Boomy voices on radio/youtube with my new speakers

Mark A

Mark A

Mark A

Soldato
Joined
19 May 2005
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Lancashire
Hi,

I bought a Marantz PM6005 amp and some Monitor Audio Bronze 2 speakers to use with my pc for anything from Youtube to music. I am really pleased with the sound, but occasionally some audio tracks will get quite boomy and voices on the radio/youtube especially will be very boomy.

I have the foam plugs in the bass ports and have turned the bass dial down to minimum on the amp. There is no way to adjust any sound settings through the PC as the amp is hooked up via an optical cable.

Is there anything I can do bar buying smaller speakers? These speakers have a 6.5" bass driver, is that a bit big for desk speakers for multi purpose use? They also do a 5.5" driver version that doesn't have a bass port, I could maybe sell these and buy them if it would help, although i do like the sound of these.
 
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They're not really meant to sit on a desk, is there any way you can fit stands either side or slightly behind the desk? Try and keep them away from walls as well if you can.

Failing that, you could try isolating them from the desk with some foam pads - google Auralex MoPad - sounds like a panty-liner but I promise they're not! That made a massive difference for my Kef R100s, but they're not quite as big as the Bronze 2.
 
Cheers guys, so you think stands would cure it? I have sat the speakers on a layer of foam and a heavy 10cm thick piece of granite as I was told this should help isolate them from the desk but it didn't seem to help.

If I got the smaller speakers do you think these would be ok on the desk, or would I have the same problem? I just dont want some little tinnie speakers as I listen to music and watch a lot of films and tv shows through my pc, so wanted some decent speakers. I have seen others setups in the desk pic thread and they have big speakers on the desk and dont seem to have an issue.

These speakers have ports on the front, so I dont think it is being too close to a wall that is causing it. They are around 8" from the wall.

DSC_3407_zpsptswwxr4.jpg


The amp needs moving to the left, but I need to get a longer optical cable.

https://www.audiovisualonline.co.uk...o-bronze-1-black-oak-bookshelf-speakers-pair/

These are the speakers I probably should have gone for. I think they would be a better size for a desk as well. Not sure what to do now lol.
 
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The granite won't help as it will just pass the vibrations through to the desk which is what you want to avoid. What kind of foam did you use? The audio stuff is pretty stiff and dense.

It doesn't look like you can fit stands in, so if you have the option of returning those speakers and trying the bronze 1s instead, that might be your best option.
 
Actually before you try that, have a google for equalizer software for windows, there might be a system-wide app you can use to reduce the bass frequencies down to a reasonable level.

*edit*
Actually, my soundblaster drivers have an equalizer built in, I've just never had to use it so wasn't aware it was there. Try your sound driver first and see if it has the same.
 
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I cant really return them, but could sell them and buy the other ones.

Do you think those smaller speakers would be ok on the desk with one of the proper foam isolation pads under them?

I'm always going to have to compromise a bit as i'm combining a tv and pc setup due to space constraints. I have a sofa behind the desk about 10' away to watch film/listen to music and then when i'm sat at the desk I use headphones. So it does work out quite well. Just need to sort the boomy bass out and it'll be great.

The foam I used under the granite was some fairly dense packing foam that I got with my PSU. So I guess I could always try the proper foam isolator pads before anything else just to see if that does help. Or there is something like this, but it might raise the speakers a little too high: http://www.juno.co.uk/products/aura...cy=GBP&flt=1&gclid=CIXaqMHGkcsCFYUewwodiDII9Q

Actually before you try that, have a google for equalizer software for windows, there might be a system-wide app you can use to reduce the bass frequencies down to a reasonable level.

*edit*
Actually, my soundblaster drivers have an equalizer built in, I've just never had to use it so wasn't aware it was there. Try your sound driver first and see if it has the same.
Click to expand...

Would that make any difference with me using an optical cable straight from the motherboard? I was under the impression that bypassed the soundcard/onboard sound entirely? I'll have a google for the windows app and give it a try tomorrow. It would be great if there is an easy solution.
 
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Thanks, I'll give that a go tomorrow.

I think I might have an idea. If I bought a new oak worktop at about 1.3m long and put the speakers on stands at either side of the desk, would that be any good? Is 1.3m apart ok for decent sound quality?

I think i'd need to still use the foam pads with the stands as the other problem I have is the bass travelling into the room below. Which I am assuming would happen with a speaker directly ontop of a steel stand that's sat on the laminate flooring?
 
Thanks for the help so far, really appreciate it. I have put an order in for some acustifeet from ebay and am looking at some of the foam isolation pads. There seems to be a few different makes, but i'm guessing they are pretty much the same thing?


One other thing I just though of, would bi-wiring the speakers make any difference? Currently just got it hooked up with 2 wires into each speaker as thats what they gave me when I bought the speakers.

I'll update the thread when I get the acustifeet etc. If it doesnt work i'll try the stands. I think some 700mm ones with a thick concrete slab under should get them to the right height and hopefully provide a solid base as I have laminate flooring ontop of a timber subfloor, which I have gathered isnt ideal.
 
Wouldn't think it would make a blind bit of difference but always worth a go, cheaper than changing the speakers at least! You could also try replacing the foam bungs with something else to see if it makes a difference, socks might dampen it a little further.

I always found Monitor Audio's a little bass heavy, with them being front ported I'm not sure you would actually notice a huge difference if you put them on stands, at least once you have them on some acoustifeet or their alternatives.
 
If you've bought feet, don't bother with the pads as well, use one or the other.

Is it still overly bassy when you play another source through it (e.g. cd player, ipod / phone through aux input), or is it just the computer?

Before you go spending any more money on trying to fix those speakers, move all the kit somewhere a bit more open in your house temporarily and just see if they sound ok with more space around them. It's possible they could be faulty if they still sound terrible everywhere you place them.
 
Also, if you bought them online within the last 14 days you should have the right to return for a full refund providing you kept all the packaging under distance selling regulations.
 
I have had a bit of trouble getting hold of the soft Acoustifeet. I found 2 sets from 2 different sellers on ebay, but after getting dispatch notices from both a few hours later one of them refunded me with no explanation :(. So now I have 4 soft feet and cant seem to find any more.

I did have 3 feet in my pc box of bits that I used for an old pc case, but they were the medium ones. So at the moment I have 2 soft feet and a medium on each speaker. It has definitely helped! Helped with the other issue I had where the sound was travelling through the floor and into the room below as well. I think I'll grab a pack of new medium feet so the speakers are a bit more stable and experiment with where to put them.

DSC_3504_zpsirvqs2ex.jpg


I might try just putting the speakers onto the granite then attaching the rubber feet to the bottom of the granite.


Wall brackets an option? Surbothane feet may help
Click to expand...

I currently have some speaker brackets on the wall higher up. The only issue is they look a bit naff and you need to screw the speaker to them, which i dont want to do with these. Plus they also make it so the speaker is too close to the wall. They were great for not transferring the sound into the room below though.

If I did ever get the smaller Monitor Audio Bronze 1 speakers I could get the proper MA brackets for those.

Marantz pm 6005, loudness button on or off?
Click to expand...

Set to off. Also source direct is set to off and bass dial is set to min. Treble set to middle along with balance.



Thanks again for all the suggestions, I am a lot happier with them now. I still have a bit of experimenting to do to see if I can further improve them but tbh they sound great to me now. Voices on the radio can still be a little boomy, but on Youtube and films etc they sound fine now.
 
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