Advice needed for on-wall 5.1 system

[Nightjar]

Dear friends,
I must choose a 5.1 speaker system for a 32 sqm room (total size: 91 cubic meters), but the portion to devote to home theatre is about 19 sqm. The distance between the screen and the main viewing area is about 5.4m.

Now, for a series of reasons I can only use on-wall speakers (not in-wall) and of course the subwoofer will be the only element positioned on the ground.

After a thorough research in this forum and elsewhere, I came to a shortlist of at least 4 possible choices, which are listed below:

Martin Logan Motion SLM x3 (LCR)
KEF T101 x2 (Surround)
Martin Logan Dynamo 700 (Subwoofer)
Paradigm Millenia 30 x3 (LCR)
Paradigm Millenia ADP x2 (Surround)
Paradigm MilleniaSub (Subwoofer)
Revel M10 x 2 (LR)
Revel C10 (C)
Revel M8 x 2 (Surround)
Revel S12 x2 (alternate Surround)
Revel B120 (Subwoofer)
GoldenEar Supersat 60 x2 (LR)
GoldenEar Supersat 60C (C)
Paradigm Millenia ADP x2 (Surround)
SVS PB12-Plus (Subwoofer)
Velodyne SPL Ultra 1200 (alternate Subwoofer)
In your opinion, and considering also that the placement of the surround satellites will be quite problematic (asimmetrical position and one element placed within two shelves of a bookcase), which is the most effective system for my room?

Thanks for your help!

 

[ImcLoud]

I would go with the cheapest one or the one that you prefer the looks of, I and most people on here are going to be lacking experience with that list of equipment, I personally haven't heard many in wall speakers... And the ones I have heard {including some fairly expensive models} have not impressed me, so if I was trapped into an in-wall system I would go with the most inexpensive system that was aesthetically pleasing... I have heard some pretty impressive in-wall subs though...

 

[Nightjar]

I personally haven't heard many in wall speakers...

Please note that I was referring to ON wall speakers - that is models that are just attached to a wall, not inserted into it. I know in-wall speakers do have a series of issues, like odd resonances with the wall itself, while the in-walls are usually smaller and thinner, but theoretically less problematic.

 

[NewHTbuyer]

Obviously, listening to each is the best option. Also, which you like the look of best and which seems like it has the best build quality.

in general, try to get mains that play below 80hz so you can crossover to the sub at 80 Hz.

Finally, the sub does not need to match the speakers at all. So, no matter which on wall set you choose, I would get a sub from an ID company, like the SVS you have under one of the options.

The only one of the four you listed I have heard is the GE Supersats, and they did not impress me that much. I have Paradigm ADPs from 2008 as my surrounds and they are well made speakers.

edit: I looked at the four options. I don't trust the spec for the GE. Just looking at the pics I would go with paradigm or revel.

One consideration is that the GE and Martin Logan use ribbon type tweeters vs domes for the other two. You should try to demo at lest one set with domes and one with ribbons so you can determine which sound yo unlike better.

 

[ImcLoud]

Please note that I was referring to ON wall speakers - that is models that are just attached to a wall, not inserted into it. I know in-wall speakers do have a series of issues, like odd resonances with the wall itself, while the in-walls are usually smaller and thinner, but theoretically less problematic.

Sorry. I like the def tech mythos for hanging (WALL HUNG) speakers

 

[djshorty]

What did you end up going with? How did it work out?

Dear friends,
I must choose a 5.1 speaker system for a 32 sqm room (total size: 91 cubic meters), but the portion to devote to home theatre is about 19 sqm. The distance between the screen and the main viewing area is about 5.4m.

Now, for a series of reasons I can only use on-wall speakers (not in-wall) and of course the subwoofer will be the only element positioned on the ground.

After a thorough research in this forum and elsewhere, I came to a shortlist of at least 4 possible choices, which are listed below:

Martin Logan Motion SLM x3 (LCR)
KEF T101 x2 (Surround)
Martin Logan Dynamo 700 (Subwoofer)
Paradigm Millenia 30 x3 (LCR)
Paradigm Millenia ADP x2 (Surround)
Paradigm MilleniaSub (Subwoofer)
Revel M10 x 2 (LR)
Revel C10 (C)
Revel M8 x 2 (Surround)
Revel S12 x2 (alternate Surround)
Revel B120 (Subwoofer)
GoldenEar Supersat 60 x2 (LR)
GoldenEar Supersat 60C (C)
Paradigm Millenia ADP x2 (Surround)
SVS PB12-Plus (Subwoofer)
Velodyne SPL Ultra 1200 (alternate Subwoofer)
In your opinion, and considering also that the placement of the surround satellites will be quite problematic (asimmetrical position and one element placed within two shelves of a bookcase), which is the most effective system for my room?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Nightjar]

What did you end up going with? How did it work out?

After much mumbling, I decided to buy a bit pricier setup:

PMC Wafer 2 (x3: LCR)
PMC Wafer 1-iw (x2 inwall: SL SR)
SVS SB-13 Ultra (SW)

The three Wafer 2s are placed above a 115" Black Diamond Zero screen. Their 'Beam-up’ function uses the twin tweeter arrangement to steer the image toward the listening position. The couple of Wafer 1-iw are placed in-wall right above the main seating position (which is located about 6m from the screen), at about 2m distance from each other. The subwoofer is placed on the right of the screen, near a corner.

The stereo separation is not breathtaking, due to the narrow angle between L and R speakers, but the clarity is astounding, and the audio field is truly huge (about 6 x 4 x 3m). I have carefully calibrated and equalized the audio output and everything seems extremely well balanced. Maybe it's a bit quiet on the low end - I don't get a chest-pounding bass even if I'm using a good 13" subwoofer, but I will try to make some extra measurements and calibrations soon using FuzzMeasure Pro 3 software.

All in all, I'm satisfied by my new speaker set, even if I was expecting a bit more thumping bass.

 

[djshorty]

Thanks for getting back to me. Do you mind sharing your thoughts on why you discounted your initial options? I had 2 options in mind for LCR:

Revel M10 / C10
Monitor Audio Shadow 50

I was trying to stay under $500 per speaker. What was the pricing for the Revel speakers and how did that compare to the PMC Wafers you ended up with?

Thanks!

Kevin

 

[Nightjar]

What was the pricing for the Revel speakers and how did that compare to the PMC Wafers you ended up with?

I listened to KEF and Martin Logan speakers and they sounded… Well… Extremely "thin". To be honest, I didn't want to spend €€€ just to have a bad sounding speaker set. So, I steered to PMC speakers that are much more expensive, but they offer so much in terms of quality, look and sound. To give you an idea, these are the list prices in Europe:

Revel M10: € 450 each
PMC Wafer 1-iw: € 1100 each
PMC Wafer 2: € 1500 each

But I have found a dealer who made me an offer on those PCMs I just couldn't refuse.