sound systems...

[old.frankie]

Hey

brill new thread here... What sound setups you all got?

recently my amp has decided to go all funny in the right channel...

so basically i was on a lookout for a new amp, and came across a technics cinema amp, with all the usual features, dolby etc etc, got a remote, is very good quality, 5 speaker outs, sub outs, etc etc. All finished in a beutiful champers silver... worth around 500 quid, down to 200 in this one panasonic/technics outlet...

damn good deal. Its 5x100 watts out, but i mention this last as any audiophile knows rated outputs mean absolute jack shit!

the model is sa-da8... Just wondering what the rest of you have out there for playing music/dvds/games on the computer. me computer is main entertainment place in my house, so i think investing in a good dolby system is a must. one of the main resons im gonna get it is the optical out, so if i was to plug it into a SB-live with the right output thingy it would be better quality, hopefully?

anyways, what sound setups ya all got?

 

[Ch3tan]

I got a cheap all in one jobbie from richer sounds.

Multi region dvd player, sherwood RDS-6016R amp with dolby 5.1 and dts, has 6 channel input etc.

Cheap subwoofer and speakers, but they do the job. may upgrade teh speakers -when i have the cash.

Also I got a sblive 5.1 and hook it up to the amp for great surround sound in games etc.

 

[Will]

Makes my Aiwa micro-hifi with powered sub-woofer look pretty poor. But the neighbours would disagree

 

[Testin da Cable]

I've got a Technics amp and cdplayer. Must be 10 years old now, but still running fine.

 

[Nibbler]

Crative Labs Cambridge Soundworks 1500. Subwoofer with four speakers and Dolby surround sound 5.1. It's awesome. Pump up the base and let the music flow. BOOOOO! BOOOOO! BOOOOO!

Ahem.

 

[~Lazarus~]

Cambridge Soundworks sbs52 peakers (which are ok)

Always meant to wire up the PC to the surround system I have next door.

Front speakers 4ft high - 5 speaker surround system + subwoofer.

Crank it up and watch the windows bend.

 

[Ono]

Yamaha 795 RVX Dolby Digital/DTS receiver pumping through Mission 761 Fronts, Gale Centre and 73 Rears.

Yamaha SWT100 Subwoofer.

Sony 535 DVD player chipped for multiregion.

Oh and a Technics PG570A CD player (usued) and Technics RS-B555 Tape Deck.

Aiwa Minidisc.


My house is too small and I require a dedicated cinema room before I upgrade things.

 

[old.frankie]

nice

need some help guys

for this sound system of mine to work properly (the afforementioned amp running 4+ speakers) would i need a better sound card than the one i have now (SB PCI 128)

i mean, the amp i is getting has an optical in, what SCs for around 50 quid have an optical out so i can just have a single fibre optic cable to do all the work and carry the data from computer to amp?

ive looked at the SB lives, but i get confised as there are LOADS of different types. I just need a decent card, to play some games, MP3s and the occasional DVD in conjunction with the amp. does the SC have to be a 5.1 out thing? would a SC that isnt 5.1 and just has a digi optical out suffice?

i dunno... so much info, brain connot cope...

:/

 

[Ch3tan]

Well i have had real trouble getting optical out working only. It only works for digital sources, or with my headphones :/

I have connected my soundcard (sb 5.1) to the 6 channel inputs of my amp.


Ono: I have the Gale center as well, as well as a Gale sub.

The center is the only speaker I am happy with at the mo.

 

[old.Wils]

brill new thread here... What sound setups you all got?

Hrm.

One pair of Sennheiser HD470s

 

[old.Jas]

Almost the same a nibbler here - CSW Desktop Theater 5.1 DTT2500 Digital.

Does the job - but I don't watch DVDs on it. Thats what the 28" Sony Widescreen telly is for

 

[Perplex]

SB Live Platinum

Technics SA-GX 690 Dolby Pro Amp

Technics RS-TR474 Cassette deck

Pioneer PD-S601 CD Player (Wierd one this, CDs go in upside down )

Mission 732 Bookshelfs

 

[*Exor*]

Arcam Alpha series, Mission 771e, Apollo stands.

Yum

 

[lovedaddy]

Ive got the 771e's as my rears, and the 773e floor standers as my fronts.
I've got the arcam alpha as my music amp, nice choice Exor.
Along with a Sony Wega 32", Sony 940 DTS amp and a Sony 525 DVD player, Ive got a setup that should last me years.

As for my PC, a pair of Beyer Dynamic DT331 headphones.

