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Official Anthony Gallo Owners Thread - Page 88

post #2611 of 2742
1/10/13 at 10:14am
Quote:
Anyone have any experience with whether the Strada wall mounts offer enough flexibility to aim the speaker towards the listening position if ceiling mounted?

I have 5 Stradas. 2 are on the tall floor stands. I ordered those 2 speakers with the wall mounts which I never used (since I mounted the speakers to the floor stands). I'll open the boxes for the wall mounts and report back on whether they are flexible enough for ceiling mounting the Stradas.


Also, has anyone heard the Strada 2 yet? The 6 Moons review focused too much on desk mounting configuration and left me wondering if there is really any notable difference versus the original Strada in a non-nearfield environment.
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post #2612 of 2742
1/10/13 at 1:34pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Encom Tron View Post

I'll open the boxes for the wall mounts and report back on whether they are flexible enough for ceiling mounting the Stradas.

Thanks, really appreciate that. I may have a small advantage because I have exposed (painted) beams on my ceiling. If I mount to the bottom of the beam, I should have some more clearance for the top of the Strada. My ceiling looks a bit like this:

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post #2613 of 2742
1/10/13 at 3:49pm
Quote:

tronic307



I listen to more Psychedelic Chill-out, Jazz/ Acoustic, Electro and Dub-step than Trance, but Trance on a multi-channel Gallo setup lives up to its name, with startling dynamics and a boundless, reverberant, holographic surround sound stage. Gallo speakers, barring the Reference 5LS, just don't go stupid loud, (above Dolby Reference Level) so the more channels you have, the more relaxed they will sound, so long as you're not a strict stereophile for music. You might be able to squeeze 11.2 channels into that budget and space; I'd go for at least 9.2, (7.2+ height) so a flagship 11.2 channel pre-amp with Audyssey XT32 like the Marantz AV8801 is in order. Audyssey can fill the upper midrange dip on these, at the expense of some ultimate headroom. The Strada 2 are reportedly now 3dB more sensitive, a welcome asset in a larger listening environment. If you want height speakers, consider vertically oriented Strada Centers for better vertical dispersion, unless your listening area will be very wide. A boomy sub with tuneless, overly rounded mid-bass will immediately call the wrong kind of attention to itself with Gallo speakers, so I like the Strada paired with Rythmik DirectServo Subs which are very clean, quick and smart; you can "see" into the bass like you can on the Reference 3.5. They never sound thick, they make it seem as if my mains have suddenly developed well extended bass, more like great headphone bass than a sub, they have musical midbass (important for Gallo speaker integration) and are -2dB @ 14Hz. One Rythmik F15HP can attain Dolby Reference Level, but you'll probably need at least two to really control that listening room and reserve the option to cross the Stradas high, (120Hz+) bypassing the sub's crossover, as these speakers don't have very much output below 100Hz. If you want a slightly thicker sounding sub, check out the ported Rythmik FV15HP or sealed Seaton Submersive. Two Submersives will absolutely threaten your foundation, yet still deliver tight, percussive, tactile bass.
Stradas are rated at 150W, likely so as not to offend potential customers with AV receivers, but they have been known to send a 145W per channel THX Ultra2 rated AV receiver into protect mode at anything over 100dB so get at least 250W for the surround/ wide/ height and 500W for the mains, the front three, the main five or even all channels. You could get two pairs of Reference 3.5 for L,R,RS,LS and couple those with 1KW monoblocks or a 500Wx4 multi-channel amp, powering the remaining Strada channels with a 500 or 250Wx7. Anthony Gallo prefers Spectron Class D amps for their pristine, powerful sound, but a Spectron multi-channel amp would blow half your budget. Class D works well with Gallo speakers, so I'd go with D-Sonic M2 amps, which are available in up to 7 channels, communicate dynamic, naturally open sonics, and represent a great bargain.
This stuff is going to pull like 80 Amps, so some electrical upgrades might be wise. You might also want at least one of these.

Hi Tronic307 -

Thanks for the advice. I can tell you from your reply you really understand the uniqueness of the Psychedelic Trance music and what set up might suit it. And the suggestions you have (Plus everyone else on this forum) are very helpful - actually, they are another dimension beyond what I currently know about audio systems. But everyone who loves music should learn.

I am going to take your suggestion and go with a 9.2. and the two subs. I can't wait. I may need to get more guidance from you. Would you mind communicating directly with me? My email is jackierogersjr@hotmail.com

Many Thanks!


Jack
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post #2614 of 2742
1/10/13 at 3:51pm
vishal -

I opened one of the boxes and the wall mounts can swivel the Strada left and right as well as point the speaker up and down (when mounted on the wall). The instructions do mention ceiling mounting and it appears to me that they would work fine in your situation. If you would be interested in viewing the assembly directions, let me know and I will send them to you via PM.

You may want to consider contacting Gallo Accoustics to make sure that the mounting bracket will work the way you want it to. I didn't actually assemble the bracket so I don't have measurements as to how far the brackets can swivel but my guess is that it's pretty far.

I'd like to mention also that you would likely get improved bass from the speakers due to the boundry reinforcement from the ceiling using your proposed setup. By the way, the painted exposed beams look really cool in your room.
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post #2615 of 2742
1/10/13 at 9:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by macuniverse View Post

AG TR-3 (the original, not TR-3D) subwoofer and Strada speaker users. How would you rate the performance of your TR-3 Sub for music and HT?

