My 2-channel & 5.1 critical listening/HD audio setup.

[HD audioholic]

Hi, everyone. I'm new to the site.

I've been a music & high-quality audio lover since I was a grade-school kid. I also spent a few decades in the music industry as a pro-audio system designer/audio engineer. For decades, had I settled for a basic "mid-fi" 2.1 system at home - choosing to put what I would have spent on a high-end home system into upgrading my pro-audio gear. I sold most of my pro gear back in the early 90s & went back to college to update my RF skills. Around 7 years ago, I finally decided it was time to build something decent. I had been following the SACD/DVD-A scene, so I put together a 5.1 HD audio system for the living room. I was looking something with excellent sound that also had great imaging. I listened to a lot of speakers. Most of the ones I really liked would have tanked my system budget. Then I listened to a pair of Paradigm Studio 60 towers at one of the local shops. I was quite impressed. The owner told me to take them home for a few days, and said I could bring 'em back if I didn't like how they sounded in my listening room. I also bought the AVR, universal player, and power conditioner from him. By the second day, I knew the Paradigm 60s weren't going anywhere. I went back & picked up the matching center speaker, as well. I used my 'vintage' Infinity Reference 2000.3 speakers for the rear channels, along with my trusty old 12" JBL sub for 60 Hz & down - both of which were part of the Onkyo-powered 2.1 system I put together back in the 90s.

After setting it all up & getting it time-aligned, I popped-in my first HD audio purchase - the DVD-A version of Hotel California. I was not at all prepared for what happened next. I had what I can best describe as an 'audio experience'. As I listened to the impeccable audio emanating from every corner of the room, a flood of emotions washed over me. I sat there...dumbfounded & teary-eyed...taking in the intricacies of the wonderful intimate & richly-detailed sound...wondering why I had waited so many years to build an audiophile-quality home system...thinking about how I could have been enjoying sound that good at home for decades. I spent the next year 'rediscovering' my music collection - as well as my live band recordings, which were mastered either in DSD or 24/192k LPCM. I had been missing so much detail. I became intimately aware of things such as singers with dry mouths, the type of strings used on guitars, intricacies of fingerprints on wound strings, pages of music being turned during live performances, etc. That was a great experience! I've been expanding my HD audio library ever since.

Here's my current setup:

Components

AVR: Marantz SR7007
Universal transport: Marantz DV7600
Music server: Homebrew 6-core PC, networked and optically connected
Digital recorder: Korg MR1 DSD & 24/192k LPCM recorder

Speakers

Mains: Paradigm Studio 60
Center: Paradigm Studio CC-590
Rears: Infinity Reference 2000.3
Sub: JBL PSW-1200

Cans

Ultrasone PROline 650

-----------------------------

I originally went with the then-new Marantz SR7001 AVR, but that got smoked in 2012 during a thunderstorm. I replaced it with the SR7007, which had just been announced. Next, I plan to add an audiophile-quality Blu-ray player that supports the HD audio formats. The OPPO BDP-105 & Marantz UD 7007 look interesting. At some point, I'll get around to upgrading the sub. It leaves a bit to be desired when playing 32' pipe-organ music.

Joel

 

[rojo]

Hey Joel, and welcome. What an excellent first post! About time you fed your audiophilia. When you get enough posts, you'll have to show off your system with some pics.

Do you have your eye on any upgrade subs? Have you considered building one yourself?

 

[ImcLoud]

welcome, nice first post, nice system, glad you are enjoying it...

 

[HD audioholic]

Thanks, guys!

Rojo,

Looks like you've got a very nice setup, too. A friend of mine went all MB Quart separates in the hot-rod he built awhile back. To this day, it's one of the best-sounding mobile systems I've heard. I'm not all that familiar with MB Quart's home gear - but I assume it's impeccable - just like the separates in my friend's hot-rod.


ImcLoud,

I checked out your systems. Very nice! Especially the one in your main parlor. And your guest-room system blows away most of my friends' main systems.

------------------------------


Regarding sub options...

