Opinions on B&W HT

[cjrivera]

Here are a few options for a 7.1 system...

Option 1
Fronts= 802N
Center=HTM1
Sides=DS8
Rear= CCM817
Sub=850N

Option 2
Fronts= 803N
Center=HTM1
Sides=DS8
Rear= 804N
Sub=850N

What does everyone think?

Has anyone ever used the CCM817's? Would they be fine for rear speaker applications?

Would switching to DS6's from the DS8's be that much of a step down for the price?

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

[sikoniko]

option 1.

[RobP]

How about this setup:

N803 mains
HTM1 Center
N805 surrounds
ASW850 Sub.
the 805's make great surround speakers, that open tweeter has a very wide dispersion pattern.
I have this same setup in a 5.1 setup and WOW!!

[sikoniko]

i like the scm1/scms for surrounds better than the 805's myself. if i was purchasing a set today i would go for the scms's because i like their mounting that is included better than the mounting on the scm1's.

[jlee]

Here are a few options for a 7.1 system...

Option 1
Fronts= 802N
Center=HTM1
Sides=DS8
Rear= CCM817
Sub=850N

Option 2
Fronts= 803N
Center=HTM1
Sides=DS8
Rear= 804N
Sub=850N

Thanks.

Personally, I think the DS8 would DEGRADE the sound. It's clearly the weak link. Unless you have a HUGE room, I'd take a good 5.1 over a "compromised" 7.1 anyday. Even if I had to add a rear, I would take 6.1 over ANY 7.1. THe reason being when u have 2 speakers outputting the exact same signal, because of the dispersion patterns, some waves will add and some will cancel... and you don't get the right sound! The purpose of the more speakers is to make more seats have "similar" sound... but if you want OPTIMIZED sound for 1-4 people in the "sweet spot", then go for 5.1 or 6.1. This is why 2 center channel speakers are almost never recommended. 1 better center or 1 better center back will almost always be better.

For the rears, if your seatbacks are high, I would go with wall mounted SCM1's and mount them high up. With the 804, the backs of your chairs will affect the frequency response. You will have a big hole.

And then as for the SCMS vs. SCM1, the SCMS does come with better mounting, but keep in mind they have been optimized for installation, not sound based on customer and installer feedback. The tweeter is now in the box which is not as good as the tweeter on top like on the other Nautilus speakers. You also lose 1dB of efficiency which does make a difference because you have to pump it up 2dB just to match the HTM1 and N803. What this translates to is that if you like to listen loud, more power is needed and when things are working harder than they need to, they usually don't perform as well as when they are barely "breaking a sweat"... eg. a 350W amp will usually have better distortion and sound characteristics at 200W than a 200W amp at 200W. I would go with SCM1 unless you had all the new 800 series and wanted it to match. Then you could make a case for the SCMS.

[cjrivera]

Personally, I think the DS8 would DEGRADE the sound. It's clearly the weak link. Unless you have a HUGE room, I'd take a good 5.1 over a "compromised" 7.1 anyday. Even if I had to add a rear, I would take 6.1 over ANY 7.1. THe reason being when u have 2 speakers outputting the exact same signal, because of the dispersion patterns, some waves will add and some will cancel... and you don't get the right sound! The purpose of the more speakers is to make more seats have "similar" sound... but if you want OPTIMIZED sound for 1-4 people in the "sweet spot", then go for 5.1 or 6.1. This is why 2 center channel speakers are almost never recommended. 1 better center or 1 better center back will almost always be better.

For the rears, if your seatbacks are high, I would go with wall mounted SCM1's and mount them high up. With the 804, the backs of your chairs will affect the frequency response. You will have a big hole.

And then as for the SCMS vs. SCM1, the SCMS does come with better mounting, but keep in mind they have been optimized for installation, not sound based on customer and installer feedback. The tweeter is now in the box which is not as good as the tweeter on top like on the other Nautilus speakers. You also lose 1dB of efficiency which does make a difference because you have to pump it up 2dB just to match the HTM1 and N803. What this translates to is that if you like to listen loud, more power is needed and when things are working harder than they need to, they usually don't perform as well as when they are barely "breaking a sweat"... eg. a 350W amp will usually have better distortion and sound characteristics at 200W than a 200W amp at 200W. I would go with SCM1 unless you had all the new 800 series and wanted it to match. Then you could make a case for the SCMS.

Thanks for everyone's input.

