2007 April | Sound Waves HiFi

BRAD’S VERY LARGE HOME THEATER INSTALL!

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My usual home theater installs are on the average of size, usually a basic install of one system consisting of a receiver five speakers and a sub. My biggest install to date was at Brad’s house. Brad has been known to never go half way with anything nor to do it small or medium for that matter. This guy goes full throttle and he goes all out.

Brad owens one of the largest wedding expo businesses in the United States, Brides Club. Brides Club puts on wedding expos in Washington state, his home bass, and also in Hawaii and California, he has ties with groups who operate expos in other states as well. Needless to say he works hard and all the time, so he deserved a few in home toys to play with in between his work.

Beings he just purchased a new home for his family, (it is very large as well) he thought he might add a little home entertainment to the ball game while he was at it. He wanted three complete media systems, one in his bedroom, one downstairs in their main media room, and an indoor out door system setup in the garage.

Now most folks have a small to medium TV in thier bedroom. But Brad on the other hand as usual went rather large. A 60″ big screen was dropped in his bedroom, he man sized it! The sound system consisted of an Emotiva UL combo amp and pre amp. Most folks go with a basic receiver for this, but hey its Brad. The Belkin PF60 handled the power conditioning and for speakers he chose the XLS 4.1 combo with an X-sub to round it all out. Components were mounted on a Rack 3 system which blended in quite well with the bedroom decor. He wanted two more speakers wired into the bathroom but due to WAF we just went a little bigger with the ones in the main bedroom. That system sounds incredible!

For the main media room downstairs, Brad used the same 60″ TV but has plans to upgrade that to, I am sure it will be the largest display on the market when he pulls the trigger on one. The speakers he chose were the AV 123 Rocket 760’s for the mains a Reference 100 for the center, Rocket RSS300 dipole side surrounds, and another pair of XLS bookshelf speakers for the back surrounds. To handle the rattling the roof off the place he completed the 7.1 setup with a massive SVS PB12+2.To power this massive system we went again Emotiva, but this time we used the Big Dog pre amp and amp, DMC-1 and MPS-1. The amps in the MPS-1 are of the modular design and rated at 200 watts per channel @ 8ohm and 300 watts per channel @ 4ohm. So he got a beast of an amp to drive this system which in that size of a room he needed. completing the system on the video side he is using a Yamaha DVD-S1700 and an X-box 360 for games and music.

For the garage he went with a Yamaha RX-397 stereo receiver and a pair of AV123 ELT bookshelf speakers. He plans on adding a second set of outdoor speakers which can be run off the same receiver. Then he will be able to jam to some tunes while soaking in the hot tub or doing summer BBQ on the back patio.

I didn’t get that many shots of the setup when done, but will take some pics and post some soon. Here are a couple of shots of the b/r system and some of the equipment.

LIST OF GOODIES FOR GTG: YAMAHA, SUNFIRE,QSC, ETC.

The GTG is getting closer and I thought I would show a list of items I have on hand for demo. Anyone coming feel free to bring something you have if you want to add to the goody list.

Note:

Not all equipment will be home audio. The QSC amps I use for both my Bellevue home theater and Disc Jockey business.

Total list of goodies to check out:

Emotiva Big Dog Pre Amp and Amp
Yamaha RX-V361 Receiver
Yamaha RX-v2700
Sunfire sub
Sunfire reciever
ONIX CD 3
Panamax M5500-EX
Oppo 971H DVD Player
Infocus 4805 Projector
Niles HPS-6 Speaker Selector
Velodyne SMS-1 Sub Controller
QSC RMX 1850HD x4
QSC PLX 3602 x2
ONIX Rocket RS450
ONIX Rocket RS250 MKII
Reference 100
Reference 1
Reference 3
Reference .5
XLS

BARELY USED QSC RMX AND PLX2 AMPLIFIERS FOR SALE (SOLD)

I have a few straight out of box barley used QSC amplifiers. I got these for my custom built subs and they are just too much power for my needs. These would work great for a Disc Jockey too. The amps are as fallows:

QSC PLX 3602 I have two of these for sale at $850 per amp.

