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Gear Porn
Scrublet
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
There's been some talk in the blu-ray thread about posting gear porn. I'm working on a real OP because someone mentioned wanting a guide for home theater stuff without sifting through the avsforum's level of detail. In the meantime, who in here has the coolest rig?
My current setup:
Pioneer 5020FD Plasma TV
Onkyo TX-SR606 Receiver
Paradigm Titan Monitor fronts
Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3
Gaming PC
I've been planning out my budget, and from 11/09 - 2/10, I plan on putting in a full 5 speaker Paradigm Studio setup. I'll add in the sub later...my basement makes this kind of unnecessary. I plan on picking up a Furman IT-Reference power conditioner to support the setup, and have also priced out a gaming system I'm going to build around the 32nm core i7 replacement coming out early next year. I'll be saving heavily over the next few months to budget this
My current setup:
Pioneer 5020FD Plasma TV
Onkyo TX-SR606 Receiver
Paradigm Titan Monitor fronts
Nintendo Wii, Playstation 3
Gaming PC
I've been planning out my budget, and from 11/09 - 2/10, I plan on putting in a full 5 speaker Paradigm Studio setup. I'll add in the sub later...my basement makes this kind of unnecessary. I plan on picking up a Furman IT-Reference power conditioner to support the setup, and have also priced out a gaming system I'm going to build around the 32nm core i7 replacement coming out early next year. I'll be saving heavily over the next few months to budget this
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For the money, the TX-SR607 has got to be the best receiver. Everything upconverts to HDMI, so you don't ever have to change input on your TV. That and it supports the crazy 9.1 THX whatsit where you're supposed to put speakers in your ceiling.
Crazy.
I hope this thread takes off on interest in receivers and speakers and shit cause I love talking about it. I typed up some huge updates to that OP but thank you IE8 for crashing so I lost it all. Drunk and exhausted, I'm heading out and calling it quits for now. But I'll echo the Onkyo's with the qualification of quality issues. The Onkyos' feature set is awesome, but I wonder about the internal iTues parts....There are some well documented issues on the 606. Mine worked great on THOSE issues but it couldnt play HDMI without static. I've got a long weekend of testing ahead of me tracking this down...
PSN: TheScrublet
I do know that I need to buy a DVI Doctor because every time I turn my TV off, my HTPC stops sending a signal to the receiver. That means every time I turn the TV on again, I have to restart my HTPC to get it to re-send a video signal. Ugh.
Beyond that, I'm perfectly happy with the 607 so far. Hopefully I won't come across any issues. I should probably stay away from audio/video forums, though. I'll become a tech-hypochondriac, and I'll think every little thing is wrong.
Setup:
Hales Concept 2 (front speakers)
Hales Revelation 1 (surrounds)
Hales Revelation Center
Sunfire TrueSub Architectural
Onkyo TX-SR606
PS3, Wii, SNES, PC
Close up
The rear speakers have the same grill cover that the center channel has. They're all permanent sadly. I have the matching grills for the front speakers but I can't decide if I want to put them on. I like speakers without covers, especially these, but it would be nice to match.
Our unorthodox kitchen. We just randomly had the same exact desk and chair. We even got one desk/chair for free.
Bedroom Setup:
Norman Laboratories Model xx (haven't been able to figure out the model number)
Marantz 1060
Zune, Laptop, things lying around
I got the speakers for free from my girlfriend's dad who bought them back in the 70's. They're cool.
Girlfriend did the SotC painting
The stand holds my N64, PS2, and Genesis.
It's pretty nice. I couldn't do as much wire management as I wanted since it's an apartment but it turned out fine. I had to move the TV a bit to wall mount it so the pictures aren't centered... kind of awkward looking. I should fix that soon.
It started out as two separate two channel setups. The large speakers were in the living room and the stand mounted monitors were in my bedroom instead of those vintage speakers. The matching Hales center channel (hard to find) came up for sale so I bought that and the subwoofer and made a 5.1 setup. It sounds really great.
