Home Audio and Video

[mnwild2]

I know this site is all about Natiques and the impressive sounds systems people have on their boats. I am wondering what you folks have in your homes? I start out with a Yamaha HTR-5630 receiver (75Wx5) with Yamaha satellite speakers and Yamaha center channel, hooked to a Parsec LS-4 Antenna (we live out a ways). We blew our JBL Sub cranking Click, Click, Pull, so we replaced that with a Klipsch Sub 10 Synergy Series. A masterpiece of sound and design, the Synergy Series Sub-10 shakes things up with its rock-solid performances. Its extraordinary power adds a dose of "reality" to movie explosions and other special effects, as well as reveals commonly elusive lower musical tones. For Video we have Sony Bravia 52V4100 HD 1080P hooked to a Toshiba SD-4900 DVD player. We also have a Sony Wii.

[TurboFan]

I finally got to build my theater room last summer. It's not a purpose-built room as far as the original design of the house goes, but it works. It's 12 feet wide and 24 feet long with a wet bar at the back of the room. When I finally build my own house I'll excavate a proper theater room and build in proper acoustics, but hey, I'm happy to have a 288 sqft "daddy's playroom" as my son calls it.

For video display I'm using a 110" Da-Lite HiPower screen with a Panasonic AE-4000U projector. My viewing geometry is ideal for a HiPo screen, and I have great light control too so I get to cheat and run a cheaper projector . Sources are an Oppo BDP-93 BluRay and a direcTV HR-24 DVR fed through a pioneer elite SC-37. The Pioneer is also handling audio duties for the time being, but I may convert it to a preamp and go with an Emo MPS-1 I have sitting around. Dunno yet.
I wired the walls for 7.3 audio, running Onix RS-1000 fronts, RSC-200 center, RS 300 sides and SVS Audio SBS-200 rears. I wanted the RS-250MKII for the rear, but couldn't find any to complete my system. I'm running an SVS PB-2 Plus sub - one of the older dual-driver subs from SVS, but it absolutely rocks. Maybe someday I'll get a couple SVS tower subs and spend the time to tweak the room, but it's 100% distortion-free and tight, even at level 2 times louder than I can handle

Ummmm, yeah, that's about it.

[Chexi]

Pioneer FPJ1 (JVC RS-2 clone) on 8' screen, Onkyo TXNR-3700 acting as a 9.1 pre-pro to anthem PVM 7 amp (use Onkyo's amps for height channels), Earthquake Platine Noiree fronts, rears and sides, some old cheap Klipsch speakers I had bought while in college for my heights, and Earthquake Supernova MKV 15" sub.

Sources, PS3, LG BH200 super multi-blu, Sony 400 DVD changer, DirecTV DVR all fed into a DVDO iScan Duo for scaling and color management system (The DVDO iScan Duo is better than sliced bread).

Also, APC battery backup/power conditioner, Harmony 880 and Niles remote extender. This is all in a 15 x 20 dedicated theater room with 6 black leather recliners 4 in front row, 2 in back (have a corner clipped off in this room, or I'd be 4 and 4).

Other than it being about time for a new bulb in my projector, I'm still stoked about my system, even though my pj is now many generations old. Only things I'm thinking about doing are further blacking out the room with black carpet and painting the walls (or possibly velvet... which I already have... and have had for over a year now...) and adding some acoustic wall treatments.

[mnwild2]

TurboFan and Chexi, very impressive, I have a co-worker that built onto his home and added a theater room with a 120" HD projection, 3 outlaw amps powering 6 Magneplanars, massive sub, black walls, leather recliners, etc., been over to watch the superbowl but I think it would be a bit too much just watching world news tonight with Brian Williams, great for sports though!!

[TurboFan]

Mine never gets daily use for general tv. Its usually just movies and sports.

[mnwild2]

Noted, I assume you have "JUST" a 73" Mistubishi HD for daily use!! :-)

[TurboFan]

58" Panny in the family room for general TV. 50" Panny in the rec room mostly sees the Wii. Lots of sports on the big screen tho

[Chexi]

I watch more movies than TV, so mine gets a lot of use. My dream setup would be a completely blacked out room and a 120" anamorphic setup... but I'll make do with what I have for now. Home theater tweaks are my hobby during the non-boating season.

