. Your only hope would be to damp it as much as possible, with the best absorbing material you can afford and live with.

 

[Ingo]

Thank you for your encouragement – I will continue experimenting

Unfortunately, I don´t have a dedicated listening room and a flat with numerous neighbours – so I do have to compromise in terms of listening volume… Also, other (box type) speakers I own or tried do not fall off that quickly if the volume gets lower.

And yes: In European living rooms, sofas (or the like) tend to be placed against the wall – not much you can do about it. I wondered for decades why all American sitcoms had sofas in the middle of the living room – until I discovered by myself that this seems to be the norm. Seems audiophiles got lucky in the US!

I already tried damping the wall behind the seating position, seems like I will have to do a lot more in that direction.

 

[Robert D]

Thank you for your encouragement – I will continue experimenting

Unfortunately, I don´t have a dedicated listening room and a flat with numerous neighbours – so I do have to compromise in terms of listening volume… Also, other (box type) speakers I own or tried do not fall off that quickly if the volume gets lower.

And yes: In European living rooms, sofas (or the like) tend to be placed against the wall – not much you can do about it. I wondered for decades why all American sitcoms had sofas in the middle of the living room – until I discovered by myself that this seems to be the norm. Seems audiophiles got lucky in the US!

I already tried damping the wall behind the seating position, seems like I will have to do a lot more in that direction.

Wonder why European sofas are all against the wall? Is it because of the size of the room? If the room is big, you could move your sofa out.

 

[Ingo]

Wonder why European sofas are all against the wall? Is it because of the size of the room? If the room is big, you could move your sofa out.

Room size would be the main reason, floorplans are another. But this is just from my experience. Also, it is rare to have a dedicated listening room, even if you have a house (and not an apartment). It will all happen in the living room, which will compromise speaker placement and seating position.