Acoustic Nightmare! Speaker suggestion – need help! Setup & Pictures Provided

[hywdx80]

New to this forum and speakers :o, I was told by the best buy rep that polk may offer a tweaker that would be less fatigue on my ears since my room setup is not the friendliest.

Which polks do you recommend?

Need 5.1:
For: 80% HT 20% Stereo
No fatigue listening!

Room: L17xW17xH19 plus opens up to the kitchen (9' ceilings) and foyer 19' (ceilings)
Hardwood floors
Glass windows
Two story family room

Equipment I currently own:
Pioneer 6020
VSX-1018AH-K

Budget:
$1,000 fronts: (satellites, bookshelf, or floor standing)
$500 center
$500 surrounds: monopole surround? Satellites to mount on the walls.
$1200 sub: I’d prefer piano black to match the tv but can settle for flat black

I plan to add drapes and a big rug to cover up some of the hard wood and windows to help the sound a little bit.

I had my mind set on some definitive pro monitor 1000’s. After talking to a sales associate at best buy they told me it would not be a good idea to get those speakers because they have an aluminum tweeter. He mentioned that I will get ‘fatigued’ ears and a headache after a short amount of listening because the sound will be bouncing everywhere. Not sure what tweeter I should be looking for?

Obviously my setup sucks for sound. If I invest more money into the system I probably won’t see more benefits because of the acoustic nightmare.

As for the rears: I don’t think bipole / dipole will work with my setup because I don’t have a back wall to bounce off of; just a diffused kitchen.

Any speaker and sub suggestions please let me know!

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/temp.jpg

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7619.JPG

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7622.JPG

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7623.JPG

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7624.JPG

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7625.JPG

http://rob.team-affliction.com/house/IMG_7626.JPG

[ben62670]

First Welcome to Club Polk. Second I see what you mean by acoustical nightmare. I used to be an electrician, and the wire runs are real tough ones. Do you have an unfinished basement below? Could you have your HT in a different room?
Ben

[F1nut]

Wireless headphones are probably your best bet.

Don't like that idea? Yeah, me either.

I'd suggest the LSi series, the Vifa tweeter is excellent.

[hywdx80]

First Welcome to Club Polk. Second I see what you mean by acoustical nightmare. I used to be an electrician, and the wire runs are real tough ones. Do you have an unfinished basement below? Could you have your HT in a different room?
Ben


The wiring will be easy. I have an unfinished basement below and 12-gauge cable is ready to be fished up the walls. As of right now (until the basement is finished) this will be the HT room. I just purchased the house last month and just got settled in. I would like to fish the cable before we get the room painted (next week).

[hywdx80]

Wireless headphones are probably your best bet.

Don't like that idea? Yeah, me either.

I'd suggest the LSi series, the Vifa tweeter is excellent.

I was thinking about the LSi series but I don't think my new 1018 receiver (140w per channel?) will have enough juice to power 4ohm speakers. I will then need to purchase another amp, correct?

I'm confuses on the difference between tweeters. The best buy rep told me an aluminium tweeter will bounce of the walls and cause 'fatigue' in my ears. How does a vifa compare or a Silk Polymer Composite Dome which is in the Rti speakers?

[F1nut]

I was told by the Best Buy rep that Polk may offer a tweeter that would be less fatiguing on my ears since my room setup is not the friendliest.

FYI, you can no longer edit your posts after 10 minutes have gone by. :rolleyes:

Not to worry, I fixed it for you. :)

[ben62670]

Speaker choice was an easy one(see above). The wiring is the tough one! You'll have to rotate the couch, and the speakers can not be set back in the cubby. They need to be at least flush with the wall. Hold off on running out, and buying. I am not a heavy HT guy. Others will chime in with good advice.
Ben

[F1nut]

I will then need to purchase another amp, correct?

Correct.

[ben62670]

The wiring will be easy. I have an unfinished basement below and 12-gauge cable is ready to be fished up the walls. As of right now (until the basement is finished) this will be the HT room. I just purchased the house last month and just got settled in. I would like to fish the cable before we get the room painted (next week).

Well I am glad you have access below. The Vifa ring radiator is a very good forgiving tweeter.

[ben62670]

You can go used on an amp. Does your receiver have pre outs?
Ben

[hywdx80]

You can go used on an amp. Does your receiver have pre outs?
Ben

yes, all the pre-outs, located here (http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/HomeEntertainment/AV-Receivers/PioneerReceivers/ci.VSX-1018AH-K.Support)

[ben62670]

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/products/individual/surround/lsifx/
http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/specs/individual/bookshelf/lsi9/
http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/products/center/lsic/
I know the list prices are high, but in your situation with all the glass, and everything else lesser speakers are really going to be harsh.
The 9's really need an amp. The others for now could be handled by your receiver with the speaker settings set to small.
Ben

[mmadden28]

I was thinking about the LSi series but I don't think my new 1018 receiver (140w per channel?) will have enough juice to power 4ohm speakers. I will then need to purchase another amp, correct?
...

