My Current Music Room Ideas - Need More Expert Advice

[Mike V]

As I mentioned before, I am converting my game room into a music listening room. I will be adding a 75" TV, but I already have a media room, so I do not want / need surround speakers. But I really wanted a good center speaker, and I have decided on the Klipsch Heritage Heresy III - three of them, one for a center speaker. My daughter (brilliant young architect - yes, I am biased) is helping me design, and using a Heresy III as a center speaker adds difficulty to coming up with the simple, elegant, uncluttered look I am going for, with a 70's feel.

I have about 300 old albums I look forward to listening to after a near 30 year rest from the needle, but I also have a wide taste in music genres and will be listening to digital music, too. Now I need to come up with the other components I will need, and this is where I will need your advice. I have decided to bypass the expensive tube route, but I want something to give me the warmer sound I am looking for, to compliment the Heresy IIIs. I know preamps are loved by many, especially when a turntable is part if the system, but I would prefer one big fat unit that does the work of the preamp and the amp, if that exists. I need advice on this topic.

I will be using DirecTV, so that box will be part off the system - I assume a surge protector will be needed (like I have for my media room). Also, I would like to play DVDs. Here is a scale photo of what I sketched out on a computer - the square grids are one foot each. Forgive me, I am an engineer, not an artist. The blue boxes will be speaker stands. On the left and right, I might replace the stands with a pair of subwoofers if I decide down the road that I want them - not sure that I will, so I am going to try it without them first. I will tilt the center speaker up a bit.

I saw some really cool modular, made-to-order stackable component trays, so I just copied a few for this layout - I will let my daughter help me make the final pick on these. My biggest problem with this is that the turntable, the only component not operable by a remote, might be a little low for an aging fellow with minor back problems. Any tips or advice on this overall design would be appreciated.

I will be seated couch high, maybe with reclining seats. I do not like high TV sets, but I would like to raise it higher than shown here, and angle it down to the viewer a bit. I really need advice on TV height, as I would like it higher to make the component modules higher with a higher turntable.

I am open to suggestions! I think I will really like the three Heresy IIIs!

 

[agarwalro]

Replace TV with drop down acoustically transparent projector screen? This would allow you to bring the center tweeter up to ear height.

 

[Mike V]

Replace TV with drop down acoustically transparent projector screen? This would allow you to bring the center tweeter up to ear height.

That is what movie theaters do, right, with speakers behind the screen? I want one of those 75" LED 4K TVs. I have a projector in the darkened media room, and do not want a 2nd projectorbfor this room.

I had a friend back in Michigan many years ago that had a rear projector, behind the screen. That was impressive, and I think he had a center speaker behind the screen.

 

[yepimonfire]

Did you already buy the heresy? You’d be better off going with fortes for the l/r due to lower bass extension. As for amplification, I’d go with a regular av receiver. The only way you’re gonna get a center channel is Dolby/dts decoding and Dolby surround upmixing for stereo content. That also allows you to use bass management. I’d not worry about power. 10w into Klipsch heritage speakers is enough to permanently ruin your hearing


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[Mike V]

Did you already buy the heresy? You’d be better off going with fortes for the l/r due to lower bass extension. As for amplification, I’d go with a regular av receiver. The only way you’re gonna get a center channel is Dolby/dts decoding and Dolby surround upmixing for stereo content. That also allows you to use bass management. I’d not worry about power. 10w into Klipsch heritage speakers is enough to permanently ruin your hearing


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I have not bought them yet. I thought long and hard about the other Heritage speakers... don't you think that if I later decided I needed lower bass extension, that a pair of subwoofers under the Heresy III's would be even better than the Fortes? Plus, they will have a separate power source - but I agree this would no longer be "old school."

I agree on the AV receiver - any advice on which ones you would choose? One reason I am buying Klipsch Heritage speakers is their very high sensitivity - that just seems the way to go for me. Perhaps my engineering background and desire for greater efficiencies.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Then why not raise the TV a bit higher to accommodate having the three front speakers ate the same height. You either want the speakers at the same height or the TV at a more comfortable lower height; cannot have both.

Or, lower the L/R speakers to have the there at the same height and see how that sounds. You are not talking a large movement of tweeters from ear height.

