# The Uppercase Theater



## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Well here we go. I have never exposed myself in this way before.
I have just bought a new home and have a room of the house just for moi. My wife and I have disagreed for many years on what looks cool in way of a home theater, she thinks a flat panel display on a wall, Period. She never quite understood the need for the other stuff, speakers, amps, BR players etc. I on the other hand try to collect as many things as possible, obviously to the chagrin of my wife. 

So we spoke to a builder and told him what we wanted and his normal home does not have a bonus room for me and what he did build was a bit small for my needs. So he changed the plans a bit and made something much closer to what I wanted. It is not perfect but it is ok and should work out fine. He took the normal bonus room and added 4 feet to the width and length to make the room my size. In the bargain, I get a bigger garage as the bonus room is over the garage, and since those are the only two rooms in the house I can claim, it is good to have them a bit bigger. This also helped me to pick a name for the joint, Uppercase, is over the garage...well its my story so lets go with it. :whistling:

As the photos show, the room has one substantial defect, the side walls are short and the ceiling is slanted. Again, not perfect, but should work. The room is 16' x 22' x 8' in the center. It has been set up as its own little sanctuary. It has its own zone for heat and a/c, 2 large closets and a full bathroom. It is on its own circuit and is off the beaten path so to speak.

We shall start moving into the house next week so I will document/photographment the build out of the home theater. I assumed I could do it in a month but I may have been wrong. 

So lets start with the bones and go from there. Here are the initial photos before the wires and carpet are put into place. 

Let it be written, let it be.....done in a couple months. 

Raw room, not properly painted.










Other end of the room with the bathroom and closets for the equipment and discs. 










Let the overwhelming excitement begin. Tomorrow is a walk through so will update photos again tomorrow.


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## chadci (Feb 13, 2008)

I really think a nice pair of B/W towers up front, DefTech bi's on the sides and if you must rear, a nice 5 channel Emotiva amp for power, Denon receiver for processing and a decent sub should do you well. 

Hi Jack.:nerd:


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Congrats. Lots can be done in a room like that.

Bryan


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## Prof. (Oct 20, 2006)

Also a number of theatre rooms have been built very successfully using the same shape as your room..
I'm afraid I don't have any links at the moment..


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Thanks gents, I am sure I am not alone here in this type of build. I have never messed with walls/ceiling of this shape so I will learn a ton in the process. I do know I will have to do some room treatments and that is gonna take some time and money. I wanted to get the biggest part done by the end of next month as I have rotator cuff surgery at the end of June so I will have to change the surgery or hold off on the room fixins. None the less, the carpet is in and the room is ready to occupy. Here it is with carpet and lights. I have to have the builder do a bit of electrical work as the fan has to move back a bit and they will add a receptacle for the projector. 

Speaker End










Entry










Equipment Closet, will be ventilated from above. 









Media closet










Some of the equipment that will go here. Chad has already described some of it but I will break it down later.


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## sga2 (Nov 14, 2009)

Congrats on the new build. Nothing like starting with at a black canvas. We look forward to your progress.

Regards,
sga2


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

And we're off!!!! Can't wait to see how it turns out Jack, I'll keep an eye on this one!


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

...and this my pretties is where the IB sub will be going. Oh yes, we shall rock the house.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

That should be interesting in of itself to watch come to life during the build.


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## mcfly (Sep 26, 2008)

Yep, Ill be watching toooo..


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

The closing has been put back until Thursday so it will be awhile yet. We should start moving in this weekend.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

We have closed, the house is ours or the banks or someones anyway. None the less, we have keys and garage door openers and officially a mailbox. The move begins. This is gonna hurt.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

WOOHOO!!! Congratulations Jack! Look forward to seeing the build!


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Congrats on the new place being officially 'yours.' 

Bryan


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok
Got the "Toys" in the attic so to speak but not set up as yet. Kind of worn out from the move and then yesterday a pair of these just happened to knock on my door. I went ahead and carried em up stairs after unboxing them. I have to say, they look nice and the packing is stellar.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

moowee talk about slow.
Have been having a bit of trouble with the rotator cuff that has yet to be fixed so work is slow.
Most everything is up here, except I have to decide on a new tv display and afix it to the wall in front of the window. 

