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When it comes to listening to music, convenience has trumped audio quality for a lot of people.
Yet, thebest wireless speakersleave something to be desired.
(Image credit: Future / James Holland)
The question then is how to upgrade your setup.
The first and obvious step is to get a pair of thebest stereo speakersyou can get your hands on.
However, thats not enough.
(Image credit: Future / James Holland)
Yes, you will hear an immediate improvement.
The Fluance Ai61 used for this article go for $299.99 (299.99 / approx.
They sound very good for their price point.
There’s amplification power within the design, see.
Powered speakers are much more convenient, but they can be limiting.
So, top-of-the-line powered speakers might be out-of-date in a few years.
With passive speakers, you could just upgrade your receiver and keep those speakers you like so much.
Others might come with Wi-Fi streaming or Bluetooth.
Theyre better for large spaces where you’re free to sit far away from the speakers.
(Image credit: Future / James Holland)
Bookshelf speakers, such as the Fluance, are generally preferable.
Going for overkill is not necessarily ideal, though its better than not having enough power.
With that in mind, there are four different areas of adjustment.
(Image credit: Future / James Holland)
To start, those speakers shouldnt be making physical contact with the desk or entertainment unit.
Imagine having your turntable vibrate because of some speakers sitting next to it.
Youre not going to have a good time.
If you have space, the most ideal situation is floorstands.
These allow you to place the speakers on their own dedicated surface.
Now, the Fluance Ai61 do use internal bracing to limit the transfer of vibrations.
They also sit on rubber feet that limit the amount of contact they make with my desk.
While having dedicated stands is better, especially at louder volumes, this approach helps quite a bit.
Sound waves not only bounce around inside the speaker cabinet, but they escape in all directions.
That means theyll go off at an angle as well as straight back.
Check out out the gallery above to see what I mean.
In the case of the Fluance Ai61, theyre tall enough that I dont have to do anything.
But with the Kanto Ora I mentioned before, I had two different stands I could use.
Start with the speakers facing directly forward and slowly start angling them in until you like what you hear.
Im not going to go into all of that here.
Likewise, an empty room offers large reflective surfaces (the walls) that can also create issues.
This is where youll want to look into sound treatments.
Dirac is a brand that offers room correction solutions.
However, if youre setting up some bookshelf speakers, all you might need is a little EQ.
However, if you feel like some frequencies are missing or over-represented, then look back over the placement.
