Pictures of your B&W Set-up

[Freddie40]

I added a music server to my system and I thought I would share a pic and description with you.

The hard drive is a Fantom 1TB Quad interface connected to the Mac Mini with by 800 Firewire. The Mac Mini is heavily tweaked. It is a 2.53GHZ Core 2 Duo with 6GB of RAM a 40GB SSD, partitioned so that a tweaked version of the system software resides on 10GB. I use Pure Music (Amarra Blows) and the signal is sent down a USB cable (From DB Audio) to an Ayre QB9 and listen in Measure Mode. All of the music files are saved in AIFF format.

So, how does the sound from the QB9 compare to that from the Ayre D1-xe. The QB9 sounds so much better If you have never heard a music server before go out and try one

What do you have on the botton of your spikes to protect the floor? Do they come with the spike kit or is that something you purchased separately? I'll need that type of thing for my 802Di's when I get them.

Thanks

and nice setup

How does the Bryston sound driving the 802s? I have all Bryston amps (2x4BSST and a 6BSST).

Below the spikes are the "Cone/Spike Decoupling Glider" from Herbies Audio Lab. If you are putting the 802 on a wood floor you could flip the spike/foot over and there is a foot meant for hardwood. I used the glider because I wanted to decouple the speaker from the floor, plus I wanted to be able to move (glide) the speakers. They work great.

I love the Brystons, excellent sound.

[Rod#S]

Below the spikes are the "Cone/Spike Decoupling Glider" from Herbies Audio Lab. If you are putting the 802 on a wood floor you could flip the spike/foot over and there is a foot meant for hardwood. I used the glider because I wanted to decouple the speaker from the floor, plus I wanted to be able to move (glide) the speakers. They work great.

I love the Brystons, excellent sound.

Cool, thanks.

[Freddie40]

Cool, thanks.

Good luck

[Skyblue]

I added a music server to my system and I thought I would share a pic and description with you.

The hard drive is a Fantom 1TB Quad interface connected to the Mac Mini with by 800 Firewire. The Mac Mini is heavily tweaked. It is a 2.53GHZ Core 2 Duo with 6GB of RAM a 40GB SSD, partitioned so that a tweaked version of the system software resides on 10GB. I use Pure Music (Amarra Blows) and the signal is sent down a USB cable (From DB Audio) to an Ayre QB9 and listen in Measure Mode. All of the music files are saved in AIFF format.

So, how does the sound from the QB9 compare to that from the Ayre D1-xe. The QB9 sounds so much better If you have never heard a music server before go out and try one .

I have the QB9 and it is one fantastic unit. I use it in a headfi setup and it gives me many hours of joy at work every day.

However, I auditioned the 800Di's, with CA M600's on a CP700 with the ayre as source. That combination was very revealing. Some songs sounded really excellent, while others sounded really bad. Jay-Z's New York State of Mind sounded especially bad. Did he win the loudness wars?

Anyway, after 3 hours, we packed it up and I asked the dealer to play a couple of cd's from the classe cd player (CDP-202), just for comparison. That combination had a much warmer sound. The Ayre is very high resolution in the highs, which did come over as harsh on some recordings. Not so with the cd player. And not so either in my home system. Definately some kind of synergy effect in play here.

Interestingly, the new CP 800 will features async usb audio, same as the ayre. If they can combine the ayre resolution with the cdp 202's warmth, that combination might be a winner. For me, I'll definately never use a cd player again.

Now since I'm going with 802's as well, (should they ever arrive), I think perhaps a Bryston amp might be a good match. My first idea was icepower, simply because its a cheap way to get a lot of watts, however Bryston isn't that expensive either.

[Freddie40]

I have the QB9 and it is one fantastic unit. I use it in a headfi setup and it gives me many hours of joy at work every day.

However, I auditioned the 800Di's, with CA M600's on a CP700 with the ayre as source. That combination was very revealing. Some songs sounded really excellent, while others sounded really bad. Jay-Z's New York State of Mind sounded especially bad. Did he win the loudness wars?

