Plan of attack for new room

[emig5m]

Sometime this winter or early spring I'll be moving my system to a different room (16' x 13') that's a little bigger than the one it's in now (13' x 11') . I was thinking instead of getting 805S for rears to replace my 685s to compliment and match with my 804S/HTM3S up front, instead I'm thinking about buying a pair of 803S for my new mains for the new room and then moving the 804S to the rears. Overkill for rears? Maybe, but, I would then have bigger mains for the slightly larger room and then matching FST mids all the way around. At first I'm just going to try my existing speaker config. I'm also going to add another matching sub for dual subs (Sunfire signature EQ).

Would getting the 803S for fronts and moving the 804S to the rears be a better route than getting 805S for rears and keeping the 804S as fronts? I do like aesthetically how the drivers are exact matching between the 804S and HTM3S but lately I've been listening to 2-channel music with the 804S without the sub so I'm thinking to get the same bass fulfillment in the room size that the 804S is in now in the other larger room, I might be better to go with the 803S as my mains.

I think someone mentioned on here that they thought the 804S imaged better than the 803S (cabinet width?) Should this also be a deciding factor or would the difference be offset in a larger room sitting further away from the speakers?

Man I wish I could afford all new Diamonds in piano black....I looooooove the new piano black so much! Look at this guys new system with piano black 803Dis and HTM2Di.... http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1273072 I think that is as sharp looking as you can possibly get! I know, I know,... life is hard stuck with the ole' school rosenut 800s with their crappy aluminum dome tweeters and stuff. :rofl:

Anyway, back from dreaming, and back to reality.... 803S for new fronts moving the 804S to rear or 805S for rear and keep 804S for fronts?

[stuofsci02]

emig5m,

There is no doubt in my mind that the 803s/804s combo is going to sound better. You have a point that imaging might might not be quite as good with the 803s, but even that is speculation for me.

The question is cost.. You can get a used pair of 805s for 2k, and 803s probably for 4-5k. So will it be worth the extra 2-3k.. For me probably not, but for you maybe..

I have the same situation. My 804s are going to my new HT room soon (18ft wide by 23 ft long).. I am looking to get some 805s for the rear.. But then again HT is not as important for me as music. If it was about sound I would just use my new CM7 for rears, but it just wouldn't look right..

And on a side note.. IMO the rosenut is leagues better then the piano black, but that is my taste..

[emig5m]

The question is cost.. You can get a used pair of 805s for 2k, and 803s probably for 4-5k. So will it be worth the extra 2-3k.. For me probably not, but for you maybe..

Well considering going to a larger room from a 2-channel stereo standpoint I was thinking that the 803S would be able to perform better? Or maybe I shouldn't discount my 804S until I actually try them in the room? I will be treating the room with acoustic panels as well.

I have the same situation. My 804s are going to my new HT room soon (18ft wide by 23 ft long).. I am looking to get some 805s for the rear.. But then again HT is not as important for me as music. If it was about sound I would just use my new CM7 for rears, but it just wouldn't look right..

18' x 23'? Wow...and you're not thinking about going with larger front speakers than the 804S? I think you would need 803's before me! Music is more important to me too, but I won't lie, movies are so much more enjoyable and immersive (as well as Xbox360 games) with a good sounding surround system! I know rears aren't as important as the front end, but, this decision is based mainly on 2-channel stereo music going into a slightly larger room. Not a huge room by any means, but larger than the room the 804's are in now non-the-less.

And on a side note.. IMO the rosenut is leagues better then the piano black, but that is my taste..

This is where it gets scary. I've been thinking if I could sand down my Rosenut and paint them paino black...lol. And don't for one minute think I'm not crazy enough to do this as I'm the guy who painted their brand new HTM61 black ash from cherry to match his 683's...lol. I'd have to find something I could sand and practice on first though, lol. I practiced on my fathers old Cerwin Vega d9's before painting the HTM61 just to make sure it could be done before ruining the new speaker. :B

I never had a chance to listen to or even see the 803S in person so it would be a blind buy unless I found a pair locally for sale.

[stuofsci02]

I have had the 804s in my current room which is 13 x 16 and open on one side into a massive kitchen area. Probably 450 sqft total. So the new room does not have any more air to move.. And I will still be sitting about 10ft from the speakers.. I also have two Ultra12 subs to balance out the low end.

I would have no problem buying 803s without listening.. You know what you are going to get.. 804s with more low end grunt.

.... Please, please don't paint your rosenut 804s... That would be a shame...

I have seen the bigger piano black B&W speakers... The look like big blobs because you cant distinguish direction or shape of the speaker because it is just shiny black.. With the wood grain all the veneers have grains going different ways so the speaker looks like art..

For me the only speaker that looks good in the new black is the 805s... And that is because it is so small to start with...

[htsteve]

Stereo Amp?

emig5m,

Going to an acoustically treated dedicated room should do very nice things for your current speakers. Having said that, I definitely recommend having towers for rears. Especially for Blu ray. Modern movies with uncompressed audio make excellent use of the rears. So overall, I like the 803S idea, and moving the 804's to the rear.

I noticed in your profile that you are running a 5 channel amp. One thing that will help the performance of the main speakers, whether 803 or 804, is to put a dedicated stereo amp on them. This makes for rock solid 2 channel and an anchor for HT.

So you might consider moving the 804's to the new room, get a stereo amp for them and see how it goes. Then maybe get the 803's.


Hope this helps.

[dukester]

At first I'm just going to try my existing speaker config. I'm also going to add another matching sub for dual subs (Sunfire signature EQ).

i like this approach...you may like the new sound. h:

Would getting the 803S for fronts and moving the 804S to the rears be a better route than getting 805S for rears and keeping the 804S as fronts? I do like aesthetically how the drivers are exact matching between the 804S and HTM3S but lately I've been listening to 2-channel music with the 804S without the sub so I'm thinking to get the same bass fulfillment in the room size that the 804S is in now in the other larger room, I might be better to go with the 803S as my mains.

keeping everything in the same series would be nice and I echo others who prioritize the front 3, not as much with the rears...that said, a really good deal on the 803S would make sense as the biggest impact for your buck. Then selling either the 804/5S (whichever reaps most profit) and direct those funds towards a good 2ch amp as htsteve suggested.

Man I wish I could afford all new Diamonds in piano black....I looooooove the new piano black so much! Look at this guys new system with piano black 803Dis and HTM2Di.... http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1273072 I think that is as sharp looking as you can possibly get! I know, I know,... life is hard stuck with the ole' school rosenut 800s with their crappy aluminum dome tweeters and stuff. :rofl:

I initially thought of going with the piano black but i owned a black car...looks good when clean...which is about a minute. Besides, i feel the rosenut's grain and color have lots of character and is timeless.

Decision, decisions...

[Briz vegas]

My room is 21 feet by 12 feet with a 3/4 height wall into a large kitchen.

804 and room treatment is perfect. I heard 803D 2 weeks back and would not get them myself but I am mostly 2 channel and too much bass is for teenagers in my opinion. I want a balanced sound and the 804di was a better animal in that regard.

Looking at the specs of your amp it may not be sufficient for the 803D. Its rated at 300 watts into 4 ohm - same as mine. Our B&W dealer recommends an exceptional amp to drive those 3 bass drivers. You may find yourself lusting after nemo monoblocks with those speakers.

A fair chunk of my comments are speculation however and i am not you so I don't know what you like. You just need to experiment to find out what floats your boat. Room treatment would be a smart move which ever way you go.