Stereodude
Not really a
So you want it for the AC3/DTS encoding of 5.1 audio from games and the like?
Your home Stereo/sound system/s? What did you buy, how much, and why did you buy it?
- Thread starter Santilli
- Start date
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
That too. It's either that or run an X-Meridian just for gaming and that seems silly too.
ddrueding
Fixture
This is one of the home theater rigs that I handle. Note that the satellite receivers didn't fit in the rack and are buried in the back.
Mercutio
Fatwah on Western Digital
That looks like way too much work.
ddrueding
Fixture
It is a lot of work. And that house has two full racks, not including the phone and lighting control system which fill a 20'x6' wall in the attic with equipment cabinets.
ddrueding
Fixture
From Pandora through the analog out of my Lenovo X201 to a Theta Digital Casablanca III to several kW of Theta Digital Dreadnaught II amps to an army of equally ridiculous speakers in an acoustically treated room. Sounds pretty good despite the weak source, not a bad stereo 
ddrueding
Fixture
Not sure about the speakers, they are covered by custom grilles that match the upholstered walls. Some I might be able to have a look from the back side. The statues are Oscars (one legit, the rest replicas).
ddrueding
Fixture
Something interesting about this system that I just noticed. The quality/tone/balance of the system doesn't change at all regardless of volume. That is pretty neat. I'm used to turning up the volume causing an increase and then drop off in the low frequencies...not here at all.
ddrueding
Fixture
Four BG LA-800 (left/right front, left/right side)
Four BG SA-360 (left/right front, left/right side, above the LAs)
One BG CC-400 (center)
Two BG SS-303 (right/left rear)
Four massive Subs that I can't get to (at least 14", built into cabinetry)
Oh, and five Buttkicker Amps driving the 12 inducers in the power-reclining chairs. Just these total 5kW, the Dreadnaughts do about 2kW of really high quality sound.
ddrueding
Fixture
Just got the DLA-RS65 fully set up, it is an amazing unit. It actually gives you independent control over the red and blue alignment (in relation to the green) in a massive set of zones across the display. Amazingly bright, but the big kicker is the contrast ratio (120,000:1), the blacks on the screen are indistinguishable from the black screen surround without losing any of the subtleties (tested with Tron in 2D and 3D).
CougTek
Hairy Aussie
At 8000$, it better be amazing.
ddrueding
Fixture
Yeah, plus a dozen pairs of 3D shutter glasses at $100 each. And the fiber optic HDMI cable. And the rest of it. I could probably have paid cash for my dream Audi for the cost of just the system upgrade.
ddrueding
Fixture
One advantage of network-connected AV gear is that it can update it's own firmware over the internet. My new toy at home (Denon AVR-3313CI) had an update already.
Of course, this might just give the manufacturer an out and allow them to ship incomplete firmware, but on a device that streams online services I'd consider it mandatory.
Of course, this might just give the manufacturer an out and allow them to ship incomplete firmware, but on a device that streams online services I'd consider it mandatory.
ddrueding
Fixture
Hoping for some advice here, a friend has a limited space and needs a receiver and blu-ray player. The space is too small both in terms of height and depth to fit a standard receiver. I was hoping for some kind of integrated thing. If not integrated, there is enough room for two short/shallow devices side-by-side. An original sized PS3 would fit, but isn't newbie friendly enough. In addition to the Bluray will be two additional HDMI inputs (Wii and Cable) and one HDMI output. Speakers will be a soundbar of some kind to go above the Samsung 50" TV.
I'm also looking into a Logitech Harmony or similar; it turns out that the remote ATT ships with their receiver won't allow the volume control to control anything but the TV (not the receiver). A ridiculous oversight.
I'm also looking into a Logitech Harmony or similar; it turns out that the remote ATT ships with their receiver won't allow the volume control to control anything but the TV (not the receiver). A ridiculous oversight.
ddrueding
Fixture
Currently considering the Samsung HT-E5500W. Looks to be the right size and offer the right number of inputs. I also think the wireless bridge to the rear speakers would allow actual surround sound in their (rental) house.
ddrueding
Fixture
Now that the kid is starting to walk, it is time to lock up the server rack. Doing this right is complex; the plan is to build the rack into cabinetry that will cover 20' of wall and include the projector screen and front three speakers. I'm not ready to purchase the speakers yet, and haven't even decided which to buy. At this point I just need to allocate the space for them in the layout. I plan on stretching speaker grille fabric across the openings, so they can be larger than I end up needing, but I don't want to waste too much space either.