QSC RMX 1850 HD I have three of these for sale at $400 per amp. SOLD

For new QSC amplifiers click here.

To purchase these item please contact James.
Sound Waves HiFi
425-637-1729
info@soundwaveshifi.com
www.soundwaveshifi.com

RSC200 BIGFOOT WITH THE NEWLY DESIGNED CROSS OVER

Here is the new RSC200 Bigfoot center channel from AV123 sitting underneath the smaller RSC100 Mk II. They revamped the cross over in the Bigfoot making it an 8ohm center instead of 4 ohm. The sound quality did not change drastically but it was an improvement over the first version, and I thought the original sounded just great. With the new cross over the Bigfoot is easier to drive with a receiver, but if you are running separate amp and preamp that would be a mute point. Even with the entry level Yamaha RX-v361 the RSC200 was able to be driven fairly efficiently.

This beast plays clean with good authority in the low to mid frequencies and I noticed, with the new cross over, less congestion if that is the right word to use. The new cross over seemed to free it up some.

It’s been a while since I had one of these behemoths in my home and I forgot how huge this thing really is. Not many centers in this size and weight category for this price, 12″ H x 10.5″ D x 25″ W and weighing in at an impressive 46 lbs. This is truly a manly center channel and worth a look.

System: Three way, four driver direct-radiating system, vented enclosure with rear-firing flared port
Drivers: Vifa Ring Radiator tweeter, one custom 4″ midrange and two custom 6.5″ long-throw aluminum cone woofers
Crossover: 580 Hz and 3.0 kHz
Frequency Response: 44Hz to 20KHz (± 3dB)
Impedance: 8 Ohms nominal
Efficiency: 89 dB (@ 1 watt / 1 meter)
Dimensions: 12″ H x 10.5″ D x 25 7/16″ W
Weight: 46 lbs (21 kg); ship weight = 54 lbs

USED AV123 ONIX REFERENCE 3 HOME THEATER SPEAKERS FOR SALE $2000 (SOLD)

I have one pair of AV123 ONIX Reference 3s for sale. These were designed for music but are incredible for home theater. These really sing in a larger room when running lots of power to them, a reciever wont cut it.

Real rosewood veneer wieghing in at 105lbs per speaker!

Specs below:

System: 4-way rear-vented floorstanding loudspeaker
Drivers: (2) Atohm 7″, (1) Vifa XT Concentric Ring Radiator, (1) magnetostat super tweeter
Crossover: 4th Order
Crossover Points:
Bottom woofer : 28 Hz - 150 Hz
Upper woofer : 35 Hz – 2.5 kHz
XT tweeter : 2.5kHz – 30 kHz
Super TW: 15 kHz – 45 kHz
Finish: Birds Eye Maple or Piano Black Lacquer
Frequency Response: 28Hz - 50kHz (+/- 3dB)
Impedance: 4 Ohm
Efficiency: 90 dB (@ 1 Watt / 1 Meter)
Bi-Amp: Yes
Dimensions: (WxDxH) 8.6″ x 12.6″ x 45″H
Weight: 210 lbs. / pair

For new AV123 cd players click here.

To purchase this item please contact James.
Sound Waves HiFi
425-637-1729
info@soundwaveshifi.com
www.soundwaveshifi.com

EMOTIVA MPS-1 HOSS!!

Having been in the wedding business as a Seattle DJ for quite some time I have accumulated quite a few commercial amps along the way, QSC, Crest, and Peavey to name a few. This made running lots of power in my home audio system an inexpensive breeze beings they were sitting in my garage unused and needed to be kept alive and active.

Running commercial amps gave my system plenty of brute force especially when driving my Ref3’s from AV123, but my system always seemed to lack a certain detail or airiness, if you will, in its musical presentation.