The room is 30' x 16'. I plan on having 2 rows of 4 chairs (with a riser) and a standing bar in the back. Would a 5.1 or 6.1 still be the preferred setup? The dealer (who also runs a very large HT business) recommended a 7.1 system. If a DS8 would degrade the sound, would a DS6 be any different? Or would you still forget about the sides? What about 805's mounted high as rears vs. the SCM1?

Thanks again.

[aphexist]

Thanks for everyone's input.

The room is 30' x 16'. I plan on having 2 rows of 4 chairs (with a riser) and a standing bar in the back. Would a 5.1 or 6.1 still be the preferred setup? The dealer (who also runs a very large HT business) recommended a 7.1 system. If a DS8 would degrade the sound, would a DS6 be any different? Or would you still forget about the sides? What about 805's mounted high as rears vs. the SCM1?

Thanks again.

Considering your room and layout, I would recommend using a wall-mounted speaker such as the SCM1/SCMS for all of the side and rear channels. I haven't heard the DS8, but since you are planning on using rear channels, I assume you won't be using the dipople mode of the speaker, so save some money and use the SCM.

I don't see any point in getting 805s for rears in your situation, since you will using a riser and you will want to mount them higher up.

I would recommend:
Fronts: 803/804
Center: HTM1
Side & Rear: SCM1/SCMS

Since it seems the focus of this room is home theater, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Nautilus 804 over the Nautilus 802/803. Since you are including a subwoofer, the superior bass extension wouldn't be used. Now if you were considering the Diamond 802/803, that would be a different story...

[jlee]

Thanks for everyone's input.

The room is 30' x 16'. I plan on having 2 rows of 4 chairs (with a riser) and a standing bar in the back. Would a 5.1 or 6.1 still be the preferred setup? The dealer (who also runs a very large HT business) recommended a 7.1 system. If a DS8 would degrade the sound, would a DS6 be any different? Or would you still forget about the sides? What about 805's mounted high as rears vs. the SCM1?

Thanks again.

I would not use the old 805 for the simple reason the crossover is at 3000Hz, not 4000Hz like the rest. It it not as seamless as the SCM1 which is at 4000Hz. The SCM1 sounds more similar to the 804,803 than the 805/HTM2. The NEW 805S has taken this into consideration and moved it to 4000Hz. This could be used as a surround, keep in mind though that the SCM1 is balanced TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION that it will be wall mounted so even though the freq. response does not go as low on PAPER, in practice, once mounted on a wall, it sounds great!!! The 805 mounted on a wall may have excessive boomy bass, but if away from the wall on a stand, the 805 may be ok. If you are getting 804/803, def. try to get used SCM1. If you are going 804S, 803S, then SCM1 or SCMS would be fine. It is important to have all the fronts being as similar as possible with same amplification. Rear can have slightly less but similar branded amplification and even slightly diff. speakers without having a noticeable negative affect (eg. old SCM1 vs. new 804S in front).

My personal setup is Classe CAM-350 across front with HTM1 and N804. Rear I have Classe CAM-200 (similar but less power than 350) and SCM1 wall mounted. I then have 1 sub in each corner with the center low freq. past 40Hz redirected to front subs.

[Brahma]

Sounds like a great set-up. I agree with the others on the SCMS's, they pair better with your choice of mains and centre.

As to rears I'm in the same phase of choosing what is the best for myself.

Now as to sides, does anyone know what program material is signalled to them?

[cjrivera]

Again thanks everyone for their insights.

I guess I'll be looking for SCM1's for rears and sides. The only problem is that the rears may be mounted a little higher than was suggested because of the room configuration. Maybe this is why the dealer suggested the CCM817's.

I wonder what his thinking was with the dipoles on the sides. Would anyone have any guess on this?

Now I'm even rethinking the N802's for 803D's or even N803's.

I plan to use a Rotel RSP1068 and RMB1095 to power them.

Keep the suggestions coming. I'm really learning a lot.

[Claude D D]

How about this? 803D's and HTM2D in rosenut. :T

[cjrivera]

Anybody have opinions on how well a HTM1 center would match with 803D's for this setup, or would I do better with N802s, since I plan on using a subwoofer.

[chinets]

I have for HT: N803 Front and N804 Rear with Center HTM1 and Sub ASW 850 and WOW !!!!! Personally I did not like the DS8 for sides or the N805 as rears ,so I opted for N804 and what a difference. I really like 5.1 set up!!! Good Luck !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!