What To Do To Improve System

[publicspirit]

Current Equipment:
Samsung Plasma-50"/PN50A 650T
Yamaha RX-V659 receiver
Panasonic BluRay-DMP-BD55
Motorola DVR-6412 (Comcast HD Cable)
Paradigm Monitor 3s-V2
Paradigm CC 370-Vs
PDR 10-Sub
Axiom QS 8s-V2
Setup is in my living room-10'6" x 17'6" L. The room is paneled with a 46" x 92" window on one wall and another-32' w by 45" h. Kitchen entrance is offset from living room. TV is currently placed in front of the smaller window at the long end of the room and sofa is directly in front at a distance of about 10-12 feet. Center channel is on a 10" stand on the floor. Sub is placed near Left Front speaker. Axioms are mounted on side walls about three feet above my head when seated and angled slightly downward.

I am 65 and kids are long gone from home and I live alone. Primarily, I watch movies and action tv shows with an occasional ABBA, Bob Dylan, or Springsteen music dvd thrown in. And the original Miami Vice and Crime Watch tv shows and their soundtracks still kick b--t.

I have been reading about the Onkyo 607 and was thinking about replacing the Yamaha with it, but thought I would ask for your input first. Basically, my question is, with $500-$700 to spend, what would you do with it? The receiver, new, larger sub, etc. Any ideas would be helpful in my final decision.
Thanks in advance.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Current Equipment:
Samsung Plasma-50"/PN50A 650T
Yamaha RX-V659 receiver
Panasonic BluRay-DMP-BD55
Motorola DVR-6412 (Comcast HD Cable)
Paradigm Monitor 3s-V2
Paradigm CC 370-Vs
PDR 10-Sub
Axiom QS 8s-V2
Setup is in my living room-10'6" x 17'6" L. The room is paneled with a 46" x 92" window on one wall and another-32' w by 45" h. Kitchen entrance is offset from living room. TV is currently placed in front of the smaller window at the long end of the room and sofa is directly in front at a distance of about 10-12 feet. Center channel is on a 10" stand on the floor. Sub is placed near Left Front speaker. Axioms are mounted on side walls about three feet above my head when seated and angled slightly downward.

I am 65 and kids are long gone from home and I live alone. Primarily, I watch movies and action tv shows with an occasional ABBA, Bob Dylan, or Springsteen music dvd thrown in. And the original Miami Vice and Crime Watch tv shows and their soundtracks still kick b--t.

I have been reading about the Onkyo 607 and was thinking about replacing the Yamaha with it, but thought I would ask for your input first. Basically, my question is, with $500-$700 to spend, what would you do with it? The receiver, new, larger sub, etc. Any ideas would be helpful in my final decision.
Thanks in advance.

Lets begin with some questions. What is it you don't like about your setup right now? How much BluRay do you watch? How important is deep, powerful bass to you?
Have you considered adding some sound panels to some of the walls? You do have lots of reflective walls, the glass and all that paneling.

 

[anamorphic96]

I second what mtrycrafts is asking.

But sound panels would probably make the biggest difference.

Speakers and acoustics account for 90% of the sound you hear. You have great speakers so working on the acoustics is the next thing.

 

[mannoiaj]

A little out of your budget... but this would be huge for bottom end impact in your room.
http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_info.php?cPath=2_41&products_id=640

Beyond a new subwoofer, the most impact in sound I believe would come from room treatment. This site has the best prices in my opinion from a one stop shop and they are easy to DIY.
http://www.atsacoustics.com/

A new receiver won't change the sound much at all compared with speaker placement, room acoustics and treat5ment, or adding a powerful subwoofer that goes low.

 

[publicspirit]

Lets begin with some questions. What is it you don't like about your setup right now? How much BluRay do you watch? How important is deep, powerful bass to you?
Have you considered adding some sound panels to some of the walls? You do have lots of reflective walls, the glass and all that paneling.