 

[shadyJ]

Have you heard the Heresy speakers? I have, in a room full of other klipsch speakers, including Khorns, Cornwalls, LaScalas, and RF-83s. The Heresys were by far the last ones I would have went with among those speakers. I would say they sound significantly worse than the rest of them. That isn't to say they sound bad, but they had coloration that the others did not. Honestly, I would skip them at anywhere near their MSRP unless you are getting a killer used deal on them.

Let me ask you, do you really need speakers that are that powerful? Or does the vintage styling appeal to you? If the answer to both those questions are yes, than look at the Pi Three speakers, which cost roughly the same, and will have a vintage styling along with a terrific amount of power. But what it won't have is a vintage sound, and this is a good thing. It has a relatively flat response and good off-axis response. I haven't heard those but I have heard other Pi speakers and also similar designs, and I would much prefer that sound over that of the Heresys.

If your heart is set on Heresys, than you will absolutely want subwoofers to go with them, unless you are only listening to folk music or chamber music. Their +/- 4dB point is 58 Hz, meaning they will be bass shy. If you don't need your speakers to be living room friendly but want powerful speakers, I would be looking at some QSC K-series II speakers. They are PA speakers but they sound phenomenal, better than many so-called 'hi-fi' speakers I have heard. You might also look at some Hsu CCB-8s in rosenut veneer. They won't be as powerful as Heresys or QSC K series, but they will still be able to cause hearing damage if you want, and sound great doing it.

 

[Pogre]

Then why not raise the TV a bit higher to accommodate having the three front speakers ate the same height. You either want the speakers at the same height or the TV at a more comfortable lower height; cannot have both.

Or, lower the L/R speakers to have the there at the same height and see how that sounds. You are not talking a large movement of tweeters from ear height.

Something like this, for instance.

I mounted my tv higher to accommodate a bookshelf speaker instead of a dedicated center. I don't have any issues with the screen being too high. I have a little room for a larger tv in fact, which I've been loosely considering...

 

[mtrycrafts]

Something like this, for instance.

...
I mounted my tv higher to accommodate a bookshelf speaker instead of a dedicated center. I don't have any issues with the screen being too high. I have a little room for a larger tv in fact, which I've been loosely considering...

Yes, exactly. The OP has the choice, from the drawing to go up with the TV or drop his L/R speakers a bit if those speakers are not in fact a tall floor stander.


ps. where did you drop in that picture from? I see you used an attach command.

 

[Pogre]

Yes, exactly. The OP has the choice, from the drawing to go up with the TV or drop his L/R speakers a bit if those speakers are not in fact a tall floor stander.


ps. where did you drop in that picture from? I see you used an attach command.

It's a resized pic I uploaded from my tablet. I've always used "upload file" instead of third party hosting. It's a lot easier, imo. Sometimes they need resized, but I have an app that does that quickly and painlessly.

Glad I wasn't using photobucket...

 

[lovinthehd]

Yep, always bugged me when posters in various forums would use an external photo service instead of simply uploading it to the forum, photobucket is one example or even those who no longer maintained the external photo account.

 

[mtrycrafts]

It's a resized pic I uploaded from my tablet. I've always used "upload file" instead of third party hosting. It's a lot easier, imo. Sometimes they need resized, but I have an app that does that quickly and painlessly.

Glad I wasn't using photobucket...

Thanks. And it seems to be without fingerprints.

Practice

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Yep, always bugged me when posters in various forums would use an external photo service instead of simply uploading it to the forum, photobucket is one example or even those who no longer maintained the external photo account.

Same here. One plus of mostly using my phone is uploading from my camera roll takes about 3seconds. Saving an image from the net to my camera roll and uploading takes less than 10.

 

[mtrycrafts]

It's a resized pic I uploaded from my tablet. I've always used "upload file" instead of third party hosting. It's a lot easier, imo. Sometimes they need resized, but I have an app that does that quickly and painlessly.

Glad I wasn't using photobucket...

Since that practice went well, I will upload my system pictures in a Part 2
message to my original with the pictures and a brief statement here and there.
Now to separate pictures for explanations.

 

[Pogre]

Since that practice went well, I will upload my system pictures in a Part 2
message to my original with the pictures and a brief statement here and there.
Now to separate pictures for explanations.

A new thread? That's awesome! Your original was an unfortunate casualty of photobucket. Looking forward to it.

 

[mtrycrafts]

A new thread? That's awesome! ...

Uploaded in 2 parts, what hassel. First too large , then only 10 files only.