[ndurantz]

Hello All. I am the proud owner of the NuForce Icon and have it powering a couple of Orb Mod 1 speakers and a Mirage Omni 8 sub. No matter what I have tried, I cannot get rid of the "muddiness" around the 100 Hz range. Rock music (esp. guitars) sounds less clear and defined than I would like. Source material is Apple Lossless files off of my Mac Mini.

I have run several scenarios through my head as how to address, but would like some input.

1) Might I need two more Orb Mods to off-set the power of of the Mirage Omin 8? I do have the larger power supply if any of you are wondering.

2) Do I have to resort to messing with the iTunes equalizer? I hate to do that because it is like putting a $15 tarp over a $50,000 vehicle, considering the components are quality.

3) I have messed with the cross-over freq on the sub, anywhere from 90 to 120 and can't really find a sweet spot. Orb suggests 120 as a cross-over.

4) The sub is tucked in a floor-level shelf off to the right of my desktop with carpet underneath it. Is it possibly a placement issue since I am only a few feet from the Mods and only couple of more from the sub? Am I too close?

5) Since the Mods don't accept banana plugs, I had to resort to pluging the banana plugs into some Monster Flex Pins, but the fit isn't very tight. Is it possible that I am experiencing some current loss resulting in a loss of sound? Do I need to "roll my own" to make new speaker wires?

As an additional point, I also have an Oppo 980H hooked up to the NuForce Icon via RCA interconnects and it seems to be better, clearer sound. Is that simply a function of better source material and components?

I know many of these questions are hard to answer with anything other than an opinion, but I would appreciate them nonetheless.

Thanks!

[bpape]

The sub in a shelf can absolutely positively cause problems.  That cavity will have it's own very strong resonance.

The other thing is simply a matter of a lack of room treatments and potentially the orbs being too close to a boundary so you're getting a reinforcement at some frequencies and suck out at others.

Bryan

[ndurantz]

So what would you suggest? Attached art pics of my set-up. Keep in mind that moving the sub out of the shelf will not pass the WAF.

[bpape]

Mains are too close to the front wall.  Without moving the sub, you're kinda stuck.   Fill ALL the cavities around the sub with insulation to do the best you can.

Bryan

[ndurantz]

On  the mains, how far would you suggest? Right now they are about 2.5"

What do you suggest for insulating the sub?

On another forum, someone insinuated that I can't really expect clean, separated sound from a small speaker/sub set up when listening to two channel. Would you agree?

[ndurantz]

Wanted to close out this thread with an update. I was able to convince my wife to let me move the sub out from the shelf and it did help. Sound is more "punchy" on the low end. Thanks for the suggestions!