Hello and Advice Requested

[stanfnelson]

Hi, I am a musician and director of music at a church in the Houston, TX area. I, at one time, practiced law and was fortunate enough to build a decent two channel system based around the BEL 1001 MKV power amp and a Magnepan 1.6, with Vandersteen 2WQ sub. Then I married a beautiful lady whose dad was one of the on air engineers for the local NBC affiliate and TV and home theater immediately became a part of my life.

Now, we have added a child and I seldom get to just sit and revel in audiophile bliss. I recently did add a DAC and mac mini music server for hi rez flac and DSD for those instances I get to listen. All of this stuff is in a really convoluted, messy set up in our living room. Magnepans, Vandersteen, BEL1001, Onkyo receiver, DirecTV box, Richard Gray 400 Pro, Mac, DAC....It is a mess. I think I will soon be able to update and modernize the whole set up. I have enjoyed this forum immensely as I have done research for the new system and before I ask my questions, I will commend this entire community for its spirit of helpfulness, patience, joy for audio and its lack of the negative, hostility that seems to infect so many online communities...Well Done.

Here is what I have on my plate:
1. Front end: Deciding between doing something like the Pioneer Elite SC-99 or the Marantz 7702 Mk2. If I go with the Marantz, I may buy some more BEL 1001s for separate power or maybe even some Outlaw 2200s...thoughts? Anyone with experience using a HT front end for 2 channel DAC critical listening?
2. Finding surround connectivity options (We have a vaulted ceiling with no crawl space to run speaker cable from front end.)
3. Speakers under consideration:
- Pioneer Elite Atmos enabled Andrew Jones designed system
- Tekton Lore Reference 5.0
- Ascend system that cherry picks best speaker for application. RAAL Tower with Horizon? HTM or CBM for surrounds?
4. Subs under consideration:
- Hsu VTF-15H Mk2
- Rhythmik 15 (no idea which)
- Tekton Enzo or Cinema Sub
- I am a little confused what the real world difference would be between an “audiophile” sub and a HT sub would be…

I would really like some input/insight. No comment or observation is too detailed or simple. Can I really have good two channel AND HT performance without emptying my savings?
How much consideration should I give to Atmos? I understand that there is not that much out now, but I will be living with system for the next 10-15 years.
Lastly, is there any way to get descent, stable wireless connectivity where I can’t run a wire?

The room is of large volume because the entire downstairs area is an open floor plan. The is a relatively open area that is roughly 25' x 58'. The front is the entry/dining area. The kitchen is in the middle with large counter and triple wide opening into the living area. The actual living/HT space is about 25' deep x 18' wide. The ceiling is sloped and fairly high 10' on two sides sloping up to almost 20'.

Thank you in advance for your thoughts!

Stan

[sludgeogre]

You should contact Dave directly for his thoughts, he's extremely helpful and honest. You won't regret it.

As for my two cents, you've got a lot of things to consider and you have certainly done your research in the same places I did on my journey to my setup. I too was really enamored with Tekton Design for a while, but after investigating I just couldn't take the plunge. Ascend's speakers have complex crossovers that correct for phase and time alignment, producing measurably incredible speakers that are intensely accurate and smooth at the same time. Tekton uses only a capacitor as a high pass filter to their tweeter, so I have read many complaints of them being imprecise and inaccurate. They are engineered for dynamics, not to be true to the source. They only list a couple of specs, and no +/- dB rating, whereas Ascend gives you tons of measurements and frequency response graphs with your towers. You also get bamboo cabinets instead of lightly braced wood cabinets.

Tekton and HSU subs are really, really big and consume a lot of power. They're really easy to overdrive. Rythmik subs have servo technology that makes them never sound flubby or distorted like other subs. Rythmik really is something else when you sit down and compare a sub cranked up. Just go with whatever fits your budget, you'll be happy. I have two F12's and they fill my large room with intense, tight bass. Don't let the "audiophile" sub stuff fool you, they're all just trying to say they sound better than other subs out there.

If you have a vaulted ceiling, atmos enabled speakers won'd do anything for you. They need a flat ceiling to reflect sound off of. It won't sound right without that flat ceiling.

