Home Theater, A/V and HiFi Chat

[fricnjay]

A place to chat about Home Theater, A/V, HiFi and related things.

https://i.imgur.com/szgF6LM.jpgt

[DemonGeminiX]

I guess I've been looking at soundbars, halfheartedly... don't know the first thing about 'em though, besides the fact that they're speakers and they can cost a few bucks. :dunno:

[fricnjay]

So I'm in this deep right now. We bought a new house about 8 months ago that has a pre-existing media room that was done incorrectly on so many levels. So we have been putting a LOT work into this room. Just thought it would be cool to have a place to chat about such things.

[fricnjay]

I guess I've been looking at soundbars, halfheartedly... don't know the first thing about 'em though, besides the fact that they're speakers and they can cost a few bucks. :dunno:

#1 why a soundbar and 2 what do you want to know?

[DemonGeminiX]

That sort of thing can kinda limit you as to where you can put shit. No Feng Shui for you.

[fricnjay]

That sort of thing can kinda limit you as to where you can put shit. No Feng Shui for you.

Do you want surround sound or just better sound the TV offers?

[DemonGeminiX]

#1 why a soundbar and 2 what do you want to know?

Cause I got a huge ass 4KTV and the sound seems to be thrown behind it instead of coming from any speaker out front. It's odd. I just want something that I can plug into my LG and get decent sound out of. That's all. It doesn't have to do windows or anything.

[fricnjay]

Cause I got a huge ass 4KTV and the sound seems to be thrown behind it instead of coming from any speaker out front. It's odd. I just want something that I can plug into my LG and get decent sound out of. That's all. It doesn't have to do windows or anything.

How much do you want to spend?

[DemonGeminiX]

Not a lot. I know these things can be expensive, but if feasible (probably not), I'd like to stay south of $100.

[fricnjay]

Do you want a sub?

[DemonGeminiX]

Not really.

[fricnjay]

https://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SB2920-C6-29-Inch-Channel-Sound/dp/B00SMBFZNG/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=soundbar&qid=1562953381&s=gateway&sr=8-4

[DemonGeminiX]

https://www.amazon.com/VIZIO-SB2920-C6-29-Inch-Channel-Sound/dp/B00SMBFZNG/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=soundbar&qid=1562953381&s=gateway&sr=8-4

That looks promising. I'll put it in my wishlist and see if the price drops on Prime Day. :thumbsup:

[KevinD]

I have a Polk soundbar and sub. I dont remember model name, but it was around $400. It's pretty good, but I do miss my higher end Onkyio 6.1 surround sys. The surround is now in my garage. I'm debating getting a better sound bar with satellite speakers that will do at least basically surround.

[Pony]

I have an LG soundbar and sub. The upside is I caught it on sale back last nov. And it is powerful and sounds awesome! The downside is I didn't realize that it was only optical audio cable or bluetooth connectivity, no HDMI.
With an LG tv the volume of both the tv and bar were controlled by the LG remote, Now that I have it hooked to a TCL tv I have to use the separate remote to control it.

[RBP]

I want to add a small TV in the kitchen, maybe 24" with a swivel mount. The TV's are cheap, the mount is cheap, but getting TV signal there wirelessly looks to be the expensive part. Lots of confusing equipment options. Comcast has wireless boxes, but they only work with their $50/month special modem. Dicks.

[Pony]

I want to add a small TV in the kitchen, maybe 24" with a swivel mount. The TV's are cheap, the mount is cheap, but getting TV signal there wirelessly looks to be the expensive part. Lots of confusing equipment options. Comcast has wireless boxes, but they only work with their $50/month special modem. Dicks.

Does comcast have a roku app yet? You could get a TCL roku tv and just use individual channel apps too.

[RBP]

Does comcast have a roku app yet? You could get a TCL roku tv and just use individual channel apps too.

They do have an Xfinity Stream app that is in beta. That's a great suggestion. Thanks.

[fricnjay]

I want to add a small TV in the kitchen, maybe 24" with a swivel mount. The TV's are cheap, the mount is cheap, but getting TV signal there wirelessly looks to be the expensive part. Lots of confusing equipment options. Comcast has wireless boxes, but they only work with their $50/month special modem. Dicks.

A lot of apps will allow you to use them for free and most have a live option if you link to your cable account. I have a few Amazon Fire TV boxes and most networks have an app I can download and I have to go through a little linking ritual and bam. I have a TV in my game room and I had no TV cabling in that room so I added the Fire TV via Wifi and Im all good.

[fricnjay]

So my wife and I bought and moved into a new house about 6 months ago. The new house has a media room but it was all wrong.

