Author Topic: Tonedeaf's HT/audio set up  (Read 61481 times)

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Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #30 on: Sep 26, 2007 at 11:16 AM »
^^^si nova villa (of the pamilya capistrano fame) naman yata ang ni-re-refer mo, hindi ako  ;D

i think i'm showing my age here.  ;D




Offline audiojunkie

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #31 on: Sep 26, 2007 at 12:52 PM »
^^^si nova villa (of the pamilya capistrano fame) naman yata ang ni-re-refer mo, hindi ako  ;D

i think i'm showing my age here.  ;D





" More or Less "  ;D  ;D  ;D
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Offline danrd

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #32 on: Sep 26, 2007 at 01:24 PM »
Congrats Madamioselle! Very nice.  ;)

Offline streetsmart

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #33 on: Sep 26, 2007 at 04:31 PM »
^^^si nova villa (of the pamilya capistrano fame) naman yata ang ni-re-refer mo, hindi ako  ;D

i think i'm showing my age here.  ;D

Hehe ... "Chicks to Chicks" yun.  ;D

Siguro sobra dalas ka manood kaya nahawa ka.  ;D

Favorite ko si Carmi. Naging friend ko rin sya.
No room acoustic treatment is like running a Ferrari on ice.

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #34 on: Oct 08, 2007 at 10:59 PM »
coming soon...

rear speakers: Mission M30i



i'm just waiting for the speaker stands from AA.

may i just say that i feel fairly proud - i managed to connect the  speaker wires to the receiver and the speakers this evening. to put things in perspective, when i transferred houses about 3 years ago, i had the lipat-bahay gang transfer the receivers/fronts/center as is - without unplugging the interconnecting wires - as i was so scared i wouldn't know how to put everything back again.  ;D

now, sound is actually coming out from the rear speakers. hahaha! i'm so happy! even if i feel every ache in my body, from all the contortions i had to do just to figure out how to connect the wires to the receiver. i knew i should have gotten them banana plugs!

Offline streetsmart

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #35 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 10:35 AM »
coming soon...

rear speakers: Mission M30i

i'm just waiting for the speaker stands from AA.

may i just say that i feel fairly proud - i managed to connect the  speaker wires to the receiver and the speakers this evening. to put things in perspective, when i transferred houses about 3 years ago, i had the lipat-bahay gang transfer the receivers/fronts/center as is - without unplugging the interconnecting wires - as i was so scared i wouldn't know how to put everything back again.  ;D

now, sound is actually coming out from the rear speakers. hahaha! i'm so happy! even if i feel every ache in my body, from all the contortions i had to do just to figure out how to connect the wires to the receiver. i knew i should have gotten them banana plugs!

Very nice speakers!  :)

Congratulations on the connections! Yes, banana plugs are much easier. Those are the only ones I use.  ;D



And now, you have to balance the speaker volumes. You need a sound meter.
No room acoustic treatment is like running a Ferrari on ice.

Offline danrd

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #36 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 10:47 AM »
coming soon...

rear speakers: Mission M30i



Ganda nyan. Have those too. Congrats.  ;)


Offline mb88

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #37 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 03:02 PM »
Congratulations Ma'am!
 
Part of my enjoyment of this hobby is the simple DIY things and the endless hours thinking of various combos/mutations and possibilities that you can do with your gear. It makes it more fulfilling if you do tweaks and connections yourself. (warning : ask first baka masunog  :))Keep it up!

Cheers!

Offline 5Speed

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #38 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 04:38 PM »
atty, mam, yung center speaker mo eh gawin mo ng back-surrounds tapos palitan mo ng M3C2 yung center speaker mo para mas maganda....herherherherherherher ;D

Nice setup......

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #39 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 10:58 PM »
 ;D ;D ;D

i managed to get optical fiber cable and speaker stands today.

after 5 years, my AVR was finally able to display the words dolby digital! yahoo! tomorrow, when i'm not so sleepy and tired from having to crouch down to figure out how to insert the optical fiber cable in the back of both the receiver and the dvd player, i will look for a dvd na dts naman. never paid much attention to it before. ang saya!



Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #40 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 11:05 PM »
And now, you have to balance the speaker volumes. You need a sound meter.

what's a sound meter?

my AVR has a "test tone" function, where you can indicate the volume level of each speaker. when i fiddled with it, the original settings had all speakers set to "0", though i can hear sound coming from them. what's this for?

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #41 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 11:14 PM »
@danrd andmb88,

thanks.  ;D

@5Speed,

i'm really looking for either the M7C2 or the M3C2 to improve my center speaker. Can't use the M7C1 as rear speakers though, because my AVR can only do 5.1 ;D

great, now i have to buy new center speakers AND a new receiver. walang katapusan!

seriously though, i'm choosing between getting a sub or a new receiver. i think they both will be in the same price range (between 20-30k). so i have to decide between having a 5.1 set-up (instead of my present 5.0) or upgrading my receiver.


Offline streetsmart

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Re: My incomplete HT set-up
« Reply #42 on: Oct 09, 2007 at 11:16 PM »
what's a sound meter?

my AVR has a "test tone" function, where you can indicate the volume level of each speaker. when i fiddled with it, the original settings had all speakers set to "0", though i can hear sound coming from them. what's this for?

I think it is more accurately called a "sound level meter." It measures the loudness of your audio. You need to balance the loudness of your speakers so that at your listening position, they are equally loud. This is very important.

The way you normally do it is to use the "test tone" function. Each speaker will alternately emit a tone and you measure this with your meter using "slow" and "weighted C" (I think!). You can adjust the volume of each speaker through your AVR. You have to adjust the volume of each until they are all equally loud (same decibel reading in your meter).
No room acoustic treatment is like running a Ferrari on ice.

Offline audiojunkie

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #43 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 01:22 PM »
@danrd andmb88,

thanks.  ;D

@5Speed,

i'm really looking for either the M7C2 or the M3C2 to improve my center speaker. Can't use the M7C1 as rear speakers though, because my AVR can only do 5.1 ;D

great, now i have to buy new center speakers AND a new receiver. walang katapusan!

seriously though, i'm choosing between getting a sub or a new receiver. i think they both will be in the same price range (between 20-30k). so i have to decide between having a 5.1 set-up (instead of my present 5.0) or upgrading my receiver.



Now that you got Digital connection bet DVD -> AVR, I suggest to get a Sub instead of new AVR, Coz you have't heared yet  the full pontential of your AVR in digital Audio.
Anthem CD1
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Offline barrister

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #44 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 04:59 PM »
seriously though, i'm choosing between getting a sub or a new receiver. i think they both will be in the same price range (between 20-30k). so i have to decide between having a 5.1 set-up (instead of my present 5.0) or upgrading my receiver.

Upgrading your receiver: 5.0 before upgrade; 5.0 pa rin after.  The improvement will be minimal.

Adding a subwoofer: The difference will be appreciable. 

Low frequency effects give you the emotional impact that the director intended.  Setting the front speakers to "small" and using the correct crossover frequency will route lower frequencies to the subwoofer, leaving the front speakers with a lighter load. 

A lighter load on the front speakers will allow them to produce clearer mid frequencies.  At the same time, your subwoofer will give you the low frequency extensions you've been missing for 5 years.

My advice: Get the subwoofer.  I guarantee that the sonic improvement will make you smile for days.  ;)   
« Last Edit: Oct 10, 2007 at 05:03 PM by barrister »

Offline audiojunkie

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #45 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 05:20 PM »
Another MISSION? => New SUB..... ;D  8)
Anthem CD1
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Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #46 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 06:22 PM »
@barrister,

considering that my room is small (have a 46 square meter unit, with only maybe 20 sq. m. of it devoted to my bedroom/ht room), is it ok if i just get an 8" sub?

