My 7.1 home theater. PHansson

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by phansson

Very Carefully

Yes it is on a very balanced mannequin, which is a little tall for a stormtrooper.

No matter what it is, thats awesome. I am just getting into collectibles now (just purchased a Gimli LOTR battleaxe and Frodo Sting sword for Christmas) and I can see how addicting it is to keep adding pieces to it. Your collection is sweet!

[phansson]

I have tried to kinda of scale back on buying "collectibles". For one they are expensive and then you have to find a place to put them.

I did just pre order this, I just couldn't help myself.

Indiana Jones Fertility idol prop

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by phansson

I have tried to kinda of scale back on buying "collectibles". For one they are expensive and then you have to find a place to put them.

I did just pre order this, I just couldn't help myself.

Indiana Jones Fertility idol prop

Thats a good website, I've seen it before. That fertility idol is cool looking and very unique.....and I understand about the price of things. I got a killer deal on the battleaxe (usually $360, I got it for $55 and the sword is usually $165, and I got it for $33.) That was over 80% off, so I had to go for it......and now I'm hooked!

[phansson]

Originally Posted by forsberg21

Thats a good website, I've seen it before. That fertility idol is cool looking and very unique.....and I understand about the price of things. I got a killer deal on the battleaxe (usually $360, I got it for $55 and the sword is usually $165, and I got it for $33.) That was over 80% off, so I had to go for it......and now I'm hooked!

I would hate to have a battle axe in my house. My wife could grab it off the wall and make her life a little easier......

[vega2K]

Originally Posted by phansson

I have tried to kinda of scale back on buying "collectibles". For one they are expensive and then you have to find a place to put them.

I did just pre order this, I just couldn't help myself.

Indiana Jones Fertility idol prop

Does your wife know about this and if not, don't you think she may get the wrong idea????

[ldgibson76]

Hello Phansson.

You did a fantastic job on the room. Everything from sacrificing the fireplace to the ceiling design (black) to the area rug to the memorabilia. I especially love what you did with the front wall/sound stage area. Outstanding is an understatement.

I do have a question for you. Is your screen a perforated model? The reason I ask is because when the screen is lowered, the majority of the Studio 100's are concealed by the screen. Is there a difference in sound quality or response when the screen is lower compared to when it's retracted? If this question has been asked before, I apologize for the rehash.

[phansson]

Originally Posted by vega2K

Does your wife know about this and if not, don't you think she may get the wrong idea????

I hope it doesn't work as advertised! I have two children and would rather keep it that way.......

[vega2K]

Originally Posted by phansson

I hope it doesn't work as advertised! I have two children and would rather keep it that way.......

LOL

your wife: "There's one more gift..... (whispers) ......Merry Christmas."
you:

[phansson]

Originally Posted by ldgibson76

Hello Phansson.

You did a fantastic job on the room. Everything from sacrificing the fireplace to the ceiling design (black) to the area rug to the memorabilia. I especially love what you did with the front wall/sound stage area. Outstanding is an understatement.

I do have a question for you. Is your screen a perforated model? The reason I ask is because when the screen is lowered, the majority of the Studio 100's are concealed by the screen. Is there are difference is sound quality or response when the screen is lower compared to when it's retracted?

Thank you very much. It was a shame to lose the fireplace, but this was the only way to incorporate what I wanted into the room. I got lucky on the black ceiling. The interior decorator suggested it when I stated I wanted the room dark, so it made my wife a believer. She even stated the other day "it is a lot darker in here". So it is definitely doing its job.

As for the screen, it is an acoustically transparent screen. As far as sound quality difference, I haven't noticed anything yet. I need to sit down with it one night and watch a scene in a movie a couple of times with the screen down and then raise it. It might be an interesting experiment. Honestly I doubt that I could hear any difference if it works as advertised.

The screen that I have is from SeymourAV. Chris has all ways been very helpful with questions and the product seems top notch. I owned a Stewart screen before and the quality between the two of them seems comparable.

