Recommendations for monitor placement with setup.

[DaGSpotSoldier]

I have been gone for a long time in college and military stuff.
Had another kid as well.

These pics are not fully up to date, as I have a 4th screen monitor(one above far right).
Red video production computer under desk as well.

ANY FREAKING WAY.
I will be getting a new set of monitors, and I will not be getting a new desk.
I am fully "in the box" as of now. Emu 1820M(still kicking).

I need to put the new monitors somewhere.
I will be keeping those KRK RP5's and the RP10S sub under desk, for alternate.
Those are home made monitor stands. I can build whatever.
Any ideas from what you can see in the pictures?

I may have to build an external shell for the monitors to sit on, the desk is sort of weak.


I don't really want to bring the desk more to the middle of the room.
I have a green screen I put up for video and photography work.

 

[Milo Burke]

On multiple monitors:

I don't believe in having multiple sets of monitors of varying flavors. If you make a mix sound good on your dark monitors, it sounds like tin on your bright monitors. If you make a mix sound good on your bright monitors, it sounds like mud on your dark monitors.

My approach is to have one really good set of monitors. Accurate. Clear. Something you know really well. Full-range, or as best as you can replicate with subs. When your system is balanced and good, and when you learn it really well, things will translate.

The only reason (though a good reason) to have a second pair of monitors is to introduce something with limited low end. You need to be sure your stuff sounds good on speakers with little or no bass. But you can do this by turning off your sub, or by high-passing your master bus.

If the new monitors are better than the old ones, I'd get rid of the old ones.​

On multiple displays:

As for multiple displays? It makes it a joy to get work done. But it really messes up the listening environment. Even with those three displays, I can see you're nowhere near the sweet spot or you couldn't reach your mouse! I can only imagine with four displays.

Believe me, I love having multiple displays. I use four displays at my day job. But...

If I worked in your studio, I'd scrap all but the biggest center monitor. Scoot the desk into the room just a little, so your monitor stands can sit closer together behind the desk. Then put some absorption on the first reflection points you just created on your desk. The starting point is to have your monitors in an equilateral triangle with your head when you're centered for mixing, then experiment from there.​

On speaker placement:

There are lots of speaker placement guides online. I personally like the Cardas method and the 29% method. But most of these seem to be based off of beating room nodes and providing even bass response. If your bass is coming from your subwoofers, then those need to play nicely with your room nodes and your left and right speakers are free to play.

Speakers sound clearer out from the front and side walls, as I'm sure you have observed. Obstructions are bad. Treating the first reflection points is essential. And room symmetry is essential for stereo imaging too.

But from there ... just play with it. See how wide you can set the speakers before the phantom center collapses. See how narrow you can place them before you lose too much sense of width. Find a happy medium.

Tweeter height and ear height are important, but some speakers sound better below ear height. Some speakers sound best aimed right at your ears, while others sound better aiming behind you or even in front of you. Play with it.

I only have so much patience for audiophile pr0n, but listen to Roger Waters' album Amused to Death. If your speakers are just right, you should hear some really weird stuff: a piano over your right shoulder, a TV blaring over your left shoulder, crickets and water drops clearly outside the span of your speakers. All with just a two-channel system with speakers very carefully placed. Move your head two inches, or a speaker an inch, and it all falls apart. But at least when it works, you know your system is set up right.​

Also, for goodness sake: put the gaming PC somewhere out of sight. How can you work listening to all those fans?

 

[krushing]

Agreed with Milo about the multiple monitor thing - one really good pair, and one Avantone/Behritone kind of low-end-less set as the "kitchen radio" reference, if need be. Two even remotely similar sets are just gonna be a source of an endless guessing game.

 

[DaGSpotSoldier]

Yeah, nothing is set up for mixing right now. Monitors not in mix position. As mentioned, been busy, so no mixing. Mainly doing video editing and visual fx. Red video editing computer is under desk, not on the table you see.
I also removed the extra screen that was above the far right screen.

I will be building a bridge above the desk, that will
be right above the screens. New studio monitors will
be angled down.
The KRK's will be mostly for regular listening, not so much mix decisions. I have never really liked the sound for mixing.

I will either be going with a set of Yamaha HS8 which I will mod myself (almost complete with electronics engineering degree).
Other set I may go with is KRK Rokit RP10-3(3-way).

Might build today. Bridge will not be connected to desk, but seperate shell.

 

[Milo Burke]

Make the bridge heavy and dense. And see if you can find a way to decouple the monitors from it. Ethan Winer recently wrote about how that doesn't matter, but I can clearly hear it. There must be something less than ideal with his test scenario. (Table not rigid enough? Rubber bands have to be somewhat taught to make a musical note when plucked.)

For video editing, I can imagine all the extra computer monitors come in more than handy.

Since we're on the topic, do you guys know any speaker placement formulas that aren't biased towards getting more even low frequency production? So many people have separate subs, myself included. I'd love to try a few formulas for speaker placement biased towards getting better high frequency production.