Definitive Technology Mythos Series Thread - Page 104

That looks like a nice AVR. As I do have other Pioneer products this might be an option. Any big differences between the 05 and the newer models they now have?

The 35 and 37 have Marvell processors and are 3D capable. I believe those are the biggest differences.

Sorry, meant the difference between the SC05, SC07, and the SC09.

I'm running Mythos ST's and a 10 (3.0 set-up for now) along with the Pioneer Elite SC-05.

Thats 2 for the SC-05! Anybody else?

I wouldn't pick an AVR based on what works "well" with the STS's. You will always find people that say they work better with X AVR over Y. Plus, you may move to separates in the future.

The STS's are pretty efficient (93dB at 1 watt), so whatever you pick will probably be fine as long as its output is decent.

I would instead pick an AVR based on what features you want. I run a 5.1 setup with two STS's, a Denon AVR-3311CI, and an Emotiva XPA-5. I chose the Denon over a Pioneer Elite because:

- The Denon was slightly cheaper, and available everywhere. Pioneer Elites are not sold online from authorized dealers. The only place close I could have gotten one was Best Buy Magnolia.

- The Denon has Dynamic Volume (not to be confused with Dynamic EQ or THX Loudness Plus), for which Pioneer has no equivalent.

- Audyssey MultiEQ XT does subwoofer calibration unlike MCACC.

- The Denon has user upgradeable firmware unlike the Pioneer.

- The Denon has on-screen volume and menu overlay.

- The Denon was shallower and fit better in my console.

Yes, I have had an 05 since they came out, great receiver, finally hooked it up to my Lan and IE radio is pretty cool. The 05 use to power my Rockets, but now they are making my Def Tech combo of Mythos Two's, Pro Center 1000 and UIW55's sing, the ICE amps are really, really great. Everything sounds great, was really surprise with the 55's when I played some SACD's.

Thanks for all the reply's. I will look more into the different features of AVRs and separate components also crossed my mind. Thanks to everyone for the help!

I use an Integra DTR 7.8. Onkyo/Integra match very well with definitive speakers. IMHO, I don't think you can go wrong with Denon, Pioneer, or Onkyo/Integra paired with DT speakers. If you get the chance, definitely demo the avr with similar speakers that you have. I personally think some AVR's can make the aluminum tweeters sound overly bright so be careful. Otherwise - your speakers are very sensitive and don't require lots of power. Good luck with your choice!

On another note- I am in the middle of setting up my new basement HT. It will include Mythos ST's up front, Ten center, BPX's for side surrounds, Mythos 4's for rear surrounds and 2 SC References. I recently added the BPX's and the additional sub. After speaking with Chet at Definitive about the best mountable bi-polar match for the ST's (gem xl vs bp line) he recommended the bp line. I can't wait to hear the result. I have about a week before I can finish the setup. Can't wait!

Very true, when I turn off the MCACC on my Pio, the Def Techs sound brighter.

Chet is a good guy, he answered all my questions when I was putting my system together, and answered them in a timely manner. Wish I could have gone with full size Mythos, but my space just does not allow it.

I had a Denon that I loved (and older model from when they were still made in Japan and weighed 40 lbs). When I upgraded my theater last spring, I wanted to get a new Denon, but after many auditions, I just didn't like the sound or build quality.

I auditioned the Elite SC-25 and fell in love with the sound and build quality/heft. Bought it online (with full warranty) to power my ST's and a 10 up front with SM450's in the back.

Couldn't be more pleased.

Thanks for all the replies! Im kind of leaning towards the Pioneer Elite brands but the research continues. Ebay has the SC25 for just under a grand but still researching the differences between the SC05, SC07, SC09, SC25, and the SC27. Kind of hard since I don't have a computer at home and have to do this from work!

I believe the Pioneer Elite AVR threads on this board have the comparisons. Try there.

Does anyone use a NAD AVR with their DefTech speakers? I came across the NAD T785 which looks very promising.

So I picked up the Pioneer VSX 33 today and am currently playing around with the settings on the AVR. Im going to try and audition as many different brands of AVRs as I can before making a definitive choice. Anyone on here that is using just 2 front Definitive Technology STS speakers and a VSX 33? I would appreciate if anyone could share their AVR setting with me so I have some sort of starting point. Thanks everyone!

+1

I looked at switching to a T785HD, but I never had a good reason to give up on my Denon 4310CI. Of course, for the Mythos line, the AVR isn't _that_ important. They are incredibly sensitive so they aren't very demanding of the amplifiers. The room correction software will make a difference, but that has little to do with what speakers are attached. Pick the AVR that meets your feature needs and preferences and you'll be set.