[mnwild2]

You two are classic!!! Invite us over for the next SB!!

[east tx skier]

I'll play. The same cabinet guy who original did the original built ins in our house did a little R&R on them in December 2008. I was a moron and cheaped out on the extra few hundred it would have cost to have him paint it. I spent the next three weeks inhaling oil based paint fumes. But it turned out great.

The TV is a 55" full array LED array Samsung LCD (not one of those uber thin side lit LED TV's. Contrast ratio is 1,000,000:1. The surround is a Sony 7.1 system. The center is behind the grill cloth that is replacement grill cloth for an early 50's Fender guitar amp. The sub is a Dayton 12". The bookshelf and surround speakers (not pictured) are Klipsch 5.25". The surrounds are yamaha and are flush mounted in the ceiling and angle in. I was afraid I mounted the side surrounds a bit too far forward (they probably are a bit), but they sound great (close enough). System also has several exhaust fans in the cabinet, PS3, DirecTV, Sony Blu-Ray, and is controlled by a Harmony 880 remote.

The picture is from when it was about 98% done. Components and fans were not in yet, wiring wasn't cleaned up, and the Brio train set had yet to be moved. It has been a great set up for us.



P.S., last year, we got the cabinet guy to come back and build us a buffet/bar in the dining room.

[Chexi]

Done. You are invited to my next super bowl party. Hopefully the Packers will be back, ha!

Secondary (everyday system) is a Samsung 50' LCD 1080p with a Marantz SR8400 receiver, Onkyo Blu-ray (connected via analog for 5.1 Dolby TrueHD and DTS MA), Wii, Klipsch RF-3 fronts, in-ceiling sides, and 12" polk sub I got for free when I bought my Onkyo receiver for the media room. Also, Toshiba HD-2 HD-DVD player and my older lumagen scaler for upscaling DVDs. Sony 300 CD-changer and a HTPC (but I never use it anymore).

Everything but the TV is a hand me down of sorts that used to be in the media room (except the receiver, I used to run an Anthem receiver, but swapped it out when the lossless codecs came out). Now the Anthem is sitting in storage awaiting my lake house to be built. Guess I better get the plans done first.

[east tx skier]

How are you running uncompressed audio over something other than HDMI? Or is it bitstream over coax and decoded at the receiver? Been a while since I have thought about any of this. What is the advantage of running the signal analog?

[Chexi]

If your pre/pro/receiver does not have HDMI (which my marantz sr8400 does not), but has 5.1 or 7.1 analog ins, you can have the source unit decode the lossless audio and run uncompressed audio into the pre/pro/receiver via those analogs (assuming your source has 5.1 or 7.1 analog outs). These analog jacks were initially added to sources for DVD Audio or SACD I think, but some of the higher-end Blu-ray players also have 7.1 analog outs for people who have great older pre/pros or receivers that pre-date HDMI. If you have a good pre/pro or receiver with 5.1 or 7.1 analog ins, a source unit with 5.1/7.1 analog outs and a set of decent analog cables, you will not lose much (if anything) versus lossless over HDMI other than the little logo in the VFD of the receiver / pre/pro.

[Chexi]

I forgot, but you also lose video switching/scaling at the pre/pro receiver (assuming you are using HDMI for video)... but you wouldn't have had that anyway with an older unit. An older unit with 7.1 analog setup and a cheap HDMI switcher or even better a DVDO iScan Duo for video/switching and scaling (and color management system) gets you state of the art performance. You would lose on screen display of course.

[mnwild2]

Chexi and ETS, if either of you two happen to be in MN, let us know, my wife and I will take you out for the day. I'm heading out to Trophy Lakes Estates III this weekend for a Midwest Regional 3 event Tournament. Still haven't launched our boat this season, weather stinks and wife out of town, we're "D.I.N.K.S"!! And Yes Chexi, hopefully the PACK will win it again, even being a Vikes fan!! I'm not a real HOMER......