I do have a pair of Bag End 13-ply void-free Baltic birch 5.1 cubic ft ported 15" cabs w/JBL 2225s, along with a Yamaha P2200 natural sound amp that are just sitting around, collecting dust. They're leftovers from the 128-driver, all-JBL, paper up to 7k, 5-way active, time-aligned Bag End 'wall of sound' PA system I designed back in the early 80s. I used eight of 'em for mid-bass (70-200Hz) in my PA - along with eight Bag End 11 cubic ft ported 18" subs w/JBL 2245s for 70Hz & down.

I have used them in a 2.1 'garage-party' system, but they leave a lot to be desired in a modest-size critical-listening room. Just for grins, I hooked one of 'em up to my main system & drove it with the P2200 in bridged mode, but the result was just so-so. Being designed for mid-bass, their response falls off quickly below ~40Hz (and that's with the port open). What low-bass they do produce doesn't really start to develop until you're 15-20 ft away.

I have contemplated building my own unpowered sub, and possibly using one or both of the 15" JBL 2225s for the driver(s). The Yamaha P2200 is a very nice-sounding amp with decent damping factor, low THD, and very low TIM. But I don't know if the 2225's Thiele/Small parameters would play well in a typical compact sub enclosure, and the box would have to extend the bass response by over two octaves. In a sealed 5 cubic ft box, the 2225 is already 5 dB down @ 90Hz, 10 dB down @ 50Hz, and 20 dB down @ 20Hz. Any thoughts?

I've also been looking at subs from companies such as Bag End, Paradigm, SVS, and Velodyne - but I have yet to go out & do any serious listening. Since my primary interest is music, I want a 'musical' sub that excels at music reproduction. Any suggestions that fall into the $2500 or less range?

Joel

 

[ImcLoud]

Thanks, guys!

Rojo,

Looks like you've got a very nice setup, too. A friend of mine went all MB Quart separates in the hot-rod he built awhile back. To this day, it's one of the best-sounding mobile systems I've heard. I'm not all that familiar with MB Quart's home gear - but I assume it's impeccable - just like the separates in my friend's hot-rod.


ImcLoud,

I checked out your systems. Very nice! Especially the one in your main parlor. And your guest-room system blows away most of my friends' main systems.

------------------------------


Regarding sub options...

I do have a pair of Bag End 13-ply void-free Baltic birch 5.1 cubic ft ported 15" cabs w/JBL 2225s, along with a Yamaha P2200 natural sound amp that are just sitting around, collecting dust. They're leftovers from the 128-driver, all-JBL, paper up to 7k, 5-way active, time-aligned Bag End 'wall of sound' PA system I designed back in the early 80s. I used eight of 'em for mid-bass (70-200Hz) in my PA - along with eight Bag End 11 cubic ft ported 18" subs w/JBL 2245s for 70Hz & down.

I have used them in a 2.1 'garage-party' system, but they leave a lot to be desired in a modest-size critical-listening room. Just for grins, I hooked one of 'em up to my main system & drove it with the P2200 in bridged mode, but the result was just so-so. Being designed for mid-bass, their response falls off quickly below ~40Hz (and that's with the port open). What low-bass they do produce doesn't really start to develop until you're 15-20 ft away.

I have contemplated building my own unpowered sub, and possibly using one or both of the 15" JBL 2225s for the driver(s). The Yamaha P2200 is a very nice-sounding amp with decent damping factor, low THD, and very low TIM. But I don't know if the 2225's Thiele/Small parameters would play well in a typical compact sub enclosure, and the box would have to extend the bass response by over two octaves. In a sealed 5 cubic ft box, the 2225 is already 5 dB down @ 90Hz, 10 dB down @ 50Hz, and 20 dB down @ 20Hz. Any thoughts?

I've also been looking at subs from companies such as Bag End, Paradigm, SVS, and Velodyne - but I have yet to go out & do any serious listening. Since my primary interest is music, I want a 'musical' sub that excels at music reproduction. Any suggestions that fall into the $2500 or less range?

Joel

Thanks for the compliment on my systems...

