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<\/p>\nFair warning: For the longest time, I have been too busy to work on these “HFA History” updates. With three years to cover, this update is going to be a very big one!<\/p>\n
Let’s rewind…. After switching from Martin Logan to Magico, this is what the main listening room looked like in 2021.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
In early 2020, the Broadcast Facility company where I had worked for over 20 years went bankrupt, and suddenly, I was unemployed. This meant severe cost-cutting, and one of my most significant costs besides rent was for the bank loan that I used to purchase my equipment. With trepidation and regret, but also knowing it was the best decision, I chose to sell some of my equipment, including the Kromas, Magico S3, and more, to allocate the funds to pay off my debts. This must have been the most unsatisfying bank transfer that I ever made. It left me free of debt but also without any wiggle room.<\/p>\n
A long and frustrating period ensued of trying to find work, first in the same field and later in ever-larger circles. This also marked the start of a period that would prove very important for my personal development and provided insights into the acoustics of my living room. Since I had no more money to spend on equipment, I elected to focus on the room itself. And, honestly, it was about time!<\/p>\n
With the help of four RTFS Big Block bass absorbers and careful positioning of the system, speakers, and listening position, I achieved a good sound balance, and I was (and still am) very happy with the S1 MkIIs. However, as I know now, the room acoustics were still far from perfect.<\/p>\n
Over the years, my listening position has changed countless times. But in a final effort to ensure my system was oriented in the most optimal position, I moved the speakers and listening position around the room in all four logical positions and even tried it diagonally.<\/p>\n
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Following the strong recommendation of friend and fellow writer Werner Ero, I tried Master CC speakers. Rick Paap of Dynamic Solutions<\/a> delivered them in person, after which he spent quite some time optimizing the positions. As he found, there was an imbalance between the two channels that prohibited a visually symmetrical setup.<\/p>\n More importantly, he was precisely the right person at precisely the right time to visit me. While the CCs did many things beautifully, they were not the ideal speakers for me.<\/p>\n When I told Rick about my troublesome acoustics and how the issues were minimized with dipoles and closed-cabinet speakers, within two minutes, he stood up, walked to the left front wall, and started banging it. “This right here is your problem,” he said.<\/p>\n Just like that, Rick identified the biggest culprit in my room: a large hollow resonance in the left-hand wall adjacent to the bathroom. I still don’t know how that escaped my attention all these years… As Rick pointed out, this was the primary source responsible for muddying the bass in that corner and a significant reason why I had to position my speakers so far forward to obtain a linear balance.<\/p>\n His first suggestion was to place two doors loosely against the wall to absorb and convert some of the pressure and prevent it from reaching the wall behind. To my delight, this really worked, which led to the decision to place my CD racks against this wall, but following Rick’s advice, at a small distance so that the racks do not touch the wall.<\/p>\n Further extending on Rick’s advice, I started knocking on all surfaces to find resonances, and I found many! What would begin soon is an extended period of room acoustics optimization.<\/p>\n First, many more CD racks would follow. As these exact rack models are no longer available (the current Gnedby racks have deviating shelf spacing), I retrieved them secondhand from all over the country. In addition, I had to source large amounts of CDs to fill the racks. Fortunately, everyone is getting rid of their CDs so that I could pick them up in large quantities at a time for relatively peanuts.<\/p>\n In the left corner, I experimented with RTFS Big Blocks and cabinets filled with books and found the latter provided a better balance for this space. The bookcase reduced the room mode in that corner but did not dull the sound as much as any foam-based bass traps I tried. After the successful first test, of course, the corner cabinet needed to be in the same beech wood finish as the CD racks. Alas, that color was long phased out at Ikea so I had to resort to the second-hand market once again. Weeks and months passed and I just could not source the deep version of this Billy cabinet, which I needed to store my LPs in. So, in the end I just purchased a shallow version and extended it. It looks silly from the outside, but you hardly notice it from within, let alone when it is filled with LPs. Those stacks of LPs, by the way, turned out to be excellent at reducing corner-induced room modes.