This is some info on the AT screen material from the SeymourAV website.

Center Stage audio performance
Acoustically transparent (AT) projection screens are now uniquely able to maintain the quality of your projected image and rid your home theater of the acoustic distortion that a television or fixed frame screen would impose. AT screens do not acoustically reflect, refract, or otherwise smear the imaging of your speakers. The majority of your sound comes from the center channel, and with an acoustically transparent screen the sound will come from behind the image, not from the floor or ceiling. You no longer have to be limited to the traditional horizontal MTM center speaker, and can alleviate the comb filtering (horizontal lobing) across your seating positions caused by having the same frequencies reproduced by multiple horizontal drivers. An easy fix is that you could turn your speaker vertically for improved frequency response performance across your theater, or even better, you could use a center channel that is identical to your left and right speakers.

Think vertically
Here's an article Vertical vs. Horizontal Center Speaker Designs we wrote for one of our favorite AV sites, http://www.audioholics.com: Vertical vs Horizontal Center Speaker Designs



Frequency response of an Infinity IRS Epsilon center channel (-3dB at 45 kHz) with a Cary SLAM-100 tube amp (-3dB at 100 kHz), with just the speaker, and adding the Center Stage screen fabric and with the black backing layer. The response was 1/6 octave smoothed to better reflect audibility, and the measurement used frequency sweeping to alleviate Doppler distortion and reduce test uncertainty. The screen was eight inches in front of the speaker and the calibrated Behringer ECM8000 microphone was placed 39 inches from the speaker. The results show excellent acoustic neutrality, as the fabrics do not create audible comb filtering and benignly attenuate towards the top frequencies.



Nothing, even air, is truly acoustically transparent. More precisely, an AT screen is acoustically translucent, and the trick is to behave as neutrally as possible. For example, any fabric with holes will comb filter to a measureable degree, but in order for it not to have an audible effect the lobing needs to be as closely spaced as possible (our hearing will average frequency/special response) and at the highest frequencies. This is done by having the holes as small and closely spaced as possible. The woven vinyl fabrics have much smaller holes than perforated vinyl screens, thereby minimizing and shifting the comb filtering to high enough frequencies as to not need equalizer correction, although we argue that you can't compensate for audible comb filtering through equalization because its effects are complex and change with position. This is why you want to avoid the main mistake of horizontally-aligned similar drivers in your center channel and the highly audible comb filtering in the critical midrange frequencies or resorting to EQ.

What is the real world result from placing your speakers behind a Center Stage screen? If only your center channel is behind the screen, you will need to increase the volume of the center channel one to two decibels. If you have all three front speakers behind the screen, you will only need to trim your surround channels one to two decibels to match your slightly attenuated front soundstage. The qualitative effects of having a fabric in front of your speakers is that you will notice that brighter recordings are tamed down a little, with a slight loss of sparkle and air, because the attenuation is higher in the top octave. While the average attenuation of the Center Stage XD screen fabric is 1.5 dB from 8k-20kHz, adding the black backing will increase this attenuation around one more decibel.

Center Stage XD
black backing
Average 2k-20kHz, dBA -0.7 -0.5
Average 10k-20kHz, dBA -2.3 -0.9
Average 16k-20kHz, dBA -2.0 -0.5
Average 19k-20kHz, dBA -1.3 -0.6

[ldgibson76]

Hello Phansson.

Thank you for your very thorough reply to my inquiry regarding the screen/speaker performance. As informative as the Center Stage comparison was, I personally believe that the screen's effect on speaker frequency output once it leaves the driver and tweeter will depend on the speaker. Case in point, according to what was stated in the paragraph below, when the screen is in place (in front of the speaker/s) some minorr adjustments may be needed to balance the attenuation.

