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Does speaker toe-in affect reflection points?

I recently used the "mirror method" mentioned elsewhere in the forums to verify the location of the 1st and 2d reflection points along my side walls.

Then I realized that as I play with speaker placement further, I may go back to angling my speakers in. That made me wonder if the toe-in would cause the reflection points on the side walls to move toward the listener and rendering the mirror method unreliable.

Anyone with thoughts on this?
aggielaw

Showing 2 responses by tvad

tvad
9,467 posts
 
That's a good question.

I would think toeing the speakers in moves the first reflection point up the wall closer to the listening position, whereas toeing them out moves the first reflection point away from the listening position.

However, the speaker's physical relationship to the wall doesn't change, as one can tell by using the mirror method.

So, the question is, how much does the reflection point change, and how audible is it? Perhaps the only way to know is to shift the acoustical treatments and listen for a difference.
tvad
9,467 posts
 
02-26-09: Shadorne
...if your speaker has a fall off in response off axis (such as a horn) then the energy being reflected may be lower by as much as 3 to 6 db when toed-in.

That indicates to me that the reflection point is indeed affected by toe-in. If the reflection point is moved farther up the wall to the listener (and the angle of reflection becoming more oblique), then wouldn't the trajectory of the sound wave reflect farther behind the listener, thereby measuring down a few dB?
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