Never the less here is the first incarnation, non treated, not finished. 
I will say it sounds very good sans treatments, so I am sure it will only get better. The 3 subs make for a delightful bottom end experience and overall I am happy. I played Elton Johns 60th birthday concert (BR) and was stunned by how good his piano sounded. Playing "The Kids are Ready to Die" off of Airborne Toxic Events All At Once album about broke the wall seams. WOW, this is some nice sound.
Now to get a proper display, ( I am having trouble parting with the money ) and some room treatments and we may be good for the long run.










If anyone is interested in what is in/on the rack just ask and I will make a list. Not sure anyone cares anymore so I will leave it be for now.


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## Theresa (Aug 23, 2010)

I love the Aldous Huxley quote.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Theresa said:


> I love the Aldous Huxley quote.



As do I, well....obviously. Some folks can put into words, that which the rest of can only stumble with.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

Coming along Jack! I think you should go for a projector and 110" screen!


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Dale Rasco said:


> Coming along Jack! I think you should go for a projector and 110" screen!



This is the hard part for me Dale. I have owned 2 PJ's and both crapped out too early. I am a bit afeared of having another one. I am going to mount the direct view display on the wall behind where it sits in the photo, just not sure if I should invest in the 64" Samsung 8000 series or a PJ.

I love movies and music with a passion and have....a considerable collection of both. I used to write for several journals years ago and being older I also believe that a film must be projected onto a screen at a proper brightness for the best involvement in the film. I just have analysis paralysis when it comes to this one decision. I have several more components to put into the system yet but I need to get past this display thing and furnish the room properly. The good news is it goes loud clean and there is not a frequency I cannot playback. None the less, one additional sub is on order. 
decisions. :blink:


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

The Epson 8350 is a great PJ and an even better valus. How long ago did you a PJ?


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

About 3 years ago, I had a Hitachi and before than an Infocus. Both did well, the Hitachi had a wonderful image but both died within 2 years of purchasing them. The Hitachi got dust in the LCD panels and they wanted $1300 to fix it...holy .
The infocus was just ok, but the color wheel engine started to squeal, again within 2 years and so I decided to buy the 52" Sony and I like it a good bit. I think I miss the big picture, but in reality, the big screen in my home is somewhat of a vague memory and as such does not cause a burn on my need o meter if you know what I mean. If one does not experience something for awhile, one does not miss it after a few years have passed. I have the room., I have the money put away, I just have a somewhat limited circle of friends and none of them have a projector to make me remember what I am missing. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing. :rofl:

Having recently Moved to Evansville, Indiana, I hope I can find a new group of admirers of the fine art of film and music.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

I just realized, I have no way of driving two displays using HDMI.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Looking good Jack. Hope the shoulder gets better quickly.

Bryan


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

bpape said:


> Looking good Jack. Hope the shoulder gets better quickly.
> 
> Bryan



Thank You Bryan, that was very kind. I have to wait for my blood to thin out before they cut on me. Another month or so and then once they re connect all the cables in my shoulder, another month after that and we should be good. I wonder if I should order some high end tendons or just use the same ones I was born with ? they broke once, they must have been the cheap ones. :blink:


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

After looking at the theater photos on the forum website I am a bit embarrassed. Y'all have some serious stuff out there. I can see I have my work cut out for me to be a part of this group. 
Oh, well the build will continue, but can never equal some of y'alls. Gotta make some DVD, CD shelves tomorrow.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok the new display is ordered and should be here early next week. 
A Panasonic VIERA TC-P65GT30


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Also ordered back speakers. I decided to go in wall with surround speakers. I like the way they sound these days. So I will be using a bunch of these. 8" Kevlar woofer, 4" midrange woofer and a tweeter. I have used in wall from these guys before and they are great.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok decisions have been made, I have decided to stop with three subs as once I can start working with the support of all my body parts I will be building the IB with ...who knows, four (4) 18" subs I guess and will sell off the subs I use now. I am sure the wall treatments will be in and the painting will be done complete with murals and the normal needful HT stuff, mood lighting, posters and...well you know. So for now I think I have bought my last piece of hard ware until the XPA-2 becomes available again and will concentrate on putting it all together. Got the shelves in the closet done and have loaded all the movies, now for the Cds. I keep them as it is nice to once in awhile pick one out and look at it, but in reality everything is recorded lossless onto a high end Dell desktop and played back through and appletv running into a tube audio Dac. Works very well indeed. 
More to come, although I am the only one talking. Oh well eventually someone will get interested ....or not, either way I will get better at my writing. Years ago I used to write movie and music reviews for various mags around the country, one of which was handled by a guy named Holt. I lived in chicago so I could easily attend most anything at any time. That was a while ago and I have lost the touch. Now I have to write business legalese everyday and it is so dry it makes me pucker.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

So this morning I added another important feature to the set up that should bring me into the new millennium.