Based on my experience with the Adam A8X at work, I'm tempted to just stick three A77X in there and call it good. I don't need monitors; the receiver in the rack is a Denon AVR-3313CI and should be good enough.
Back to the problem: The A77X would require an opening 9.5" high and 21" wide. Would making the openings 10" high and 24" wide keep my options fairly open when I do start shopping for speakers? The rear and side channels will have to be in the ceiling if that makes any difference.
Thanks guys!
Based on my experience with the Adam A8X at work, I'm tempted to just stick three A77X in there and call it good. I don't need monitors; the receiver in the rack is a Denon AVR-3313CI and should be good enough.
Back to the problem: The A77X would require an opening 9.5" high and 21" wide. Would making the openings 10" high and 24" wide keep my options fairly open when I do start shopping for speakers? The rear and side channels will have to be in the ceiling if that makes any difference.
Thanks guys!
Stereodude
Not really a
I'd make sure you check with Adam that the speakers have a setting that allows them to be baffle mounted. Mounting them flush with an opening in the wall just barely bigger than the speaker itself will have a significant impact on their frequency response. Some active speakers have settings to compensate for that.
ddrueding
Fixture
They don't. Let's say we scratch the Adams for now....how about the size? Are there plenty of good options that would fit in openings 10"x24" (landscape for center, portrait for L/R)? The listening space isn't that large; the couch is 6-8 feet from the speakers and the back wall is only 12 feet away.
ddrueding
Fixture
The more I look at this the more tempting it is to put all the speakers in the ceiling. How bad would that sound?
timwhit
Hairy Aussie
Do you watch a lot of movies that have jets flying overhead?
Stereodude
Not really a
Well, you're effectively trying to put a speaker inside another box. That doesn't do good things for acoustics and will pretty much eliminate any rear ported speakers. I'd suggest looking at high end in wall speakers, speakers that have the necessary controls / adjustments for flush baffle mounting, or moving to an acoustically transparent screen where you will have a lot of room for speakers and acoustic treatments behind the screen to counteract the large "box" you've put them in.
ddrueding
Fixture
I like this idea a lot. The screen is only about 87" wide, is that enough to get decent stereo separation? Who's screen material should I be looking at?
Stereodude
Not really a
Are you looking to DIY or not? If you want DIY the only acceptable acoustically transparent screen material I'm aware of is the Seymour AV. They sell prefab also. Basically you want a woven AT screen, not a perforated screen.
ddrueding
Fixture
Thanks for that. If I'm getting another screen, I'm tempted to get a retractable and use the space behind the screen to hold other stuff as well as the speakers. The smallest retractable Seymour sells is the 085 (97.5" diagonal) that looks like it would be about $2k...probably not happening.
Could you just build up a traditional floor standing speaker setup and then gate it off for when your kid is out playing and doing her thing? Then when you want to use it pull the gate down? I wouldn't be a fan of speakers in the ceiling. I feel like the sound quality and imaging would be lousy for what you're trying to achieve. Could you suspend speakers from the ceiling? I realize they won't perform as well as with proper floor stands but maybe you can compensate for the reduction of bass with an extra floor-based subwoofer?
ddrueding
Fixture
I'm really leaning towards the acoustically transparent screen and putting the speakers behind it. This cabinet needs to exist for many other reasons (hide the rack, store many larger items that currently don't have homes, house the bar, etc) and with the cabinet in place there is really nowhere for floor-standing speakers to hide besides behind the screen. With all the space behind the screen to play with, I could fit three ADAM Beta Mk2 speakers back there. Though I'm not sure how much reinforcement the surface would require to handle 6x 10" woofers, 3x 7.5" Mids, and some tweeters.