<\/p>\n Next was the right-hand corner. Of course, everything has to be symmetrical for me. This introduced another challenge as that corner holds one of only two heat radiators in this room. So, removing it was not an option. The solution was to make a structure on the wall using a steel beam-enforced wood structure from which the cabinets could be suspended.<\/p>\n Further extending on Rick’s advice, I proceeded to place doors in all suspected problem areas.<\/p>\n Sure enough: the rear back right-hand corner proved to be a huge offender and a prime candidate for placing a stack of RTFS Big Blocks.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, using Rick’s “knocking” method, I also found that all the glass windows had low resonance modes that lingered on long and interfered with the right speaker.<\/p>\n The effect of this was a muddying of the bass, but more importantly, a cancellation of much of that speaker’s bass output. The way I combatted this was by screwing lumber bars across the windows and applying a little force in the middle to dampen them. This worked superbly well so I resorted to treating all windows this way. Instead of applying force, I glued hardwood struts on the windows that, in turn, screwed into larger-diameter lumber screwed across and affixed to the window frames.<\/p>\n Of course, I was not going to store LPs on top of a heat radiator, so I relocated some of the audio magazines from the other room to the newly made corner cabinet.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Now that the room was behaving differently, it dictated a new location for the RTFS Big Blocks.<\/p>\n After much experimentation, I found that the corner diagonally opposing the front left corner had the largest negative influence, so I maximized the Big Block coverage in that corner.<\/p>\n The window treatments, CD\/LP\/magazine racks, and RTFS Big Blocks had truly transformed the sound of this room. The bass was much cleaner and more forceful, and the entire presentation was much more linear, balanced, and transparent.<\/p>\n Then, my father (George Boonstra<\/a>, who made the large abstract paintings in my rooms) mentioned during a visit that it would probably look much nicer if all the racks extended to the ceiling. I did not want to entertain that idea as I knew how much work it would incur, but he was right.<\/p>\n Once again, I went off to score second-hand Billy\/Benno CD racks. Fortunately, these were apparently “sold by the millions” and were easy to find. Apparently, I have a middling taste, as the color I needed (beech wood) was the most readily available of all the options.<\/p>\n Yup, you can already see the effect building up.<\/p>\n Oh, yes, this looked fantastic!<\/p>\n Still wearing my working cap and without having spent any time listening to the system, I proceeded with the finishing touches to work around obstructions, hide the carrying structure, and make it all top-notch.<\/p>\n The result made me really happy until the first listening session with a friend, during which I found the sound muffled, dark, compacted, and lacking sparkle.<\/p>\n Oh no… was this really caused by the extensions?<\/p>\n I started pulling CDs from the top levels, and sure enough, my friend confirmed that the spirit and expression slowly returned. I had a tiny sparkle of hope that the middle section could remain (for visual purposes) and that I could perhaps suffice to remove the extra section on the left-hand side. But that did not work at all. In fact, the side wall covering was mainly beneficial.<\/p>\n We also removed all the CD racks again to ensure that my initial solution was still correct. Sure enough, the bare wall added boominess and muddiness once again, so the racks were quickly reinstated. It was precisely the visually nice middle-top sections that spoiled the fun. The problem was reduced significantly after removing the CDs, but the improvement was the largest when the cabinet extensions were removed.<\/p>\n To this day, I still find this strange, as the speakers are positioned nearly halfway across the room, and the rear wall is 3 meters behind the speakers. So, how could the rear wall possibly make the sound so dull? But it sure did, and all the extensions had to go.<\/p>\n That was quite a depressing moment.<\/p>\n When I returned to the situation as it was before extending the racks, the sound was great again, but it took me quite some time to agree with the visual aspect. Now, the 200-cm rack height seemed strangely curtailed to me.<\/p>\n After optimizing the room acoustics, the main system remained relatively stable for a longer period. This freed up\u00a0time to address other issues, such as enlarging the available space for the work desk in the kitchen.<\/p>\n It’s unclear from this picture, but the desk is sandwiched between the dining table on the left and the built-in fridge on the right. With the kitchen work area on the right, I had to keep the desk depth to a minimum, and I could not really fit a better chair.<\/p>\n It looks cozy, but I had grown tired of this work location because of the long work hours each day and the lack of direct outside light.<\/p>\n Because there was nowhere else to move the desk to, I had no choice but to keep it in the kitchen.