Also, I could never have paid retail prices for all that stuff. I got the Hales Concept 2s on Audiogon for $500. I got the rear speakers and stands for $250 (cheaper than the retail price on stands alone). Center channel and subwoofer were both similarly good deals. I really spent about 1/5 of total retail price.
edit: I was trying to make a point here but I forgot to finish. Buying used speakers saves TONS of money! Also, it's easy to repair most problems. Surrounds (http://www.lab-acoustics.com/shop/images/IT21_ASurround2.JPG) can be replaced easily no matter what woofer you have. Even replacing the entire woofer is usually very feasible. Hales Design Groups has been out of business for quite a few years now and I can still find replacement woofers and tweeters. So yeah, if you're comfortable with buying used audiogon and craigslist and ebay can save you a ton of money.
I definitely skimped on the TV compared to the audio. I mostly got it because at the time, I was using it as a computer monitor. I knew beforehand that it had no input lag at all and that was a big deal for me. I can play competitive CS 1.6, Guitar Hero on expert, Super Smash Bros and never notice lag. I would like to upgrade it but that will never happen.
SSBB: 5370-1223-4258
- Sony Bravia 50A3000 LCoS TV
- Marantz SR5003 receiver
- PS3, principally used as a BD player
- 360
- Wii
- ADP-170 surrounds
- Boston Acoustic center that I can't remember offhand, but it was mid-range when I got it about 8 years ago. Decent piece.
- Hsu VTF-1 Mk. 3 sub
- Crappy Infinity fronts that I will be replacing next year with these:
Probably also swap out the center with a Paradigm Studio CC-490, just so everything is happily timbre-matched.
I'll post a pic if I ever clean up the kiddie toys from the living room long enough to snap a photo that doesn't embarrass me.
SSBB: 5370-1223-4258
Okay, we currently have either one of these (not sure exactly but they're about the same);
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-HTD-DW790-Component-Theater-System/dp/tech-data/B000OG88RC/ref=de_a_smtd
or
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-HT-DDW700-Complete-5-1-Channel-Theater/dp/B000EOJ792/ref=sr_1_36?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1245858272&sr=1-36
Currently, when we want to switch optical audio inputs we have to do so with a manual switch. And since there is no HDMI input on the receiver we have to switch the input on the TV with the remote as well.
What I'm looking for is a receiver around $300 that has multiple HDMI inputs that can be passed to the TV so that when I switch on the receiver, I don't have to switch anything on the TV. So I guess one HDMI out?
Also, it would be awesome if the receiver would send other inputs (component, composite, etc) along the HDMI as well. I don't care if it doesn't really improve the picture or sound, but it would be nice to still be able to play the PS2 or the VCR (I have some movies not yet on DVD) and the HTPC through the receiver without having to switch inputs on the TV. Now, most of what resides on the HTPC gets run through the PS3 and we watch it that way. However, there are a few things I can't get the PS3 to play so we have to watch them directly from the HTPC. This is not a required option, but would be awesome.
I was looking at this: http://www.amazon.com/Harman-Kardon-7-1-Channel-Receiver-Repeater/dp/B0016BGRX6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1245859258&sr=1-1
and it seems close.
It looks like I definitely want to avoid "pass through" as that seems to just run the video through the receiver and then all out one input, like I would still need to run audio from the HDMI components (cable box and PS3 at the moment) to the receiver as well. Actually, this wouldn't be a big deal if when I switch sources on the receiver it switches audio and video. I think the big thing I want to be able to do is only have to switch with one remote and everything switches since currently the audio has to be manually switched as I stated.
We originally bought the Sony HTiB when we just had our 1080p 61 inch TV and the cable box, a regular DVD player, and the VCR. Reducing the number of cables and the complexity of switching components would be a glorious thing.
Yes, I realize the speakers aren't the greatest in the world either. That's why I was going to start with the receiver and eventually work towards new speakers.
More on topic. I might post pics of the home setup later.
PSN : Bolthorn
PSN: TheScrublet
Onkyo TX-SR606 would be good for you, Bolthorn. I found it for $320 just now in a google search.
http://www.accessories4less.com/index.php?page=item&id=ONKTXSR606
SSBB: 5370-1223-4258
Hopefully that helps clarify. I write stream of consciousness too much, sorry about that.
