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Thread: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Seattle
    Posts
    37

    Default Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    Hey All,

    RAAL Tower owner going from stereo setup to home entertainment system. Mistakes already?

    Current stereo setup:
    RAAL Towers
    Rotel RCD-1070 cd player
    Audioengine D2 pc/preamp link
    Audible Illusions Modulus 3 preamp
    Sunfire Load Invariant 300 wpc amp

    Going to 3.1 system:
    LG 65” UHD OLED tv (fantastic picture, bad sound)
    RAAL Towers
    Horizon center (ordered, on way soon)
    Denon AVR-X3400H AV receiver
    Oppo UDP-203 to be ordered (unless swing for bigger brother)
    Velodyne Minivee 10 sub

    So, the question is, should I have stayed with discrete power rather than a receiver? Can/should I hook up both systems and use my current system for stereo only, and the receiver for TV?

    Please comment on any aspect of my setup. I have two Velodyne subs because my last pair of speakers were Dahlquist 10’s, an old speaker with little bass (very nice in the 1970’s!). They could be upgraded.

    Could also add Sierra 2’s for 5.1, though I’m not sure how much more I should spend for something I use so little. That may change with good sound though.

    Anyway, your thoughts are appreciated. Will post again in the near future with room setup stuff.

    Thank you! randy

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Posts
    183

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    That is a very respectable receiver, and should work fine for both HT and music. You might find the receiver's Pure Direct mode will sound best for music as you speakers should need little to no correction. My Denon's stereo mode runs the front 2 only which suits me fine and will sound amazing with your RAAL towers. I'm sure you already know how well the Oppo will work for both movies and music. Envious of your TV ... I saw the 55" version in Costco recently and the picture was stunning. LG has technology that nobody else is using at this point. Looking forward to seeing your setup.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2016
    Location
    Central NC
    Posts
    132

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    Quote Originally Posted by randyrlee2 View Post
    Could also add Sierra 2’s for 5.1, though I’m not sure how much more I should spend for something I use so little. That may change with good sound though.
    I thought like this. For many years (decades?). But when I finally expanded to 5.2, I could not believe how much better the HT experience became. Just sayin' you might want to consider it -- it's more important than most of us think.

    My only other thought for you is that your sub is small, and there's only one. In most house-sized rooms I nearly always suggest two, because of room modes. And for HT use, an 8" woofer is likely going to be underwhelming. For about the same money I'd be looking at a Rythmik LVX12 -- yes it's ported, but it's also servo. It'll blend with the Ascend speakers so well that you'll be convinced that your towers just magically got cleaner and grew an extra octave on the bottom end. At least that's what happened with my Sierra-2s and my LVX12s, driven by my old Denon AVX-4000.
    "If it sounds good, it is good." -- Duke Ellington

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Seattle
    Posts
    37

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    Hey everyone,

    Thanks for the input. Actually had it all together for 5-6 days now and have some observations.

    Got the Horizon center and “WOW”, what a piece of art. Big and beautiful. I can’t say for sure because of how the receiver might be splitting the sound, but it sounds more “present” than my towers. If I was to do it all again I would seriously consider Horizons all across the front. Or maybe if I move the towers to the side positions…..

    OK, had to reset the receiver several times due to erroneous stuff going on. Finally got all speakers working, but lost the ARC function from my TV, so had to Netflix via the bluray player. Went and got the LG UP970 UHD bluray player because it’s one of only two players that have Dolby Vision (Oppo 203 is the other), has the 4K Netflix app (Oppo doesn’t and can’t), and was cheap enough I can upgrade later if I can figure out how to get the ARC working again.

    So, first set it up without the center and using Directv and was disappointed. Set it up with the center and was disappointed. Hooked up the UHD bluray and Holy Poop Batman, what is that? Honestly, I never realized how much music and sounds can add to a movie. Watched Stranger Things on Netflix and got chills.

    Some thoughts. Using a standard bluray player, the Denon receiver did an incredible job of upscaling. I do have another small sub I can throw into the mix (it’s hooked to my gaming computer right now), and will probably do that just to see what it’s like. The subs are small, but they are 1000 watts, which if my understanding is correct, wattage is the only way to overcome small size. I did connect my iPhone to the receiver over Bluetooth and was very surprised at the sound. It doesn’t get as loud as my big amp, but probably loud enough. Haven’t looked close enough to see how to do Pure Direct mode, but I’ll get there.

    Not sure if my new player is going to upscale hd to uhd, or whether the receiver will do it. I know the receiver does a good job. Absolutely love the tv. I’m not really much of a tv guy, but if you’re going to watch, it might as well be nice. At this point I’m willing to try 5.1, but am going to wait until beloved Wife gets home from England to make a decision.

    Still haven’t decided what to do with my preamp and amp. They’re awfully nice at what they do and I have loved having them.

    Thanks for the help folks. Hope you have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!

    randy n’ lizzie

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2014
    Location
    Seattle
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    37

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    Oh, forgot, the subs are actually 10" if that makes a difference. There is an 8" version though I believe. Will still try 2 of them. Not really a basshead, at least for music, but it does add a lot to the home theater experience.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2013
    Posts
    360

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    I have one of those MiniVee 10s in my bedroom. Not a bad little sub. But I think you could do a lot better with something like a couple of 15" or 18" Rythmiks. In the living room I run a pair of JL F112s with my Sierra-2's.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Posts
    183

    Default Re: Moving to AV setup, mistakes????

    You may want to hold on to the amp/preamp for a bit. I just posted about moving my Sierras out of HT duty and back to dedicated listening.
    I have 2 subs in my HT and positioned them in opposing corners, pointed inward. Low end is solid but not boomy.
    I have the AVR-X3000 and switch the sound fields via remote (it took me forever to figure out). My remote has 4 sound field buttons on the bottom: Movie, Music, Game and Pure. Latter is what I use for music. You can also push the music button for various options, including multi channel music. I don't like this option as I hear too much music from the surrounds, but your mileage may vary.

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