I'm really leaning towards the acoustically transparent screen and putting the speakers behind it. This cabinet needs to exist for many other reasons (hide the rack, store many larger items that currently don't have homes, house the bar, etc) and with the cabinet in place there is really nowhere for floor-standing speakers to hide besides behind the screen. With all the space behind the screen to play with, I could fit three ADAM Beta Mk2 speakers back there. Though I'm not sure how much reinforcement the surface would require to handle 6x 10" woofers, 3x 7.5" Mids, and some tweeters.
Those look mighty impressive. The weight is pretty heavy.
Are you planning to drive those with a decent amp given their 4 Ohm rating? I see they're not out yet. Any idea on their price? There may be a lot of speaker options in the range those may cost.
ddrueding
Fixture
Those look mighty impressive. The weight is pretty heavy.
The price I saw (after posting) was $38k/pair. I think I'll be looking elsewhere. I'm so in love with the sound from the A8X at work I might just get a pair of those and an A77X for the front. But I'm sure there are better deals at that quality level if I can lean on the amp in the Denon AVR-3313CI. Or is that amp not as good as I'm giving it credit for?
Wow, that is pretty hefty. If you go with another pair of AX8's how far will you be sitting from them? They're listed as a near or midfield monitor. You may get better results with a traditional floor speaker than to go with these. I guess you could always borrow your pair from work and try it at home. They may still sound really good, but you may have to sit close to them. Your receiver is a good one but for the Adam beta MK2 speakers I was concerned with the 4 Ohm load being too much for it especially when driving three or more speakers. The manual only shows 8 or 6 ohm loads. You may still benefit from a dedicated amp if you decide to go with hefty floor speakers that don't have amps built in. It's easiest to try with what you have and add on later. If you do decide or need an external amp, I'm still a big fan of Emotiva's amps. Maybe SD has some other opinions for their amps, but I've been happy with mine.
Stereodude
Not really a
How do they sound? They're not much to look at, but if it has it where it counts, the price is a lot less than the Adams beta MK2. :-D
ddrueding
Fixture
Since I'm having all this cabinet work done anyway, should I consider building the speakers into the space? I'm currently using SolidWorks to design the woodwork, and the guy I'm working with has the woodworking skills to fabricate whatever. I know enclosure design is a bit of an art, but it might be fun to learn.
Stereodude
Not really a
Amazing!!! I plan to use them in my HT (if I ever finish it).
Stereodude
Not really a
The enclosure isn't the problem. That's the easy part. It's picking the right drivers that work well together and then building a suitable crossover. It is no easy feat.
ddrueding
Fixture
So choosing a kit of speakers/electronics that are already known to work well and then building it in wouldn't be that hard? I'm thinking back to your earlier comments about putting speakers in small cubbies having a negative effect, would it be more beneficial to have the speaker enclosure actually be the space? Still in a constrained space, still facing the same direction, but that space itself would be reinforced/ported/whatever to support it?
Stereodude
Not really a
Yes and no. A speaker moves from a half space radiator to a full space radiator when the wavelength of the sound waves become longer than the dimensions of the front baffle. Crossovers account for this 6dB step created by the the baffle's effect on the frequency response. When you build a speaker flush into a wall you effectively give it an infinite baffle so it no longer transitions from half space to full space but stays in half space the until is gets boundary gain (and transitions into less than half space). This means you get an undesired 6dB boost in the output of the speaker below some frequency. Putting a speaker in a small cubby has the same issue once the sound waves are longer than the opening as the speaker transitions from half space back to full space. And, the cubby can cause resonances and other odd acoustic effects. So, if the kit has instructions on how to modify the crossover to remove the baffle step compensation it would be fine, otherwise I'd recommend against it.
A typical home theater AT (Acoustically Transparent) screen setup uses a front "wall" that's completely AT (not just the screen). You pretty much line the walls, ceiling, and floor behind the several inches of absorptive sound treatment (like compressed fiberglass) on the to prevent acoustic reflections from the speakers off the wall ceiling and floor. It's not a speakers in a larger cubby situation.
ddrueding
Fixture
Yeah, I won't be able to do that. Filling the area around the speakers behind the screen with absorptive sound treatment is totally possible, but the rest is shelving and cabinetry.
Stereodude
Not really a
Have you looked at "high end" in wall speakers?
ddrueding
Fixture
I had a while ago. Not entirely sure who the players are in that segment.