Theory of phonetics

[x] front low-broad unrounded short and lax. It is pronounced with the bulk of the tongue in the front part of the mouth cavity. The tongue is raised low in the mouth. The front of the tongue is slightly raised, but not so high as for [e]. The lip position is neutral. The opening between the jaws is wide.

[x] is more open than [э] in the word “этом”. Give the shade of [а] to [x]. A consonant before [x] mustn’t be palatalized.

Back monophthongs

English	Russian
[R] back advanced low-broad unrounded long and tense. It is pronounced with the bulk of the tongue in the back part of the mouth cavity but somewhat advanced. The back of the tongue is slightly raised. The lips are neutral. The opening between the laws is fairly wide.	[R] is more back and tense than Russian [a].
[P] back low-broad slightly rounded short and lax. It is pronounced with the tongue held in a position which is farther back than that of [R]. The back of the tongue is raised a little more than for [R]. The lips are slightly rounded. The opening between the jaws is wide.	[о] is closer. The lips are more rounded and protruded.
[L] fully back mid-broad rounded long and tense. It is pronounced with the bulk of the tongue in the back part of the mouth cavity. The back of the tongue is raised in the direction of the soft palate, higher than for [P]. The lips are rounded and slightly protruded to form an opening which is much smaller than for [P]. The opening between the jaws is medium.