Definitive Technology Mythos Series Thread - Page 56

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate any input you or other members have. I should clarify that my system would not include side surrounds. It would be a 5.1 system (or would that be 5.4? ). My use of the term "all around" was somewhat misleading in that regard. The ST's would be placed in the front and rear of the room. The room is 22 feet long and 13 feet wide. The rear half of the room opens up to the dining room (an "L" shape). My seating area is about 10 feet from the fronts and about 7-8 feet in front of the rears.

The main reason for wanting the same speakers in front and back is that I have a large and growing SACD/DVD Audio collection. Strange as it might sound, I don't plan on using the subs very heavily as I live in a condo. The top half of the speaker is what really impressed me with the imaging and soundstage I heard when demoing these speakers. The fact that I can control how much low end I want is a huge plus.

Until now, I haven't considered any problems that could arise from having essentially 4 subwoofers in a room. Given that there are 4 ST's rather than 6 and the fact that the bass won't be cranked up too extreme levels, does this alter the concerns about standing waves, deep nulls, bloated bass, etc.? Everything I've read about the ST's implies that they are fairly forgiving in regards to placement.

Thanks Bigred iwas hoping that would be the answer to my question as i love my Mythos system but wanted to give Emotiva a shot as i love the XPA 2 and the XPA 5 i have running my Definitive speakers.I am now thinking about running 4 Mythos 10 speakers for the sides and rear in place of the 4 Mythos Gem xl i am using.What do people think of that setup for my theater?

Yeah, the 8.3's and the rest of them just dont do it for me. Not that they are bad or anything, they just are not MY cup of tea. If you really wanted to know for yourself then find someone local who may own them or order them. My opinion is only one person though.

I think what got missed here is using ST's as surrounds , not LFE. No Line level to any of the rear channel, just full range speaker level. I think it would work very well with a proper calibration of each speaker/sub combo. I have a technic on how to setup powered towers so they perform like full range speakers.
This system if I built it would have 1 or 2 Trinity subs and all ST speakers running large with no line level. I think this would have the making of a killer exciting system. I could pull this off.

Mantis, where did you get those speaker plugs for your ST's?

To clarify for everyone, the rear ST's would be used as surrounds just as Mantis10 said. Only the fronts would utilize LFE. I would be interested in any setup tips anyone may have.

This leads me to another question. I am looking to add some home theater seats to replace my sofa. Berkline offers Buttkicker's installed into the seats which I think would add another dimension to watching movies. If I were to use a Y connector from the sub out on my receiver to utilize the LFE on ST's in front, would I still be able to consider the Buttkickers as an option? I have the Pioneer Elite SC-05 which only has one sub out on the back.

By the way, I do plan on getting a full audio calibration once everything in my living room is situated. Thanks to everyone for their input.

I'm not sure why you would spend twice as much on the STs for the surrounds if you don't plan to use the built in subs. Also note that four STs require 4 electrical outlets (and any surge protection you may want to use), which could be an annoyance.

I plan to use the built in subs on the surrounds, but I wouldn't be using the LFE inputs for them. The LFE inputs would be utilized in the fronts only. Surge protection isn't a problem because my desk and computer are on the back wall of the room (in between the surrounds) and I would be plugging the ST's into my protection back there. At 10 feet, the AC power cords on the ST's are pretty generous.

What speaker wire/cables would you recommmend for the ST's? When I got my previous system in 2000, I was told that 16 guage wire was plenty for my NHT 1.5 bookshelf system. The cable runs for the surrounds are about 30-35 feet long. It appears from the chart below that I'm still within the range for the 8 ohm category. But the ST's are rated 4-8 ohms. So what does this mean when looking for appropriate wire?

Roger Russell Speaker Wire Table

I've since had new carpet installed over the cables and would like to avoid pulling it up if possible. But if 16 AWG isn't going to feed the ST's properly, I'll have to upgrade the wire.

I got them from Vienna Acoustics. I used to Work for Tweeter who was a Sumiko Dealer. They are very nice and reusable.

Use a good quality 14 gauge wire for the entire system. 16 gauge will work for shorter runs but if your going to buy a new spool ,then why not rewire everything.

I like to have my front speaker wires exactly the same length, if it makes sense , I also like the center to be the same length. The rear channels to me don't really matter for length to each other. I cut them to fit with a little extra on both ends for repair.

As far as brands go, for in wall use and custom I like Liberty wire and cable. They have been makes quality wire for many years for Custom Install. Beldon is another good quality cable with a cl3 rating.

It means nothing. Besides, a speakers impedence is never constant, it goes up and down in relation to the frequency response.

Hello
I'm thinking of buying following set:
center: mythos ten
fronts: mythos six or two
surrounds: mythos Gem or Gem XL
sub: SVS

Is it a good idea to mix the ten with the others? Or will this be very noticeble in the transits between the speakers? I just want a good center because I think it is the most important speaker in a 5.1. I will use it mainly for movies.