Thanks for your response. You really asked the big question and I hadn't really thought of it that way, i.e. "what don't you like about your setup right now." My honest answer would be that I do like what I have except for maybe a little more bass. Probably wouldn't mind more window rattling. I watch maybe 6 bluray movies a week in addition to some music dvds like ABBA, Springsteen, Roy Orbison, and old tv series with big soundtracks like 5 seasons of Miami Vice and two of Crime Story.
I'm not a hometheater techie and made my purchases based on reviews that I researched online. Overall, I am please with what I have.
Your suggestion about sound panels intrigues me as I really hadn't thought much about it before. Don't know if it matters, but there is actual plaster behind the paneling. Do you have any suggestions re the best places to look for them? Would they be placed on all walls? Also, floor is carpeted.
I'm 65 and retired, kids are all on their own, so it's just me. As far as I know, I probably have the best setup in my small town of about 1,100. No place nearby to audition any equipment, so I really didn't have anything to compare my setup to. I like to play it loud and even at my age, really love the movies with the big special effects or booming soundtracks.
Thanks again. I think you have put me on the right track.

 

[mannoiaj]

Here's a few pics of some panels I bought and put together myself. Very easy to do, and A HUGE upgrade in sound in my room. Bought all the materials including hanging materials from ATS acoustics that I linked in my previous post.

 

[publicspirit]

Here's a few pics of some panels I bought and put together myself. Very easy to do, and A HUGE upgrade in sound in my room. Bought all the materials including hanging materials from ATS acoustics that I linked in my previous post.

Very nice. Glad you sent pics. Just left the atsacoustics.com and was trying to decide between the 24x24 or the 24x48 size. After seeing your pics I think I will go for the 24x48 panels. I see that you have two panels on each side wall and on the ceiling near the speakers and not on the back wall. Do you have more positioned around the room? Because of the window on one side and a very large wall mirror on the other, I can only put one panel on each wall near the speakers and tv. I could put two more, one on each wall below my surrounds and one panel on each side of the window behind the tv and spkrs. Seems the company recommends the 48" panel for the corners. Do you have any suggestions? Really feel like an idiot and a pain with my questions, but I do appreciate that there are guys like you and the others who have responded. Hope everyone appreciates you all as much as I do.

 

[mannoiaj]

In the corner is actually a bass trap. Similar to this...
http://www.gikacoustics.com/gik_tri_trap.html

To be honest with you, I would call ATS acoustics and let them know you'd like some options to treat your room. They may want a few pictures and will definitely want dimensions.

I'd also call Gik acoustics, the link in the top of this post and ask the same type of questions.

Give these guys a call also.
http://www.acoustimac.com/

They will all give you ideas of what would work well in your room way better than I could.

I still think a sub properly placed in your room will make a nice difference as well.

 

[skers_54]

Great advice on the acoustic panels. They're easily the best bang for the buck addition you can make to your system. Since you're displeased with your bass, trapping the corners should be your first goal.

Paradigm's subs also tend to be a bit weak, so you might want to think about replacing it if you have some money left over. An SVS PB-10 is in your budget and would be a significant improvement.

 

[j_garcia]

The PDR-10 isn't a great sub, so I can see why you aren't satisfied with it. With your budget, you should be able to easily improve on it with something from SVS or HSU. I am not a big fan of the Paradigm Monitor 3s, so they would be next on the list in my book.

 

[tom67]

Improvement

I'm 60 and feel your pain....one thing that applies to you and me is fact we like older material that just is not recorded as well or lively as new stuff...I would love to have Sinatra Capitol years material recorded yesterday for example. I notice that most cds recorded pre 2000 sound flat. A lot of younger people on this forum dont listen to the older stuff. I frankly think the Yamaha 659 amp is better than the onkyo, but I am prejudiced as I own one...If you are considering equipment upgrade, I would suggest you audition with newer DTS movies that have combination of dialog and music as well as special effects. I dont think the Onkyo will sound much different..

 

[publicspirit]

I'm 60 and feel your pain....one thing that applies to you and me is fact we like older material that just is not recorded as well or lively as new stuff...I would love to have Sinatra Capitol years material recorded yesterday for example. I notice that most cds recorded pre 2000 sound flat. A lot of younger people on this forum dont listen to the older stuff. I frankly think the Yamaha 659 amp is better than the onkyo, but I am prejudiced as I own one...If you are considering equipment upgrade, I would suggest you audition with newer DTS movies that have combination of dialog and music as well as special effects. I dont think the Onkyo will sound much different..

