Audio Systems: RTA, room reflections, field measurements

Question
I've been into audio for a long time now and every once in a while I try to use a measurement mic with an RTA software application.  I setup the mic where my ears would be in listening position, I play pink noise, I adjust the eq until flat. then I play music and it sounds TERRIBLE!  I know my mic is good because I did this same process near field on a pair of headphones and it improved their sound 100%.  why doesn't the same thing work in the room?  I must be doing something wrong but i don't know what it is. also my recent project is open baffle speakers so taking near field measurements doesn't really work either.
help :-)
thanks.

Answer
No.  You are not doing anything wrong.  The integration of sound power into a room is very difficult to analyze.  With pink noise - or any color noise - the bounce or reflections around the room adds up at the microphone completely different from music.

Close up analysis of pink noise at the speaker box will work good because the room reflections are pretty well out of the picture.  Try that.

Room eq has been a holy grail for years; it has never worked.  At least not in the straight forward way. Some technologists have developed algorithms that compensate and pulses and all sorts of tones that get close but pink or white noise testing isn't very productive.  Is it?

Cheers.