As we near the end of 2020,(what a year!), i guess I could look back pertaining to my HT project which is quite a rocky one.
2019 - Flashback
Set up two HT systems in my living room and small study den. All Starke Brio speakers, subs, Gallos ceilings with Onkyo and Denon 4500.
2020 - Master Bedroom conversion to ded HT room. Decomn study den into bedroom.
Repaint/Remodel and move study Starke Brio 5.1 and subs into Ded HT. XTZ for ceilings and Rear surrounds making it 7.2.4. Denon 8500 AVC
Ceilings infested with mites/flies. Delay as repaint and sealant applied.
Not happy with Optoma projector. Trade in for JVC Nx5.
Newly purchased sofa discover to have termites. Affect my other furniture too. Got full refund but new sofa take ages to deliver due to COVID.
Some issues with Starke centre. As it is behind a AT screen and a different vendor handling my install, decided to replace the LRC with a brand they carries, i.e.Legacy Audio Studio HD and Silverscreen HD. 2 months delivery.
SW12 subs hit some issue. Decided to replace it with XTZ 12.17. One month delivery.
Rear surround too near sofa. Moved it all the way back, meaning partly block my MBR toilet. Wife has no concerns. Great
One Studio HD hit issue. Got a T Loan from vendor while waiting for replacement.
So with all the issues faced, all at different times, I finally got a final stable setup in Nov that i really like. With every issue, the vendor needs to come and retuned the setup. Grateful to them.
If I remember it right, its the protection circuit. Clog clog sound even with no input. Though was repaired promptly. Still using the SW12 is my living room, along with all the starkes.
I replace it because I have both the centre and subs behind the AT screen. So need my vendor to bring down the screen in order to have access. Thus decide to replace the Starkes with Legacy Audio and the XTZ 12.17 which the vendor carries. One stop shop and support.
Pretty happy with 12.17. It can gets low, tight and sounds more controlled.
wow mites and termites. i repainted my whole ceiling partly due to mold eating mites. i buang my whole storage bed frame (master bedroom) due to termite infestation. very annoying. Glad all is well for you now!
Wow, it sounds like a damn eventful year for you. Termite or whatever infestation is one of the worst things to happen. I hope it is all sorted out and exterminated!
For me, if you can have bat cave, then jvc is the way to go. Then I was told that all the speakers should be off the same make so to be off the same timbre (need the more experienced bros to verify, I had different makes for surrounds vs LCR so till now no chance to experience this type of sound. But it’s all gonna change soon )
Room acoustics can cost quite a bit. Aesthetics wise it is better to factor in early so the look can be built into the HT. Cos later on, not many of us or or our better half can give up the aesthetics for the acoustics
Yes. Both and worse, at different time. I too threw away beds and chairs. Actually we discover termites in a bed in another room and trace it to the new sofa as the source.
Ya. Best this way with LCR being the most critical. Initially I had Starke Brio for LCR and Side Surrounds. XTZs for ceiling and Rear Surrounds since these are new additions.
Now, its Legacy Audio for LCR, Starke VS62 for sides and XTZs Spirits 11 and 4 for RS and Atmos.
Lol…rojak due to circumstances. May swap the XTZ S11s with Studio HDs when i buy the Classic HD. And if feel itchy, replace the Starkes with Legacy Pixel.
One thing i realised too is that getting a OTW for atmos sounds much better than the smaller Gallo type. OTW on concrete ceilings looks better too then the spheres.
I am extremely blessed that my wife is not too particular on looks. Neat and tidy is what she insisted and easy access to mbr toilet.
You can get those powder off the shelf to exterminate termites.
XFI is right that proper room acoustics is not the cheapest and most of us will not see the tangible value of it compares to the upgrading of equipment etc. Moreover, WAF is also a factor.
Yes, I am thinking to try experiencing the difference room treatment could/would bring in a room where there is some constraints.
This is the first time I have a respectable size dedicated HT den, though it was sort of morph into it as it was a master bedroom. Still need to keep the wardrobe and accessibility to the Master toilet.
Could setup treatment panels on side walls and rear walls. Ceiling has the 4 OTWs and a ceiling fan that is never on now. One side wall has the wardrobe and the other a door. Rear wall too has the toilet door. No corners available.
After that incident, we now dont buy preown wooden stuff​:grin: even though the source is from a newly delivered sofa. Suspect the termites tagged along.
you are right. after i told my parents about it, they said the same thing. If the wood isn’t treated or from unscrupulous merchant sold them to the sofa maker, they actually tag along.
my bed was SO BAD that the moment i step on the wooden support on my bedframe upon opening up the storage area, it cracked in that instant. just imagine how disgusting it is sleeping at night daily with the termites. it was 2am in the morning where me and wife dismantle the whole bed and throw downstairs.
Do it! It will bring up the performance to another level. Many people concentrate on electronics, speakers, and those expensive tweaks, but I’m happy to see more people looking into acoustic treatment.
Replacing Studio HD/XTZ S11 with Classic HD (but likely to be be Signature SE)/Expression AMT. As such, will move from 7.2.4 to 5.2.4. I suspect 5.2.4 could works in my room size of 3m x 4m.
Darken the room with near black paint. Still unsure on ceiling paint, whether to go dark or not.
Replace Denon X8500 with Yamaha CX5200/MX5200 . So will be putting up Denon for sale pretty soon.
Room acoustic to come after setup completion.
Replacing my 2.5 seater sofa with ONE seater. Not sure what to buy though, any suggestions are welcome.
Just looking at this post for the first time. Can’t imagine what you went through with the bugs. Termites made it into the room next to my HT room and ate up an empty box, but I called Rentokil and they haven’t been back.
Nice stuff you have. Any comments on why you aren’t waiting for HDMI 2.1 versions of the Yamaha receivers and going for the older CX5200 series?
Given that you are interested in room correction, might it be worth it to consider a DIRAC compatible system?
These are also questions for me, because I have a 16 year old HT system that is partially broken down to the point where I have to control everything with a Logitech Hub and Alexa since the remote controls have long bitten the dust. I see doing a major upgrade of everything within the next few years even though right now everything still works well anchored by a 80kg SVS subwoofer.
I guess is the timing. The HDMI 2.1 version for the 5200 equivalent has yet to be announced and likely Yamaha will announce the Aventage 2080/3080 replacement first. Rather than waiting for the unknown in terms of availability, I decided to go with the current offering. My thoughts at by going separates, i can replace the processer for newer if so desired. Also, it gave me the opportunity to try out a separates setup. All these years, I have been using AVRs.
I guess at this stage of my life, my intent is to try out the different items personally. Similarly with the DAC, Roon, ripped CDs and ripped movies etc…
I am trying out room treatment as opposed to room correction techniques. I think there is a difference, I believe.
Lol…my preference is to enjoy the music/sound and leave the hard work of room correction work to my vendor of choice. I have explored the idea of DIRAC enabled processors but frankly so far, I don’t feel assured with the vendors that carries such processor that I can comfortably do a hands off.
In a nutshell, I prefer (abeit lazily) to depend on vendor expertise and recommendation, once I decided on the speakers of choice. In this case, it is Tritone and so far I am very happy with the current install and support.
I was hoping for some pics to have a glimpse of what’s the state of things thus far,…
I’m curious about the room treatment plan.
I feel I’ve some pretty decent components now (though there’s many other upgrade ideas) and fixing the room is probably the weakest link.
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