Hello, part of my new outlook

[Guillermo]

As you can all see, I'm the newest "audiophyte"... at least for some minutes, it will be my privilege.

The more and more I looked into info for my new theater setup, the more this forum kept showing on searches... because many of the best answers and most helpful folks are here... so I joined.

Recently I have a rekindling with my HT experiences, with my new home.

I want to share andconsult on my new outlook on HT so you friends can enlighten me... set me straight... or encourage me. Whatever suits best.

For music I am loyal to my venerable NAD AVR 713... mated to a NAD Cd player and an old pair of Bose 301's on my trusted Bell'ogetti stands... with a tiny, very musical 8" sony sub which wo't work at all for HT, but after years of trial and error, fit the bill beautifully... for that little bit of roundness. This has been so for almost 14 years of listening pleasure.. since with music, to me equipment is like an instrument... whatever YOUR EARS LIKE.

Now for HT my experiences have not been as consistent... I went thorugh my bose lifestyle phase... through my Infinity TSSHarman Kardon AVRs (first a 6.1) then a 7.1 with HDMI... alas the moment we are at now.

And this is where my new Outlook is... I got rid of those.. as my new theater takes shape... I am keeping my Samsung 55" LED and BRD player... but got an extra 120 inch proyector screen and a 3D 1080p compatible projector... the reasonable Viewsonic 3000 ansi lumens... heck it's a 485 square foot basement, I think it will do... and now Audio.

I persoanlly came to a crossroads where I HONESTLY BELIEVE in a paradigm shift... most movie audio needs have FAR LESS NEED for nuance, than it does for CONSTANT UPGRADING.. and I really prefer 5.1 to 7.1... less distracting... heck maybe I'm getting older and more pragmatic... so I went on a different path for Home Theater... totally different... REASONABLY PRICED equipment that I will change every. few years... I can't expect ANY HT equipment to do for me what my NAD setup has done for music... never.

So I went and got the simple and forgot aout LEGACY standards and equipment... of analog... ONLY FOR HT... just HDMI... not even music streaming... just HT. and just got a simple DENON AVR E200 mated with the venerable and consistent Energy Take but with the polk 10 inch sub, I got for under 150 usd... and you know what?... I feel I did the right thing... my movie experiences are magnificent!!!...

This new equipment is very well thought and designed... set the crossover freq. for the receiver.. just checked the hz/khz rate of my speakers so they blend in, thanks to a magnificent article on this very forum.

So I guess, more than a manifesto, this is just a long introduction... to an even longer thank you.

 

[theJman]

So I went and got the simple and forgot aout LEGACY standards and equipment... of analog... ONLY FOR HT... just HDMI... not even music streaming... just HT. and just got a simple DENON AVR E200 mated with the venerable and consistent Energy Take but with the polk 10 inch sub, I got for under 150 usd... and you know what?... I feel I did the right thing... my movie experiences are magnificent!!!...

Takes and a Polk sub in the same sentence as the word 'magnificent'? Well, there's a first time for everything I suppose.

I persoanlly came to a crossroads where I HONESTLY BELIEVE in a paradigm shift... most movie audio needs have FAR LESS NEED for nuance, than it does for CONSTANT UPGRADING.. and I really prefer 5.1 to 7.1... less distracting... heck maybe I'm getting older and more pragmatic... so I went on a different path for Home Theater... totally different... REASONABLY PRICED equipment that I will change every. few years... I can't expect ANY HT equipment to do for me what my NAD setup has done for music... never.

If you're HT system works for you I won't argue, but this sentiment I would definitely have to disagree with. Nuance, precise, dynamics and the like are indeed critical for the proper enjoyment of the movie soundtracks on modern blu-rays. Once you've heard what a really good system can do for even an average movie you'll probably be hooked.