So here is what the room looked like when we toured the house.

https://i.imgur.com/lXXv3qX.jpghttps://i.imgur.com/22FQ0Mi.jpg

[fricnjay]

So I wanted the screen on the back wall, which is how it should have been made but NO. So I had to rewire the whole damn thing and to make it more difficult its up stairs and has 2 exterior walls. Not to mention it was only wired for 5.1 and I decided to upgrade to 7.2.4 for Atmos and DTS-X so I had to pull a shit ton of wire. And of course the room need a fresh coat of paint.

https://i.imgur.com/gr5o5Ry.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/7E3a6qr.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/68YfdgT.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EvsaBxQ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/Vnobdcv.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/DYYSOnO.jpg

[fricnjay]

So this is where I'm at now. Still not done but getting close. I still have to hang the ceiling speakers, have new seating coming, will need to make a riser for the rear row of seating, make the valance and curtains around screen and a few other odds and ends.

I'm running a Marantz 7702 mkII preamp/processor, Epson 5040ub projector and Stewart Studiotek 130 screen.

https://i.imgur.com/JfZ4kXo.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/tWgkOov.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/hIuFGZZ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/yB489Y5.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/wf5Pblr.jpg

[Pony]

:shock: Jeezus, you really went all in with that project! Looks awesome! How big is the screen?

[fricnjay]

:shock: Jeezus, you really went all in with that project! Looks awesome! How big is the screen?

100"

[fricnjay]

Guys in my production shop made my ceiling bracket to hang my Atmos speakers today. :dance:

[KevinD]

I feel 2" tall with my wee 55" tv and soundbar....haha. Tbh, I dont watch much TV anymore. Mostly movies or binge tv show downloads. Mine works for us, but, I am going to upgrade soundbar at some point. I tend to spend more time in my guitar studio/guesthouse when I'm not working in yard on days off.

[Godfather]

Jay that is so sick, awesome stuff. Can't wait to see the final project

[RBP]

Does comcast have a roku app yet? You could get a TCL roku tv and just use individual channel apps too.


They do have an Xfinity Stream app that is in beta. That's a great suggestion. Thanks.

You da man.

I was able to use an older TV we had in another room with a new Roku ($35 on sale) and it works perfectly. I'll have to be careful if I try to mount it, the TV is heavier than newer ones.

Edit: and got a replacement remote and a swivel arm wall mount for $25 total. :woot:

[fricnjay]

So this Dolby Atmos and DTS-X shit is a bit of a pain in the ass. You have to be very aware of what hardware supports it, 4k and HDR. Which for me means I have to buy new media players. None of my current media players support all those formats. So to remedy this problem I bought my first Apple product in decades, an Apple TV 4K 64 gig and I have to say I am very impressed. Out of the box its heavy, I mean substantial especially compared to Fire TV, Roku or WDTV box. It was a bit more difficult to setup because you have to have an I-tunes account which I didn't have but plugging it into the system was a cake walk. The user interface is pretty typical but the remote is different than any one I have used before, and its awesome. Through the I-tunes store all your typical streaming apps are available including HULU, Netflix and Prime and if it is available will stream them in 4k with Atmos or DTS-X. After getting it plunged in and setup went back and watched a few scenes from movies we had already demoed in the room and HOLY SHIT it was night and day difference. The color was more vivid and clearer but the audio processing is light years above any other streaming device I have had. The downside of the Apple TV is it will not play digital media files like the WDTV or Roku can. Considering I have a lot of 4k w/Atmos MKV files I will be buying a Nvidia Shield to play those.

[fricnjay]

I finally got my ceiling speaker brackets figured out and had my shop fabricate 4 of them for me. Thought it would take them a week or so to get to them but they were on my desk the next morning. Got all the hardware I needed and shot it all in flat black and got it all hung Friday. Saturday morning got them plugged in and started calibrating the room using Audyssey MultEQ XT32. This was a HUGE step, this means all the actual A/V hardware is in place. So now its pretty much all aesthetics and hooking up all the other devices in the rack. Had some friends over Saturday night and watched Ready Player One in 4K and Dolby Atmos and its amazing. The ceiling speakers add such a new dimension to the sound, its completely immersive. When something fly's over you IT FLY'S OVER YOU.

https://i.imgur.com/K7FfaAq.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/zgDiFtA.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/iXItRiL.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/WnIDXmw.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/IToXHVZ.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/pDFVBiN.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/eQ9wDxO.jpg

[Teh One Who Knocks]

https://i.imgur.com/komt7sl.jpg

My new TV finally arrived.

[DemonGeminiX]

:lol:

That's ridiculous.

[Pony]

dropped 3 years salary on that baby?

