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TommySalami
02-26-2018, 04:36 PM
Hi Everyone, just moved into a new apartment and upgraded from a Sonos Playbar.

New to the whole Hi-Fi game but have spent many nights reading about this stuff. Probably 80% TV/Movie and 20% music. After about a month of research decided to take the plunge and get the CMT-340's for L/R/C. Powered by a Denon x3400H and Rythmik L12 sub.

I know every speaker should be auditioned but I just didn't really have the time and more comfortable watching Youtube of speaker reviews. I knew I needed something a little on the larger side to fill the whole room.

My room is hardwood and 14'x18' with 10' ceilings. It's a an open floor plan with the kitchen opening up to the living room. I got a big rug to cover the floor.

Compared to the Sonos the CMT-340 can definitely go louder and you hear more of the music/show.

I did the Subwoofer Crawl thing and found the best spot for the L12 but don't really hear it that well during music or movies. It seems the CMT-340's take more of the bass. Also, my crossover is set to 80 Hz with speaker size set to Small in the Denon after running Audessy. I know the sufwoofer is working because when I play bass songs on Youtube, I can hear it then. I play everything through an Nvidia Shield. My main source of music playing is via Youtube. For movies it's Netflix and Amazon.

I guess not being an audiofile, I am not exactly sure what I am supposed to listen or hear. I did go to the local Best Buy and sample their B&W Towers at a loud setting but didn't really know if that was good or bad.

I was still planning to play with my settings further to find the "best" setup. Any recommendations on future upgrades? Also, what would you prioritize over the others?

1. Rear CMT-170 or 340's?
2. Powered Amplifier
3. Second Subwoofer L12
4. Can I buy something like the Sierra's 2 for my L/R and move the CMT-340's to the rear? Would this be timbre matched?

After reading so many forums just thought I would start posting myself and asking for advice. Cheers!

Thomas

natetg57
02-27-2018, 09:45 AM
How long have you had the 340's? I wouldn't suggest quickly upgrading to Sierra-2s until you really know what you want and have more time with the 340's. If the sub isn't drawing attention to itself, than that is a good thing. Ideally the sub sounds like an extension of your main speakers. A second sub could help even out the response of the room. Does the bass change noticeably as you move to different seats within the room? Surround speakers can make a huge difference with movies, I would recommend either the 170's or the HTM-200s since they are much easier to wall-mount. Either would sound similar.
Probably the biggest room for improvement is the room itself. Any possibility of adding sound dampening panels on the wall? These can make a big difference in reverberations and help with clarity

TommySalami
02-27-2018, 11:01 AM
Thanks Nate,

I only had the 340's for about a week. They probably are not even broken in yet. Yah, I'm not going to upgrade for probably another year but I like to keep stuff on a potential list of future upgrades.

Yah, the wife does not want the grey panels on the wall but is open to the ones that look like art. Such as:
https://www.amazon.com/ADW-Acoustic-Panels-Mondrian-Kit/dp/B0746MVFNP/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1519757815&sr=8-9&keywords=sound+dampening+art

During the subwoofer crawl, the bass did fluctuate quite a bit. I might think about getting a second sub eventually but the 340's put out a lot of bass already. I think you are right, it does sound better that I can't tell the sub is drawing a lot of attention.

I notice the 170's and the 200's are the same price. Are they pretty much the same? Would either work for the surrounds or one would be better than the other?

Thanks for your help.

Cheers!

Thomas

davef
02-27-2018, 02:14 PM
Hi Everyone, just moved into a new apartment and upgraded from a Sonos Playbar.

New to the whole Hi-Fi game but have spent many nights reading about this stuff. Probably 80% TV/Movie and 20% music. After about a month of research decided to take the plunge and get the CMT-340's for L/R/C. Powered by a Denon x3400H and Rythmik L12 sub.

I know every speaker should be auditioned but I just didn't really have the time and more comfortable watching Youtube of speaker reviews. I knew I needed something a little on the larger side to fill the whole room.

My room is hardwood and 14'x18' with 10' ceilings. It's a an open floor plan with the kitchen opening up to the living room. I got a big rug to cover the floor.

Compared to the Sonos the CMT-340 can definitely go louder and you hear more of the music/show.

I did the Subwoofer Crawl thing and found the best spot for the L12 but don't really hear it that well during music or movies. It seems the CMT-340's take more of the bass. Also, my crossover is set to 80 Hz with speaker size set to Small in the Denon after running Audessy. I know the sufwoofer is working because when I play bass songs on Youtube, I can hear it then. I play everything through an Nvidia Shield. My main source of music playing is via Youtube. For movies it's Netflix and Amazon.

I guess not being an audiofile, I am not exactly sure what I am supposed to listen or hear. I did go to the local Best Buy and sample their B&W Towers at a loud setting but didn't really know if that was good or bad.

I was still planning to play with my settings further to find the "best" setup. Any recommendations on future upgrades? Also, what would you prioritize over the others?

1. Rear CMT-170 or 340's?
2. Powered Amplifier
3. Second Subwoofer L12
4. Can I buy something like the Sierra's 2 for my L/R and move the CMT-340's to the rear? Would this be timbre matched?

After reading so many forums just thought I would start posting myself and asking for advice. Cheers!

Thomas

Don't be afraid to turn the subwoofer volume up higher... Audyssey sets the subwoofer level to match the speaker level, but most consumers prefer to run the subwoofer hotter. Just set the subwoofer level to what sounds best to you...

Rear/surround speakers are critical for a home theater system so this is what I recommend for your next upgrade (if you are not using any now). 170's and 200's are very similar, for the surrounds - if wall mounting - we recommend the 200's -- if placing on stands, the 170's.

TommySalami
02-27-2018, 02:38 PM
Don't be afraid to turn the subwoofer volume up higher... Audyssey sets the subwoofer level to match the speaker level, but most consumers prefer to run the subwoofer hotter. Just set the subwoofer level to what sounds best to you...

Rear/surround speakers are critical for a home theater system so this is what I recommend for your next upgrade (if you are not using any now). 170's and 200's are very similar, for the surrounds - if wall mounting - we recommend the 200's -- if placing on stands, the 170's.

Thanks for advice Dave. I'll play with the subwoofer volume to see what sounds good. Do you think if I get the 170's that I should also get a seperate amplifier? Or do you think the Denon x3400H is powerful enough to run three 340's and two 170's?. Thanks again.

davef
02-28-2018, 10:35 PM
Thanks for advice Dave. I'll play with the subwoofer volume to see what sounds good. Do you think if I get the 170's that I should also get a seperate amplifier? Or do you think the Denon x3400H is powerful enough to run three 340's and two 170's?. Thanks again.

Denon 3400 should be just fine - I don't feel you would need a separate amp.

Jaybeez
04-13-2018, 08:23 PM
You have plenty of power. If I was mostly HT, the 340s would work well for me. I went with Sierra 2s, as have a bunch of High Def music in a dedicated, treated listening room. As Dave says, crank up the sub a bit and see how you like it. I have an F12 SE in a pretty big room and it is plenty good for both HT and music. With your content (e.g. 80% TV/HT) I might go with 170s with surround and call it a day.