For all D-Box enthusiasts ! - Page 168

Damn good picks.

I sent Dbox an email and asked for Tintin, and they responded that day saying that it would be added as a matter of priority.

I'd like to thank D-Box for seriously considering the input from their customers, specifically by changing course and adding Hugo, and by adding Tintin.

Thanks very much to the D-Box team.

I recommend you read the FAQ found in my sig to answer your questions.

Hi drvais,

That's DVDLobby. I actually started developing DVDLobby about 10 years ago thanks to feedback from AVS users. It can import DVDProfiler collections.

For new users of DBox like myself, it would be nice to cross reference all DBox movies with my own collection and automatically set it as a DBox title.

We could probably write something to do that.

Speaking of your (excellent) FAQ, I'm about a week away from hook up and I have some complicated runs. My BluRay player and Preamp is going to be a good 90 ft + cable run from my D-Box and Crowson boxes.

You only mention optical in your FAQ, but there is no reason I couldn't use coaxial as well right? Is there a preference from anyone on an optical or coaxial for a long run? I'm trying to avoid coverting something this critical to Cat5e, etc. and plan on using actual cables.

I still have to get my mind wrapped around how I am going to get line level LFE to the D-Box since all my amps are going to be using XLR balanced interconnects. That might be my next question here or to my dealer. My dealer is not going to be involved in the actual install.

Ok, so I'm interested in D-Box, however seeing that the thread is located in this section of AVS it has me wondering if I can truly afford it. That being said, it confuses me that it could be at the price point that I am now assuming it is at since it is integrated into Blu-ray dvds. I can't imagine that there could be more than 1000 households with this, assuming a certain price point. Is it cheaper than I think? I feel like there are more people with CIH setups than D-Box (at this price point) but there is nothing for CIH integrated into Blu-rays, so maybe I'm way out of the park with the price here. I know we can't talk about price on the forum, but is it appropriate for it to be in the $20k plus section? If so, are we talking per seat here or like a room full?

Ideally I would like to use one SRP-130 for a single recliner, two SRP-230s for two loveseats, and I could get by with the PC based controller, I'm guessing I would need the MCI 4P since I would be running 3 platforms. Will I need a second mortgage? Thanks!

-Sean

The SRP-130 and SRP-230 are the same thing with longer bars to fit love seats. The MSRP is about $8000 each and MCI is about $800? I may be off a bit. If you come in as cheap as I found, you should be able to come in just under $20k for all of that.

Ok, thanks for the info! Do you happen to know how far off of the chair the D-Box frame sticks out? Trying to figure out how close the seats can be to each other. Also, to pre-wire a room for this, its just cat5 right?

-Sean

The sides are not very big, less then 4" each side. I ran cat 5 for my install, no issues. You should be able to find the manuals to download on D-Box's site.

Hugo MFX is out!!

That was fast!

Yes, coaxial should work just fine. Come to think of it, on a slightly related note, I need to add a little blurb in my FAQ about the need for a ground loop isolator (GLI) when using the Sub In function on the 340C. As reported in this thread sometime ago, I used to have a horrible low rumble coming from my subs until I installed that GLI from Radio Shack.

Is this still an issue with the outboard platforms or has it been corrected? Trying to decide between D-Box Ready seats or the seats I actually want and the SRP platforms.

-Sean

I was never able to eliminate the sounds until I removed the actuators and installed everything into the D-Box ready seating myself. Others here have experienced the same sounds.

So you were able to modify an SRP platform into some D-Box Ready seats? Would this still be cheaper than buying D-Box Ready seats with actuators installed? Would you suggest the pre-installed route or the SRP platforms? I'd really like these seats from Elite Theater Seating, but they currently don't work with D-Box to make the ready style seats.

-Sean

One of my favorite horror films and favorite horror codings is The Ring as some of you may know. Well, Best Buy slipped out an exclusive Blu-ray release of that title today with little fanfare. D-Box fans of this movie should know that I promptly picked up a copy and sent it on to D-Box for a re-sync. Expect this re-sync to be up relatively soon.

Thanks, I was going to do the same but you beat me to it.

I also modified my SRP's but I put them in seats built for D-Box. If Elite has a style that they say won't work, then it may not. The task is not for the faint of heart. How often do you purchase over $10k in gear, and then proceed to void your warranty doing a procedure few others have with little to no documentation.

This is not an overnight project either. You need to make extension cords and custom brackets. You also need to cut down the platforms which is not reversible and technically will destroy their ability to work as designed.