I believe I am almost done with the equipment side of things, now on to the decorating.


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## bpape (Sep 14, 2006)

Nice additions!


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Got the media storage cabinet done, just have to finish emptying boxes of stuff to fill it up.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

I did not think I would easily find a BR player that was better than the Denon but knowing the new display was 3D I thought I would just take a chance on the Oppo. I was so wrong about the Denon I need to put both feet in my fingers if you will. After setting up the Oppo and watching if for a couple days, I can say, this thing is the beez kneez. I have 4 BR players in house, the Denon 2500, the Sony 580 and the update able but ever playable PS3 in addition to the Oppo. Watching them side by side, I somehow have several copies of An American, and I can say without hesitation, the Oppo is hands down the finest BR DVD player I have yet seen and maybe more importantly, HEARD. The color, saturation, detail and smoothness of the image are to die for. But even better, the SOUND is absolutely stunning. During The Adjustment Bureau when David walks into the warehouse and the sound goes from that of an office room to a warehouse the soundtrack expands to that of a huge room and like qualities happen in my viewing room. During Knowing when the young son is seeing his vision through the window of his bedroom and the camera dollies slowly out of the window into the horrific scene before him, the whole world becomes part and parcel of the viewing room. It happens on the other machines to be sure, but not to this size and specificity. From top to bottom the sound is a thing of beauty and brings the whole film/movie experience a bit closer to home.
I will give this a MUST BUY if you can category. If your looking for a moderately expensive player this player HAS to be on your short list. Not a flicker of a mistake imho. Oh and I am not even talking about the built in other features such a netflix etc. It was so easy to set up and work and the new on screen options are a beauty to work with. Now please know that in reality the netflix and other options are added as an after thought and are not nearly as easily operated as the Roku XDs, nope not even close. But for BR and regular DVD discs, I would be surprised to know anything that could compare to this unit for under a grand.


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

Great job so far Jack!

I reckon a room like you have has great character! How many lucky people can enjoy the show?

And thanks for your thoughts on the Oppo. I'm trying to decide whether or not to get an oppo or build a HTPC and rip all my movies for playback. 

Cheers,
Simon


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

raZorTT said:


> Great job so far Jack!
> I reckon a room like you have has great character! How many lucky people can enjoy the show?
> And thanks for your thoughts on the Oppo. I'm trying to decide whether or not to get an oppo or build a HTPC and rip all my movies for playback.
> 
> ...


Thank You Simon. The character of the room is developing as it is being built. I had no pre conceived notion as this house was a spot buy that just came our way by the forces of the universe directing us to it. So I think the room will stay more true to Home Theater than a musical place but, who knows, time will tell. As far as how many may enjoy, well I will have seating of the official kind for 6 or so, however, being new to the neighborhood and area, I am thinking it will be occupied by...well me.:gulp:

As to the Oppo, it is a brilliant piece. Before I moved here I had access to a store that carried a good number of players and I was able to bring them home for try outs if you will. I would up with a Denon 2500 as it just had that look and feel of film when I watched it. I have never been a fan of the way movies look at the superstores and I do not want to have that stage play image on my screen. I like film, I grew up with film and the Denon gave me that in spades. Having said all that, I can say with all due honesty that the Oppo trumps the Denon ever so slightly in quality of sound and vision. Not to mention speed and ease of use. I recommend it.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

So the new display arrived Yay.....with a big but.......











The driver demanded the drop and run method but I verbally forced him to stay and unbox it per my contract so he did and voila. Yes viewers, cracks everywhere. 



















I refused delivery and he packed it up, signed for it as rejected due to concealed damage and toted it away.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

Ouch!!!!!!


