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Thread: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

  1. #21
    Join Date
    Oct 2023
    Posts
    30

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Well, it didn't take long; I scored a used LX center and set up all 3 in the living room at the same time. I'm happy I just went straight for the LX. If I had bought the 200 / 340 setup, even if it was 95% as good, I would've always wondered what I was missing.

    The LX's sound incredible. My wife and I binged "A Spy Among Friends" across the day I switched over, so it was some good comparison. Dialog is so much clearer and I can really hear nuance of the rooms around it in a way I never could before. I think the center was really the weak point of my old paradigm system. I also watched Arrival, and the bass impact of the LX is just incredible for a bookshelf speaker. My wife commented that she felt the impact in the bedroom above the living room. I'll definitely have to find a way to set some bass rolloff if I watch anything after she's actually trying to sleep.

    Given how good thing are already, I decided to just finish off the system. So, an Onkyo TX-7100r from Black Friday sale arrived yesterday, and I placed an order with Ascend for a pair of HTM-200 to replace the surrounds and a Rhythmik L12. I ran a quick Dirac Live cal last night with only a few points and the software is so much nicer than the ancient audyssey I had before. No real comment on the sound yet; only had a little time last night. Once the rest arrives, I'll run a real calibration and dial things in.

    I think once that order arrives, this is an endgame setup for me unless I ever have a dedicated room in the future. Thanks to everyone who commented, especially SunByrne for the LX suggestion.

  2. #22
    Join Date
    Feb 2023
    Posts
    10

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Quote Originally Posted by zeeke42 View Post
    Well, it didn't take long; I scored a used LX center and set up all 3 in the living room at the same time. I'm happy I just went straight for the LX. If I had bought the 200 / 340 setup, even if it was 95% as good, I would've always wondered what I was missing.

    The LX's sound incredible. My wife and I binged "A Spy Among Friends" across the day I switched over, so it was some good comparison. Dialog is so much clearer and I can really hear nuance of the rooms around it in a way I never could before. I think the center was really the weak point of my old paradigm system. I also watched Arrival, and the bass impact of the LX is just incredible for a bookshelf speaker. My wife commented that she felt the impact in the bedroom above the living room. I'll definitely have to find a way to set some bass rolloff if I watch anything after she's actually trying to sleep.

    Given how good thing are already, I decided to just finish off the system. So, an Onkyo TX-7100r from Black Friday sale arrived yesterday, and I placed an order with Ascend for a pair of HTM-200 to replace the surrounds and a Rhythmik L12. I ran a quick Dirac Live cal last night with only a few points and the software is so much nicer than the ancient audyssey I had before. No real comment on the sound yet; only had a little time last night. Once the rest arrives, I'll run a real calibration and dial things in.

    I think once that order arrives, this is an endgame setup for me unless I ever have a dedicated room in the future. Thanks to everyone who commented, especially SunByrne for the LX suggestion.
    That's awesome. I ran a trio of LX's for my front LCR for a few months and even now after upgrading to the ELX Ribbon Towers I still occasionally miss the LX's,they really are great speakers. I wish I would have kept them for a different room.

  3. #23
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    Houston, Texas
    Posts
    1,517

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Yeah, it's hard to part with (sell) any of the Ascend speakers. The only one I've sold is an S2 that I was using as a center along with S2's for FL/FR. When I upgraded to Towers, two S2's went to surround duty.
    * LG OLED65E6P, BenqHT2050A
    * Anthem AVM90, Rogue ST100, VTV Pascal 7 ch
    * Sierra Towers/Horizon (all ELX RAAL), S2EXv2 surrounds, HTM200SEx4 heights, Rythmik E15HPx2
    * VPI Classic 1+ (VTA & Fatboy Gimbal), PE Eagle/RR, VAS NOVA, Soundsmith Paua, Manley Chinook, Bob's Devices SUT, SugarCube 1 mini
    * Oppo 203 & 103D, EverSolo DMP-A6
    * miniDSP Flex, Audiosensibility & Blue Jeans cables, Symposium & Isoacoustics, GIK
    * For RDJ: Anthem MRX720, Sierra LX, Luna Duo v2 center, CXNv2, TBD

  4. #24
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    Manhattan Beach, California
    Posts
    7,131

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Quote Originally Posted by racrawford65 View Post
    Yeah, it's hard to part with (sell) any of the Ascend speakers. The only one I've sold is an S2 that I was using as a center along with S2's for FL/FR. When I upgraded to Towers, two S2's went to surround duty.
    I gave my original S1's to my Parents, as well as some original CBM-170s and CMT-340's. The 340's are actually stored in their garage now, and the rest of the system is almost never used.

    I have another pair of original CBM-170s stored in my garage.
    Last edited by curtis; 11-30-2023 at 07:11 AM.
    -curtis
    [SIZE=1]main/living room (5.1):
    [COLOR=#333333][FONT=Verdana]- LG OLED 77" C3[/FONT][/COLOR]
    [COLOR=#333333][FONT=Verdana]- Anthem AVM70, [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#333333][FONT=&amp]VTV AMPLIFIER 5 Channel 3+2 Purifi + Hypex[/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#333333][FONT=Verdana]
    [/FONT][/COLOR][COLOR=#333333][FONT=Verdana]- Sierra LX for LCR, HTM-200SE for surrounds, Rythmik F15HP[/FONT][/COLOR]
    [COLOR=#333333][FONT=Verdana]- Eversolo DMP-A6, Oppo 205, AppleTV[/FONT][/COLOR]
    bedroom (2.1):
    - Vizio 65" P9
    - WiiM Ultra, Fosi V3 Mono x 2
    - Sierra Luna v2, RSL-10e sub
    - AppleTV
    I use Roon to manage the music streaming.[/SIZE]