Anyway, after 3 hours, we packed it up and I asked the dealer to play a couple of cd's from the classe cd player (CDP-202), just for comparison. That combination had a much warmer sound. The Ayre is very high resolution in the highs, which did come over as harsh on some recordings. Not so with the cd player. And not so either in my home system. Definately some kind of synergy effect in play here.

Interestingly, the new CP 800 will features async usb audio, same as the ayre. If they can combine the ayre resolution with the cdp 202's warmth, that combination might be a winner. For me, I'll definately never use a cd player again.

Now since I'm going with 802's as well, (should they ever arrive), I think perhaps a Bryston amp might be a good match. My first idea was icepower, simply because its a cheap way to get a lot of watts, however Bryston isn't that expensive either.

Try using Pure Music with Hog Mode turned on. You will get much better results by doing this esp if you are just using iTunes. Also try the 2 different settings on the Ayre, i.e. Listen vs. measured.

I do love my Brystons And yes the Brystons are a very good value

Dave

[Skyblue]

Try using Pure Music with Hog Mode turned on. You will get much better results by doing this esp if you are just using iTunes. Also try the 2 different settings on the Ayre, i.e. Listen vs. measured.

I do love my Brystons And yes the Brystons are a very good value

Dave

I think I have it on listen, never actually though to have it on measure. But I do seem to remember one guy that preferred that state

For playing I use Foobar2k with Aiso4all, and a number of tweaks to my computer to make it sound better. One tweak was to remove the qb9 as far away from the computer as possible. That worked very nicely.

As for Itunes, I consider it a kind of virus. It installs on my pc and immediately starts downloading a lot of extras I dont want. Sometimes I uninstall it between updates of my iphone.

[Freddie40]

I think I have it on listen, never actually though to have it on measure. But I do seem to remember one guy that preferred that state

For playing I use Foobar2k with Aiso4all, and a number of tweaks to my computer to make it sound better. One tweak was to remove the qb9 as far away from the computer as possible. That worked very nicely.

As for Itunes, I consider it a kind of virus. It installs on my pc and immediately starts downloading a lot of extras I dont want. Sometimes I uninstall it between updates of my iphone.

Ahhh. I have a Mac Mini dedicated as a Music server, i.e. tweaked to the max for playing music. I tried it once with an undedicated iMac and the sound really sucked when compared to the mini. I think it is the best way to do it

Dave

[wettou]

I auditioned the 800Di's, with CA M600's on a CP700 with the ayre as source. That combination was very revealing. Some songs sounded really excellent, while others sounded really bad.in the loudness wars?

Anyway, after 3 hours, we packed it up and I asked the dealer to play a couple of cd's from the classe cd player (CDP-202), just for comparison. That combination had a much warmer sound.

For me, I'll definately never use a cd player again.

Now since I'm going with 802's as well, (should they ever arrive), I think perhaps a Bryston amp might be a good match. My first idea was icepower, simply because its a cheap way to get a lot of watts, however Bryston isn't that expensive either.

ICE power are cheap unless you buy Bel Canto or Rowland!! I tried the ICE power and even as I liked the energy savings on my electric bill the sound was not that great compared with the CA-5200. Classé synergy with B&W is really outstanding. I heard McIntosh are good as well.

On an other note I just bought a pair of Pioneer speakers "SP-BS41-LR" on sale at J&R for $100 a pair They sound quite good and sure beats a lot of bookshelves speakers selling for $1000.

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/HomeEntertainment/Speakers/Home+Theater+Speakers/ci.SP-BS41-LR.Kuro

[Skyblue]

ICE power are cheap unless you buy Bel Canto or Rowland!! I tried the ICE power and even as I liked the energy savings on my electric bill the sound was not that great compared with the CA-5200. Classé synergy with B&W is really outstanding. I heard McIntosh are good as well.

On an other note I just bought a pair of Pioneer speakers "SP-BS41-LR" on sale at J&R for $100 a pair They sound quite good and sure beats a lot of bookshelves speakers selling for $1000.

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PU...P-BS41-LR.Kuro

What version of icepower did you have?

[wettou]

What version of icepower did you have?

