progers' Evolving HT ***Work In Progress***

[progers13]

Hello all! For those that don't know me, let me take a moment to tell you a little about myself.

My name is Paul (user ID: progers13), and I hail from Tampa, FL. I've been interested in HT for about 18 years since my folks came home with their first surround sound AVR (a Sony model) and 5-disc CD changer (also a Sony). It was a few years (3 to be exact) before I became of age and ventured out into the world on my own in April of 1995. Not long after that I bought my first surround sound receiver, also a Sony receiver. From that point on I was hooked.

I've added to that original purchase, and had countles upgrades over the years. While I don't have any of those original pieces any longer, they were each a step in the path of evolution to the point I'm at now. As a point of reference, I'll list a few of the highlights here:

• 08/1995 - Purchased Sony receiver
• 09/1996 - "Upgraded" HTiB front speakers from KLH brand (I know...WHO? ) to Bose 301 bookshelf speakers and moved the KLH speakers to surrounds
• 08/1998 - Puchased first DVD player (RCA)
• 09/1998 - "Upgraded" Bose bookshelf speakers to Technics tower speakers and moved the Bose speakers to surrounds
• 11/1998 - Purchased first subwoofer (Acoustic Research 12" downfiring, 112 watt RMS, 450 watt peak)
• 12/1998 - "Upgraded" Sony receiver to one that was capable of decoding digital over optical
• 01/2005 - Purchased my first HDTV (1080i 46" Samsung DLP)
• 12/2007 - Purchased my PS3 (entry into the world of blus - now I'm hooked )
• 09/2008 - "Upgraded" Bose 301 surround speakers to Sony SS-B1000 (as funny as this may seem, yes, it was a significant upgrade).
• 02/2009 - Closed on my first house
• 03/2009 - "Upgraded" the Samsung TV to 52" 1080p 120 hz Sony LCD
• 08/2009 - "Upgraded" the Sony digital receiver to one that could decode lossless over HDMI
• 10/2009 - "Upgraded" my old Acoustic Research sub to a gently used Elemental Designs A2-300 (12" downfiring, 200 watt RMS, ??? watt peak). Special thanks to Driver_King for opening my eyes and exposing me to eD and all the wonderful products they offer.
• 12/2009 - Ordered a second A2-300 subwoofer to compliment the first
• 01/2010 - "Upgraded" Technics tower speakers with Elemental Designs A6-6T6 towers and replaced Sony center speaker with custom-designed A6-6T6-MTM center speaker
• 03/2010 - Completed prep work in living room (painting, curtains, rearranging decor, etc) to accomodate addition of projector
• 04/2010 - Ordered, received, and installed Panasonic PT-AE4000U projector
• 04/2010 - Ordered, received, and installed Elite Screens 100" 16x9 manual projector screen (1.1 gain)
• 05/2010 - "Upgraded" to Pioneer Elite SC-25 receiver (replacing Sony STR-DH800 receiver)
• 06/2010 - Purchased Oppo BDP-83 stand alone blu-ray player. The purpose behind this purchase was to keep the mileage down on my PS3, as well as for additional features such as subtitle shift, bitstreaming of HD audio, better upconversion, and subtitle shift feature
• 07/2010 - Purchased 2 theater seats for my home theater. Very comfortable and alllowed me to rearrange the room better for aesthetics and acoustics. It also gave me the ability to move one of my A2-300's from the front right to the back right of the room, which allows for adding an A/V rack and amps down the road...
• 09/2010 - Purchased Emotiva XPA-5 multichannel external amplifier (200 watts per channel @ 8 ohm; 300 watts per channel @ 4 ohm) This bad boy powers my center, side surrounds, and rear surrounds (updated 11/02/10).
• 09/2010 - Built my very own DIY A/V stand for holding the XPA-5 (with future growth potential). The stand is 23.5" wide x 31" tall (including feet) x 21" deep. There are 3 internal shelves that are each 22" W x 9" H x 20" D. I primed it and painted it satin black, and I left the back open for easy access.
• 11/2010 - Purchased Emotiva XPA-2 external amplifier (250 watts per channel @ 8 ohm; 500 watts per channel @ 4 ohm). This new beast provides ample amplification to my front left and right mains. (updated 11/02/10)

I'd like for this thread to represent this significant addition to my HT, and I will be documenting the process with pictures and information as much as I can.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! I welcome any and all suggestions, pointers, advice, input, feedback, and general conversation (let's keep it PG-rated...I'm looking at YOU Sean... ), as well as yet another place for me and all of my friends to hang out! I know, I know, I can hear Fors now...like we all need another place to hang out. Well, humor me buddy, will ya???