  5. #25
    Join Date
    Oct 2023
    Posts
    30

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Just to close off the thread, final system ended up:
    Onkyo NR7100 AVR
    3x Sierra LX L/C/R
    2x HTM-200 surround connected to dynasty wireless amp
    Rythmik L12 connected via SVS Soundpath wireless

    The system sounds incredible and I think I'll be happy with it for a long time. I see no reason to change anything unless I somehow set up a dedicated room where I can go crazy with atmos etc. The biggest improvements over the old setup are definitely dialog clarity and bass impact. I also notice much improved spatial sense in the surrounds moving from dipoles to monopoles and getting more midbass from the surrounds.

    I also notice that we're listening louder. On the old system, we usually set the mv at -30 or so, now it usually ends up at -24ish. At first I thought it was a calibration issue but my son was watching TV in the living room while I was cooking in the kitchen and it was noticeably louder. My theory is that the new system is less harsh at higher levels and has better dynamics, so it's less fatiguing to listen a higher levels. Being able to comfortably turn it up a bit gives a real sense of it being a theater-like experience instead of just watching TV at home.

    All in all, I'm very happy I took the 'buy once cry once' approach and can enjoy everything for the next decade without wondering what if.

  6. #26
    Join Date
    May 2015
    Location
    Houston, Texas
    Posts
    1,517

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Congrats on the new system.
    * LG OLED65E6P, BenqHT2050A
    * Anthem AVM90, Rogue ST100, VTV Pascal 7 ch
    * Sierra Towers/Horizon (all ELX RAAL), S2EXv2 surrounds, HTM200SEx4 heights, Rythmik E15HPx2
    * VPI Classic 1+ (VTA & Fatboy Gimbal), PE Eagle/RR, VAS NOVA, Soundsmith Paua, Manley Chinook, Bob's Devices SUT, SugarCube 1 mini
    * Oppo 203 & 103D, EverSolo DMP-A6
    * miniDSP Flex, Audiosensibility & Blue Jeans cables, Symposium & Isoacoustics, GIK
    * For RDJ: Anthem MRX720, Sierra LX, Luna Duo v2 center, CXNv2, TBD

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,645

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Quote Originally Posted by zeeke42 View Post
    Just to close off the thread, final system ended up:
    Onkyo NR7100 AVR
    3x Sierra LX L/C/R
    2x HTM-200 surround connected to dynasty wireless amp
    Rythmik L12 connected via SVS Soundpath wireless

    The system sounds incredible and I think I'll be happy with it for a long time. I see no reason to change anything unless I somehow set up a dedicated room where I can go crazy with atmos etc. The biggest improvements over the old setup are definitely dialog clarity and bass impact. I also notice much improved spatial sense in the surrounds moving from dipoles to monopoles and getting more midbass from the surrounds.

    I also notice that we're listening louder. On the old system, we usually set the mv at -30 or so, now it usually ends up at -24ish. At first I thought it was a calibration issue but my son was watching TV in the living room while I was cooking in the kitchen and it was noticeably louder. My theory is that the new system is less harsh at higher levels and has better dynamics, so it's less fatiguing to listen a higher levels. Being able to comfortably turn it up a bit gives a real sense of it being a theater-like experience instead of just watching TV at home.

    All in all, I'm very happy I took the 'buy once cry once' approach and can enjoy everything for the next decade without wondering what if.
    Excellent, very happy to read this.

    Enjoy!!!
    .
    .
    .
    Good Sound To You!

    David Fabrikant
    www.ascendacoustics.com

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Posts
    63

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Curious on how well the Dynasty wireless amp and Soundpath are working. I need a solution to avoid trying to figure out how to run wires to my surrounds and subs. @Dave Any other suggestions from you for a solution?

    Thanks!

    Hawk
    __________________________________________________ __________________________________
    HT Set-up: Anthem MRX-740, Ascend Acoustics Sierra Tower V2, Luna Duo V2 Center, Luna surrounds, Revel M55XC Heights, Rythmik F12
    Desktop/Gaming Set-up: Pioneer MRX-740 8K, Sierra LX LR, Ascend Luna V2 Center, Cambridge Minx Min 12 heights; Rythmik F12

  9. #29
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,645

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Quote Originally Posted by Mahawkma View Post
    Curious on how well the Dynasty wireless amp and Soundpath are working. I need a solution to avoid trying to figure out how to run wires to my surrounds and subs. @Dave Any other suggestions from you for a solution?

    Thanks!

    Hawk
    I am sorry Hawk, I have zero experience with any of these types of wireless systems. Biggest issues would be latency so I never recommend or use them.
    .
    .
    .
    Good Sound To You!

    David Fabrikant
    www.ascendacoustics.com

  10. #30
    Join Date
    Jan 2017
    Posts
    63

    Default Re: How far up the chain is worth it in a compromised room?

    Neither do I and I have never used them because of latency but, if the technology has improved and the latency dropped, it would so much easier. . .
    __________________________________________________ __________________________________
    HT Set-up: Anthem MRX-740, Ascend Acoustics Sierra Tower V2, Luna Duo V2 Center, Luna surrounds, Revel M55XC Heights, Rythmik F12
    Desktop/Gaming Set-up: Pioneer MRX-740 8K, Sierra LX LR, Ascend Luna V2 Center, Cambridge Minx Min 12 heights; Rythmik F12

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