I am thinking about adding subsTo my Mythos ST-Mythos 10 -Mythos Gem XL sides and rear.I am considering Epic or Rythmik subs. Please give me some info if any one has heard these subs and do they apply to the Mythos ST.

hello voigtskins

do you like this set up? Do you notice that the sides and rear are of a different quality then the center when the sound 'moves' from one speaker to another?

Yes they are not the same as the front 3 ch. I am replacing the Gem XL sides and back with the Mythos 10 speaker which will complete the sound from the front speakers.

I just joined the Mythos family. Got a killer deal on some silver nines over at onecall.com. I went with the 9,9,9,gem,SCIII setup running on a Denon 3310. It's Christmas in October baby! Sure will be busy wiring the house this weekend. Can't wait to fire these suckers up!

Hi Guys,
I just got the following 5.1 HT system:
Mythos STS
Mythos 3
Mythos GEM
Mythos ProSub 1000.
Adcom GFR-700

I'm new at this so my question is what the best way to setup the sub woofer with the STS? Since the Adcom only has one sub output therefore I can only it to the back of the sub woofer and set the STS to "Large" and Sub to "yes", is it correct? Can I run LFE with the STS and the woofer in this setup?
Thanks,

You can use two Y cables to distribute the LFE signal to all three subwoofers. Or, you can set your A/V receiver or processor to output Bass/LFE to "BOTH" (ie front speakers and subwoofers) so you only need to run an LFE cable to your standalone sub.

Where would be a good place to purchase speaker cable? Monoprice?

If I redo the surrounds with 14 guage wire, it would be under the carpet. Is it safer to use flat wire in this case? The wire would be placed along the tack strips of the carpet.

Is there a noticable difference in audio between 16 guage (which I already have running along the bottom of my carpet) and 14 guage over a length of 30-35 feet? I'd rather not have to pull the carpet up if there won't be an audible benefit. I suppose I could try to find a carpet guy to reinstall it for me if upgrading the wire is absolutely necessary though.

Is it possible for you to tie one end of the 16 gauge to the 14 gauge, and then pull the 16 gauge from the other end? Then you'll be installing the 14 gauge under the carpet as you're pulling out the 16 gauge.

Hi Everyone, I'm new to the board.

I am currently looking into a new audio system. I just recently purchased an Yamaha RX-Z7 receiver and a pair of Mythos 2's that I am currently using as my surrounds.

I am looking to now replace the fronts and center. I still havent decided between the STS and the ST. Unfortuantley I live in a small town in FL which doesnt have any local dealers that I can visit to listen. So basically I have to make my purchasing decisions based off internet reviews. The pricing on the pacakge deals (i.e. 2x ST, 1x Mtyhos 10, 2x Gem XL and 2 Gem Stands) looks good thats the route that I plan to take. Since I already have surrounds mounted on the rear wall my question has to do with what should I do with the extra two speakers. My reciever supports rear surrounds and front presence but not both at the same time. So I'm looking for some advice as to where you might place the Gem XL's.

I live in a two bedroom condo which is about 1200 sq ft. The audio system is in my main room. My seating area is against the rear wall and my Fronts would sit near the front wall. I dont have side walls to mount surrounds so my current mythos that are mounted are on the rear walls. So one thought that I have is to make those the back surrounds and take the new Gem's and make them the side surrounds since they have stands. The only other option that I'm considering is to keep current surrounds as is and place the Gem Xl's near the fronts as Front presence.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

I hadn't thought of that, but when the new carpet was installed a couple years back, it wsa done quite tightly so I don't think this would be an option. I'll pull it up if necessary, but I was hoping to avoid having to do so. Thank you for the suggestion.

It depends on how paranoid you are. The science says that 16awg is good to 48 feet, and I went up to almost 45 feet with my 16awg runs. Most people would recommend 12awg just because there isn't much difference in price, but it's a lot easier to run 16awg than 12awg underneath carpet, so I went for the 16awg. I could have made the wires 30 feet long if I wanted, but I'd rather have some extra in case I reuse them in a different layout later on. I trust the science and don't expect any audible degradation in sound due to my decision, but others may feel differently.

I can definitely feel the wire underneath the carpet though and would suggest flat cables if you redo the wiring and have to go through a high traffic area. Mine are running along the walls so I didn't care to spend the extra money on flat cables.

Certainly 14 gauge or greater would be "best practice," but would you hear a "noticable difference" compared to your existing 16 gauge? Highly unlikely, especially for surrounds. I use a similar length of 16 gauge for my rears with no audible ill effects.

If a simple solution such as fquails suggested isn't feasible, I'd use your existing wire and wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

The thicker gauge will not attenuate higher frequencies as rapidly as the length of the wire is increased. It all depends on your hearing. Old coots like myself will never hear the difference, but you might.

True, but modern AVR's with room EQ tend to offset any loss, which isn't likely to be very great to begin with at 30-35 ft., and not especially critical with surrounds.

I don't mean to split hairs, but if you can't hear sounds above a certain frequency, no amount of EQ is going to matter.