Got the trimmer and crockpot(Rival, of course) but gave the Foreman grill away. I like my grease. In retrospect, the 659 works just fine for me. My bluray is connected according to guidance I got here before and cable connected directly to the plasma so I'm not missing the lack of hdmi on the Yamaha, I guess. Going for the sound panels and am going to pay more attention to the features on my dvd purchases. Thanks.

 

[publicspirit]

In the corner is actually a bass trap. Similar to this...
http://www.gikacoustics.com/gik_tri_trap.html

To be honest with you, I would call ATS acoustics and let them know you'd like some options to treat your room. They may want a few pictures and will definitely want dimensions.

I'd also call Gik acoustics, the link in the top of this post and ask the same type of questions.

Give these guys a call also.
http://www.acoustimac.com/

They will all give you ideas of what would work well in your room way better than I could.

I still think a sub properly placed in your room will make a nice difference as well.

Decided to go for the panels and will probably be ordering this week. Thanks again for the advice. Judging by the others who responded, it was right on target.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Here's a few pics of some panels I bought and put together myself. Very easy to do, and A HUGE upgrade in sound in my room. Bought all the materials including hanging materials from ATS acoustics that I linked in my previous post. ...

Boy, those are very nice panels and can be well mixed with room decorations.

 

[mtrycrafts]

... My honest answer would be that I do like what I have except for maybe a little more bass.

As I imagined might be what you were looking for
SVS makes some great subs and some in your price range. With all that window and size, they may rattle to breakage though

... I watch maybe 6 bluray movies a week

Then my next question is does your receiver decode the new hi rez audio on the bluray? Or, your player can but needs the analog inputs on the receiver?

As to acoustic panels, that was covered well by others. Yes, they do help a lot. They can really blend in with your room decor and if not, no one to answer to

 

[publicspirit]

As I imagined might be what you were looking for
SVS makes some great subs and some in your price range. With all that window and size, they may rattle to breakage though



Then my next question is does your receiver decode the new hi rez audio on the bluray? Or, your player can but needs the analog inputs on the receiver?

As to acoustic panels, that was covered well by others. Yes, they do help a lot. They can really blend in with your room decor and if not, no one to answer to

Player takes care of throught the analog inputs. I think I will probably do the sub in addition to the sound panels. I am considering SVS or HSU. Thanks

 

[shadyJ]

Other companies to look at for great subs are Outlaw Audio and Elemental Designs. By the way, I wouldn't try to use the paradigm sub with any of these more powerful subs, just sell it or move it to another system, because if you try to use it with more capable subs, it will just hold them back.

 

[publicspirit]

The PDR-10 isn't a great sub, so I can see why you aren't satisfied with it. With your budget, you should be able to easily improve on it with something from SVS or HSU. I am not a big fan of the Paradigm Monitor 3s, so they would be next on the list in my book.

Ordered four 24"x48"x2" panels but am still thinking about speakers. I was considering a pair of Axiom M22s for $424.00 through their outlet store. I did the same with my QS8s and couldn't find anything wrong with them and was pleased with the deal. I also came across reports about the EMP E5 Ti towers on sale now for $400.00. I have looked at other speakers, I should say read reviews/opinions, and really haven't made up my mind. Or, stay with the Monitor 3s for now and get the sub? Your thoughts/opinion??

 

[mannoiaj]

Ordered four 24"x48"x2" panels but am still thinking about speakers. I was considering a pair of Axiom M22s for $424.00 through their outlet store. I did the same with my QS8s and couldn't find anything wrong with them and was pleased with the deal. I also came across reports about the EMP E5 Ti towers on sale now for $400.00. I have looked at other speakers, I should say read reviews/opinions, and really haven't made up my mind. Or, stay with the Monitor 3s for now and get the sub? Your thoughts/opinion??

I'd stay with the 3's for now and see how far treating your room can take you. The next upgrade would be a potent subwoofer that can add the low end and integrate into your system. Your speakers fit the bill until you upgrade a few other things imo.
\

 

[mtrycrafts]

....By the way, I wouldn't try to use the paradigm sub with any of these more powerful subs, just sell it or move it to another system, because if you try to use it with more capable subs, it will just hold them back.

Well, it is not that simple. One needs to plot the in room response with it and without it to know.