I've done literally thousands of test tone & frequency sweep measurements over the years. I've found that with adjustments, tweaks, extra gear etc. I've been able to achieve flat in room response. Unfortunately flat in room response does not by itself necessarily translate into an engaging musical experience. I'm sure there are many speakers with multiple drivers that have a much flatter frequency response compared to the Omega SAM's. Common sense would say flatter is better but once you listen to the single driver Omega it's just not the case. Ultimately the human brain decides if it will accept the illusion as a live performance.
I agree. I had Salk's for a while (SS8's that were more than four times the cost of the Omegas) that were very flat. I couldn't adapt to them. It's risky to post something like this. The last time I did, I was attacked by Salk fans. One went so far to research my posts on the Salk forum to point out what I've said previously, as if to prove my recent statement wrong. Jim chimed in and said that some people just don't like a flat frequency response.
It's interesting as I did a REW sweep with my current setup (I don't depend on this, but I was curious). Surprisingly flat up to about 11kHz where it rolled off gradually. When I run test tone files, I find I can't hear anything above that
. I don't think it was the flat frequency response that I didn't like. I suspect it is more the coherence thing.
When it comes to Low Frequencies (below 500 hz), Humans have honed this sense over thousands of years. Our ability to avoid predators and locate prey for survival depended on a keen ability to use sound for location purposes. Because of this keen sense of hearing our brains can quickly tell the difference between Live Music and something else. The SAM's are often described as having a cohesion (to act as one) in it's presentation. I think it is the cohesion in the presentation that does a better job of selling the illusion to the brain? All frequencies from top to bottom blend together seamlessly.
Interesting idea. It makes intuitive sense. Have you read this in regards to research on the matter or more logic?
I think the difficulty with Sub's is that the brain quickly senses a loss of cohesion. The brain in some cases senses a second sound source (crossover set to high) and can sense a difference in volume between Sub and Monitors around the crossover point (Sub volume set to high). Take a typical application where the Sub crossover is set at 80hz. A Bass gutiar can play from 40hz up to over 1,000hz. Sub crossover & volume have to be set just right to maintain a cohesive transition between Sub and Monitors.
Again, agree. I do it by ear. I play the monitors and mid-woofers only and find the levels that produce the most seamless sound. My Marchand line level crossover even has a level adjustment for a narrow band at the crossover point in case of peak or null at that frequency, so I can get it sounding very seamless. With those set, I add the subs and adjust again. The Rythmik subs have an equalization adjustment for one frequency with adjustment for the width of the band and level up or down, so I can work with the crossover point there also, but haven't felt the need.
On the other hand, with my LOFOB's running Full Range (40 to 3500 hz) they present a cohesive presentation throughout the entire Bass & Mid Bass Region. My SAM's for reasons I don't understand just blend in perfectly. Nor can I explain why there is not a noticeable Mid-Bass peak (no perceived Mid-Bass shout)? I suspect that because the LOFOB's are Di-Pole (firing forward & rearward) That a lot of the acoustic energy is being dispersed more uniformly into the entire listening space. I would have thought this would create a more defuse sound stage but vocals & instruments seem to have noticeably improved focus?
So right now I seem to have more questions than answers but I'm enjoying my music more than ever.
All the more to keep the magic in the music!
Louis has said that his 1.5 way design (full range driver plus driver with low pass at 500hz) seem to find a smooth transition, so there must be some principle at work here.
Your approach makes me curious. But I don't think I'll be making a major change anytime soon. I could try running both the SAMs and the 8" woofers full range in parallel, but I'll save that for another day!
......Peter