Enter the Emotiva MPS-1 7 channel x 200 watt MEGA AMP! The MPS-1 is rated at 200 watts per channel @ 8ohm and an incredible 300 @4ohm. My music just came alive! Super crisp, clean, and not an ounce of audible stress from the system even at volumes that broke a few of the wife’s wall hanging pictures!

The Emotiva MPS-1 comes with available hook up via either RCA or balanced XLR. Another cool feature is you can run either a 12volt trigger to the Emotiva or set the toggle switch on the back to signal. The signal switch will sense when music or movie is being played and automatically turn the amp on. A very flexible way of dealing with receivers that have no trigger or the trigger is being used elsewhere.

The Emotiva MPS-1 comes delivered in three separate boxes, one with the chassis and the other two with the EMP 300 amp modules. Yup you have to actually put this monster together! If you do get one of these amp demons just make sure to pull the little plastic tabs off the front of the amp module or your front face plate lights will not light up. Yeah, the amp weighs 115lbs when put together so if you forget this little detail its a real pain to maneuver the hoss in posistion to pull apart and correct.

In my opinion the Emotiva MPS-1 is a clear winner for the budget minded who wants both brute force for movies yet the finess for an audio file’s golden ear.

Below are some pictures of the Emotiva MPS-1 as I was putting it together at Brads house during his h/t install. If you have any questions regarding the Emotiva MPS-1 or would like to see more views of this piece of home theater heaven you can check it out at our Seattle home theater site. Feel free to give us a call regarding this unit and what it can do for your system.

JUST GOT THE ROCKET 450S IN DA HOUSE!! THE RIGHT AND LEFT HAND OF BIGFOOT.

I finally got around to writing up a little something about the fairly new AV123 Rocket Rs450. I have currently been running the Av123 Reference 3s across the front in my media system and was waiting for the AV123 Rocket RSC200 center channel to complete the front stage.

I have already wrote my thought on the Bigfoot center, so you know how impressed I was with that big number, and was glad to get the 450’s in to compliment my Rocket h/t setup.

The 450’s specs are as follows:

System: 2-way, three-driver direct-radiating system, vented enclosure with two rear-firing flared ports.
Drivers: Vifa Ring Radiator tweeter, two custom 5.25″ long-throw mid-woofers
Frequency Response: ±1.35db 200Hz to 20KHz; ± 3 dB 38 Hz to 20 KHz
Crossover Point: 2.5kHz
Slope: 12dB acoustic
Impedance: 8 Ohms nominal
Efficiency: 87dB (@ 1 watt / 1 meter)
Dimensions: 37 5/16″ H x 15 5/8″ D x 8 13/16″ W at widest point; 6 7/16” at the front; 5 3/8” at the rear
Weight: 70 lbs/pc shipped

Though this tower setup has only two 5.25″ drivers I was rather amazed at the performance of this tower speaker for both h/t and music. The Rocket line is known for having a more subdued, laid back sound, which I do prefer for some types of music depending on how they were recorded.

The Rocket Rs450 plays out nicely no matter the style of music or movie being sampled. I find it to be a more forgiving speaker like the AV123 XLS bookshelf speaker when it comes to poorly recorded cds than my Reference 3s. Some cds just sound plain horrid on the refs and that is due to no fault of their own. They have to be fed from high quality components and a good recording to make them really sing. And the rewards are many with the ref3.

The Rocket RS450s on the other hand are not as demanding on equipment and can be played out with less expensive gear and still be very rewarding indeed. they have a very buttery mid range and a silky smooth top end. The highs are still their, but not to forward.

Regardless the speaker type running more power is always better and in more ways then one. The Rocket RS 450s sounded good with a 100 watt Yamaha receiver but really opened up when running some real juice to them for music.

I still prefer my Ref 3’s for music but I definitely have room in my media system for the 450 and there many fine attributes. A welcome addition indeed!