I have a Marantz AV7701 connected to an Emotiva XPA-5 Gen 2 and I'm really, really happy with it right now. Sounds pretty fantastic. If I was to upgrade, I'd get a system with better room correction, but that is way down the road. The 7702 gives you Atmos, so if you want that down the road when you have a room where you can mount speakers in the ceiling, then get that. I'm sure you'd be really happy with the outlaw amps with it as well.

I have the Sierra Towers with RAAL tweeters and yes, you really can have amazing two channel AND HT performance. It's intense and beautiful. I couldn't be happier, and I didn't empty my savings at all.

I think if you started off with the Sierra Towers and Horizon Center and a few HTM 200 SE's for surrounds you'd be incredibly happy. When you have a different room and/or want to add Atmost speakers, buy some more HTM 200 SE's and another amp and there ya go. Or, take a big plunge and buy Sierra Sats that are coming out soon, but those are going to be a lot more than the HTM 200 SE's.

[stanfnelson]

Thanks Sludgeogre. I think at this point I have begun ruling out the Lores. The reason the Elite speakers are even in consideration is purely from a budget situation. I am wondering if I have some other things to accomplish around the house if the Andrew Jones designed Elites are a special enough speaker to justify spending a little less and upping the level in other areas.

I am wondering whether I should do the vented or sealed sub(s)?

[sludgeogre]

If you want to go for a more budget friendly setup, maybe go with Andrew Jones' new ELAC speakers instead of the Atmos enabled Pioneer ones. Those would be more sensible.

They generally say to go with vented for HT primary use and sealed for music primary usage. I went with dual sealed as I just enjoy the extreme extension that sealed subs provide. Since you have a large area and you're going with one sub, I'd say go with a vented sub.

[curtis]

The Ascend CBM-170SE's and CMT-340SE's would be better options than the ELACs.

[sludgeogre]

The Ascend CBM-170SE's and CMT-340SE's would be better options than the ELACs.

Indeed, my bad, was just sticking with Andrew Jones for some reason. I have heard his budget Pioneer speakers and they are indeed fantastic, but not nearly as accurate, smooth, and impactful as the Ascend gear.

[davef]

The Ascend CBM-170SE's and CMT-340SE's would be better options than the ELACs.

Completely agree - there is so much hype about the B5's and B6, but I need to state that other than the build quality (which is fantastic at this price point), I was not impressed by their performance, not even the slightest bit. I have much respect for Andrew Jones, some of you know might know that Jones was lead engineer on what is likely my favorite speaker, but these speakers were clearly designed for that typical mass market sound (in that regard they are very good) - but these are not what I would consider to be detailed speakers...

[stanfnelson]

I agree. I am just a little apprehensive because I have rolled different amps through my system, including some highly rated AVRs. The difference between virtually anything else was startling. The precision and clarity of the BEL was truly night and day. Now, I suspect it, even at a modest 50w/ch into 8 ohms is much more capable of driving the 4ohm maggies. I am hoping I have a different experience with the Ascends.

Funny thing is, I don't have the same experience with the Maggie center. It sounds more or less fine with most other power sources.

[sludgeogre]

I agree. I am just a little apprehensive because I have rolled different amps through my system, including some highly rated AVRs. The difference between virtually anything else was startling. The precision and clarity of the BEL was truly night and day. Now, I suspect it, even at a modest 50w/ch into 8 ohms is much more capable of driving the 4ohm maggies. I am hoping I have a different experience with the Ascends.

Funny thing is, I don't have the same experience with the Maggie center. It sounds more or less fine with most other power sources.

Maggies are a whole different story with amps because they need something that can grab on to a stable 4 ohm load with real power. Most AVRs really don't cut it, especially when they're rated at two channels most of the time. My Tympani 1D's were terrible with 105 watts, and then 300 watts even, but once I bi-amped them with 600 watts per channel, WOW! Amazing difference. Totally night and day.

However, even when amped to their best, my Ascend towers beat the pants off of my old Maggies, and they don't need nearly as much power.

I think the Maggie Center isn't as big of a difference because there is so little radiating area when compared to the mains panels, so they just don't need as beefy of a power amp to make them sing.