PSN : Bolthorn
For a $500 sub, it's fucking fantastic. Clean and clear, no excess booming at all, plenty of volume for my medium-sized room. And it's beautiful (I got the rosewood veneer), too.
HDMI passthrough means that the video will be passed to the TV without the processor attempting to clean it up, upconvert it, or otherwise adjust it. That's it. It will obviously also pass along the audio as well in this process, though I find it hard to understand why you would want to do that since mixing TV speakers with your receiver's speakers is generally not a good idea.
So to reiterate, yes, HDMI passthrough is exactly what he wants.
As far as that TX-SR606 goes I'm going to continue to recommend caution with that. There were extensive quality control issues with that model, chief among them being blue dots appearing in 1080p HDMI signals, EVEN when using passthrough only. Like I said earlier, I managed to get lucky and avoid that problem, but instead I got static/buzz in the sound when using the HDMI ins. I pick up my repaired receiver tomorrow and am going to put it through its paces this weekend to see if it's gone. But so far I haven't seen anything about this year's model (TX-SR607) having those issues. Slightly more expensive, but you won't be happy about the money you saved if you wind up having to RMA your 606 or take it into repair like I had to do.
PSN: TheScrublet
Yes, it will pass along the audio to the TV. It won't be processed by the receiver though and can't be used. Basically, he definitely does not want something with HDMI passthrough only. Passthrough only means it only passes through video and can't read the audio. He would have to run a separate toslink cable or, if the TV has toslink output, he could output it from the TV back to the receiver. Exactly the opposite of what he wants.
The TX-SR606 is something he'll need to read up on on his own. I don't really know how widespread the issues are.
SSBB: 5370-1223-4258
Dedicated room with darkened walls, no windows, and automated lighting
720p projector projecting onto a 106" screen
5.1 Paradigm surround setup
HTPC & PS3
Specific components:
Onkyo TX-SR605 receiver powering a Paradigm CC-290, 2x ADP-190, 2x Mini Monitor, and Polk PSW110 sub
Draper Cineperm M1300 106" screen, wall-mounted
Panasonic PT-AX200U 720p projector (HDMI)
HTPC running XBMC (HDMI & spdif) and foobar2000 (analog RCA cables for Zone 2)
Fileserver with 2 RAID5 arrays totaling 9.5TB
PS3 (HDMI)
PS2 @ 480p/i (component)
Logitech Harmony 550 universal remote (controls receiver, projector, HTPC, and lights)
Lutron MIR-600 IR light dimmer for automated light fading & remote control
X-10 PM5900/RX569 IR extender (because all of my components except the projector are in a different room)
The only thing I have any intention of changing is my projector to a 1080p model, other than that I'm totally happy with my setup. The Paradigms are plenty of speaker for my little room, I love them.
I would love to see a picture of this.
And yes you suck and should feel bad.
PSN: TheScrublet
Room
Speakers
XBMC
Front of room
Component Stack
The components are just on the other side of the wall from the bookshelf. I just run all the cables through a hole in the wall and around the baseboards.
PSN : Bolthorn
Not that I'm one to talk, that's where I'm heading... when I move into my new place and get everything setup I'll have to post here..
Movie Collection
Foody Things
Holy shit! Sony's new techno toy!
Wii Friend code: 1445 3205 3057 5295
Pioneer SX-3600 Receiver
Olson speakers
Sony Bravia KDL-32S2010
It gets the job done.
Its a PSone with a battery on the bottom and a little screen.
Understandable.
Since it's a separate room, yeah, screw it, who cares. Haha. My entertainment room itself is more cluttered and wires, oh god the wires running along the wall. I figure if we ever redo the walls then I'll put in jacks for everything, but I'm not going to redo the walls just for that. The wife is actually okay with the wires and the cats and puppy leave them alone so we just push them as close as we can to the wall and deal with it.