 

[Guillermo]

Alas, the controversy of my new outlook.
my previous HT speaker system, Infinity TSS 4000, I purchased in '05 for about 3,400 USD... the receivers, cost me 850 and then 750... and I have to tell you... the advancement I have seen on this recent equipment, really, with all sincerity and ridden of all that hard learned snobbish expectations of years and years of Klipschrons and Mcintoshes and Jadis enviroment I grew up in... and later, tried to emulate on HT, NOW I'm enjoying my movies incredibly... for such less money... I don't miss my previus higher end system... albeit the TSS was not super premium, it did cost me 10 times the price the speakers I have now... was it 10 times better?... I'm not sure they were even better for this... in fact I gave them away to a friend.

Call me crazy... it's just what in all honesty, not thinkning aout what looks cool or represents me... I'm happy!

Of course... sincerely, and listening to you, I guess we'll get to a standard with 4K 3D eventually, where I just won't move up from... and THEN... perhaps, start searching for that perfect system... back to a 15" sub... perhaps two of them... and a nother big center... for now, this is working beautifully!

 

[theJman]

Ultimately, so long as your satisfied then it's all good. Listen to a really nice HT setup sometime and you might change your tune (pun intended) though...

 

[fmw]

Guillermo, I'm a former high end audiophile myself. I once had a system that cost more than both my cars combined. I agree with you for the most part. Movie sound tracks aren't as "hi fi" as good music recordings. They are exciting and dynamic and all that stuff, but it doesn't take as much to get a satisfactory reproduction in my view. Yes better equipment will do a better job but HT is primarily visual after all. Many people are happy as a lark with a sound bar attached to their TV. For me, the important part of home theater reproduction is how it handles recorded music and video. Obviously it is possible to have state-of-the-art recorded music reproduction in a home theater. Since that isn't something you are doing with yours, I see no issue at all with your comments. I've found that leaving high end audio is a sort of freedom. Instead of stressing over minute issues of sound reproduction, I can now just enjoy the music I love. I have a fairly broad selection of "audiophile" records and CD's. I never listen to them any more simply because the non-"audiophile" ones have better performances, if not better recording technique. Mid fi does fine by me now as well. Don't let anybody criticize you for your system. It is you that has to be satisfied with it, not them.

 

[Guillermo]

thanks FMW!... I'm here to learn and improve my experiences and satisfaction... I came to that sort of agreement with myself also after going to the movie theater... I had not gone in like 2 years... had quite good time, remembering in my student years I went and saw 2 movies in a row... and frankly it's the sound and experience of it that I wanted to reproduce a theater... when the lights went up and I saw the speakers and equipment... really... Is it more the ability for those speakers to capture nuance and perfect flat eq?... or is it 90% how it is properly planned, setup and calibrated to do the trick?... aren't most movies mixed for theaters?... do theaters have 92db sensitivity speakers?... or just adecuate BASS for the size of the room, with properly blending speakers?... I feel like I'm at the theater right now... it's like the Rolex/casio revelation...
like 12 and 14 gauge cable... like thousand dollar cartridges... something to obssess over. Oh boy do you guys know about that more than anyone!!!... if we all had unlimited budgets, we'd go crazy!!! hahaha
.

 

[theJman]

Don't let anybody criticize you for your system. It is you that has to be satisfied with it, not them.

If that's direct at me you're way off base. I wasn't criticizing him - something he apparently understood - I was merely intimating that diminishing his HT experience to the lowest common denominator wasn't enabling him to enjoy what a movie soundtrack truly has to offer, and that by hearing it on something with a bit more fidelity he might change his mind once he heard what was missing. The OP is an audiophile, so I'm certain he understands the concept quite well.

 

[fmw]

If that's direct at me you're way off base. I wasn't criticizing him - something he apparently understood - I was merely intimating that diminishing his HT experience to the lowest common denominator wasn't enabling him to enjoy what a movie soundtrack truly has to offer, and that by hearing it on something with a bit more fidelity he might change his mind once he heard what was missing. The OP is an audiophile, so I'm certain he understands the concept quite well.

No, it was aimed at him. He was denigrating his own system.

 

[Guillermo]

hey, theJman I don't think you were criticizing me!... not at all... on the contrary!, you took your time to reply with your opinion and experience... both of you did!, thanks!