Check out Emotiva's (http://www.emotiva.com) lineup. Specifically the XPA-5 (http://www.emotiva.com/xpa5.html). Its a 5 channel amp that is perfectly capable of driving the LSis.
5 channels - 4 ohm = 350 watts per channel
2 channels - 4 ohm = 450 watts per channel
It's $800 + s/h (damn you just missed out on the free shipping (ended 7/31))

[Keiko]

Would a soundbar for HT be an option? And a separate, dedicated 2 channel for music? Just an idea.

[ben62670]

I don't know if the soundbar would be forgiving enough on the highs in that environment.

[F1nut]

Would a soundbar for HT be an option?

That is an excellent suggestion.

[Keiko]

I don't know if the soundbar would be forgiving enough on the highs in that environment.
A soundbar would be strictly for HT Ben. An entirely separate 2 channel system for music.

[Keiko]

Forgot my manners. :o Welcome to CP hywdx80.

[hywdx80]

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/products/individual/surround/lsifx/
http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/specs/individual/bookshelf/lsi9/
http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/products/center/lsic/
I know the list prices are high, but in your situation with all the glass, and everything else lesser speakers are really going to be harsh.
The 9's really need an amp. The others for now could be handled by your receiver with the speaker settings set to small.
Ben

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/p...urround/lsifx/

You sure dipole / bipole would be the best choice for my room? Should i look into regular satellite speakers for the surrounds?

[Keiko]

http://surroundbar.polkaudio.com/

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/soundprojectors/

For your room I think something like this is your best choice for HT. Which is why I made the suggestion. I'm using an earlier generation Yamaha YSP-800 sound projector and like it a lot. The Yamaha's don't need a separate amp or receiver like the Polk soundbars because the amps are built into them. With a subwoofer it delivers a very good HT experience. I have a separate 2 channel system strictly for music, but it's all integrated.

[Keiko]

On a side note, the Yamaha's are more room dependent for the surround effect than Polks version. I've never heard a Polk Surroundbar, but it's probably better than the Yammies. I chose the Yamaha because of it's built in amps and didn't want buy another receiver/amp, FWIW.

[george daniel]

Welcome to Club Polk,, the guys who posted above me are giving you some great sdvice,,take heed,, they know what they are talking about,,so, good luck and let us know how it turns out. :)

[McLoki]

Welcome to Club Polk.

The surround bar and separate 2 channel system suggestion is a good one, but just depends on where you want to focus. (HT or 2-channel) for my preferences, I would go with a home theater based LSi solution, but you may have different priorities.

I Highly recommend purchasing used. With used purchases, you should be able to get the LSi15 floor standing speakers for $700-$800, the LSiC for around $300-$400 and the surrounds for $300-$650 (depending on if you with LSi7s or LSiFX's).

For the amp, a 5 channel amp will work best, but you should be able to get by with a decent 3 channel amp for the front stage and run the surrounds off the AVR. For a decent 3 channel amp for the LSi's (used of course) you are looking at $400-$600 or so.

As far as a sub goes, You really do have a very large room to try and pressurise so I would look at subs (preferably multiples since you will have some nasty bass nodes in that room) from HSU, eD, Epik or SVS. I know the SVS is offered in the gloss black that you want for a slight upcharge. I do think you will want more than one though (of whatever you end up getting). It would be time well spent to call each company (or e-mail them) and describe your room (with the pics in this thread if possible) and ask their recommendations.

Good luck in your search.

Michael

[hywdx80]

where is the best place to buy used?

Thanks everyone for your help and timely posts!

[treitz3]

Here, in our own FM. I would advise staying away from Flea-Prey unless you know what you are doing. Audiogone is great and sometimes Craigslist is a blessing.

[Face]

Here, Audiogon, or Polk Direct on Ebay.

[McLoki]

Videogon is similar to Audiogon. Many ads are duplicates, but I have seen a few that were not.

[Ron Temple]

I think 9s on stands will work better than 15s in that room. The re-directed bass from the side firing passives, plus whatever sub solution will muddy up the place. You will need a pair of subs to even out the frequency response. Maybe a couple of MFW 15s to stay close to your budget. Their satin black subs are nearly piano gloss. Don't know where you would put them with that arrangement.