1000ASP

Ice power is great for Subs but not for speakers at least that is my opinion :B

[boarder1995]

I've tried ICE class D on my 803D and while the power (525w monos) was nice, it didn't do it for me. It didn't sound as smooth - almost like harsh edges. Either way, it wasn't for me and I reinstalled my 200wpc Sunfire for the time being.

[Maverick71]

Hi,

I finally finished my DIY Home Cinema project so I thought I could share the outcome with you. It was a long process mainly because I decided to do everything by myself. I can honestly say that I'm overwhelmed with the results, both acustically and aesthetically. I have both B&W and Classé gear.

This is how it began:



And this is how it ended up:







































Mav

[wettou]

Hi, I finally finished my DIY Home Cinema project so I thought I could share the outcome with you. It was a long process mainly because I decided to do everything by myself. I can honestly say that I'm overwhelmed with the results, both acoustically and aesthetically. I have both B&W and Classé gear.



Mav

Whoa this is what it is all about it is gorgeous!! I love the room it is your own private screening room:B The design, the choice of colors the hardwood floor all of it is magnificent. How long did it take you to complete this project?

Mav, can you give us details on the panels? You should post it on Blu-Ray.com :T :T

[Maverick71]

Whoa this is what it is all about it is gorgeous!! I love the room it is your own private screening room:B The design, the choice of colors the hardwood floor all of it is magnificent. How long did it take you to complete this project?

Mav, can you give us details on the panels? You should post it on Blu-Ray.com :T :T

Hi Wettou,

It took me about a year or so to build. I had an intermission of 4 months for health reasons, so overall it was about 12 months.

I have a thread where I posted every step I made with pictures. It's here (sorry but it's a Portuguese forum):

http://forumhifi.com/forum/showthread.php?22013-Maverick-HT-Construction-Thread

The picures are quite detailed, but if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Mav

[wettou]

Hi Wettou,

It took me about a year or so to build. I had an intermission of 4 months for health reasons, so overall it was about 12 months.

I have a thread where I posted every step I made with pictures. It's here (sorry but it's a Portuguese forum):

http://forumhifi.com/forum/showthread.php?22013-Maverick-HT-Construction-Thread

The picures are quite detailed, but if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Mav

This is incredible, you are an amazing handy man!! I could never do something like this this is outstanding, I assume you wlill never sell this house. How big is the room?

[ray5]

Hi,

I finally finished my DIY Home Cinema project so I thought I could share the outcome with you. It was a long process mainly because I decided to do everything by myself. I can honestly say that I'm overwhelmed with the results, both acustically and aesthetically. I have both B&W and Classé gear.

This is how it began:




Mav

Masterpiece!!!!!!!!! ;x( ;x( ;x( ;x( ;x( ;x(
What do you do for a living man!!You should write a manual on this step by step. I'll be the first to buy!
Ray

[HedgeHog]

That looks spectacular, Mav! ;x(

BTW, how does the Falcon stay on the sub during loud LFE moments? :W

-H

[bnieman]

Hi,

I finally finished my DIY Home Cinema project so I thought I could share the outcome with you. It was a long process mainly because I decided to do everything by myself. I can honestly say that I'm overwhelmed with the results, both acustically and aesthetically. I have both B&W and Classé gear.

This is how it began:

Mav

Excellent! Great use of space. You've got a keen eye for design too. :T

[pazu]

Oh, Maverick!

What an amazing room you builded!

My congratulations!

I think in your soul there's something of the baby you was... - in my opinion, this is amazing too!

:T

[Pio]

WOW!!!!!!!!! Awesome!

[ninja12]

Maverick, that's one GREAT LOOKING ROOM!!!!!! I hope that you enjoy many hours of entertainment in your GORGEOUS ROOM!!!!!!! :T :T :T

[Maverick71]

This is incredible, you are an amazing handy man!! I could never do something like this this is outstanding, I assume you wlill never sell this house. How big is the room?

Thks! The room is about 4,3m wide x 6m long

Mav

[Maverick71]

Thks guys!

I had no experience whatsoever on this kind of work and that was mainly the reason why I decided to do this for myself: I wanted to know also if I could do it. It was a indeed a lifetime, project!

