Official BIC Venturi Thread - Page 13

Cool pics man, thanks for sharing! Those 62CLRS's actually look pretty bad-ass mounted vertically...Yeah, my Onkyo 609 is THX Select2, so its certified for up to 2,500 sq ft, I think...my room is an open floor plan with the kitchen so it's pretty big, but my budget dictates I just try to match up with the Select2 THX specs, and not the Ultra2. These 52sis are perfect, as the Audessey crossed them over right at THX-approved 80hz.

One of my problems is finding good 52sis that aren't Adattos. Adattos are plastic and look horrible to me. I don't want anything to do with them. So I can either wait until more 52sis pop up on eBay or Craigslist, or I can just use these 52s as rear surrounds and buy a pair of 62sis for the surrounds. Problem with that is the bigger cabinets may result in my moving the couch out farther from the wall to give the port breathing room, which will allow my little ones to start running around back there again...
Edited by mfrey0118 - 8/28/12 at 5:20am

Ha...I haven't watched "The Last Starfighter" in years! "Greetings, Starfighter..."

One of Robert Preston's last films, IIRC. He was great in "Music Man".

Have you looked into the DV3 or DV5's?

http://bicamerica.com/showpage.php?brand=2&type=13&spkrID=58

http://bicamerica.com/showpage.php?brand=2&type=13&spkrID=59

They would work perfect for surrounds or rears. The DV5's are only $69 each at tigerdirect.

I’m looking for some advice. I have a pair of Athena AS-F1.2 using as fronts L/R. I’m finishing up a dedicated HT room (10 x 19), and want to get more speakers to complete the surround sound system. I really like how the AS-F1.2 sounds.
My problem however, is that Athena speakers are no longer available, so I can’t get matching speakers to go with what I have. Are BIC Venturi speakers a suitable fit for Athenas. I have to get, a center channel and 4 surrounds for a 7.1 setup (building a diy sub). My budget is limited ($450 - $500). I’m no audiophile, but is it a big deal if the rest of the speakers are not timbre matched with my Athenas. What would you guys recommend.

Thanks for the links.

Actually, I finally have all my speakers set, sans the sub.

Mains: DV64
Center: DV-62CLRS
Surrounds: DV62si (on stands)
Rear Surrounds: DV52si (wall mounted, discontinued box version, not Adatto)

Wow! My upgrade is one purchase shy of completion! I just got the DV62s Tuesday evening and hooked them up yesterday. Running them with xover set to 40hz during break in period. After that, I'll let Audessey run and then probably manually set everything to 60 or 80hz.

Everything sounds so much better now! I am very impressed with these Venturi drivers. And that's not even taking into account future mods...

I set Pandora on my AVR to my Mozart channel, set the listening mode to All Channel Stereo and just bask in all my newfound quality sound goodness.

I think the timbre matching of going all BIC, all DV series, with same impedence and sensitivity really makes a substantial difference in sound quality and volume. My speakers sound so much fuller and louder at lower volumes now. Before, with the Onkyo drivers, I set the AVR to turn on at volume 38 and you could barely hear anything. Now, I have to turn it down to like 30 in the morning when I wake up and get my coffee and turn on my classical music (I save the heavy stuff for afternoons/evenings).

I'm thinking about getting either the DV-84 or DV-64 as you did.I'm afraid the midrange may not be bright enough with the 8" speaker? Anyone have any thoughts on this.

Dave1027,

I am a click away from purchasing the DV62si. I am planning to use them as the rear for my 5.1 setup. My current set up is infinty betas in the front (LCR) with a hsu sub. I will be adding the dv62si as the rear speakers. My use split is 75 DVD & 25 music.

What is your opinion of the DV62si as the rear speakers with the betas in the front. How would modded DV62si change and/or impact my 5.1 set up? In one of your comments in this thread, you mentioned that the modded DV62si killed your infinitys. Hence, the question.

Much appreciation for any input you may provide.
Edited by audio-newbie - 10/5/12 at 5:59pm

Hi Audio-newbie,

My experience with DV62si and my old Infinitys RS3000s was the BICs were seriously more clear sounding. After spending just a few hours with the BICs I knew I could never switch back to the Infinitys. This is the reason the BICs are an excellent choice for surrounds, their exceptional clarity.

The intention of my mod is to contour the sound so the DV62si's work better as mains for music listening. It enhances the bass, mids and tames the highs. It also enhances the clarity even more than stock which is already good. So the important choice to make when considering modding is that if you are using the DV62si mostly as HT surrounds can you live with less highs? I don't use my BICs for HT so it's a non-issue for me. I find that a properly modded set of DV62si makes an excellent soundstage for music.

