r/Mid_Century • u/thats_me_ywg • 10d ago
Modular wall unit
Picked up this beautiful modular wall unit with accordion louvred doors. Unsure if it's originally Danish or German, but originally purchased in Germany by a family who then brought it to Canada.
Have been looking for something compact enough to fit into this space for a while - very happy I found it!
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u/Outrageous_Name_5622 10d ago
It's Danish. HG system by Hansen and Guldborg.
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u/thats_me_ywg 10d ago
That's it! They are unique because they're slightly wider than any other wall unit I've seen. About 36".
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u/Outrageous_Name_5622 10d ago
The steel wall straps are also rather unique amongst modular wall systems. Most are the ubiquitous teak/rosewood/walnut.
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u/thats_me_ywg 10d ago
Yup! For whatever reason the previous owner had cut the straps in half (presumably so they could turn multiple shelves that had previously been mounted next to each other separately in multiple rooms of their house), so I'm left with straps that only go half way down the wall. Regardless, it still works and is a minor nuisance overall.
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u/AudioMan612 9d ago
Very nice!
That said, the downvoted comment about speaker placement is absolutely correct. Actually, your speakers should be on floor stands around the wall unit. Since that other comment didn't go into details, here is why:
- One of the most basic rules of speaker placement is tweeters at ear level (due to how directional treble is). If you're off by a bit, it's not usually a big deal (you can even tilt the speakers a bit to make up for it, especially in a nearfield setup). In your case, unless your primary method of listening to music is standing up, your speakers are way too high.
- Your speakers are a bit too close and that will limit the size of your stereo image. This is another reason why floor stands are the right move for you. Ultimately, you should try to create an equilateral triangle with the speakers and your listening position.
- Speaker stands also allow you to adjust the distance from the wall. This can have a major impact on speaker performance, especially rear-ported speakers. Thankfully, your Edifier R1280Ts front-ported, so they won't be as sensitive. Still, the overall point is that speaker stands give you more freedom to adjust speaker positions.
- Putting the speakers on the same shelf as the turntable would also be a poor choice. Speakers generally shouldn't be on the same piece of furniture as a turntable due to vibrations. At higher volumes, the turntable can pickup the vibrations from the speakers which causes feedback (just like plugging a microphone into a speaker and then holding it in front of that speaker).
- Finally, furniture often has its own resonances that can be excited by speakers which can muddy up the sound a bit. Good quality floor stands or even just isolation pads/quality desktop stands can help prevent this. This is why you often see studio monitors (which are of course used for critical listening) on top of some kind of isolation pads (this is usually the least important reason here).
Above all, speaker placement and room acoustics make a massive difference in speaker performance (often times more than the speakers themselves). It's actually quite easy to make even top-tier speakers sound like garbage with a poor setup. There are general recommendations that are easy to find with a quick Google search, but not all speakers are the same. Most speakers that aren't PC/multimedia speakers will actually have manufacturer's recommendations in the owner's manuals (so not your Edifiers unfortunately). I recommend checking these when available, preferably while speaker shopping to see if a particular set of speakers is a good fit for your space. If your room doesn't allow you to get even close to the manufacturer's recommendations, then chances are those speakers aren't a good fit for you.
So that other comment may have not been super useful because of the lack of detail, but if you care about audio quality, it was absolutely correct. Your current speaker placement is definitely limiting what your system is capable of.
Regardless, congrats again on the wall unit! It's a beautiful fit!
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u/Worth_Writer2668 10d ago
Dare I be so bold as to suggest that swap the speakers down and the turntable up? Yes, I do.
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u/thats_me_ywg 10d ago
Do you mean the speakers on the same level as the turntable? The turntable itself can't go on any of the floating shelves as they're too shallow.
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u/BirchwoodBeach 10d ago
Nice wall unit (and turntable! and fireplace! and wood paneling!)--and I love the color of your wall. What's the paint manufacturer and color name, please?