Set the X-over to the Def Tech recommendation and run MCACC. Then play with the different MCACC calibrations (all/front stage) and turn it on and off as well as turning the phase control off and on, see how you like and which you prefer.

Once again, thanks to everyone who replied!

Well, I was looking at the bigger def techs, among other brands, until the girlfriend saw both the size and price of them.

Now she's set on getting smaller, less obtrusive speakers, which some of the mythos speakers fit the bill.

With the mythos five silvers on sale, they look like they will meet her requirements.

Assuming we pick them up, any recommendations for center and sub? Again, take into consideration price and size. We live on the top floor of a house/condo but do want to take our neighbors into consideration. We're going to be using speakercraft aim 7 two's for rear surrounds (ceiling is only option).

thanks

Sub suggestion...

I have 4 Mythos Ones and a Mythos Eight.

I got an Outlaw sub to go with them, which coincidentally happens to be on sale as we speak, with a discount and free shipping.

Am I the only one who thinks the new CS-8080HD would be a better center for the ST's than the Mythos 10?

2 x 5.25" mids, plus a 300 watt powered 5x10 with 2 5x10prs, sounds like a good match to me, in a not as wide package.

I suppose that would depend on where you plan to put it. It may be less wide, but at 14" deep wall mounting and on the shelf in front of the tv are probably both out of the question. If it's going in the A/V rack under the tv it may be better though.

The SR-8080BP could be an interesting alternative to the GemXL as well, and it's even priced the same.

Look through this thread and the Audyssey thread for some notes about troubles I (and a few others) have had getting Audyssey on the Denon receivers (3808 for me) to play nice with the Mythos STS (and Mythos 9 for my center).

Haven't been blown away with this set up - although it did get a lot better when I used a Pioneer MCACC microphone to run the Audyssey setup on my system (previously the 9 sounded way to harsh and bright). I was going to borrow a Pioneer SC07 from a friend of mine to see how that sounded but I haven't had time in the last six months since the little one came along.

I know of at least one person on this thread who switched to a Pioneer Elite receiver from a 3808 and was blown away by the difference on his Mythos setup...

I was desperately hoping that the new Pioneers would have HDMI overlay for volume control but that's not the case... although the 37 has an RF remote that shows volume (still not the best match for me since I have a Harmony 890 remote that I use to control the Denon receiver in another room).

I traded in the VSX 33 for the Denon 3311 CI but have not setup it up yet and tried it out. I was also not "blown away" by the setup (using the Pioneer) What issues are you seeing with the Denon AVRs exactly? Im also curious in seeing what the higher end Pioneers can do (ones with the ICE amps) as a few people here are using them and seem to have a good experience with the DefTech STs, STSs. I emailed Def Tech a while ago and even though they stated they really couldn't give out an "official" recommendation the rep stated they use Onkyo at the office and at home the Marantz, NAD, Adcom and Onkyo AVRs.

I don't think my issues are with the Denon receiver and amp per se, but rather with the Audyssey auto-configuration, especially with the center channel. I spent many hours with just about every trick I could try to get it to come up with a realistic EQ curve, but nothing I did came anywhere close until I tried a different microphone (from a Pioneer) which made it tolerable. The Left-Right (STS) with the EQ turned off sounds very nice when listening to music, but unfortunately the majority of use for me is movies.

I've also updated the firmware... purchased the Feature Pack... I've done everything short of shelling out $500 for a professional to come in and do an Audyssey Pro calibration - which just plain sucks since the whole concept of Audyssey is that it's supposed to be automatic...

I know the speakers can sound awesome - and from the sounds of it a Pioneer with ICE amps with some decent MCACC (or MACC or whatever) configuration would work better for me. But not worth it at this point in time for me to shell out $1500+ and give up HDMI volume display...

Here are a couple of posts of mine with some more details of my issues - note that for a while I thought I might have had a bad amp on the center channel of my Denon... but that was because I didn't understand how 5-channel stereo worked. That possible issue has now been elminated.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...=#post18626537

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...=#post18234505

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...=#post17821377

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...=#post17821476

I'm so confused! I have the nine with STS and Denon 3310. Very disappointed in center channel, find it muddy and dull for movie dialogue as well as TV. Ran Audyssey, changed settings, etc. Any suggestions to get from my muddy to your bright?

Thanks for the links SpedInFargo. Now I'm questioning whether or not I should get the Mythos 9 as a center channel. Maybe the new CS8060HD from DefTech? I did get a chance to setup the Denon 3311 today and cant really hear a difference between that and the previous Pioneer I had. I'm thinking of just getting the Pioneer SC35, calibrate the room, and be done with it. Mythos 9 should be a non issue that way.