[Theory] Domestic Acoustics Revisited, with books and bookshelves

More Comfortable Living

With the sound system

[Books for audio]

“I can't feel you anymore,
I can't even touch the books you've read”*

Subject: HiFi in the Home subjective comforts
Price: To Infinity and Beyond! (Buzz Lightyear, 1995) YMMV depending on taste & budget
Author: Mark Wheeler - TNT-Audio UK
Scribbled: season 2024

From Selfie to Shelfie

Apparently Shelfies are a thing.
Shelfies, like most social media things, are yet another opportunity to “Show Off”.

Shelfies are the bibliophilic narcissism of Bookshelf Wealth, and the latest trend on social meeja. Yes, really.

“So what on earth has this to do with audio equipment or domestic music playback” inquire Plebs Chorus, stage left, perfectly reasonably

Having lots of splendid books around our homes is very on trend now.

For audiophiles who really care about sound quality, rather than just being amateur equipment buyers, this trend is a really useful one. For those of us who care what our gaff actually looks like, and those of us who share our homes with others who care, this is a blessing. For books, especially those with hardback covers with that lovely meniscus profile spine, are really good things to have in the so-called listening room.

The living room, as every listening room should be, needs to be as comfortable as possible. In a comfortable room we will enjoy relaxing to, or concentrating on, music far better. If we are relaxed, we can concentrate more fully. The acoustics of a relaxed room are also the best acoustics for audio playback. As we've noted before, the padded seating that makes lounging around comfortable also tends to coincide with room nodes and and antinodes. This renders bass frequencies more evenly distributed about the space. Scatter cushions break up flat even surfaces, thus scattering otherwise bothersome primary reflections.

Unglazed book shelves also have a scattering effect, especially at tweeter and ear height. Here the obsessive tendency to line up the book spines is a bad thing. Arranging books so that their spines line up might satisfy the obsessive traits typical of audiophiles but are inadvisable.

If someone wants to line up your books by height from the tallest at each end of the shelf to the shortest in the centre, please respond: “NO!”
If someone is tempting you to adjust the book depths so that the front edge of the spines all line up, just say, “NO!”

Be on trend with plenty of books, but delight in filing them by subject, author or title, as long as the room facing profile is ragged. If you must be obsessive, arrange them as a 2d quadratic diffuser.

Books are incredibly dense. Books are also comprised of separate sheets of paper joined only at one edge (unless you've been really unlucky). Therefore books tend to be incredibly acoustically inert. Shelves of books are useful acoustic treatment in a comfortable listening room. There are books to suit every taste.

Where can I buy books?

Books are best obtained from independent book shops, just like records and cd's are best obtained from independent record shops. Walk into bookshops and ask their advice, as you might in a record shop. Attend the Wigtown Book Festival where there will be plenty of opportunities to buy all manner of books in exactly the diverse shapes and sizes to ensure a ragged edged bookshelf. There are often used vinyl and cd departments in used bookshops too.

Most importantly, remove any glass doors from bookshelves in the listening room. The specular reflections from large flat areas like glass will contribute to flutter echoes. Large flat areas also create those early reflections that disrupt the phase information important for soundstage. The books will also provide something to help you look busy while relaxing in front of the audio system.

Conclusion

Books on bookshelves in the listening room can be an asset to sound quality. Books are very on trend right now.

You cannot go wrong by encouraging books for domestic harmony.