After all the hard work I'm now starting to enjoy the room. I have lots of movies to watch 8) .

Mav

[Skyblue]

Thks guys!

I had no experience whatsoever on this kind of work and that was mainly the reason why I decided to do this for myself: I wanted to know also if I could do it. It was a indeed a lifetime, project!

After all the hard work I'm now starting to enjoy the room. I have lots of movies to watch 8) .

Mav

Cheers!

[ray5]

Thks guys!

I had no experience whatsoever on this kind of work and that was mainly the reason why I decided to do this for myself: I wanted to know also if I could do it. It was a indeed a lifetime, project!

After all the hard work I'm now starting to enjoy the room. I have lots of movies to watch 8) .

Mav

Enjoy. Did you follow a manual or something? Where did you get the inspiration and design plans? I am truly bowled over! I've got to do something like this myself. ;x( ;x(

[Maverick71]

Enjoy. Did you follow a manual or something? Where did you get the inspiration and design plans? I am truly bowled over! I've got to do something like this myself. ;x( ;x(

On the recent years I never had the room for something like this but here and there I drooled over other home cinema projects. Once I got the oportunity I started the design on google sketch with what I liked most, so, it's really the consequence or a few years mentally conceiving an idea. I never thought it would end up so near (even better!) to what I drawed.

Mav

PS The hardest part for me wasnt even the work by itself but the planning for everything and the worrying that for an inch or two everything might go wrong. It did not, fortunately!

[ray5]

On the recent years I never had the room for something like this but here and there I drooled over other home cinema projects. Once I got the oportunity I started the design on google sketch with what I liked most, so, it's really the consequence or a few years mentally conceiving an idea. I never thought it would end up so near (even better!) to what I drawed.

Mav

PS The hardest part for me wasnt even the work by itself but the planning for everything and the worrying that for an inch or two everything might go wrong. It did not, fortunately!

Well, a job well done. I am sure you have a huge sense of satisfaction. I would be excited to even sit in this theater, forget about designing and making one!

[wettou]

On the recent years I never had the room for something like this but here and there I drooled over other home cinema projects. Once I got the opportunity I started the design on Google sketch with what I liked most, so, it's really the consequence or a few years mentally conceiving an idea. I never thought it would end up so near (even better!) to what I drew.

Mav

PS The hardest part for me wasn't even the work by itself but the planning for everything and the worrying that for an inch or two everything might go wrong. It did not, fortunately!

Again, I think that you did an amazing job especially since yo did it all yourself that must have been a few night, weekends and holidays. :T

[Maverick71]

Yeah, a couple! but now I feel it was well worth it 8) .

Mav

[audioqueso]

Maverick, very nice indeed!!!! Congratulations! Awesome room and system!

Edited: Wow.. I just saw all your pictures in the other forum. Amazing!
And great movie to kick off your new room and system!!!! :T

[audioqueso]

Maverick, why did you put tiny holes on the black back wall that covers the insulation? I've never seen that done.

[Maverick71]

Maverick, why did you put tiny holes on the black back wall that covers the insulation? I've never seen that done.

That's a Helmholtz resonator tuned to the lowest room node. It was the first acoustic treatment I made in the room that adressed the main and most difficult issue.

Mav

[garak]

Great room Mav! Is there any literature you read about designing a room/acoustical treatments, etc.?

[Grasynoll]

Bravo

[dukester]

That's a Helmholtz resonator tuned to the lowest room node. It was the first acoustic treatment I made in the room that adressed the main and most difficult issue.

Mav

Was this due to the slope of your ceiling? Awesome build by the way...really dig the Star Wars stuff :T Off topic (forgive me) but bought a Hasbro Falcon xmas present for my 4yo son (loves the saga)...pains me to think of how he might tear it apart...should've bought two :cry:

[Maverick71]

Great room Mav! Is there any literature you read about designing a room/acoustical treatments, etc.?

For design and concept it was all in my head. The acoustic part was done by this company AudioDesigner. I designed the room and they recommended the necessary acoustic treatments that the design could accomodate. Fortunately, I did not have to change anything in the design to sound better .

