TOPIC:

I have been taking measurements pointing the UMK-1 towards the speakers. I also see that there is a 90 degree file that was included with the mic. It is preferred to use the 90 degree setting with the mic pointed toward the ceiling? I would think that it would be a bit more accurate pointing at the ceiling since it would have a clear shot at recording the reflections.

What do you folks think?

Thanks,

Jeff

Hi, I was wondering same thing...

Official miniDSP manual says to point UMIK toward in direction between speakers. But big companies like Arcam or Emotiva which also use Dirac, are saying that mic should be pointed toward ceiling.

Two examples:



For me it makes sense, because mic pointing up will measure not only speakers response, but also whole room interaction.
With mic poiting towards it will have problems measuring sound bouncing from rear wall (beacuse of mic characteristic).

It would be nice to hear from devteam, why they recommend pointing toward speakers.

I went through and remeasured my system with the mic pointed towards the ceiling. I feel that the results are improved. The image height is much higher during playback and there is a larger sense of space.

I tried it both ways as well. I found the 90-degree resulted in more depth with a more natural sound. Pointing the mic straight at the speakers resulted in more detail, more forward sound.

I prefer the 90-degree measurements.

The Dirac manual for the MiniDSP multichannel units state to point mic to ceiling and use 90deg file.

I saw straight on mentioned in a document for 2-channel use, but 90 degree measurements sounded just right. The straight on measurements yielded a bit of treble boost.

If pointed straight ahead for two-channel use, you could also experiment with taking measurements pointing the mic directly at the center of the soundstage, rather than straight ahead. It will give you a much more focused center image, which could be useful for near field listeners. I've normally found pointing the mic inwards just a few degrees can help overall, but definitely something worth trying out.

I have tried both and prefer the 90 degree measurement. The straight on measurement boosted the treble to much and I could not get voices to sound natural.

I use the default Dirac Target curve for the very best recordings and the NAD target curve for everything else: nadelectronics.com/wp-content/uploads/20...l_NADTargetCurve.txt