Just giving partial instructions on how to disassemble the SRPs has cause another member’s housings to be ruined and he had to purchase a custom solution.

For me, I had no other choice. Either I got cost down or D-Box was a no go. My wife gave me a budget and required that we had at least 2 chairs with D-Box. Going the modified route, I saved $1755.50 per chair compared to the best quote my local dealer could offer me which was already fairly discounted off MSRP.

Just watched The Last Starfighter last night. I know it is an older movie, but it was neat to see in D-Box. Not a ton of MFX, but the "Death Blossom" scene was fun and worth mentioning.

Well, they don't say that they won't work, they just aren't partnered with D-Box making "D-Box Ready" seats. They are a custom company though, so maybe they could make them "D-Box Ready" it would just be a matter of finding schematics and sending them to Elite, and then who knows how much they would charge me for that. I guess there is no way to buy a "D-Box Ready" platform and install it yourself in "D-Box Ready" seats? I'm sure that would be cheaper than sending the seats to D-Box, paying for installation, and then shipping them back.

-Sean

I guess I did not scare you off then. Since you are still interested, I sent you a link (Via PM) to an unfinished document I started last summer on what to do. If you look at the last picture, you can see the cutouts where the actuators need to be installed. If Elite will customized these for you and is willing to add the Tee Nuts, you should be able to install the rest yourself. They also need to leave enough room in each arm to house the control hubs/boxes. I imagine Elite build very sturdy chairs, but from my understanding, D-Box chair partners add additional reinforcements to ensure the chair is D-Box Ready. You may ask Elite if they can do this or if they think the chair can stand the punishment.

I forgot that there is another option. This is one D-Box tried to persuade me to go and it would be very easy and would not void any warranties. You would simply provide Elite the dimensions of the SRPs and have them leave room in the armrests so the SRPs would slip in and “Hide” in the arm rests. This should dampen most or all of the noise and provide a very clean look.

The con here is that if you don't like it, the openings will be too big to allow you to try the custom route.

I imagine the closer the actuators are to eachother, the more movement, so inside the arms would be better than outside, right? What do you think the difference in performance would be from the SRP tucked into the arm vs the actuators themselves installed in the arms? All the same guts right? And was the sound elliminated if the plastic cover was removed? I feel like that is only there for advertisement and possibly keep dust off the internals, but if they're in the armrests then they are just as protected as they'd be in the plastic.

BTW, thanks for the file, I haven't looked it yet as my iPad couldn't open it, I'll check it out later.

-Sean

The file is a zipped (.zip) word doc. I don't think you will notice a difference in the motion (increase is a small fraction of an inch), but the logic is correct.

You may be able to keep the plastic on, but if you do take it off, let D-Box know 1st. Unfortunately, they have a tamperproof sticker on it that may void the warranty if you remove the plastic. Either way, with it hidden, my guess is that you will hear little to nothing and you can probably try some techniques normally uses for projector hush boxes on it.

The Ring and In the Valley of Elah are up.

Nice, thanks again.

Ahhhh....So we have another that is willing to try this madness! I love it!

In my case, I bought a Jaymar D-Box ready dual recliner, built my own brackets, and modified the SRP platform for my needs.

Although I gotta say, go with the Elite if they will let you. The Jaymar D-Box seat is one of the most uncomfortable pieces of furniture I own. It's horrible for my back. I REALLY wish there was a way to try this type of furniture before putting down thousands of dollars on it.

Chet, how is the new house? Your HT set up?

Love the new house. But, I've started a new business too and I have one day a week to go to church, spend time with the family and any honey-do's. I put shutters up on 17 different windows over the last few days so we FINALLY have window coverings.

I have also managed to hang the LCD screen up in the Master Bedroom and the 65" VT30 plasma in the Living Room. I have zero surround sound hooked up. I have zero D-Box hooked up. We did upgrade the house to Dish Network Hopper and two Joeys.

BUT, I just ordered the Panasonic PT-AE7000U 3D projector for the new Home Theater Room and I pre-wired the room for my surround sound, HDMI to the projector and RJ45 (for D-Box) prior to sheetrocking. In fact, last night, I even started drilling holes and pulling the pre-wires through the walls.

It has started, but I'm a LONG way before the Home Theater room is ready for viewing. I still need to figure out which screen I want to go with, build a platform for the D-Box seating, etc.

How exciting. Do you have an active thread I can visit? (not like you have time for one)