And lastly, thanks to erict for pushing me over the edge and finally starting this thread. I've toyed with the idea for months, but it took his persistence to finally get me to go it. This one's for you buddy!

[phansson]

Hey Paul,

Glad to be the first in your thread. Looking forward to your upgrades.

[progers13]

Originally Posted by phansson

Hey Paul,

Glad to be the first in your thread. Looking forward to your upgrades.

Wow that was quick! Thanks buddy. I'll be working on loading pics into the thread, some of the before pics and newer ones as I move forward. I'll probably send you more than one PM for pointers as the time for setup gets closer.

[erict]

WOW, light a little fire under your a$$ and boom. You got this up quick. I'm glad to be one of the first ones to post in your thread Now you will make me create mine a little sooner Great write up Paul and as always looking forward to some good reads on here and be part of your future upgrades

[progers13]

Originally Posted by erict

WOW, light a little fire under your a$$ and boom. You got this up quick. I'm glad to be one of the first ones to post in your thread Now you will make me create mine a little sooner Great write up Paul and as always looking forward to some good reads on here and be part of your future upgrades

Thanks Eric. I modified the original post. Had to give some credit where credit was due. I've been kicking around the idea to start my own thread for a while now, but it took you kicking me in the @ss to get it done.

[erict]

Originally Posted by progers13

Thanks Eric. I modified the original post. Had to give some credit where credit was due. I've been kicking around the idea to start my own thread for a while now, but it took you kicking me in the @ss to get it done.

I'm glad you did as we can now follow your upgrades and keep track of all that nice gear You have now put the pressure on my side to start one and I will, in do time.

[progers13]

Originally Posted by erict

I'm glad you did as we can now follow your upgrades and keep track of all that nice gear You have now put the pressure on my side to start one and I will.

You need to, buddy. I can't wait to see those beautiful Paradigms in 1 ~ 2 weeks. you've got to find a way to keep the A2-300 in the mix. We've got to put our heads together on this one. There's got to be a way...

[duder1234]

Can I come in? anic:

Good luck Paul! Hope everything turns out kick a$$! Don't forget to go to the movies still...

[erict]

Originally Posted by progers13

You need to, buddy. I can't wait to see those beautiful Paradigms in 1 ~ 2 weeks. you've got to find a way to keep the A2-300 in the mix. We've got to put our heads together on this one. There's got to be a way...

I been thinking on this as well. I will have to sit back and rethink the whole setup and go from there. The two things working against me is the wife and also this is our family room, damm I wish I had my own room Oh well, I guess we can't have everything and have to do the best with what we have.

[progers13]

Originally Posted by erict

I been thinking on this as well. I will have to sit back and rethink the whole setup and go from there. The two things working against me is the wife and also this is our family room, damm I wish I had my own room Oh well, I guess we can't have everything and have to do the best with what we have.

I hear ya. I don't have the WAF, but it is also my living / family room, so I am trying to keep the delicate balancing act as well.

[erict]

I know that the OPPO 83 will be a nice complement to your PJ. Also that Elite is a beast and John loves his. I'm sure that will be one giant leap from the Sony and the amp can always come down the road.

[progers13]

Originally Posted by erict

I know that the OPPO 83 will be a nice complement to your PJ. Also that Elite is a beast and John loves his. I'm sure that will be one giant leap from the Sony and the amp can always come down the road.

My thoughts exactly. The amp will be something I want to do, but I think the SC-25 will let me bide my time while I do other things (the Sony won't give me that luxury).

[solarrdadd]

I think it looks great, i've rated it accordingly too! it's nice to have a HT setup. i wish i could afford to work on that "wallpaper" in my place but, it's not in our budget so it will stay! your room and gear both look great! be happy and enjoy it buddy!

[progers13]

Originally Posted by solarrdadd

I think it looks great, i've rated it accordingly too! it's nice to have a HT setup. i wish i could afford to work on that "wallpaper" in my place but, it's not in our budget so it will stay! your room and gear both look great! be happy and enjoy it buddy!

Thank you, my friend! For a long time I thought I couldn't work a projector into my setup, but all that did was get the creative juices flowing. Where there's a will, there's a way right?

[erict]

Originally Posted by solarrdadd

I think it looks great, i've rated it accordingly too! it's nice to have a HT setup. i wish i could afford to work on that "wallpaper" in my place but, it's not in our budget so it will stay! your room and gear both look great! be happy and enjoy it buddy!

