Help needed for my LSi9's

[dhart86]

Hey guys. I'm a newbie and need some advice on getting the best sound out of my LSI9s, I bought them pre-owned. They are bi-wired to a Rotel rb991amp and rc1070 pre for music. It sounds like the music is coming from inside a box. Somewhat muffled.

Is there a way to make it sound more forward. I am waiting for stands, but temporarily (and shamefully) have them sitting on wooden TV tray stands
However the sound is not up front so to speak!
Is there any help available

[maximillian]

How is your positioning? LSi9's can sometimes be difficult to position correctly. How far apart are they? Are they towed in? How far away are you?

[dhart86]

They're about 11 ft apart, towed in and my listening position is about 13 ft away
Thanks

[Montoya]

I had to experiment with position with mine I did a lot of reading and used the rule of thirds in the end. It gave me the best results but it was a good amount of hours before it was perfect.

[Montoya]

How far away from the back wall and side walls? What's the room dimensions?

[maximillian]

Wrong "towed", oops :)

That's about my setup too, and my room is only medium size. A quick search mentions some people having problems with the tweeter resistor on the crossover board. However, I seriously doubt both of them would blow or come loose, unless the previous owner was very abusive.

I power mine with a Rotel RB-980BX and it doesn't sound like it's muffled, although the LSi's are generally laid back. At low volumes the soundstage is a little flatter than at higher levels. At medium and higher levels, singers voices are definitely airy and slightly forward. Your gear seems good enough. What type of music have you experimented with?

[dhart86]

My speakers are about 3 ft from back wall and 5ft from side wall in a medium size room.

[dhart86]

Yeah Max.
I did me "toed in" Thanks for the feedback. I mostly listen to jazz, rock, R&B. My listening level is usually low to med. Guess I'll have to do some daytime, nobody home listening.

Thanks again

[markmarc]

Having owned the LSi9's, I'd dump the bi-wiring for starters. Put the jumper bars back in the binding posts, or create some jumpers. Secondly, be patient until the stands arrive, then plan on spending a few days playing with the position. The LSi's are not typical Polk speakers, they have a very different sonic signature.

[anonymouse]

Having owned the LSi9's, I'd dump the bi-wiring for starters. Put the jumper bars back in the binding posts, or create some jumpers. Secondly, be patient until the stands arrive, then plan on spending a few days playing with the position. The LSi's are not typical Polk speakers, they have a very different sonic signature.

markmarc is spot on. I have the LSi9's and the same amp as you - the RB991. They are an excellent match. I tried bi-wiring the speakers and I hated the results. I currently use Blue Jeans cable and have not found anything better.

The RB991 is capable of driving the LSi9s really well. I would look at a few different things:
a) Check your stands and positioning
b) Check your source and pre. I use a mass market Sony megachanger hooked to a Parasound 2000 DAC to a Li Audio tube pre. The results are very pleasing
c) I eventually modded my speaker crossovers. This made a huge difference in the sound and took the speakers up a complete class.
d) You may want a sub to fill in the low end. I use a Dayton Titanic Mk 2, which blends really well.

Keep experimenting and do not give up on that combo - you have the start of a good thing.

[anonymouse]

Another thing I would absolutely check is to make sure they are wired in phase. Easiest way to do this is to disconnect one speaker completely and see if you like the sound better in mono. If you do, theres a 90% chance you have the speakers wired out of phase. Or worse still, maybe the woofers and tweeters are out of phase, since you are biwiring.

[dhart86]

Thanks for the advice you guys..I'll put the jumpers back on and straight wire the speakers. I'm glad you gave me some things to try to improve the sound. I was thinking about going another way, speaker-wise. Anonymouse, since you have the same amp, I'm eager to see if I can get the same pleasing results. How difficult is it to mod the speaker crossovers? Thanks for helping me get my head back in the game

[F1nut]

11 feet apart is pretty far, try 6 to 8 feet.

[dhart86]

Yeah, I know...but I got two 3ft wide bookshelf towers on either side of a 60 in lcd tv and the speakers are on the outside of each tower. room dynamics kinda dictate speaker placemnt. However, I'll move them in to 6 ft to check sound. Thanks

[dhart86]

OOOOH SH**T, I can't believe how much difference positioning makes with these speakers. I moved the speakers in to about 7ft apart and toed in to my listening position 10 feet away and boom!! These speakers are sounding like the reviews I've read. Crisp , clear, but a little laid back. Now I can't wait to get my DAC back from Pacific Valve on repair. ( I don't recommend buying anything from them)
Thanks to all!!

[steveinaz]

You'd be amazed how much 1" can make a difference with speaker placement.

[dhart86]

yeah Steveinaz, I see! I'm learning a great deal thanks to this forum