Dave1027,

Thanks for the quick reply to my questions.

While I am ready to purchase the DV62si, BIC's FH-65B caught my eyes. Have you had any experience with the FH-65B?

And how is the mod to DV62si done? Based on your reply, I will let the speaker burn thru and then determine if I REALLY want the mods.

Search out Ed Frias in this forum, he is a custom speaker maker that does crossover mods with the 6" venturi line, his opinion is that the 8" speakers lack in the midrange department. I have two sets of DV62si's, one with his mod and one w/o, the later is hooked up to my sons stereo (he is not nearly as critical a listener as I) I don't have any of the BIC towers to compare them with but I do have a set of Athena 8" towers and can say that the midrange is MUCH better with the 6" bookshelf's than with the two way 8" Athena's. I am considering buying the DV-64 towers or the DV62clr-s's for my sons system, and when I do I will be sending Mr. Frias both sets of crossovers to have them done.

I have never heard the FH-65B.

The DV62si mod I designed is a two part process. A crossover mod where it's components are replaced and a cabinet damping mod because the crossover mod increases the bass output quite a bit.

The important thing to consider about the DV62si's is that BIC designed them to be used as HT surrounds and that is why they need modification when used as mains for music listening. HT surrounds normally only play ambient sounds and that is why the stock DV62si's have a pronounced output in the high frequencies. It's the high frequencies that HT surrounds mainly need to reproduce.
Edited by Dave1027 - 10/7/12 at 8:07am

Don't you think the Ed modded DV62si's are muffled and tunnellish sounding? I've had to redo quite a number that he did for that reason, including mine. That's how I got started. Basically, his mod is not that good. Sure, it reduces the tweeter output and increases the bass but totally screws up the mids.

I have since upgraded a couple of times, I am now currently using Martin Logan Motion 12's and JBL 880's for music / HT duty, the DV62's have been delegated to my workshop for stereo listening w/o a sub. I am in the middle of rearranging my listening room currently and have just purchased a new Pioneer SC 1222K as an upgrade for 3D, when I get it hooked up this week I will compare them all against each other and see if I can pick up what you are pointing out and report back.

I pulled the trigger on the FH-6T towers and the FH6-LCR center.I have them for 3 days now and couldn't be happier.The horns are fine not too overpowering.

Received the DV62si last week and hook it up to a receiver. Initially, not much to be impressed...bright highs with no bass to speak of...Maybe the highs are more pronounced due to non-existent bass???

Then I hooked up my HSU sub with the DV62si....:eek:WOW....:eek:WOW.....:eek:WOW...OMG it sounds so awesome. I am speechless. The sub and DV62 combo sounded just as good as, if not better than, my infiniti betas. Move over big name speakers, these little gems can kick some a**.

Yes, the highs may seem bit bright but definitely not harsh. I put the speakers thru an array of music samples...symphony, rock, jazz, etc. It sounded so awesome....definitely 5 stars. And the price. THIS IS DEFINITELY A NO BRAINER if you are contemplating a buy of this speaker.

I am sure the DV62si will sound much much better after the burn thru period.....can't wait:D

And thanks to Dave1027 for his insight into these speakers. It really helped me in deciding to buy these gems.

I would dedicate the Athenas F1's to music only duty with a warm amp receiver because the AS-F1's overpower the AS-C1 center in a HT setting. The little center simply can't keep up with the larger floor standers (dialog is less clear). I separated my 7.1 into a 5.1 and have the F1's on a Fisher 400 (tubes) and they're great. It's too bad about Athena going away from the Klipsch buy-out and re-org. They were good speakers.

I have set up 2 HT's. One full 7.1 BIC in the family room (DV62si's all around with a DV62CLRs center + Fathom F112 sub), and in the bedroom, all Athenas (5.1, AS-B2's all around with AS-C1 Center + CW CLS15s sub). The bookshelf speakers are a better match for that Athena center. The dialog is much clearer now.

I would say that the HT sounds only as good as the sub you plan to use for bass (low-mid).

With the F112's stellar performance, all I get is clarity from the BIC's. The Athenas have less clarity, because the sounds are all muddied up from the flabby CW sub.

I'm still happy with my BIC setup.