 

[bodhi]

My Stereo system consists of:-

Marantz PM-66SE KI-Signature
Marantz CD-63MKII KI-Signature
Mission 733i Floorstanders

Pioneer Tape Deck (uses Digital NR, so there is practically NO hiss on it)
Sony Minidisc
Toshiba SD-3109 DVD Player
25 inch Phillips telly

 

[old.frankie]

quite a nice set of systems you all have

What im going to do to get the 5ull five speaker setups working is to make the stereo out on the soundcard go into 2 left/2 right channels and a middle combined channel, this should work temporally until i can get a proper 5.1 sc

now

Whats SC is best for my needs? for a fairly decent price ?

 

[Perplex]

SB Live Platinum kicks arse

 

[bodhi]

Sound Blaster Audigy is out soon.

 

[*Exor*]

Originally posted by lovedaddy
Ive got the 771e's as my rears, and the 773e floor standers as my fronts.
I've got the arcam alpha as my music amp, nice choice Exor.
Along with a Sony Wega 32", Sony 940 DTS amp and a Sony 525 DVD player, Ive got a setup that should last me years.

As for my PC, a pair of Beyer Dynamic DT331 headphones.

Man 771e's as rear, that is SERIOUS, I find they are more than enough clarity and volume for my main speakers.

 

[Perplex]

Have to admit that sounds seriously tasty

 

[Ch3tan]

Originally posted by Wils


Hrm.

One pair of Sennheiser HD470s

One pair of HD 580's here, great for cs and opf

I want my mission speakers :/ gah
/me starts saving :/

 

[bodhi]

Originally posted by *Exor*



Man 771e's as rear, that is SERIOUS, I find they are more than enough clarity and volume for my main speakers.

When I get round to doing a Dolby Digital set-up my 733i's are going on the rear. Overkill? Yes. Loud? Yes.

 

[old.frankie]

ive got some pretty mangled acoustic research bookshelfs mouted in corners atm for the rear, they still sound brilliant though.

 

[old.logic7]

I've got a pair of Bose RoomMates with a 10" dual voice coil subwoofer rigged up to 'em. Sound card duties are handled by a SBLive Value with E-mu APS drivers instead of the crappy Creative drivers.

(pic of it at http://www.geocities.com/labwerx)

 

[old.TUG]

My sound system is fucked nearly... argh

wot can i buy for 300 squid - I need: Amp, Tuner, CD Player

Gah need more money

 

[PR.]

Technics SCEH-750 - Dolby 5.1

I wasn't gonna buy this until I saw it in Comet for £250 (priced wrongly from £450)


Downstairs DVD - Panasonic SCHT-70 (iirc) - DVD + 5.1 audio



Personally I'd recommend most Panasonic / Technics stuff for two reasons:

I worked in a retail store for 2 years, I saw a lot of Pana / Tech stuff be sold almost none of it came back

Got a lot of Pana / Tech stuff, tele, video, dvd etc.. all works very well


Hope this helps? maybe

 

[nath]

I went to my local hifi place (Audio T or something) and said I wanna buy a hifi (speakers/amp/cd) for 300 quid. They said 'ok 300 quid on each bit yeah?' 'no for the lot'

Anyway, after they stopped laughing, they fixed me up a nice system made up from ex display stuff to listen to in the demo room. fiddled with diff mixes of equipment, and found something i liked. Then at the end of it, totalled up the price, including wiring(which adds a fair amount to the price) and came to about 350 ish. They let me have it for 300 (if i bought it there and then, so I did).

For anyone who gives a shit it's a marantz cd player with a rotel amp and Acoustic Energy speakers.

My advice Tug, (for what it's worth) is to go down to your local richer sounds place, tell them your price limit, and get them to set some stuff up in the demo room (remember bring your own cds), and see what you like.

Nath

 

[-AP-]

Hehehe, at last a thread where i actually know something.... makes a nice change.


This system took about 3 years of summer work and the majority of my student loan to pay for.

Marantz CD17mkII KI cd-player
PM-14mkII KI stereo amplifier

Mission 753F speakers

Nice green inter connectors, fat bi-wireable speaker cable and banana clips.

Stupid things is, now i am back home from university i can't set the thing up in my bed room - room is too small. Got 1000s of pounds worth of stereo sitting in my garage.

No you can't have my address

 

[bodhi]

Nice kit that. I've had the KI-Signature stuff for about 4 years now and NOTHING I have heard even comes close to it for digging detail out of recordings. I listened to some Arcam stuff when I bought this, and admittedly it did sound very good, but sounded far too warm and safe for my liking. It wasnt fast enough to keep up with the music I was listening to at the time either (Offspring, Green Day, Prodigy).

 

[lovedaddy]

What do people use for headphones? Im currently using a pair of Beyer DT331s - but taking them to work every day is starting to get tiresome. Any suggestions for a nice, and not too costly pair of seconds? (I was thinking Sennheiser 500s? anyone using these?)