The uls15 dual drive will be around $2500 and is easily the most musical pair of subs I ever heard... They are fast, powerful, low and clean... SVS would be my second choice with any of their sealed units... FUNK is another option but you may not get a pair for $2500, although they will make what ever you want...

 

[rojo]

Thanks, guys!

Rojo,

Looks like you've got a very nice setup, too. A friend of mine went all MB Quart separates in the hot-rod he built awhile back. To this day, it's one of the best-sounding mobile systems I've heard. I'm not all that familiar with MB Quart's home gear - but I assume it's impeccable - just like the separates in my friend's hot-rod.


ImcLoud,

I checked out your systems. Very nice! Especially the one in your main parlor. And your guest-room system blows away most of my friends' main systems.

------------------------------


Regarding sub options...

I do have a pair of Bag End 13-ply void-free Baltic birch 5.1 cubic ft ported 15" cabs w/JBL 2225s, along with a Yamaha P2200 natural sound amp that are just sitting around, collecting dust. They're leftovers from the 128-driver, all-JBL, paper up to 7k, 5-way active, time-aligned Bag End 'wall of sound' PA system I designed back in the early 80s. I used eight of 'em for mid-bass (70-200Hz) in my PA - along with eight Bag End 11 cubic ft ported 18" subs w/JBL 2245s for 70Hz & down.

I have used them in a 2.1 'garage-party' system, but they leave a lot to be desired in a modest-size critical-listening room. Just for grins, I hooked one of 'em up to my main system & drove it with the P2200 in bridged mode, but the result was just so-so. Being designed for mid-bass, their response falls off quickly below ~40Hz (and that's with the port open). What low-bass they do produce doesn't really start to develop until you're 15-20 ft away.

I have contemplated building my own unpowered sub, and possibly using one or both of the 15" JBL 2225s for the driver(s). The Yamaha P2200 is a very nice-sounding amp with decent damping factor, low THD, and very low TIM. But I don't know if the 2225's Thiele/Small parameters would play well in a typical compact sub enclosure, and the box would have to extend the bass response by over two octaves. In a sealed 5 cubic ft box, the 2225 is already 5 dB down @ 90Hz, 10 dB down @ 50Hz, and 20 dB down @ 20Hz. Any thoughts?

I've also been looking at subs from companies such as Bag End, Paradigm, SVS, and Velodyne - but I have yet to go out & do any serious listening. Since my primary interest is music, I want a 'musical' sub that excels at music reproduction. Any suggestions that fall into the $2500 or less range?

Joel

Thanks for the compliments Joel! I wish you could hear my Quarts. They're so transparent, so revealing. Unfortunately, MB Quart no longer makes home audio stuff (although there are still a few bits and pieces available on closeout). It's a complicated story fraught with drama and peril, but the German engineering team responsible for MB Quart's esteemed reputation have founded a new company. If you're ever in the market for the German-made stuff rather than the Chinese-made Maxxsonics offerings, look at German Maestro now.

Re: the JBL 2225's, I'm guessing those are what Josh Ricci would categorize as mass-controlled drivers more appropriate for live performance pro audio, rather than the compliance-controlled drivers more often found in home audio. Depending on the tuning of your Bag End boxes, the CSS SDX15 might be a perfect match for them for home use. You'll probably need to extend the vents I'm guessing. Tell me the dimensions of the vent(s) and I'll see if I can model them with my very limited neophyte skills. Or if you'd like to try sealing the vents, this Dayton Reference HO 15" would offer a nearly critically damped Q and satisfyingly shallow rolloff in a 5.1 ft³ sealed enclosure with two or three pounds of Poly-Fil. The CSS driver models similarly well sealed, offering a Q near 0.6. The CSS isn't as sensitive as the Dayton, but it's got a little lower tuning and will handle more power. Either way, since you've already got the cabinets, I think it'd be crazy not to try DIY before dropping over 2 grand on completed subs (unless a furniture-grade finish and wife acceptance factor are on your list of concerns, of course).

I like to use this designer to get a rough idea of what to expect given a driver's T/S params, then WinISD to refine the design. But like I say, I'm painfully a rookie. I know just enough to be dangerous. I'm very happy with my own DIY sub though.