I just came across this thread. My first pair of speakers were a set of BIC Venturi's Formula 1's back in 1975, hooked up to a Marantz 2235. Is there anyone here with an earlier BIC experience?

hey just looking for advice i am new to this i to have bic speakers everyone says there cheap,,, all i can afford but they sound ok to me anyway i dv-84,s in front 62,s in rear going to buy new processor from emotiva running a motiva xpa-5 amp have a 5.1 ystem going to make it a 7.1 i listen to more music but yet i still want something good for movies etc... thinking about moving the 84,s to the rear and getting something for the front dv- 84,s or what just looking for ideas,,, also going to add a pl-200 sub for the rear i have a f-12 thanks for any ideas it,s sometimes good to get advice from someone who is not trying to sell you something ,,, thanks again

So you have 84's in the front and 62's in the rear. What is your center channel? If you have a 62clrs or an 84 as your center, I dont really think there's much in the BIC lineup that could improve your setup. I guess you could replace your rears with 64 or 84 towers, or possibly switch the rears to the DV5's to get more dispersion from the surround speakers, but the 62's should be performing well in the surround role.

If you are going to upgrade your subwoofer, I would look into some of the internet only brands like SVS, HSU, etc. They provide a much better value for the money with volume and accuracy.

Your emotiva processor and amp are top notch too, so not much that will help you in that department.

Thats really all I have to offer for advice. You have a pretty top notch BIC setup. If you are looking for real improvements, I think you will have to spend a bunch of money.

I am considering purchasing DV84's for use in my living room 2-channel setup (60%music/40%movies). Are there any owners here that can give me their insight on the overall performance of the towers? I think I would enjoy the extra bit of low-end they have...Thanks!

I'm considering upgrading my center channel but have a few concerns. My basement is not laid out the best, my 2 fronts are only about 4feet apart. I currently have an older Energy Take 5 center that does not match my front paradigm cinema phantoms. I wanted to add the DV62CLS but now think it might be a bad match for my front that have 5 1/2 inch woofers. The 62 has 6 1/2 and seams huge - although I do have the space between the front for it. To me it might be too much in a space that's too small? The DV52 is an option - not that it's much smaller.

So the main issues are 1) the DV62 not matching the Paradigms and 2) the overall size of the DV62 and the lack of separation between the fronts and the 20" wide DV62.

Am I being overly concerned?

First off, it is highly recommended to match your center channel to your towers. I never thought it would make a big difference until I had a matching setup. You want to match the timbre of the front three to create a seamless transition from left to center to right, and vice versa. Its better to have matching surrounds as well, but definitely not as critical. The optimal option though would be to get a third cinema phantom tower and place it in the middle if your setup allows it.

For your phantoms, it looks like the cinema 220 might be the best match for you in a center channel. Theres one on ebay right now for $185.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Paradigm-Cinema-220-V-3-Speaker-Black-Limited-Supply-/250932720436

The lack of separation wont make one center channel preferred over another. Its the type of drivers, crossovers, materials, etc that make the bigger difference in the matching. That being said, if you had a choice between a cinema phantom center with 5.5" or 6.5" drivers, I would probably take the 5.5" to match.

Personally, I would call paradigm and see what center channel will match best with your phantoms and see what they say.

Good luck with your search.

I have a question about the passive drivers on the DV64 and DV84. Are they actual passive radiators (meaning just a cone and the skeleton of the basket) or do they have the magnet assembly still?

Does anyone know how to contact ed frias at efe technology about a bic dv62clr crossover mod?

No....but I know how to contact Dave1027 on these forums who does a superior mod......IMO of course.

Start reading on page 10 of this thread to learn more about Dave's mod.

Also, what is the reason you are looking to modify the speakers? What is it you dont like about them stock?

SO I found a deal for a BIC America DV32CLR Center Channel Speaker and a pair of DV62 bookshelf speakers. Apparently they have has the Ed Friars crossover mod. How do I know for sure that they have this mod? Something I can see upon inspection of them? I am getting all three speakers for about $80. Good deal? (That is if they work fine) Apparently he is throwing in two random JBL surrounds as well. I honestly don't care about the surrounds though. I have some at home I would rather use. The center speaker I don't believe received the Ed Friar crossover, but I could be wrong.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I usually don't buy used speakers and have never owned BIC before
Edited by IslandStylin - 2/18/13 at 2:17pm

$80 is a great price for those speakers. Ive never heard the ed frias mod but supposedly its better than stock. I dont think theres any way to visually tell if they have been modded without opening the speaker since the crossover is inside the speaker.

The dv3 center might be a bit undersized. Personally i would pick up the full set and sell the center and the jbls. Buy a dv62clrs ($105 on amazon) or dv52clrs ($65 on amazon) and send the crossovers of the dv62sis and the center to dave1027. Read the last few pages of this thread to read more about his crossover mods.
Edited by kgallerie - 2/19/13 at 9:37am

Edited by c_nitty - 2/22/13 at 8:33pm

I like them just hear with the mods they sound better. Will the mod hurt the HT sound?

I can tell you if they have been modded by Ed if you post a pic of the crossover.