Speakers for Solo systems
For Arcam's Solo Music and Movie systems the Muso / Logo speaker system is the ideal choice of loudspeaker. Muso and Logo are also well suited to smaller stereo and home cinema systems based around integrated amplifiers and receivers.
For larger systems there are literally thousands of high quality loudspeakers to choose from. The right choice of loudspeaker is vital to enjoying your Arcam system at its best but with a little planning and some good advice it can be a highly enjoyable process.
Making a start
The Sound quality is, without doubt the single biggest factor in choosing speakers since they change the character of the music more than any other part of the system. Other contributing factors such as the size of your listening room, your choice of décor and local availability of brands and models will each play a part in your choice.
For this reason Arcam recommend consulting a good local specialist dealer to help draw up a short list of possible choices before listening to each in turn. This process will enable you to determine which models suit your chosen electronics, favoured styles of music and, if a home demonstration is available, how the system will sound in your room.
Positioning your speakers
Once you've chosen a pair of speakers it's time to find the right spot for them. In many homes the location of the loudspeakers is determined simply by the space available and the location of seats, windows, fireplaces or the TV! If you are lucky enough to have free-reign on positioning try auditioning in different positions in your listening room as this will often change the sound dramatically.
For a stereo system the two speakers and the main listening position should form a rough triangle. You may also want to experiment with the angle at which the speaker points as this will affect both the size and stability of the sonic "image" and the size of the listening "sweet spot".
Once a rough position is found smaller changes can be made to fine tune the system for the best results. A little careful measurement to make sure each speaker is the same distance from the walls behind and to the side will help with bass performance while checking each speaker is pointing at the listening position at the same angle will help with accurate and stable sound staging.
Finally, make sure each speaker is as stable as possible by levelling each speaker on its feet of spikes using a sprit level and by filling any speaker stands with dry, clean sand.
Home Cinema speaker systems
Much of the advice given above also applies to home cinema setups. However, there are usually a number of additional speakers in a home cinema to consider, some of which require quite different positioning considerations. Arcam provides its dealers with in-depth "Masterclass" training in home cinema design and seeking their advice about exact positioning can reap huge rewards.