Wilson Audio WATT Series 7 - Manual (Page 37)

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Figure 7 (below) illustrates the 3 most commonly encountered room reflection prob-
lems, slap-echo, standing waves, and comb filter effects.
s
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Probably the most obnoxious form of reflection is the “slap echo.” In slap echo,
primarily mid-range and high frequency sounds reflect off of two parallel hard surfaces.
The sound literally reverberates back and forth until it is finally dissipated over time. You
can test for slap echo in any room by clapping your hands sharply in the middle of the room
and listening for the characteristic sound of the echo in the mid-range. Slap echo destroys
the sound quality of a stereo system primarily in two ways:
• Adding harshness to the upper mid-range and treble through
energy time storage
• Destroying the delicate phase relationships which help to establish
soundspace and image localization clues.
Figure 7
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