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Then, it occurred to me that if I could not move the desk, I could improve the circumstances by removing part of the side wall and moving the fridge to the other side to create a more open feel.<\/p>\n The first step was to remove the fridge….<\/p>\n …and move it over to the other side.<\/p>\n Next, the bare concrete wall had to be plastered.<\/p>\n I had already cut a doorway in this previously closed section but if I was to be happy at the desk, more of the wall had to go, to visually free up space and so that more sunlight could get in.<\/p>\n This part is always a lot of fun and very satisfying. One may think cutting gypsum blocks is hard, but it is actually very easy, and it goes very quickly!<\/p>\n Now that the sidewall was further reduced, the top section could also go. That was a little harder as the gypsum blocks are incredibly heavy and repairing the interruption in the ceiling’s spack finish took a lot of patience.<\/p>\n Of course, the floor also needed amending. Fortunately, I kept all the remaining pieces after laying the floor initially.<\/p>\n Here, you can already start seeing the increase in space.<\/p>\n With the floor fixed, it was starting to come together.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Originally, the fridge was built into a laminated particle board enclosure. Relatively neat but rather cheap in appearance. What I wanted was to fully enclose the fridge into two walls.<\/p>\n So, it was time to build a second wall out of gypsum blocks.<\/p>\n The edges were solidified with metal strips.<\/p>\n The metal strips also make for a tight finish after applying many layers of caulk.<\/p>\n Re-fitting the fridge took some effort, as the doors had to be precisely aligned with the new walls on each side.<\/p>\n When done, I was hugely satisfied! Not only did the fridge look better than ever, but working at the desk felt so much more roomy!<\/p>\n Next, all that needed doing was to find a matching door to close the heightened top section. Fortunately, Bruynzeel could still supply a door in the same style and almost the same color. If you look carefully, you can see the difference in tone, but in practice, I never noctice it.<\/p>\n Online, I found some nice aluminum grilles to complete the clean and industrial look I was after. The top section was easy, but I could not find a grill that would fit the required space in the bottom section precisely, so I resorted to creating it from three separate pieces. At the time, I found this to be a makeshift solution, but it has grown on me, and now I feel it adds to the industrial style. Sometimes, restrictions can work magic.<\/p>\n I love my Artesania audio racks, but after reviewing the HRS EXR Audio Stand<\/a>, I had to make a move. I chose to sell two of my Exoteryc racks and various other things to free up some budget to purchase two new EXR racks. The Exoteryc racks sold like hotcakes, and within days, my system was reduced to the core seen below.<\/p>\n The system almost looks lost all the way in the back, doesn’t it? \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n When the HRS racks arrived, I could not wait to implement them and complete the system again.<\/p>\n This concludes this lengthy report. The next installment is already in the works, but for a change, it will not cover more changes in the main system but rather in the other end of the apartment.<\/p>\n Next Chapter<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n HFA Audio Setups Overview<\/a><\/p>\n HFA Audio Setup Snapshots<\/a><\/p>\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Master_CC__IMG_3101_550pix.jpg\")
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<\/p>\nOverview of all HFA Audio Setups<\/h3>\n
Summaries of small iterative changes in the Setups<\/h3>\n
\r\n Related Posts<\/div>\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Genelec_Cinema_Setup_05-2024_4X3A6195_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 34 – Media Room v5 – May 2024 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Setup_25-03-2024_4X3A5795_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 33 \u2013 Invaluable Advice \u2013 2021-2024 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Logan-en-Kroma_setup_IMG_0824_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 32 \u2013 More speakers \u2013 Late 2018-2020 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Secondary_Setup_2021_IMG_6477_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 31 \u2013 Secondary Setup 2018-2021 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/HFA_setup_Aug_2018_IMG_2892_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 30 \u2013 Speakers and Amps \u2013 April 2018\/Aug 2018 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n \r\n \r\n \r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/Logan-Wilson_IMG_1650_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n \r\n HFA Audio Setup History 29 \u2013 Speakers and Amps \u2013 Dec 2017\/April 2018 <\/a>\r\n\r\n <\/div>\r\n
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\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/speakers_so_far_IMG_1458_750pix.jpg\")
\r\n\r\n <\/a>\r\n <\/div>\r\n\r\n