You know I never noticed the wallpaper until you mentioned it I just always focused on that beautiful setup

[erict]

Look out Crazy is online

[crazyBLUE]

Originally Posted by progers13

Hello all! For those that don't know me, let me take a moment to tell you a little about myself.

My name is Paul (user ID: progers13), and I hail from Tampa, FL. I've been interested in HT for about 18 years since my folks came home with their first surround sound AVR (a Sony model) and 5-disc CD changer (also a Sony). It was a few years (3 to be exact) before I became of age and ventured out into the world on my own in April of 1995. Not long after that I bought my first surround sound receiver, also a Sony receiver. From that point on I was hooked.

I've added to that original purchase, and had countles upgrades over the years. While I don't have any of those original pieces any longer, they were each a step in the path of evolution to the point I'm at now. As a point of reference, I'll list a few of the highlights here:

08/1995 - Purchased Sony receiver
09/1996 - "Upgraded" HTiB front speakers from KLH brand (I know...WHO? ) to Bose 301 bookshelf speakers and moved the KLH speakers to surrounds
08/1998 - Puchased first DVD player (RCA)
09/1998 - "Upgraded" Bose bookshelf speakers to Technics tower speakers and moved the Bose speakers to surrounds
11/1998 - Purchased first subwoofer (Acoustic Research 12" downfiring, 112 watt RMS, 450 watt peak)
12/1998 - "Upgraded" Sony receiver to one that was capable of decoding digital over optical
01/2005 - Purchased my first HDTV (1080i 46" Samsung DLP)
12/2007 - Purchased my PS3 (entry into the world of blus - now I'm hooked )
09/2008 - "Upgraded" Bose 301 surround speakers to Sony SS-B1000 (as funny as this may seem, yes, it was a significant upgrade).
02/2009 - Closed on my first house
03/2009 - "Upgraded" the Samsung TV to 52" 1080p 120 hz Sony LCD
08/2009 - "Upgraded" the Sony digital receiver to one that could decode lossless over HDMI
10/2009 - "Upgraded" my old Acoustic Research sub to a gently used Elemental Designs A2-300 (12" downfiring, 200 watt RMS, ??? watt peak)
12/2009 - Ordered a second A2-300 subwoofer to compliment the first
01/2010 - "Upgraded" Technics tower speakers with Elemental Designs A6-6T6 towers and replaced Sony center speaker with custom-designed A6-6T6-MTM center speaker
03/2010 - Completed prep work in living room (painting, curtains, rearranging decor, etc) to accomodate addition of projector

And so today, I am ecstatic to report, I will be placing an order for a Panasonic AE-4000 1080p LCD projector and 100" retractable screen! Over the next few weeks I will be collecting all of the necessities and working to install it. I'd like for this thread to represent this significant addition to my HT, and I will be documenting the process with pictures and information as much as I can.

Thank you for taking the time to read this! I welcome any and all suggestions, pointers, advice, input, feedback, and general conversation (let's keep it PG-rated...I'm looking at YOU Sean... ), as well as yet another place for me and all of my friends to hang out! I know, I know, I can hear Fors now...like we all need another place to hang out. Well, humor me buddy, will ya???

And lastly, thanks to erict for pushing me over the edge and finally starting this thread. I've toyed with the idea for months, but it took his persistence to finally get me to go it. This one's for you buddy!

Dang ~ That would have taken me 3 days to type

[Johnny Vinyl]

Great idea on starting your own HT Thread Paul, especially now with the Panny PJ coming! I'll be following your progress and cheering you on!

John

[progers13]

Originally Posted by duder1234

Can I come in? anic:

Good luck Paul! Hope everything turns out kick a$$! Don't forget to go to the movies still...

Come on in, buddy. This is for all of us.

But I'm not going to the movies anytime soon. Don't get me started on that one...

Originally Posted by erict

Look out Crazy is online

Quick...hide before he sees us!

Edit: Too late...

Wait...if we don't move, maybe he can't see us...

[progers13]

Originally Posted by crazyBLUE

Dang ~ That would have taken me 3 days to type

I was chatting with Eric in Fors' thread, and then ***POOF*** I was gone for about 30 minutes. He must've thought I ran off. I'm a fast typist, I guess.

Originally Posted by John72953

Great idea on starting your own HT Thread Paul, especially now with the Panny PJ coming! I'll be following your progress and cheering you on!

John

John, thank you sincerely, my friend. How've you been? Did I read that your PS3 is acting up again?