Description

This is an everything system. It's my computer, gaming system,  and 2 channel stereo system. For me it's always going to be this way. However good a system I ever manage to get, I will try to feed every sound source I have into it. There's just way too much excellent audio content out there that's not "audiophile" grade.
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Components Toggle details

    • Samsung 75" QN84
    Big MicroLED TV that acts as a sound source to the Mac Mini, which then processes the sound and sends it to the Denon Receiver over HDMI.
    • Packard-Bell 1960's era tube stereo console
    Currently acting as a speaker stand and barrier to prevent my 3 year old nephew from reaching the receiver. He likes to turn up the volume! This is also a nostalgia piece for me. It's been in my family longer than I have.
    • Sony Blue-Ray disc player - some cheap model.
    Doesn't get much use.
    • Nintendo Switch
    It plays games.
    • Nintendo Wii U
    It plays games.
    • Apple Apple TV 4K
    This is  a first generation 4K - not the latest. It's hooked straight into the TV. the TV feeds the stereo sound to the Mac Mini via optical digital. This device is largely redundant with the Mac Mini and the TV both supporting most of the same content. I still like it.
    • Behringer Ultra Curve Pro
    Besides providing digital equalization, this unit has a nice RTA display while playing music, and serves to convert the optical output on my computer to AES/EBU input for the DCX2496 crossover.
    • Behringer DCX-2496
    Unmodified with 20 dB attenuators in-line on the outputs to prevent overdriving the consumer level inputs on my Cambridge Audio 540R receiver. This acts as crossover and equalization for the horn woofers and Revel M16s. Crossover is 24dB / octave at 300Hz.
    • Cambridge Audio Azur 540r
    This replaced a Denon I was using earlier. I'm using the 540r's analog inputs, which are being fed from a Behringer DCX2496, unmodified, with in line 20 dB attenuators on the output cables.
    • Revel Concerta2 M16
    3 Revel M16s are being used to create a stereo array. They are crossed over to my horn woofers at 200Hz with 24db/octave filters. These are being fed a matrixed signal of L-R for the left channel, L+R for the center channel, and R-L for the right channel. These are in a tight formation to create crosstalk reducing interference patterns at the listening position, which creates a very wide soundstage at the listening position while also providing a solid center image, with center panned sounds only playing through the center speaker.
    • Apple M1 Mac Mini
    This Mac Mini is being used both as a sound source via HDMI and also does channel mixing, equalization and active crossovers for itself and other sound sources that are fed in to it. Audio Hijack is the routing software, and it also provides access to Apple's built-in AudioUnits which provide DSP capability.
    • DIY Big Horn Corner Horn Speakers
    Corner horn speaker stacks. Currently crossed over to the Revel M16s at 200Hz. These are modular, with 5 pieces stacked in a corner to make a complete speaker. They use Neutrik Speak-On cables and connectors. The tweeter uses a JBL 2426H driver with a horn that's built coaxially into the midrange horn. I don't use that horn anymore. The midrange horn is about 2 feet long, uses a 10" midwoofer as the driver, and plays down to 200hz. I don't use that horn currently either. The woofers consist of four folded cabinets of 6 foot length, each driven with an 18" woofer. So for a stereo pair that's eight 18" woofers. That's a lot of woofer. It's also very efficient. My cheap Denon receiver can easily power one of these arrays off a surround channel and produce very deep, powerful bass. They'll play down to 20Hz and lower but power demands go up rapidly way down low due to limited back chamber volume. The drivers are reach rated for 300Watts, so in their series/parallel arrangement should handle 1200Watts per channel. I've never put anything more than 50 watts per channel on them. It's way more than enough.

Comments 6

Owner
Thanks Scott! My friend was a good woodworker and I'm really happy with them. One mistake happened right at the end and he was almost ready to kill himself over it. After we had made the pillars out of about $1100 worth of wood he accidentally cut them too short! I told him to calm down and look at it as an opportunity. I had been thinking about adding transition pieces from the pillars to the end plates and now we had to. So we did, and I think they look great. I think it sounds great in a lot of ways. The use of the Revel M16s to cover the mids and highs in this unusual arrangement is a recent experiment. I think it sounds really good. I'm enjoying it. It's better in some ways then playing full horn loading through the mids and highs. I think I want a little more something out of it though. It might not be possible in this room, or maybe I can get it there with some acoustic treatments. The big horns sounded their best in a bigger space.

asctim

Those speakers look great, asctim. I bet listening to music and gaming would be a blast with your system.

Cheers,

Scott 

samac

The definition of a compact system. Interesting woodwork.

baylinor

Owner
Another reason to keep the teddy bears is that my nephews and nieces come over and they like to see grandma's things.

asctim

Owner
The teddy bears and panda were my mother's. There are also some stuffed bison. My mother liked bison. This room was her main space so I keep a lot of her things in here still. They may have an acoustical effect as well but I haven't A/B tested it yet.

asctim

why do you keep so many teddy bears?? also a panda?


digitalviper

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