Why does my amp sound better when I am not standing directly in front of it?

Question

I recently got a JCM800 2203x amplifier and the thing is killer. I'm one of the lucky people who has a practice space where they can crank it to 10 and hear that beautiful power tube distortion!

The strange thing, however, is that it seems to sound smoother and more full when I stand off to the side instead of directly in front of the amp. Literally the tone is perfect standing off to the side, but when standing directly in front of it, it sounds more harsh and slightly less pleasant.

Has anyone else experienced this with their amps? I don't believe that the amp has anything wrong with it because it sounds phenomenal from all angles, but I was just wondering if I was the only one experiencing this kind of thing and if there was any reason behind it.

Also I don't think this has anything to do with how much the human ear can process at loud volumes because when the volumes are this high I am always wearing earplugs regardless of where I stand, so I am never hearing more than my ears can really handle. (I have tried taking the earplugs out for a few seconds though and it still seems to sound better off to the side even without earplugs.)

Answer 1

There are several possible causes:

As a general rule, the sound produced by a loudspeaker is more directionally "focused" at high frequencies.

If the speaker is aimed directly at the opposite wall of a room, you are likely to get "organ pipe" resonances because of sound reflecting directly from the wall back onto the speaker. In this case, there may be noticeable changes in the sound quality if you stand in front of the speaker at different positions between the speaker and the opposite wall.

And if you are standing to the side of the speaker, you will be hearing more sound that has been reflected (multiple times) from the whole of the room. As well as adding "reverberation", the proportion of the sound absorbed and reflected by the walls etc is frequency-dependent.

Some combination of those effects can make a difference which is easy to hear. Which listening position you consider "better" is rather subjective, of course.

Answer 2

This is just the way all classic tube amp designs pushing 12" cones sound. Close backed cabinets are even more directional than open backed cabinets with the same drivers.

I play live with a 1x12 combo and I deliberately point it right at my head and make it sound a little too bright and harsh. That way I can always hear my amp over the rest of the band and I know that the audience is going to get the best part of the sound.

If you do enough recording of guitar amps, you'll quickly figure out that on axis with the dust cap is not where you want to put any mic.

It's just the way amps work. Be glad that you are aware of it.

Answer 3

The cause of the directionality is described above by Yorik, and is well-known.

Jay Mitchell published his solution to the issue some time ago here: https://web.archive.org/web/20130201144500/http://www.tgpwebzine.com/?page_id=424.

I have Mitchell donuts in all my 1x12 combos now, and wouldn't go without them.

Answer 4

now you need to try adjusting the amps position, not yours. closer/further from walls and at a few angles.

well your position as well, at every amp position.

wireless is great if your doing your own live engineering, then you can stand where the crowd will be and try it out. it's gonna be different when they fill the room with people but at least closer to the sound you want.

also pay attention to what's in the room, reflective stuff, padding, and think a little about how the sound will reflect around the room.

then you have all the info you need to start comparing how it sounds relative to your amps distance from the wall behind it.

once you "get" your amp, you can set it up for any room.

pros know the distances that affect each frequency and could probably do a good setup from some math calculations in their head but its way too confusing for me.

just try things and go by feel i think.