What is the real world result from placing your speakers behind a Center Stage screen? If only your center channel is behind the screen, you will need to increase the volume of the center channel one to two decibels. If you have all three front speakers behind the screen, you will only need to trim your surround channels one to two decibels to match your slightly attenuated front soundstage. The qualitative effects of having a fabric in front of your speakers is that you will notice that brighter recordings are tamed down a little, with a slight loss of sparkle and air, because the attenuation is higher in the top octave. While the average attenuation of the Center Stage XD screen fabric is 1.5 dB from 8k-20kHz, adding the black backing will increase this attenuation around one more decibel.

Well, let's say you have Klipsch Reference Speakers, that could very well be a good thing. But let's say you have Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grands....., as laid back as those speakers are, depending on what you're listening to, the screen could have an undesirable effect on the speaker's response. Being that you have the Paradigms, which I feel fall right in between the dynamic range of the Klipsch and the laid back almost subdued response of the VA's,
which probably makes the Digms the perfect speaker for this type of application/concept.
And by all means, if my assessment is off base, please correct me. No doubt, their concept seems to be a sound one, pardon the pun!

When you do your experiment, can you also try it in two channel mode while listening to a CD. I know the screen would never be down when listening to music. But in two channel, if there is in fact a difference in the sonic signature with the screen down, two channel playback would reveal it.

Again, you have created a definitve home theater! Well done Phansson, well done.

[phansson]

Originally Posted by ldgibson76

Hello Phansson.

Thank you for your very thorough reply to my inquiry regarding the screen/speaker performance. As informative as the Center Stage comparison was, I personally believe that the screen's effect on speaker frequency output once it leaves the driver and tweeter will depend on the speaker. Case in point, according to what was stated in the paragraph below, when the screen is in place (in front of the speaker/s) some minorr adjustments may be needed to balance the attenuation.



Well, let's say you have Klipsch Reference Speakers, that could very well be a good thing. But let's say you have Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grands....., as laid back as those speakers are, depending on what you're listening to, the screen could have an undesirable effect on the speaker's response. Being that you have the Paradigms, which I feel fall right in between the dynamic range of the Klipsch and the laid back almost subdued response of the VA's,
which probably makes the Digms the perfect speaker for this type of application/concept.
And by all means, if my assessment is off base, please correct me. No doubt, their concept seems to be a sound one, pardon the pun!

When you do your experiment, can you also try it in two channel mode while listening to a CD. I know the screen would never be down when listening to music. But in two channel, if there is in fact a difference in the sonic signature with the screen down, two channel playback would reveal it.

Again, you have created a definitve home theater! Well done Phansson, well done.

I did Audessey with the screen down. So I would assume that the processor would make changes depending on the AT screen. I have listened to music with the screen up and down and have not noticed any differences.

I do agree that something would have to change, even if it is subtle. But the sound stage placement of dialogue and sound effects have made up for any change (if there at all).

[phansson]

I just signed for my "great gramma" sub riser, it looks like a well made piece of equipment. I will install tonight!

[croseiv]

Awesome set-up man!

[phansson]

Originally Posted by croseiv

Awesome set-up man!

Thanks a lot, it has been a long work in progress!

[phansson]

Just received my long awaited door handles. I ordered them about two months ago and they are really nice. I will explain when I post pictures.

[phansson]

We finally have the handles installed! It has been a PITA to open or close the doors. The story with these is I purchased standard door handles for the doors after holding them up to see how they would look, they just looked to small. After looking online for about a week, we finally came up with these hand forged barn door pulls. They were big enough that they didn't look out of place on the large doors.

[phansson]

[SeanMF]

Originally Posted by phansson

We finally have the handles installed! It has been a PITA to open or close the doors. The story with these is I purchased standard door handles for the doors after holding them up to see how they would look, they just looked to small. After looking online for about a week, we finally came up with these hand forged barn door pulls. They were big enough that they didn't look out of place on the large doors.

Very nice...those are definitely door handles to reckon with.

[phansson]

Also received the sub riser and have that installed. It is from Auralex and called a Great Gramma.

[phansson]

Originally Posted by SeanMF

Very nice...those are definitely door handles to reckon with.

They are pretty big, but the doors are so large they needed it. At least I can open and close the doors now!