1. Preserve the starting point
Before moving anything, mark the front corners of both speakers with removable tape, note your normal listening seat and save a baseline Room Tuner reading. Photograph the toe-in from above if that helps you reproduce it.
This turns setup into an experiment. If a change is worse, you can return to a known position instead of guessing where the speakers used to be.
2. Check wiring and polarity
Make sure the positive and negative terminals are connected consistently at the amplifier and both speakers. One reversed speaker can weaken centre imaging and bass because the two channels partly oppose each other.
Also confirm that left and right are connected to the correct channels and that any balance control is centred before placement work begins.
3. Build a sensible starting geometry
For a conventional stereo pair, begin with left-right symmetry. Keep the speakers at equal height and, where possible, equal distance from the nearest side walls. Aim their acoustic axes toward the listening area.
A roughly equilateral triangle and a 60-degree angle between the speakers are useful starting points, not laws. Real rooms, furniture and speaker dispersion differ. The goal is a repeatable geometry you can test and live with.
Place the tweeters or the manufacturer’s stated acoustic axis near seated ear height. If that is impossible, angle both speakers toward the listening position in the same way.
4. Test distance from the wall
The wall behind a speaker can reinforce low frequencies and can also create cancellation when reflected sound meets the direct sound out of phase. Pulling speakers farther into the room is therefore not automatically better.
Move both speakers by the same small amount—20–30 cm is a practical experiment—while keeping the seat, toe-in and volume unchanged. Listen, measure, and compare with the baseline. Follow the speaker manufacturer’s minimum clearance guidance, especially for rear ports and cooling.
5. Test the listening position
A seat can sit in a room-mode peak or null. If a bass note dominates or disappears, moving the seat forward or backward can be more effective than adjusting the amplifier.
Try realistic positions rather than tiny random moves. Room Tuner Pro can compare 2–6 named seats with two readings at each and report a supported winner, tie or trade-off.
6. Tune toe-in by listening
Toe-in is the angle of the speakers toward the listener. More toe-in often increases direct high-frequency energy and can sharpen the centre image; less can widen the presentation. The result depends on the speaker’s dispersion and the room’s side-wall reflections.
Change both speakers by the same small angle. Use familiar voices and instruments, then return to the previous angle before deciding. Room measurements can describe response changes, but your ears should judge image width, focus and preference.
7. Check left and right without overinterpreting
Look for obvious asymmetry: unequal wall distances, one open side and one solid wall, different furnishings, blocked drivers or a balance setting that has drifted. Correct the clear setup differences first.
Room Tuner offers an optional per-speaker check for eligible stereo setups, but it uses a left/right conclusion only when the captured paths separate reliably. A normal room reading should not be treated as proof that one speaker is defective.
8. Know when to stop
The objective is not a perfectly flat graph or a layout that makes the room unusable. Keep a change when the measured result improves, the listening experience is better, and the position works in daily life.
Only after placement and setup should you consider treatment or EQ. A fixed EQ cut can help a repeatable peak, but it cannot repair every position-dependent null.