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Simon, if it's any help, I love my Oppo BDP-83 and have been 100% happy with it since I got it. I do some streaming through my WD Live player (everything from SD to 1080) and while I love it as a solution as well, I wouldn't replace my Oppo for serious critical viewing, or when I want to watch something in the best presentation possible. I have no intention of digitizing the hundreds of DVDs I have, and the Oppo makes them look great.

Jack, sorry for the slight tangent. So by picking up the plasma, have you decided to stay right away from projectors for a while? My only regret about my 58" Panny is that I didn't step up to the 65" at the time. I'm also curious about the Monoprice in-walls. They seem to be in a class of their own for value, and sound miles better than anything in the same price range (based on what I've read, I have not heard a pair). I'll be watching to see what you do with them and how you like them.

_Edit:_ WOW, I took so long to write that that you had a lot happen in the meantime. Really sorry to see the cracks like that, but thank goodness you stuck to your guns and made the delivery guy stay. I hope they'll have a replacement to you ASAP.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Dale Rasco said:


> Ouch!!!!!!



Perfectly said !!!


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Owen Bartley said:


> Simon, if it's any help, I love my Oppo BDP-83 and have been 100% happy with it since I got it. I do some streaming through my WD Live player (everything from SD to 1080) and while I love it as a solution as well, I wouldn't replace my Oppo for serious critical viewing, or when I want to watch something in the best presentation possible. I have no intention of digitizing the hundreds of DVDs I have, and the Oppo makes them look great.


I completely agree. I have a ginormous computer that can do home video, inclusive of BR storage, but I am an old fart and just do not want the hassle of a HT Computer to be used on a regular basis. However, this is an individual decision as many folks love the challenge of working with computers to make the best image they can. That just is not me so I do not mind having discs stored away and/or rented. I do however, keep upwards of 250GB of music stored on the computer for playback via the computer to the AppleTV2 though my Tube Dac. The ability to control zillions of tunes via my iPhone or iTouch is awesome. 



Owen Bartley said:


> Jack, sorry for the slight tangent. So by picking up the plasma, have you decided to stay right away from projectors for a while? My only regret about my 58" Panny is that I didn't step up to the 65" at the time. I'm also curious about the Monoprice in-walls. They seem to be in a class of their own for value, and sound miles better than anything in the same price range (based on what I've read, I have not heard a pair). I'll be watching to see what you do with them and how you like them.


I had decided to stay away from projectors for awhile, however the universe may have stepped in and are trying to show me the light so to speak. I have a relatively newer 52" Sony that I could hang on the wall and put an electric screen in front of it and am now rethinking my decisions. In order to get the 65" plasma, from anyone, it has to be shipped either to a store of to my home. After dealing with the delivery of Kohler toilets for the house during build, I am really afraid of this ship and drop process. I had 3 toilets replaced by UPS and each one was set down hard on the concrete porch and was broken. We finally had them delivered to Home Depot and we picked them up there and got better results. I know I can do a good FP and Screen for about the same price as the direct view so I will spend some sleepless nights thinking about this. They are going to give me my money back as they cannot deliver a replacement unit.

As far as the mono price speakers go, I am shocked at how well built they are for the price. Shocked I tell you. I had a smaller pair in the walls originally and they worked fine but I was a bit afeared of the EMO breaking them during loud passages so I upgraded to the present set. They have been in the walls for awhile now and sound absolutely great. They blend in astonishingly well. I have always been a believer in name brands, but it seems more and more, that you pay for the name and not the brand. So, I have been using monoprice more for cables and things and they provide excellent service at a very low price. In the case of these surrounds, they also seem to provide excellent speakers. I would not hesitate to use them again. As a matter of fact, I goofed when I ordered the first set, and order what I thought were 4 speakers based on the price structure. Instead I received 4 pairs of speakers :rofl: 
Slap me on the butt and make me write bad checks I am such a dork. I kept them and will use them elsewhere in the house, maybe even in a height channel....who knows.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

I also decided to get one more of these. My front L&R speakers are full range but they tend to lack the deep impact of the bigger speakers. So I use these subs to augment the mains when running stereo pure direct and frankly all the time as they are connected to the speaker taps not being used in the processor. These little gems really enjoy playing below the belt and will rattle your teeth if you dont keep their volume control tame. I love the meld of the B&W speakers and the smaller Velodyne subs. They just work. 