THE BIGGINS, UFW-12 POWER HOUSE SUBWOOFER

I have been trying like mad to get the perfect amp for my custom built subs. Not as easy as just adding an amp to the equation and calling it good. I am either underpowered or way over. These UFW-12’s in their sealed enclosure require gobs of power to run to their full potential. I have it narrowed down to about 1400 watts per driver. That is just enough to get a lot of kick out of the sub without cracking the cone.

I am using the SMS-1 to eq the four beasts and boost the sub 25 hz region which they need. For the amps I use either the QSC RMX 1450 or the QSC RMX 1850 HD which either has the power for subs or I have the benefit of using them for my wedding business. Kills two birds with one stone, love it!

The enclosure is made of double baffled one and a half inch thick MDF. These weigh in at around 130lbs without a 40lbs amp! Internal air space is 1.9 cubic ft., and I might should have went a tad smaller.

For the finish we tried a couple of different ways. The first was an iron on laminate from Parts Express. This stuff was a real pain to apply and scratched way to easy. It also didn’t stick to the MDF after a period of time, started to bubble up on us.

The second try was with that gator back truck bed liner. That stuff was tough and durable made made the sub look like the backside of Godzilla! Not visually appealing at all.

The third try we rounded the edges of the sub cabs and just painted the darn thing a flat black with a protective gloss coating and called it good.

SOUND WAVES HIFI GET TOGETHER GETTING CLOSER!

Its getting closer and I thought I would drop a quick nudge in this direction about the get together. If for nothing more, come for the home brew!

We started the beer making process for the home audio get together on the 28th of this month. My neighbor does this in his garage and is constantly buying equipment to make the process more efficient and of course make the beer taste better. As strong as that stuff is, after three who cares! He can do about 10 gallons at a time which yields about 50 bottles. Not that we would need that many of course, but talking home audio can make one very thirsty!

”Mad man brewing in garage”

Anyway the GTG is getting closer, and I just received the RSC200 (Big Foot) center channel and a entry level Yamaha receiver. I also purchased two more of those QSC RMX 1850s to power the subs, have three now so just need one more to power the 4th sub and we got’er.

If you feel like coming by make it happen, but if you could drop me a line or email me so I get a rough head count that would be great. Gathering will be from noon on till your ears bleed!

Contact:
James Vaughan
425-637-1729
info@soundwaveshifi.com
www.soundwaveshifi.com

REF 1 USED ROSEWOOD ONIX AV123 $500- SOLD

For sale one pair of Reference 1 bookshelf speakers that a customer bought and returned for the Reference 3 floor standers. These are in perfect condition and are being sold for $500 per pair. They are normally $1200 per pair so its a great opportunity to land a audiophile quality speaker for very little cash.

Intended to introduce the most discerning audiophiles to the new standard of discrete multi-channel theater and music, the Onix Reference 1 focuses first on outstanding 2-channel soundstaging, imaging, and balance, with additional crossover optimization suitable for reference multi-channel systems. Intended to bridge the gap between the traditional listening room and the dedicated home-theater, the Onix Reference 1 promises to offer performance and quality beyond your highest expectations.

Featuring the elite French-made Atohm high-excursion 5.25″ mid-bass woofer, Vifa XT Ring Radiator tweeter, 1″ MDF internally braced cabinets, and stunning high-gloss Birds Eye Maple or piano black lacquer finish options, the Ref 1 not only outperforms the competition, but outclasses as well. Take a look and listen, and you’ll see why Onix Ref 1 has already gained international praise.

System: 2-way rear-vented bookshelf loudspeaker
Drivers: (1) Atohm 5.25″ mid-bass woofer, (1) Vifa XT Concentric Ring Radiator
Crossover: 4th Order
Crossover Point: 3KHz
Finish Available: Birds Eye Maple or Piano Black Lacquer
Frequency Response: 42 Hz - 35 kHz (+/- 3 dB)
Impedance: 4 Ohm
Efficiency: 88 dB
Bi-Wire: No
Dimensions (WxDxH): 8″ x 11″ x 14.5″
Weight: 48 lbs. / pair

For new receivers click here.