PSN : Bolthorn
Has anyone found something reliable in their gear searching for removing interference from cable lines? When I plug my cable box into my receiver, significant hiss is introduced into my speakers no matter what I'm doing, even when the cable box is turned off. During my debugging for this, I plugged the cable box in ONLY using a fiber optic connection. When turned on to the optical input, it put out a series of pops over whatever sound was playing (which is the digital conversion of static I suspect). I have to assume it's dirt from the outside screwing me over, so I've left it unplugged. I've thought about this, click the Eliminator, but it's $100 and I don't even know if it will work.
PSN: TheScrublet
What version / skin are you running for XBMC? I have a similar setup and can't get XBMC to do much other than basic divx / dvd watching.
Yeah unfortunately a decent 1080p projector costs more than I spent on the rest of my entire setup... and it's hard to justify it when I have a perfectly good 720p one that would end up collecting dust in my closet or something, heh. I would really love a Panasonic AE-3000U though, I have to convince myself not to buy one pretty much every week, heh.
I have no clue about your cable box, I don't even have TV ;-P
I'm running an svn compile (rev 206xx I think) of XBMC with the Aeon Auriga skin (on Windows). The skin/version shouldn't limit what you can do with it very much though, it's just different presentation of the content. What are you trying to do that you've been unable to? I'd be happy to help you get it configured.
I got both the 32" D64 Sharp set, and the Z-5300 5.1 set as well.
EDIT: I'm going to post my gear porn shortly. Especially because someone in this thread posted his/her vintage Pioneer receiver.
Hint: I have a similar receiver.
Newer pic, darker but Venture brothers makes up for it:
Comp:
Pioneer SX-3900:
Pioneer SX-3900 Receiver + Technics SB-7070 Linear Phase speaker system:
I use the ASUS Xonar DX2 for digital source playback with the Vintage gear:
Just as a note: Yes the grilles on the woofers were not originally installed by Technics. It's just that we have dogs, and yeah. Better safe than sorry. Especially regarding speakers this rare and of this vintage.
Stewart's Calculus, high five! Great textbook, I still use it's integral tables.
PSN: TheScrublet
:winky:
Is that a Canon Pixma MX700 I see up on top of that shelf there?
"Discrete and Combinatorial Mathematics" can suck hard on both my left and right nuts. :x
Oh, and that's a damn sexy workstation as well. :^:
It seems you could get a 30 inch or so HDTV (1080p) for a lot less than a 30 inch monitor and not have to deal with an insanely high resolution (1920x1080 vs 2560 x 1600).
Please excuse the orange tint on some of the pictures, I have very warm lighting in the room and tried to take pics without the flash for a more realistic look. Mostly they just came out orange.
Here's a front shot of my temporary theater room (it's temporary because I'm also building a real theater in my 700 sq ft basement but that'll take at least a year or more):
Here's the gear rack my girlfriend and I built:
The receiver is a Yamaha RX-V665 with a set of Klipsch Qunitent 3's and a Pioneer sub providing sound. I really like the hdmi inputs and component / svideo upscaling on the receiver. It allows me to run only 1 hdmi cable to the projector and still use a Wii and other things that don't output hdmi directly.
Here's a shot of the speakers with the custom built (by my girlfriend) speaker stands (middle one is in progress, obviously):
I have a full 7.1 setup (there's 4 speakers behind my couch at the moment).
Here's a shot of the seating area (It's not usually this messy...):
And a closeup of the projector:
It's a Mitsubishi HD1000-U that I've had for about 2 years. It's 720p but accepts 1080p input and does a great job scaling. Once the complete theater in our basement is built out I will be buying a 1080p projector for it but I'm waiting until the build is close to finished to purchase one.
For the ceiling mount it's a universal mount but where we wanted it was between 2 ceiling joists. So we took a 1x6 and painted it white, screwed it in to the joists and then hung the mount from the 1x6. It turned out pretty good.
Here's a couple shots in action, please excuse the quality as I haven't found a good way to shoot the picture yet and it does look much better in person:
This setup has been completely home built with help from the avsforum and friends so if anyone has any questions about it please let me know and I'd be happy to answer.
Mainly give me the gear prices on those projectors and screens, what you paid and what you're seeing similar quality projectors priced at today. Everything else I can work out/already own on my own.