Unless you have had your home’s audio set up by a professional, chances are high that you’re not getting the best possible audio from your existing setup. Fortunately, you do not have to spend a huge amount of cash in order to achieve the best quality audio at home. Read on to find out how easy it is to geek your way to an incredible sound experience at home.
Choose a Room with Good Acoustics
Just like how the speaker creates the foundation for great audio output, the room’s acoustics play a critical role as well. In a few cases, the layout and space in the room can have a huge effect on the quality of sound you get – even when all other components are brought together. Rooms with lots of hard surfaces like bare walls, glass windows, and wood or tile floors are likely to create sound reflections.
These reflections and resonances might lead to poor bass reproduction, sharper-sounding highs and mids, and even blurred sound imaging. Furthermore, the room’s outline also has a role to play. Oddly or irregularly-shaped areas tend to create better sound quality compared to rectangular or square rooms that have dimensions in exact multiples.
You can soften the room up using cushioned furnishings, drapes and rugs that will absorb and dampen sound reflections and soundproof windows that will help reduce road noise pollution. If you have a high ceiling, you may just have to move all your sound equipment to another room.
Get the Right Speakers
One of the first things you need to do is make sure that you are using the right speakers for your system. If you prefer listening to high maximum Sound Pressure Levels (SPLs), then you will find a limited amount of speaker topologies capable of delivering the sound quality you expect. In addition, don’t use speakers that feature a single metal or soft dome tweeter, no matter how cool they look.
The best choice for an improved sound quality is using compression drivers on horns, but they are likely to be pricey. Anything else will bring you poor reliability and stilted dynamics. In addition, get a center speaker that is identical to your left and right speakers, and then place them behind an acoustically transparent screen.
Use Quality Speaker Wiring
It is easy to spend thousands of dollars on speaker cables, but many people would rather not do so. However, using quality speaker cables of the right gauge will make a significant difference in terms of what comes from the speakers. One essential quality of a quality speaker cable is its ability to deliver the appropriate current.
In almost all cases, thick speaker cables are better, but always refer to the speaker’s specifications as your starting point. Some cables that come with speakers are just about as thin as dental floss, and they are definitely not recommended.
At the very minimum buy a speaker wire of at least 12-gauge; keep in mind that higher numbers usually represent thinner wires. Thinner wires are also not an option if you are looking at longer distances. After all, you will not get the best audio performance from underpowered speakers.
Conclusion
While high-end audio sounds more like a snobby term, it doesn’t really mean that you need to break your bank account to enjoy exception sound quality at home. All you need to do is follow the tips above and amp your sound system for the best in quality. At the same time, don’t be afraid of experimenting and finding the ideal listening position through angling the speakers so they create an equilateral triangle of sound.