Offline audiojunkie

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #47 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 08:39 PM »
8" can be ok'ed with the size of your room but medyo kulang. try 10" to be more musical and  about 200 watts power... ;D
« Last Edit: Oct 11, 2007 at 01:03 PM by audiojunkie »
Anthem CD1
Anthem Pre1
Audio Linear TT
Ortofon Rondo Red
Theta Dac
GTA SE-40 Amp
JBL L7
AudioQuest

Offline barrister

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #48 on: Oct 10, 2007 at 11:26 PM »
@barrister,

considering that my room is small (have a 46 square meter unit, with only maybe 20 sq. m. of it devoted to my bedroom/ht room), is it ok if i just get an 8" sub?

Panyera, mabibitin ka sa 8-incher.  Malaki ang 20 sq. m. para sa home theater.  Baka sabihin mo, "sana hindi na lang ako nag-sub kasi pareho rin pala ang tunog".  :( 

OK lang sana ang 8" kung small room (not more than 12 sq. m.), pero kung around 20 sq. m., dapat 10" or 12" sub.

« Last Edit: Oct 11, 2007 at 09:59 AM by barrister »

Offline kt

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #49 on: Oct 11, 2007 at 12:27 PM »
hi mam ganda na ha! congrats on the configurations hehe sulit naman ang pagod. tapos na ba break in ng panny mo?

yup tama sila i suggest u get kahit a 10" sub sulit n big difference yan lalo na sa movies!

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #50 on: Oct 12, 2007 at 02:23 PM »
^ re break-in, i'm only at around 70 hours  :( inip na ako.

Offline kt

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #51 on: Oct 12, 2007 at 02:27 PM »
^ re break-in, i'm only at around 70 hours  :( inip na ako.

tagal pa ha! hehe iwan mo lang naka on! hehe  ;D

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #52 on: Oct 12, 2007 at 02:35 PM »
project long weekend: re-arrange set-up. put banana plugs. fix magulong wires.

i've decided to move my center speaker to the same level as the tv. jus so it won't sit on top of the dvd.

next, i moved my receiver to the 2nd level of the stand, so i won't have to crouch down and injure myself next time i think of unplugging the wires and cleaning it up. or when i connect my subwoofer cable (i wish  ;D). the dvd is now on the bottom portion of the stand.

then, i finally took a long look at the back of my receiver and unplugged the wires.


had to put a code on each wire to remember which goes where  ;D


then i put banana plugs and voila!


as re-arranged:

Offline barrister

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #53 on: Oct 12, 2007 at 10:33 PM »

Now, that is so much better!   ;) :D ;)  Congrats!

Offline 5Speed

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #54 on: Oct 13, 2007 at 09:10 PM »
mam, ayushh na......

kulang na lang ng 10-12 inchers na sub....then nood na agad ng DTS na DVD...hehehehe :)

Offline tonedeaf

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #55 on: Oct 13, 2007 at 10:42 PM »
@5speed,

yes, that's my next project.  however, i have learned that subwoofers cost a lot (the ones recommended to me are in the 20k++ range). so baka pang next year na yun. in the meantime, i'm enjoying DTS 5.0 and dolby 5.0 sound na rin. i can't believe i waited 5 years to complete my set up. i missed so much pala. it's so much fun watching movies with surround effects.

anyway,  my favorite, so far, of the movies i've watched na may surrounds is Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. ang galing!

ang laki din pala ng difference when i got the optical cable versus my old analog wires. yung T3, ang volume ko lang is in the 35-42 range. samantalang dati, i used to watch dvds na ang volume set to 55-60. tapos, you hear so much more detail  ;D  :)
« Last Edit: Oct 13, 2007 at 10:53 PM by tonedeaf »

Offline tonedeaf

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new discoveries
« Reply #56 on: Oct 13, 2007 at 10:50 PM »
i discovered a few things today pala, while i was fiddling around with my set-up. 

