Console Reflections

[maxraphael]

So I've been mixing on an SSL this year and, in this particular room, I've heavily noticed the mids reflecting of the console. I remember one of the first times at the board, with the speakers playing, and the sound utterly changing from sitting to getting off my chair! My mixes were pretty dark in the beginning, and I'm learning to live with what I think is a little too much mids/presence that I'm hearing while mixing. But why live with working around this issue, which if anything would cause more fatigue than neccesary? now, i know there are probably better speaker placements to overcome this, but it's obviously still going to affect the sound to a degree. i'm just wondering what people's takes are on this, and if any companies have worked to account for this, like using different materials?

[boggy]

Originally Posted by maxraphael

....now, i know there are probably better speaker placements to overcome this, but it's obviously still going to affect the sound to a degree.

Yes, you may use stands...

Originally Posted by maxraphael

i'm just wondering what people's takes are on this, and if any companies have worked to account for this, like using different materials?

I'm not mixing engineer, but I see that people trained their ears/brains for a years to overcome console reflections... be sure that brain can do this!

regards,

boggy

[thethrillfactor]

Originally Posted by maxraphael

So I've been mixing on an SSL this year and, in this particular room, I've heavily noticed the mids reflecting of the console. I remember one of the first times at the board, with the speakers playing, and the sound utterly changing from sitting to getting off my chair! My mixes were pretty dark in the beginning, and I'm learning to live with what I think is a little too much mids/presence that I'm hearing while mixing. But why live with working around this issue, which if anything would cause more fatigue than neccesary? now, i know there are probably better speaker placements to overcome this, but it's obviously still going to affect the sound to a degree. i'm just wondering what people's takes are on this, and if any companies have worked to account for this, like using different materials?

The answer is you have to get used to it.

Everyone else does and good sounding records are still mixed this way.

Some solutions are:

One way to minimize the effect of the reflections is to place the monitors behind the console so the direct sound will hit you before the reflection.

Another is to place some kind of absorptive panel(maybe an auralex sheet) over the console at the reflection point( I've actually done this before working on an SSL/Neve VR or DAW controller and it actually works. Looks weird but works).

In looking at the latest SSL Duality it looks like they've taken these concerns into consideration.

Again once you work alot this way your ears adjust. Youd be suprised what we can adjust to.

[Brad_Wood]

AES published a white paper about this back in the 80's. Maybe a search will find it. I do remember the solution being to get the speakers off the meter bridge and on stands behind the console (as mentioned upthread). Since putting speakers on stands can be difficult depending on console design/height and control room situation, most folks just adapt. It does, however, bother me that, in an industry that is primarily about sound, the first thing we do is sit down in front of a big hot comb filter and mangle the very thing we are supposed to be evaluating. Frustrating.


Best- Brad

[Sigma]

all speakers sound diffferent, all rooms sound diffferent, all sppeakers sound differnt in diffent rooms and differnt locations in rooms...your ears hear differently on different days..

you try to make the best environment but bottom line ...

always using music reference material you know well is the best bet no matter where you work, how long youve worked there and on what

[needlz]

I am no acoustics wizard and my memory is garbage but I vaguely recall hearing folks with better memories and acoustics know-how discuss placing the monitors directly behind the meterbridge with the bottom of the driver at level with the bridge. I guess this casts an "acoustic shadow" across the console preventing the reflections.