So I guess this gives me 4 subs up front, all of smaller size, but so far for this room, it seems more than adequate.










Shortly this sub will be finished and will be placed in the back of the room as well.


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## gorb (Sep 5, 2010)

Cool looking room! Too bad about the damaged display


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

Savjac said:


> As to the Oppo, it is a brilliant piece. Before I moved here I had access to a store that carried a good number of players and I was able to bring them home for try outs if you will. I would up with a Denon 2500 as it just had that look and feel of film when I watched it. I have never been a fan of the way movies look at the superstores and I do not want to have that stage play image on my screen. I like film, I grew up with film and the Denon gave me that in spades. Having said all that, I can say with all due honesty that the Oppo trumps the Denon ever so slightly in quality of sound and vision. Not to mention speed and ease of use. I recommend it.





Owen Bartley said:


> Simon, if it's any help, I love my Oppo BDP-83 and have been 100% happy with it since I got it. I do some streaming through my WD Live player (everything from SD to 1080) and while I love it as a solution as well, I wouldn't replace my Oppo for serious critical viewing, or when I want to watch something in the best presentation possible. I have no intention of digitizing the hundreds of DVDs I have, and the Oppo makes them look great.


Thanks guys :T

Jack, Sorry to see the damage to the TV! :hissyfit:

They must have really done a number on it while delivering for it to be so damaged :scratch:

Simon


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Well it would appear the decision was made for me here by forces beyond my control. I have been back and forth between Front Projection and Direct view and I went direct view against what my desires told me to do. My head said, hey, its better blacks, very reliable, set it and forget it but my heart kept saying, but you loved the Hitachi and the big image when you had it. This is movies we are talking about, they need projecting. 

Never the less, my head won the battle but the universe won the war. It caused the display I wanted but really did not want, to show up broken and forced it to be returned. The universe made my mind up for me. So FP it is. I shall now do my research. Amazon has already agreed to the refund, got the email today so I will hang the Sony 52" by the window for general watching and hang a screen on the ceiling above and in front of the Sony. A PJ will reside on the ceiling where my ceiling fan now hangs and voila. I knew there was a reason I got the Oppo with 2 HDMI outs.
Actually a very good friend kind of helped my decision making as well. So I am off....the chase is a foot.


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## raZorTT (Jan 17, 2008)

Savjac said:


> Well it would appear the decision was made for me here by forces beyond my control. I have been back and forth between Front Projection and Direct view and I went direct view against what my desires told me to do. My head said, hey, its better blacks, very reliable, set it and forget it but my heart kept saying, but you loved the Hitachi and the big image when you had it. This is movies we are talking about, they need projecting.
> 
> Never the less, my head won the battle but the universe won the war. It caused the display I wanted but really did not want, to show up broken and forced it to be returned. The universe made my mind up for me. So FP it is. I shall now do my research. Amazon has already agreed to the refund, got the email today so I will hang the Sony 52" by the window for general watching and hang a screen on the ceiling above and in front of the Sony. A PJ will reside on the ceiling where my ceiling fan now hangs and voila. I knew there was a reason I got the Oppo with 2 HDMI outs.
> Actually a very good friend kind of helped my decision making as well. So I am off....the chase is a foot.


Great stuff, FP is the way to go :bigsmile:

Cheers,
Simon


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Haha, that didn't take long Jack! I think that's the right decision though, and it sounds like you'll be happier in the end with a nice big screen and projector.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok the electric pre tension screen and one of these below were ordered today and will be shipped out on Monday. Should be here Wednesday and will be hung by the weekend.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

NICE MY BROTHER!!! you're going to be so happy with the results! Congratulations Jack!


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

Gonna love the big screen Jack! Nice catch on the display as well. :T I probably would have just taken delivery and ended up with a cracked display. :rant:


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

mechman said:


> Nice catch on the display as well. :T I probably would have just taken delivery and ended up with a cracked display. :rant:


I have been working in cargo claims for 30 years so I know the last person that signs the bill of lading as being clean, is held up for damage. So...I dont sign nothin without looking first. Habits you know.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Jack, I don't know enough about projectors to tell what model you got... PT-AE4000? Those look REALLY nice! Funny, I started to Google just to see what projector that is and I ended up reading about it for an hour before I got back to this reply. Great choice, though.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

I am very sorry to be confusing but in hindsight I decided against the Front Projector. I ordered the dang thing and then thought about it over the weekend. My granddaughter stayed over to our home most of the weekend and wanted to watch Nickelodeon and various other cartoon type programming and it hit me, no way am I going to power up the Fp every time the lovely child wants to come and visit. She only lives 2 blocks away. So I decided to go back to my original plan and ordered a replacement 65" Panasonic Plasma. It should be here today. However, I ordered the white glove treatment, two delivery men, they will open it, place it and fire it up in front of me to make sure it works. If it does not a third one will be sent out immediately. 