Mav

[Maverick71]

Was this due to the slope of your ceiling? Awesome build by the way...really dig the Star Wars stuff :T Off topic (forgive me) but bought a Hasbro Falcon xmas present for my 4yo son (loves the saga)...pains me to think of how he might tear it apart...should've bought two :cry:

The slope did not help, that's for sure, mainly because the sound is being projected on the opposite side it should be, therefore against the room. It could not be any other way, unfortunately.
In each phase of the project we measured the system's acoustic response in the room and developed the necessary treatments to defeat and address the main issues.

This was the in room frequency response for the low end in the beginning (waterfall for left and right speakers):



This is now:



Mav

[wettou]

Nice

Nice, I was thinking of getting my B&W 802 painted any reasons why I should not :E

When I came across the website of Hungarian speaker maker Art & Voice


, I could only gape slack-jawed at the incredible variety and artistry of its offerings. As the story goes, when the company's founder brought home some new speakers,
Pictured above is the Sentinel.




The VoiceNavy




The 3-way Kanji




Departing from the spherical paradigm is the 3-way Thorn, with a dome tweeter, cone midrange, and 8-inch woofer in a wood-and-resin enclosure. Its frequency response ranges from 35Hz to 25kHz.



The Peakhead




The 2-way Robo




Mr. Steel



The 2-way Dwarf A

[Grasynoll]

"klaatu barada nikto"

[dukester]

"klaatu barada nikto"

...funny. :lol:

[bnieman]

Nieman Marcus Theater

I posted my living room set up last month... Here's the home theater.




I just recently blacked the room out... saving money was key so I used sheer curtains from Target ($4.99 per 40x84" panel), black fabric from Wal-Mart ($2.95 per yard, 56" wide), and black rugs from Wal-Mart ($76 per 7.5x10.5 ft rug). I used sewing pins to affix the sheer curtain to my originally white colored drop ceiling. All-in-all it didn't break the bank and it really made a difference!

Cheers,
Bryan

[KRC]

Excellent set up. Clean, simple and no clutter. I am intrigued, as I have upgraded to a pair of 703's for L/R and want to move past my LCR 60 series 3 centre and was looking at the same speaker you are running. How does that centre sound with the 703's? Does it blend well being that it is from the 800 series?

Kevin

[bnieman]

Hey Kevin, thanks for your comment!

The HTM1 is an excellent companion to the 703 speakers. I originally had the matching HTM7 but it just couldn't keep up with the 703s. If I had to guess I would attribute the core of the mismatch to the HTM7 not having a FST surroundless midrange like the 703s do. Upgrading from the HTM7 to the HTM1 was a significant upgrade for me. Dialogue in movies came alive and 5.1 DVD-Audio discs had a new sense of depth I hadn't experienced in my setup before.

The 703 and HTM1 aren't voiced identical, but I am willing to bet it's the best match possible (aside from another 703). I highly recommend the upgrade.

I hope you like your 703 speakers as much as I do. It was sad to see B&W discontinue them. I heard it became to increasingly expensive to make the custom enclosures with the open air tweeter and they would have had to impose another significant price hike which would put them too close to the 800 series price points. Instead they eliminated the 700 series and put their effort in the CM series which has the cheaper to manufacture box design with the tweeter enclosed. Still great speakers, but personally I don't think they can match the airiness of the tweeter on top design.

The 703 is truly an outstanding speaker which, while you could get them, was a fantastic value as well.

Cheers,
Bryan

[mglimabr]

I Couldn't resist! With 800S getting out of line and entering de new Diamonds (very expensive here in Brazil) i antecipating my entering to 800 series.. I just made an updgrade from 704 to 804s. I am very, very satisfied with results. (and of course with design)...

Here some pics..

[artv4]

I Couldn't resist! With 800S getting out of line and entering de new Diamonds (very expensive here in Brazil) i antecipating my entering to 800 series.. I just made an updgrade from 704 to 804s. I am very, very satisfied with results. (and of course with design)...

Here some pics..

nice upgrade!!!!! post more pics of the room