[fricnjay]

Got my new theater seating this weekend :dance:

https://i.imgur.com/VXYbkln.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/sknlsP0.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/D15JNbU.jpg

[Godfather]

Looking awesome dude, phenomenal work...... but if you don't post updates once those cables are more organized I'm going to have an aneurysm :lol:

[Teh One Who Knocks]

HDMI cords :-k Now I know that everything I have read says that the more expensive cords (especially brands like Monster with cables that are well over $100/each) are rip-offs and there is basically no difference between them and your standard basic cables you can get. But here's what happened to me last weekend. The Roku in the living room started throwing a big error screen when we tried to play something on it.

https://i.imgur.com/xesbqaQ.jpg

I did what was suggested at first and it worked...for a few days. Then the error would come up when we tried to use ANY app on the Roku (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc) and wouldn't clear. So I went to Best Buy and their selection of cables isn't really the best, unless you want to spend a fortune. But I didn't want to wait a couple of days to get something from Amazon, so I got some mid priced cables and that cleared up the problem. The cables I replaced were just some basic no-name cables that were inexpensive that I did get from Amazon originally and they should have been compliant. So, is there any truth to the fact that more expensive cables are worth it? I'm not talking about those stupid Monster cables, but like the ones I ended up buying ($30/each) versus the 'basic' brands you can get. Best Buy did have some cheap cables (they were $6.99/each I think, but they weren't even in boxes, just zip lock baggies hanging on a rack, so I passed on those) but I went with the pricier ones instead. Every article I have read on HDMI cables, and all A/V cables in general really, say there's no real difference, but after this error issue on the Roku, it has me wondering.

[RBP]

Looking awesome dude, phenomenal work...... but if you don't post updates once those cables are more organized I'm going to have an aneurysm :lol:

We share similar neurosis. :lol:

[fricnjay]

Finally got around to making my movie poster/acoustic treatments.

Used 1/2" Plywood, glued 2" thick Auralex Mineral Fiber Acoustic Batting then wrapped/stretched my posters that were printed on canvas over them.

https://i.imgur.com/GYLX4Qn.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/yh2ArHk.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/SLZ0K5p.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/4UrRGhO.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/lsNQMDA.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/IQxJRV5.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/5yrSRdM.jpg

[Pony]

Every article I have read on HDMI cables, and all A/V cables in general really, say there's no real difference, but after this error issue on the Roku, it has me wondering.

My opinion is that every article is correct. sort of. A more expensive cable isn't going to make the picture quality any better. That doesn't necessarily mean that the cables can't be so cheaply made that they don't last. We have cheap cables go bad all the time, Dealing with 150-ish TV's and cable boxes I replace cheap cables all the time, with more cheap cables.

Will a $100 cable outlast a $7 cable? I couldn't tell you. I just know there are some real crappy ones out there and more cost doesn't necessarily mean better.

[DemonGeminiX]

HDMI cords :-k Now I know that everything I have read says that the more expensive cords (especially brands like Monster with cables that are well over $100/each) are rip-offs and there is basically no difference between them and your standard basic cables you can get. But here's what happened to me last weekend. The Roku in the living room started throwing a big error screen when we tried to play something on it.

https://i.imgur.com/xesbqaQ.jpg

I did what was suggested at first and it worked...for a few days. Then the error would come up when we tried to use ANY app on the Roku (Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc) and wouldn't clear. So I went to Best Buy and their selection of cables isn't really the best, unless you want to spend a fortune. But I didn't want to wait a couple of days to get something from Amazon, so I got some mid priced cables and that cleared up the problem. The cables I replaced were just some basic no-name cables that were inexpensive that I did get from Amazon originally and they should have been compliant. So, is there any truth to the fact that more expensive cables are worth it? I'm not talking about those stupid Monster cables, but like the ones I ended up buying ($30/each) versus the 'basic' brands you can get. Best Buy did have some cheap cables (they were $6.99/each I think, but they weren't even in boxes, just zip lock baggies hanging on a rack, so I passed on those) but I went with the pricier ones instead. Every article I have read on HDMI cables, and all A/V cables in general really, say there's no real difference, but after this error issue on the Roku, it has me wondering.

I've been using Amazon Basic cables as of late. I haven't had one go bad yet (and I've been using them for a few years now), but if I do, I wouldn't mind replacing them. Most of them are less than $20, some less than $10. And they work.

[fricnjay]

Since its just a bunch of 1s and 0s the cable is really pretty inconsequential. However things seem to be changing quickly and you have to be aware of compatibility issues. with all the different resolution, audio processing, Deep Color, aspect ratios, HDR and HDR10, HDCP, Dolby Vision out there your cable has to be compatible and also have the data transfer rate to keep up. If you want a quality compliant cable look at a company called Monoprice. They really make good stuff a reasonable prices. :tup:

[Muddy]

Do you think you may be developing a problem, Jay?

[fricnjay]

Do you think you may be developing a problem, Jay?

No all my stuff is compatible :dance: