One of the most effective methods of treating a room is to employ the LEDE concept or live-end, dead-end whereby one end of the room is heavily treated with absorptive materials while the other is kept ‘live’ so that sound can reflect back into the room to create a sense of space and ambiance.

The problem is that large untreated surfaces provide a ready path for primary reflections to echo back to the listening position causing phase problems that are distracting and slap echo that can be offensive. The most effective method of solving the problem is to employ acoustic diffusers. These devices come in a variety of designs and work by breaking up sound waves. The problem is that for diffusers to work; they must have sufficient mass to reflect energy back into the room and good ones like the Primacoustic Razorblade are expensive.

An effective low-cost alternative is to employ a system we call Soft-diffusion™. Soft-diffusion basically works by allowing random energy to reflect back into the room while some of the energy is absorbed by strategically placing panels at the receive end.

Broadway Scatter Blocks provide a very effective tool for rear and side wall treatment. 1" thick Scatter Blocks work well in the voice-range while thicker 2” Scatter Blocks will more effectively manage lower frequencies. The goal is to cover between 20% to 30% of the rear wall, leaving plenty of open spaces between panels to reflect sound.

The benefits are improved imaging and a larger sweet-spot in the prime listening area.