Once in place I will take photographs to show the install. 
The last of the 4 subs is in place and things are coming along. Still need to paint and add the back surround channels (Maybe) and decorate.
Last night I watched U-571 and have never heard to many tiny details and monstrous sound waves in the movie before. The system must be getting closer to where it should be.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok we have a successful landing. The 65" Panny Plasma has arrived and is on my cabinet. I shall mount it on the wall tomorrow. The excellent news is, well it WORKS. I asked the it be delivered by two men rather than one so be safe. The shipper agreed and this one arrived in perfect condition.
It is on, running and I have a good bit to learn about setting up plasma. I have never owned one before and it is significantly different from LCD or DLP. The detail and black range are stunning. It has a THX setting which I am told is supposed to get it as close to perfect as possible, but I find it a bit dark. So maybe it needs break in ?? Not sure. So far so good, a beautiful unit, well thought out.


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## sga2 (Nov 14, 2009)

I have a 42" Panny plasma for the living room. It's THX setting _is_ dark (2 years old now). It would be fine in a light controlled room, but for normal use in our living room it is too dark for my tastes. I just calibrated another picture setting for movie watching using DVE. We now have a full home theater in the basement so I have not given this TV much attention. The picture is beautiful, though. Nice and bright with good black levels from any angle. 

Regards,
sga2


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Jack, I went through the calibration confusion as well when we got our 58" Panny V10. You can read a ton about break-in slides, calibrated settings, (in)accuracy of the THX setting out of the box, etc. if you want. Or, you can do what I did and just find other people's posted settings for their same model sets (they probably exist at AVS - PM me if you want some help finding some) and start with those. 

Once you've had it set to some generally accepted "good" settings for a little while, do some tweaks if necessary to make it look good to you. I decided that a properly calibrated set might not be what makes me happy to watch, but I definitely didn't want a torch-mode blown-out over-the-top mess, so I started with someone else's settings and made some small changes. As far as I'm concerned, the picture looks great - good detail in the blacks, colour looks right, not over-contrasty, and I didn't have to shell out for calibration that I might not have even liked. Nothing against getting a display calibrated by any means, I just didn't have the coin for it and my method gave me something I was very happy with.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Thank You Owen, I am indeed going to follow your suggestions as they make a ton of sense.
I have some time tonight as I just finished hooking everything together with new cables and dressed everything up cleanly so I am on this.
I will be taking some photos of the finished system tomorrow and post them. Just waiting for the sunlight to come back to help the lighting a bit. My window is covered but I can pull back the curtains and let a bit in so I am not in a complete cave. 
I am really, really loving this system.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Anytime Jack, that's just one more area where forums like these are great at getting you professional (or near) quality advice and can be a huge help in setting up your system. Can't wait to see the new pics!


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Definitely pick up DVE, Spears and Munsil, or the Disney WOW disc. It will be the best $20-30 you spend. A basic user configuration is not difficult to do, and will give you a great picture.


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

I recommend Spears and Munsil. If you think you're going to need help with understanding what exactly you are doing, then you may want one of the other two Marshall listed. Of those two, I'd recommend DVE. I've heard that there may be an issue with one of the patterns on the WoW disc. I haven't checked it out yet though but I will sometime soon hopefully - I have all three Blu-rays.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

eugovector said:


> Definitely pick up DVE, Spears and Munsil, or the Disney WOW disc. It will be the best $20-30 you spend. A basic user configuration is not difficult to do, and will give you a great picture.


