[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif With every speaker you add to a system, the focus of the optimal listening point becomes tighter. I've found that it's easy to balance for a specific spot, but sit on the other end of the couch or any other part of the room and it all falls apart. I think there is a reason that people who are into multichannel sound seem to always have their setup in the basement or spare room. It doesn't work in a normal living room where traffic patterns and furniture placement can't be dictated by the acoustic requirements. This is typical for a lot of technology. It seems that many engineers seem to think that people should alter their living patterns to make it easy for the product, rather than design products to fit within real life situations.

I could not agree more,to get the true benefit you have to be sitting right in the sweet spot of all speakers,as soon as you move of axis you lose part of the overall image.
No Audiophile would never listen to music sitting to one side,the same goes for HT,it is made for one viewer.

 

[pcf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ford2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I could not agree more,to get the true benefit you have to be sitting right in the sweet spot of all speakers,as soon as you move of axis you lose part of the overall image. No Audiophile would never listen to music sitting to one side,the same goes for HT,it is made for one viewer.

Compromises have to be made sometimes, otherwise no one will ever go to the cinema since the " sweet spot" is the one seat in the middle of the room.

 

[bigshot]

Plain old stereo in just about any position in my living room sounds better than the best multi channel theaters I've been in. (And I have been in some of the best projection facilities in Los Angeles.)

 

[bigshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcf /img/forum/go_quote.gif It is next to impossible to set up multi channel sound in a normal living room without making it look really ugly. Maybe that's why people put them in the basement.

Well... some of them might actually live in their mother's basement.

 

[sahwnfras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpippel /img/forum/go_quote.gif My solution to this problem was to calibrate my display and audio for Blu-ray playback, then I configured a separate video mode setting for regular TV viewing. Not perfect, but it works.

I believe that the Pioneer sc-27 & sc-09 have the options to calibrate each input on the reciever itself, I could be wrong but i know i have seen it on some high end recievers its just takes $$

 

[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sahwnfras /img/forum/go_quote.gif I believe that the Pioneer sc-27 & sc-09 have the options to calibrate each input on the reciever itself, I could be wrong but i know i have seen it on some high end recievers its just takes $$

The calibration is done with test tones.

 

[ford2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pcf /img/forum/go_quote.gif Compromises have to be made sometimes, otherwise no one will ever go to the cinema since the " sweet spot" is the one seat in the middle of the room.

The sound systems deployed in cinemas are nothing like HT,but still to get the best the centre seating position is the best both for sight and sound.
And I do not believe that compromises have to be made,it is possible to turn the lounge into a dedicated HT audio pc room and just put guests in the dining room,lots of people use the dining room as the family room anyway and the lounge never gets used.

 

[pcf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ford2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif The sound systems deployed in cinemas are nothing like HT,but still to get the best the centre seating position is the best both for sight and sound. And I do not believe that compromises have to be made,it is possible to turn the lounge into a dedicated HT audio pc room and just put guests in the dining room,lots of people use the dining room as the family room anyway and the lounge never gets used.

I was referring to what you said:

"to get the true benefit you have to be sitting right in the sweet spot of all speakers,as soon as you move of axis you lose part of the overall image."

Does that mean everytime you go to see a movie you have to sit in that one spot in the middle of the cinema? Is it a compromise if you have to sit anywhere else?
I would like to have the best seat in the house too but I have a family and watch movies with them at home all the time. Some of us have to sit in the off centre position (usually me

).

 

[swmtnbiker]

Wow, I think that some of you are truly missing out on the enjoyment of cinema and home theater if you're applying high-end 2 channel critical listening methodologies to multi-channel movie soundtrack listening. They're completely different beasts with completely different objectives.

 

[swmtnbiker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ford2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif The calibration is done with test tones.

We were talking about per-input video calibration, not audio.

 

[punkaroo]

I just wanted to chime in and add that I just purchased an Oppo BDP-83, and it's absolutely awesome! When I get my Marantz receiver, and Orb Audio speakers all set up, it's bound to be even awesomer!

 

[bigshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ford2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I do not believe that compromises have to be made,it is possible to turn the lounge into a dedicated HT audio pc room and just put guests in the dining room,lots of people use the dining room as the family room anyway and the lounge never gets used.

I bet parties at your house are a lot of fun... you in the living room watching TV and everyone else jammed into the dining room!

 

[bigshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpippel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, I think that some of you are truly missing out on the enjoyment of cinema and home theater if you're applying high-end 2 channel critical listening methodologies to multi-channel movie soundtrack listening. They're completely different beasts with completely different objectives.

I'm not "applying high end 2 channel critical listening methodologies". I'm looking for a home theater installation that fits my lifestyle and doesn't require me to alter my lifestyle to suit its built in limitations.

Too much of home theater is based around one person sitting in one chair. That isn't natural to human beings, unless one is anti-social. Viewing angles, sound dispersion throughout the room, intelligent use of multi-channel to spread out the experience rather than focus it, speakers designed for real world living rooms... all of these are issues that should be addressed more often than they are.

I have heard great audio home installations designed around mono. Multi-channel is not necessarily better- it's just more complicated.

 

[pcf]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpippel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Wow, I think that some of you are truly missing out on the enjoyment of cinema and home theater if you're applying high-end 2 channel critical listening methodologies to multi-channel movie soundtrack listening. They're completely different beasts with completely different objectives.

Agree. Most of the movie soundtracks are meant to be played back via multi channel systems. Even if you have the best 2 channel system in the world you are still not listening to what the sound engineers and movie makers intended.

 

[swmtnbiker]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif Too much of home theater is based around one person sitting in one chair.

I disagree with you. In fact in my opinion it's the exact opposite. Compromises must be made to some degree, merely because very few people have a dedicated home theater space. However, HT audio has come a very long way to address many problems by employing automatic level adjustment and room EQ software. In most cases you can get very acceptable results even in less than ideal conditions. If you're shooting for perfection? Well that's a different story entirely. It's like anything else audio (or video) related - if you want the best then you'll be spending a LOT of money to get there.