# Open staircase



## harrym (Jan 30, 2010)

As we sit in our recliners facing the television, we have a large window with blackout drapes to our left and an open stairway to our right [leading to the basement]. The wall between us and the staircase is 32" high, with spindles to the ceiling spaced 16" apart. There is a sofa along the stairway wall. Would hanging something in the space between the spindles help -- say, something like a 12"x48" panel? What type of material would be suggested?


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## SierraMikeBravo (Jul 1, 2007)

Hi Harry,

It is really hard to get a picture of what you are describing. Can you post a photo? Where-abouts in Western Kansas are you?


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## harrym (Jan 30, 2010)

I'm located in Hill City, 56 miles from Hays. Sorry, I have no idea how to post photos. Don't know if I could convince the wife to do any type of sound treatment, but I would like to know if something would help. She thinks the sound is fine, but I sometimes have a difficult time understanding dialogue.


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## SierraMikeBravo (Jul 1, 2007)

Hi Harry,

Ahh...Western Kansas...been through there many times. :wave: If you are having trouble understanding dialogue, then you are experiencing a Clarity issue. This can be somewhat alleviated by treatment, but there is likely another culprit causing the majority of your problems. Do me a favor, I'd like you to try an experiement...talk to yourself normally (no one will think you are crazy...honest ), then say the same thing with your hands cupped your mouth. I think you will find your answer from what I have read from your previous posts. Otherwise, there can be a number of issues. Yes, panels can help since the phasing of the sound waves is skewed due to a path difference. Reducing the amplitude of those reflected waves will cause less smearing of the dialogue. However, broadband absorption, as many advocate, is often not the best solution. Diffusion alone is also not the answer. You need a combination of both depending on the location of the panels.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

One of the most common causes for dialog intelligibility issues is uncontrolled decay times in the bass. Does this sound familiar?

Can't hear the dialog so we turn it up. Effects come in and are too loud so we turn it down. Can't hear the dialog. (rinse and repeat). That's absolutely the first sign of a lack of bass control in the room. 

Bryan


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## harrym (Jan 30, 2010)

Yes, that sounds familiar. Except my wife can hear everything at the lower volume. I don't know if it is because of her seating position [next to the drapes] or because she has better hearing [which she has]. I have no subwoofer yet [next on the shopping list]. How is decay time in the bass controlled?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Without a sub, you have a compounded problem. Normally, the best place for the mains is not the best place for bass reproduction leading to additional bass anomalies. 

Decay times are addressed through the use of broadband bass absorbers placed in the room to tame the bass ringing which is masking the dialog.

Bryan


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## harrym (Jan 30, 2010)

Is "bass decay" the process of bass notes fading over a period of time, like a lingering echo? How does not having a subwoofer compound the problem? Will having a properly adjusted subwoofer help clarify dialogue?


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

The sub will do a couple of things:

- Take the load off the main speakers and amp

- Allow smoother frequency response and more extended response assuming you have some placement flexibility. 

That may or may not help a little with dialog clarity - but it will do nothing to impact decay times in the room other than potentially avoiding some modal ringing.

Bass (or any) decay time is indeed the intensity of a wave fading over time. 

Bryan


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## SierraMikeBravo (Jul 1, 2007)

Harry,

Did you give the experiment I suggested a try? From what I have gathered from your previous posts, I am assuming you are having dialogue intelligibility problems due to the following:

1. Speakers are in a cabinet and not designed to be there.
2. Center channel placement...if it is below ear level the human ear has problems with comb filtering as a result of the design of our ear. It is not likely your hearing that is the problem since most people don't lose much in the way of hearing in the low frequencies as we age...but actually in the higher frequencies where the consonant sounds lie. "T" for example is a good one.
3. Phasing problems as a result of the lateral and rear wall reflections of nearly the same amplitude as the direct sound and are interferring with the direct sound wave.

Ringing can be a problem, but usually only at certain resonant frequencies and generally that is taken care of via treatment. Subwoofers are way to low in frequency for conventional treatment. Placement and equalization are the only things that work effectively for subwoofers. 

However, I feel your largest problem, from what I can tell from your descriptions, is that the speakers are placed inside cabinets that were not designed to be there, and with no treatment to deal with the resulting problem. This is why I suggested the cupping of the hands over the mouth experiment. This is exactly what is likely occurring in room. Deal with that, and I think you should begin to see some traction in the right direction. Hope this helped. Best wishes!


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## harrym (Jan 30, 2010)

The Klipsch RC/SX-4 satellite speakers are indeed on shelves in a bookcase wall. They are at the front of the shelves, slightly above ear level but directed downward to my listening position. The surround speakers are high on the back wall, a divider wall separating the family room from the kitchen behind it. An open pass through is right below them. The room is approximately 12'x22' down through the viewing/listening area, with the open stairway leaving the front of the room around 17' wide. I just brought in some sheets of 2" foam and put them in front of the stairway to see if that would help. We'll see this evening. BTW, I have much less of a problem with men's voices when listening to dialogue, but breathy female voices are mostly lost.


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## SierraMikeBravo (Jul 1, 2007)

Hi Harry,

Again, problems with higher frequencies as we age are often the result of some hearing loss. In addition, high noise floors within the home can also attribute to some low SPL passages masked...especially soft spoken or quiet passages. 

Regarding your "foam" that you purchased, if it is of the closed cell type as in many bedding type foam mattresses, this will not work. Reason, it's closed cell. There is no way for the air molecules within the cell to interact with the air molecules being moved as a result of the wave. Hence, no frictional interaction, and therefore, no energy conversion. Isuggest using some type of dense insulation. The dense fibers within the insulation act as a frictional mechinsm to interact with partciles and slow them down. Therefore, you convert velocity to heat which reduces the amplitude of the wave due to the conversion of energy, and, therefore, any interaction with direct sound waves will be reduced. What type of absorbers you use though is highly dependent upon where they are placed. Frictional type absorbers work best where a particle is moving and pressure type absorbers work best where pressure from waves are highest...think reverse osmosis as a good analogy. Pressure will be highest along any boundary and velocities will be greatest away from the boundaries. Hope this helped. Best wishes!


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