apparently, my dvd player's settings still identifies my tv as 4:3 (the settings i made when i still had a crt tv). so kanina, i changed the settings to 16:9. the strange thing is, when i did that, i was able to watch X2 with the full subtitles even when i picked the full screen viewing mode (as i'm still in burn-in period). kaso, when i watched Terminator 3, full screen ulit and with subtitles, only the first lines of the subtitles were visible. bummer. i'm still trying to figure  out what's wrong with my settings, or talagang subtitles can't be seen pag naka zoom.  ???

secondly, progressive scan pala ang aking dvd player. so i turned on the progressive scan mode of my dvd player (buti na lang component video ako, which, apparently is a requirement). the tv now identifies the resolution as 480p, instead of 480i. didn't notice much of a difference though.

i'm still figuring out how big a difference an upscaling dvd player will make in the display. if somebody can assure me na malaki, i'll buy one for xmas. together with an hdmi cable.

one other thing i learned is that my tv is actually 'HDTV plasma' but not really 'true HD'. kasi the minimum true HD resolution is 1280x720(720p) or 1366x768 (768p). My tv's resolution is 1024x768. if that's the case, is there any point in buying an HD dvd source (like an HD DVD player or a blu ray player)? wouldn't it be like buying an HD source for a crt?  ???




Offline MAtZTER

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Re: new discoveries
« Reply #57 on: Oct 15, 2007 at 10:58 AM »
i'm still figuring out how big a difference an upscaling dvd player will make in the display. if somebody can assure me na malaki, i'll buy one for xmas. together with an hdmi cable.

IMO, the difference becomes substantial on a 42"-100" screen. Not much on a 32" or lower.

So ok yan sa 42" mo >:D

Offline kt

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Re: My sort of complete HT set-up
« Reply #58 on: Oct 15, 2007 at 11:57 AM »
wow ayos  na nga mam! i suggest unahin nyo na po yung sub hehe promise kakaibang experience pag meron po nun

Offline streetsmart

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Re: new discoveries
« Reply #59 on: Oct 15, 2007 at 12:00 PM »
i'm still figuring out how big a difference an upscaling dvd player will make in the display. if somebody can assure me na malaki, i'll buy one for xmas. together with an hdmi cable.

one other thing i learned is that my tv is actually 'HDTV plasma' but not really 'true HD'. kasi the minimum true HD resolution is 1280x720(720p) or 1366x768 (768p). My tv's resolution is 1024x768. if that's the case, is there any point in buying an HD dvd source (like an HD DVD player or a blu ray player)? wouldn't it be like buying an HD source for a crt?  ???

Higher resolution makes a difference, depending on the size of your screen and your viewing distance. This article gives a good summary:

http://www.carltonbale.com/2006/11/1080p-does-matter/

As a rule of thumb, however, at normal viewing distances, its hard to see the difference between 720p and 1080p unless your screen is 60" diagonal or bigger.

With regard to SD vs HD:

HD has a native resolution of up to 1080i so you can output 720p to your TV and the picture quality should be very good.

If you want to emulate this with SD, you will need to de-interlace (from 480i to 480p) and then upscale the picture (480p to 720p). In this process, the quality of the output picture will depend firstly on the quality of the DVD itself (and you will find that the newer DVD's generally have better video) and secondly on the quality of the de-interlacer/scaler.

The best de-interlacer/scaler will be a dedicated video processor which can cost anywhere from PhP100,000 to PhP200,000.

I think that the next best will be a DVD player such as the Oppo (I forget the model) which is supposed to have excellent capabilities. This can cost maybe USD250.

Finally, you have the Pioneer DVD players which can cost you maybe PhP7,000.

In making a decision, the best is to actually test your set-up with a de-interlacer/upscaler and then an HD player. And when you make that decision, keep in mind that the biggest cost will not be the first cost. Its just that the HD DVD software (as compared to SD in the Philippines) typically costs 3 to 10 times more.






No room acoustic treatment is like running a Ferrari on ice.