By Brent Butterworth

Everyone’s heard loud bass, but very few people have ever heard good bass. Good bass reproduction demands that every note in the bass range be reproduced evenly, with no notes emphasized. Fortunately, recent research has shown us for the first time a way to get even bass response in almost any room. The result is the most natural, accurate, and impactful bass reproduction that’s ever been achieved in the home.

Here’s the technical background: At bass frequencies (below about 200 Hz), a room acts as a resonator, much the way an empty Coke bottle does when you blow across the top. With certain notes, the room resonates, amplifying the note so it sticks out. Meanwhile, some other notes may disappear almost entirely.
Fixing this problem isn’t as simple as plugging in a graphic equalizer and adjusting a few knobs. That’s because the way the room affects the bass depends on where you are in the room. Move from one side of the couch to the other, and you’ll probably hear huge differences in the sound of the bass.
Harman International—parent company of numerous professional and consumer audio brands—recently devoted a great deal of research to finding ways to fix the bass problem. The solution they came up with is multiple subwoofers. Using two instead of one gives a big improvement. Using four instead of two gives an even bigger improvement. A Harman engineer gave me a full four-sub demo in my house a couple of years ago, and since then I’ve tried this trick with numerous subwoofers and it always delivers remarkably consistent bass response no matter where on my couch I sit.

Don’t let the thought of four subwoofers scare you. Instead of one big 15- or 18-inch model, you can use four small 10-inch models. And placement is easy: Just put the subs in the corners.

If you’re planning a new home theater or media room, talk with your installer about the merits of multiple subwoofers. If you equate bass with that annoying, boomy sound you hear when a hopped-up Honda Civic passes you, you’re in for a nice surprise.

By John Sciacca

It’s not often that you get the chance to listen to a true luminary and industry pioneer speak. Even less often when you get the opportunity to do it for free. But that’s exactly what’s being offered by Audyssey in their next Webinar, where you can hear the true Jedi Master of surround sound discuss “The History and Future of Surround Sound.”

For those unfamiliar with Tomlinson (Tom) Holman, his biography reads like the history of modern surround sound. He is credited for naming 5.1, the most commonly used surround speaker set-up today. He was also Chief Engineer at Lucasfilm where he developed a set of standards in 1982 for “Return of the Jedi.” The standards insured that theatrical playback matched what was heard in the mixing room and were called THX. In fact, he is often referred to as being the “T” and “H,” as in the “Tom Holman eXperiment.”

Holman also developed the world’s first 10.2 channel surround system – front left, top front left, front right, top front right, surround left, top surround left, surround right, top surround right, center, top center above the screen, and front and back subwoofers – which completely envelopes listeners.

In 2001, he won an Academy Award for Scientific and Technical Achievement. And recently, he co-founded Audyssey, where he continues as Chief Scientist. Audyssey’s MultEQ technology is widely used for sophisticated room correction and equalization in many home theater receivers and processors. Most recently, Audyssey has introduced Dynamic Volume to tame wild swings between loud and soft passages, Dynamic EQ to deliver consistent bass response, tonal balance and surround levels regardless of volume level, and DSX which adds height and/or width channels. (See Brent Butterworth’s impression of DSX by clicking here: http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/newproducts/3250/first-listen-audyssey-dsx.html)

Holman is currently a professor of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California (USC), and his book Sound for Film and Television is considered required reading for any film majors. I’ve had the opportunity to hear Holman speak, and it is always incredibly entertaining and enlightening.

The Webinar is being held on Friday, December 18th, from 11 AM to 1 PM PST. To reserve your spot, sign up now by clicking this link: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/424560306?utm_source=Audyssey+Master+List&utm_campaign=b30e8ec3df-emailblast20091119&utm_medium=email

So, I’m listening to my turntable again. Walter, one of our terrific “uber techs,” fixed it for me this weekend. It’s been three years since I listened to an LP!

Vinyl… there is nothing, absolutely NOTHING…that sounds this good, so pure, just so damm warm and musical.

Listening to records brings back memories of college.

If only an iPod could sound like this. Could you imagine?

I think the iPod got us all ”back” to listening to music again. But while its been great to have all this music content so readily available, after firing up my Systemdek turntable with a new Grado cartridge for the first time in three years, I realized what I’ve been missing. I forgot HOW GOOD a record sounds!!!!!!

It’s just AMAZING how different the sound is. It’s scary, our kid’s will never really appreciate how we went from quality to convenience.

Honestly, if you asked me to choose between the two, I say MP3! I’m not willing to sacrifice my iPod and the convenience it provides.

But…I remember how music used to sound.

OMG…there is nothing like this sound!

If you want to experience this again, email me. I was thinking of having a vinyl night at my house. Its BYOV…..

Bring your own vinyl.