This is a good idea and I will do this. I believe in getting it close to the proper specs and then tweeking a bit to my eye. Not perfect I know, but it makes me happy. :bigsmile:


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Ok here are some photos before the repaint and the room treatments are applied. Hope to have the new paint colors on next week and will talk to our forum treatment expert soon about getting the sound closer to flat, however, Audyseey has done a pretty good job, just had to make a few adjustments. Pillows and furniture and carpet have filled out the rest. Anyway, please dont be too cruel. 










The guitar was just there as a music image, so here it is without.










Here is most of the equipment. I have removed some as it was redundant










Would be happy to post the gear if anyone is interested.

Oh and the cabinet looks like it has a round front because...well it does. It is not flat.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

Great looking setup, Jack. Looks like you should have a nice wide soundstage. What are the 2 boxes just outside of the subs behind the main speakers?


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Owen Bartley said:


> Great looking setup, Jack. Looks like you should have a nice wide soundstage. What are the 2 boxes just outside of the subs behind the main speakers?


They are Velodyne Mini Vee subs. I use those mainly for music. I run them off of the speaker taps on the receiver as I do not use the amps in the Denon but rather in the Emotiva. That way I make the B&W's much more full range speakers. I cross them over a bit lower than normal so I get a smooth transition from the point where the B&W's start to roll off and then the Velodyne's take me right down to 20Hz. It is very nice.
They also run for movies as the processor has to be set for front speakers to be full sized so they add to the bottom end of the dual Emotiva 12" subs.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Went through a bit of a tough couple months and have not done anything to the HT but things seem to be back on track so the finishing touches should start soon. I hope :blink:


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## nezff (Jan 9, 2011)

hmmmm, where have I seen a room like this?


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

nezff said:


> hmmmm, where have I seen a room like this?


Umm geee, I dont have a clue, although I will be stealing your idea of the monoliths on the walls. That should help a bit I hope. Not the best shape room, but what the , it is what it is.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Made a small change here and added some Marton Logan speakers.
Now the paint and room dressings. Way behind as usual.

Thanks for looking


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## ALMFamily (Oct 19, 2011)

The Princess Bride!!! An all-time classic - I just love that movie!


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## pharoah (Jul 21, 2012)

thats a very nice setup.i hope to have me a media room some day.


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## Owen Bartley (Oct 18, 2006)

What are your thoughts on the B&W's vs. the Martin Logans? Do the MLs integrate well with the CC or are you going to replace that one too? Don't worry about the delays, that's just life, it happens. You'll get things going again when you can, and until then you still have a great looking room.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Owen Bartley said:


> What are your thoughts on the B&W's vs. the Martin Logans? Do the MLs integrate well with the CC or are you going to replace that one too? Don't worry about the delays, that's just life, it happens. You'll get things going again when you can, and until then you still have a great looking room.


Very good questions.
The B&W's contrary to the thoughts of many are very good speakers. I enjoyed them for about 11 years and they never failed with movies to raise the level of enjoyment to 11. For music they were a tad less exciting and tended to product a full but polite level of reproduction. Never distracting, never bad, just with the wrong music on occasion the presentation lost some of its life IMO.

I thought I would try the ML's as I was bowled over by them in a demonstration theater playing some of Hollywoods films that really emphasized music, effects and spaciality on the soundtrack. The MLs always ADD to the feeling I get from the image on the screen. A good example would be U571, the sheer terror in the battle scenes whilst the uboat lies close to the bottom and things pop and explode and the sense of hopelessness and claustrophobia drags me kicking and screaming into the depth of the film. This happens with all films that use sound and vision in equal measures to make a point, the MLs shine. Music now has that life and snap that the B&Ws did not put forth so well. Top to bottom the MLs are on a par with my Maggies with the added bit of the force I find so pleasant from the movie coil drive in the Martin Logan. It is seems to work as well as the full range maggies and maybe a teeny tiny hair better bur YMMV

Do they integrate with the B&W center ? Not perfectly but not bad either. I works less well with strickly music DVDs and Blu Rays, but with movies, I am ok with this. I need to sell off my MacBook Pro to raise some money before I can purchase the proper center channel. Moving into and fixing up this new house has cost a zillion dollars so its rice, beans and sell stuff that is not as needed as other stuff

Thank You for your question. I am quite happy now and feel it will get better with the right center. Oh and no, there is no effective volume limit here, I thought they would not go as loud as other speakers and within the normal listening range, usually under 100db, they never strain or stray into nasty sound.


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