Music enjoyed while writing this review	Reference system
on vinyl Bob Dylan: Blood on the Tracks literature Nobel prize winner Bob Dylan: Blonde on Blonde MFSL 3-45009 triple 45rpm on cd Soft Machine: The Story of Soft Machine mixed quality compilation from mediocre to execrable sound quality, bought for CD2 content Short Wave: Live excellent 1992 recording of this short lived project, at Studio de Chennevières during the Perpignan Jazz Festival Hatfield and The North: The Rotters Club good cd transcription with bonus tracks	Equipment heard while typing this: Turntable: Michell Orbe SE Turntable Modifications: include Pedersen subchassis & suspension kit Pick-up arm: Hadcock GH242 SE Super Silver Turntable support: Kiln dried sand filled custom wall shelf (aluminium reinforced plywood & hardwood) with marble sheets on sand bed Cartridge: Dynavector DV XX-2 MkII; MC current gain pre-amplifier: Audio Files Tippi Phono pre-amplifier: Canor TP306VR+ Line Pre-amplifier: Audio Research Corporation Reference 3 Crossover: Marchand XM126-3 Linkwitz Riley (4th order) balanced valve 3-way active crossover with Marchand pm127 power supply Treble Amplifier: de Paravicini (HiFi World) designed SET6080 in RATA Torlyte case and outboard mains transformer, and passive components to match mid and bass Midrange Amplifier: Assemblage SET300B Signature variously tube-rolled and components to integrate with treble and bass *Bass amplifier: Breeze Audio Nelson Pass Zen* clone SE class A FET 10W Tuning planks beneath crossover, treble and midrange amplifiers: ERaudio Large SpaceHarmoniser on ERaudio steel cones on custom spalted beech shelves Active Loudspeakers: 3-way active loudspeaker drivers: Active Loudspeakers Bass drivers: Focal** Audiom 12 VX Active Loudspeakers: mid-range drivers: Focal Audium 7K Active Loudspeakers high frequencies: Focal TC120TDX with felt focus ring. Extensive and ever evolving acoustic treatment including books, corner bass absorption, high frequency (above 2kHz) absorption at primary tweeter reflection points, high frequency diffusers at other critical points. Some low impedance, low reactance wire is used to join these components together, much of it made up by the Old Scribe from high quality components with Pixie Dust personally mined by the Old Scribe. Mains is supplied by an audio only Ben Duncan 3kVA balanced mains spur main with centre tapped Radex earth (ground) non-inductive connections to a technical earth. Crossover and power amplifiers fed by a minimum connections hydra. All mains cables are screened & supplied from a non RCD connection.

Music enjoyed while writing this review

Reference system

on vinyl

Bob Dylan: Blood on the Tracks literature Nobel prize winner
Bob Dylan: Blonde on Blonde MFSL 3-45009 triple 45rpm

on cd

Soft Machine: The Story of Soft Machine mixed quality compilation from mediocre to execrable sound quality, bought for CD2 content
Short Wave: Live excellent 1992 recording of this short lived project, at Studio de Chennevières during the Perpignan Jazz Festival
Hatfield and The North: The Rotters Club good cd transcription with bonus tracks

Equipment heard while typing this:

Turntable: Michell Orbe SE
Turntable Modifications: include Pedersen subchassis & suspension kit
Pick-up arm: Hadcock GH242 SE Super Silver
Turntable support: Kiln dried sand filled custom wall shelf (aluminium reinforced plywood & hardwood) with marble sheets on sand bed
Cartridge: Dynavector DV XX-2 MkII;
MC current gain pre-amplifier: Audio Files Tippi
Phono pre-amplifier: Canor TP306VR+
Line Pre-amplifier: Audio Research Corporation Reference 3
Crossover: Marchand XM126-3 Linkwitz Riley (4th order) balanced valve 3-way active crossover with Marchand pm127 power supply
Treble Amplifier: de Paravicini (HiFi World) designed SET6080 in RATA Torlyte case and outboard mains transformer, and passive components to match mid and bass
Midrange Amplifier: Assemblage SET300B Signature variously tube-rolled and components to integrate with treble and bass
Bass amplifier: Breeze Audio Nelson Pass Zen clone SE class A FET 10W
Tuning planks beneath crossover, treble and midrange amplifiers: ERaudio Large SpaceHarmoniser on ERaudio steel cones
on custom spalted beech shelves

Active Loudspeakers: 3-way active loudspeaker drivers:
Active Loudspeakers Bass drivers: Focal Audiom 12 VX
Active Loudspeakers: mid-range drivers: Focal Audium 7K
Active Loudspeakers high frequencies: Focal TC120TDX with felt focus ring.

Extensive and ever evolving acoustic treatment including books, corner bass absorption, high frequency (above 2kHz) absorption at primary tweeter reflection points, high frequency diffusers at other critical points.

Some low impedance, low reactance wire is used to join these components together, much of it made up by the Old Scribe from high quality components with Pixie Dust personally mined by the Old Scribe. Mains is supplied by an audio only Ben Duncan 3kVA balanced mains spur main with centre tapped Radex earth (ground) non-inductive connections to a technical earth. Crossover and power amplifiers fed by a minimum connections hydra. All mains cables are screened & supplied from a non RCD connection.

* Bob Dylan, Idiot Wind, Blood on the Tracks, 1974

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