[hywdx80]

How is this configuration:

Receiver: Pioneer VSX-1018AH-K
Amp: Emotiva UPA-7 (cheaper then the XPA-5)
Fronts: LSi9
Center: LSiC
Rears: un-determined
Subwoofer: un-determined

Also with the emotiva, does it come with all the connectors (im guessing RCA) to connect to the pioneer? I never hooked up an amp before or even a receiver so it might get tricky

[nikolas812]

How is this configuration:

Receiver: Pioneer VSX-1018AH-K
Amp: Emotiva UPA-7 (cheaper then the XPA-5)
Fronts: LSi9
Center: LSiC
Rears: un-determined
Subwoofer: un-determined

Also with the Emotiva, does it come with all the connectors (im guessing RCA) to connect to the pioneer? I never hooked up an amp before or even a receiver so it might get tricky


I think your heading in the right direction. I would recommend another pair of nines for your rears or Lsi7's.

No. The Emotiva will not come with the connectors. You will need to purchase five RCA Cables to connect it to your Yamaha. It is very easy to do.

I would recommend a set from signal cable
http://signalcable.com/analoght.html (http://signalcable.com/analoght.html)

If you mention to Frank at Signal Cable you are a Club Polk Member you will get 5% off your purchase.

There are cheaper alternatives for cables like Mono Price Cables and Blue Jeans Cables also.




Nick

[hywdx80]

I think your heading in the right direction. I would recommend another pair of nines for your rears or Lsi7's.

No. The Emotiva will not come with the connectors. You will need to purchase five RCA Cables to connect it to your Yamaha. It is very easy to do.

I would recommend a set from signal cable
http://signalcable.com/analoght.html (http://signalcable.com/analoght.html)

If you mention to Frank at Signal Cable you are a Club Polk Member you will get 5% off your purchase.

There are cheaper alternatives for cables like Mono Price Cables and Blue Jeans Cables also.




Nick

I would like to mount the speakers on the walls for the rears and the Lsi are pretty heavy at 33lbs. The lsi7's are 21lbs, could anyone recommend a wall mount for these ? Do you think the Lsi7/9 would be better for the layout of my room the lets say the lsifx?

[nikolas812]

I would like to mount the speakers on the walls for the rears and the Lsi are pretty heavy at 33lbs. The lsi7's are 21lbs, could anyone recommend a wall mount for these ? Do you think the Lsi7/9 would be better for the layout of my room the lets say the lsifx?


I'm sure you can use wall mounts. I don't know where to get them though. Maybe someone could chime in on that. I could use some advice on that issue also. We are going to be mounting Lsi9's on the wall also when my Dads house is built.

As for the lsifx's being better than 9's or 7's. I don't know. If I'm not mistaken I think they work best in rectangular rooms because of the direct reflect thing they do. Thats why I mentioned the 9's. You could probably just point them towards the sweet spot and it would work fine. You've got such a horrible room to work with I just don't know.

I'm sure others will come along with other opinons.

Cheers

Nick

[McLoki]

Btech BT-77 (http://www.crutchfield.com/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?g=15830&i=121BT77B&search=btech&tp=586). Awesome stand and should work fine for the 9's or 7's. I have had my 7's mounted in a set for over 2 years now with no problems.

Michael

[hywdx80]

I think having the Lsi 9/7's for surrounds would stick out way to far for the wife to approve. Is there any satellite speakers that you would recommend for the surrounds to be paired with the LSi9 and LSiC? Also, could anyone recommend a speaker stand that can hold the 33lbs LSi9 and be tall enough so the tweeker will be at ear level?

Sitting on my couch, my ear level is between 38"-42". The LSi9's tweeter appears to be in the middle of the speaker that is 14-7/8" H. So I'm guessing a 24" speaker stand ?

Also, how will the LSi 9's sound w/o an external amp and just use the 140x7 amp off my pioneer?

[nikolas812]

IMO I think the Lsi will sound fine with your receiver... For now.... You will want to upgrade to a amp later to get the full potential.

Heres a link for stands. They have plenty to choose from. Any 24" stand will work. So if you have to go cheap, go cheap. But if you can spend a little extra, get a stand that is fillable. Something you can put lead shot or sand in will help the LSi's out sound wise and be more stable.

http://www.racksandstands.com/
(http://www.racksandstands.com/)




Nick

[haimoc]

In case, if you need a PreAmp/Processor and 5-channel amplifier... Let me know... I have a package for sale: Arcam AVP700 Preamp/Processor and Rotel 1075 amplifier which is great to combine both stereo/HT into a system. I used this amplifier to drive Polk Lsi15s/C/9s with great result.



http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69669