Forward or nose bleed seats presentation.

[goraman]

I have listened to a lot of peoples hifi over the years and some where along the line I became aware that both Mission and JBL made very forward sounding speakers while KLH, Advent where voiced in a way they seemed far less in your face .

The best example of this , from the same Audio Note level 1 system was swapping out the AN K speakers for Mission 762i It was Night and Day the Missions where a shit show ,louder and in your face and voiced a tad brighter. The K's seemed laid back ,darker over all and much more distant.

The ported Missions had more bass but Bass was not nearly as fast and defined as the AN K 's.

My personal preference is just slightly forward , Like being in an intimate performance in a local night club.

I don't want to hear it from the front lobby or be seated right in front of a speaker stack.

How can 2 speakers using the same size drivers,cabinets sound so completely different?
Is it the inductors used? that changes the placement of the preference so dramatically?
The floor standers I enjoy now really can be both forward or distant depending on the recording, but they tend to lean just slightly forward most of the time.

What do you prefer 1st row to the exit doors, I like back of the room in a small night club, hearing and feeling the music but not right in front of it.
Tell us your preference.

[fatmarley]

Could be lots of reasons, but the most likely reason for forward vs laid back sound would be frequency response. I'm the same as you and prefer a more forward sound, with vocals that are full of life and project well from the mix. I don't like a harsh treble though.

I modelled the Snell K crossover when I build some diy speakers using the same woofers. Compared to the JPW AP2 (also uses the same woofer) and my design, they had a frequency response that had quite a severe downwards tilt towards the highest frequencies. The reason for the tight bass is the small, sealed box that they are in.

[struth]

prefer an auditorium style to a rock venue personally, although there are plenty seats in-between too. bass should be clean and not interfering with rest of the music..but it needs to have life;vitality too

[Hypnotist]

I have just bought some Dali Zensor 3s and they suit my preference of forward sounding and were a huge improvement on the Diamond 9s they replaced. I like a forward sounding soundstage and the 3s seem to be just that in my room.

[Pharos]

It is true that a speaker which doesn't have any character will present the material in a maximally accurate and diverse way, revealing the source material's own characteristics.

Some speakers are forward, either from colouration or an exaggerated mid and presence range, and others with a lessened mid range may seem to present that 'distant' imaging, I have had both.

ATM I am experiencing a maximum variation with in any given mix, both extremes represented.
Often it is the vocal closeness or distance which the microphone captures; many pop singers do not have trained voices, and sing very closely to the mic., this producing proximity effects, an increased lower mid and upper bass.

If you want objectivity, you will hear a wide range of forwardnesses and distantnesses, on various recordings, with each contribution on any recording exhibiting its own closeness of distantness.

Why would we want to alter this if we want to maximally extract the artist's intent?

IMO the distantness gives a laid back feel, but is far less revealing.

[goraman]

I seem to remember being told that foil wound inductors are a way of getting that rear of the performance effect.
My speakers use large gauge Solon perfect lay solid core inductors , #12 or #14 , Path 10 watt resistors and Clarity cap CSA. There is nothing really coloring effects in the crossover I can think of.