Monitor issues- losing center

[ericstadium]

This doesn't seem to be an out of phase issue, and it is really throwing me off.

I have a pair of Tannoy monitors that sound incredible, however I seem to be losing just a little bit of my center image. Professional CD's and my own mixes seem to have a slight dB loss in the center. I immediately assumed it was phasing, but they are not completely out of phase or wired incorrectly. Is it possible that they are somehow slightly out, or it is my room doing this to me? I am in a 14x12 room which is not extremely huge, and I currently have no wall treatment. The monitors are setup correctly in terms of the distance from the wall and distance from each other, so I would assume that even though the room would color my sound, I would not be losing the center image.

[Byll]

Very odd. I also use Tannoy monitors. I have never experienced what you describe...

Have you tried switching to mono? You should have all of the signal coming directly from the center of the stereo field, in front of you - nothing on the sides... Is it possible that one of your monitors is actually wired backwards from the factory? If you do have a phasing problem because of am incorrectly-wired speaker, the overall sound would be exceptionally diffuse, with no real center... Could the distance between your monitors be causing the problem? With monitors placed too far apart for your particular listening situation, there can be a 'hole' in the stereo field.

One way of discovering whether your room is causing the anomaly, is to borrow a second set of monitors. Set them up in precisely the same spaces now occupied by your Tannoys. Fire away, and listen.

Good luck in finding the answer to your challenge.
Byll

[bass man]

Same thing here but with Yamahas HS80 . i was moving the speakers for 2 hours today and still nothing, ok some small improvements but center source is always 15% to the left and when i change the sides of the boxes L to R and R to L it goes to the the right . It seems like 1 box is louder but when i adjust the volume on 1 box its not better . Its some kind of phase cancel. at low freq ...

Maybe Ethan can help us here

[ericstadium]

i felt like a total idiot with this situation. i've worked in a pro studio for 6 years and am not new to troubleshooting audio problems. but this one is just killing me. i was going to steal the NS10s from work and bring them home to see if the problem is the same. then i can start troubleshooting better- power amp, cables, etc.

[ericstadium]

oh- and i should say-

it's absolutely not an out of phase speaker or connection- that would cause a HUGE loss of center, low end, etc. this is very, very slight. but enough to where i notice vocals on major label records sounding lower than they should. the problem is, i have no real way to test this issue.

[bass man]

I feel your pain man . I mean i use the Head phones all the time to check my REAL imaging its real PITA .

[Ethan Winer]

Originally Posted by ericstadium

I am in a 14x12 room which is not extremely huge, and I currently have no wall treatment.

Well there's your answer. Early reflections from the side walls (and ceiling) destroy imaging and clarity. Much more here:

Early Reflections
How to set up a room

--Ethan