Any recommendations for better musical subs?

I realise there is a separate AVS SubW forum but I'm more interested in TR3 + Strada experience rather than different speakers.

Thanks

Anyone?
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post #2616 of 2742
1/10/13 at 10:27pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Encom Tron View Post

vishal -

I opened one of the boxes and the wall mounts can swivel the Strada left and right as well as point the speaker up and down (when mounted on the wall). The instructions do mention ceiling mounting and it appears to me that they would work fine in your situation. If you would be interested in viewing the assembly directions, let me know and I will send them to you via PM.

You may want to consider contacting Gallo Accoustics to make sure that the mounting bracket will work the way you want it to. I didn't actually assemble the bracket so I don't have measurements as to how far the brackets can swivel but my guess is that it's pretty far.

I'd like to mention also that you would likely get improved bass from the speakers due to the boundry reinforcement from the ceiling using your proposed setup. By the way, the painted exposed beams look really cool in your room.

Thanks very much for your help. Very much appreciated.
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post #2617 of 2742
1/11/13 at 11:13am
Would the Classico CL-3/CL-C be an upgrade over what I currently have. MartinLogan Mosaic L/R and ML Fresco Center. These speakers are hybrids with Advanced Thin Film tweeter and midrange drivers with an 8" aluminum cone woofer. This is a dedicated HT room used 50/50 for movies and critical listening. The Mosaic provide a dipole radiation so provides a very wide/clean soundstage.

I am also considering B&W CM8s and MartinLogan Motion 40s but the reviews and folks opinions seem to favor the Classico CL-3 and compare them to much higher priced well-regarded speakers. Here are the specs for the Martin Logan Mosaic if it will help. Currently driving them with an Emotiva UMC-200/UPA-500 Amp which is a 80wX5 channel amp. I have upgraditus and want to improve my sound in the theater room and then replace my Monitor Audio Radius 225 Floor Standing speakers in the family room with what is in the theater room currently.

Frequency Response
46–20,000 Hz ±3dB

High Frequency Transducer
1.5" × 2.25" (3.8 × 5.7 cm) ATF™ Transducer

Mid Frequency Transducer
1.5" × 6" (3.8 × 15.2 cm) ATF™ Transducer

Low Frequency Transducer
8" (20.3cm) high excursion, high rigidity aluminum cone with extended throw drive assembly, non-resonance asymmetrical chamber format; bass reflex

Sensitivity
90 dB/2.83 volts/meter

Impedance
5 Ohms. Compatible with 4, 6, or 8 Ohm rated amplifiers.

Recommended Amplifier Power
20‒350 watts per channel

Crossover Frequency
450, 3000 Hz

Components
Air core coils, metal film and low dissipation electrolytic capacitors

Dimensions
40" × 9.44" × 11.69"
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post #2618 of 2742
1/11/13 at 4:55pm
I will ask one more question here since it's up for debate elsewhere on the forum and probably warrants some experimentation on my part.

Since my room is only 13 feet wide and I sit 16 feet from the display (19 foot long room), how much benefit would I expect from widths over heights? I would need to place the widths on the side wall since the fronts will be 10-12 feet apart on the front wall in order to maintain the desired 22-30 degree angle.

As I mentioned earlier, in order to do heights, I could either place them all the way at the top of the front wall (8 foot high ceilings), or move them out into the room further and mount on the ceiling in order to get as close to the 45 degree vertical angle as recommended by both Dolby and Audyssey.

Anyone else experimented with widths/heights with either the Stradas or any other speaker?
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post #2619 of 2742
1/12/13 at 4:36am
Hiya there,
I think I will not be of a lot of help, but anyway I would like to add this in relation to the Anthony Gallo Reference 3.5 speakers and their placement. I just experimented with my speakers and I have to say that placement is very crucial for them. Also very crucial is how the speakers are toed in. I tried many different placements and configurations and I found that there is no unique recipe for placement as it totally depends on the shape of the room, furniture in the room, dimension, height, how much stuff you have in. Also hi-fi equipment is a reason to do some changes in placement as I usually need to find a bit different place if I change or add some new electronics in the system. Today I just played again a little (still listening) and I found out that for my configuration speakers are practically not toed in at all. Maybe just a small degree. For the moment this is the best configuration for nicely opened musical picture, receiving a very good stage dimensionality and very good vocals which are just floating in front of me. What is interesting is that I have the feeling that sound is coming from everywhere and not from the speakers. I think that this is a good achievement.

best, d.
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post #2620 of 2742
1/20/13 at 9:19am
Is there any place to buy some reasonably priced stand for gallo 3.1's? I've had my 3.1's for 4 years now but my 3 year old boy is surely to knock them down at any time and I don't want him to get hurt. The default spikes and spike discs are to wobbly. I've looked around but cannot find a place that sells them and I much prefer they be in black
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post #2621 of 2742
1/20/13 at 5:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by swanlee View Post

Is there any place to buy some reasonably priced stand for gallo 3.1's? I've had my 3.1's for 4 years now but my 3 year old boy is surely to knock them down at any time and I don't want him to get hurt. The default spikes and spike discs are to wobbly. I've looked around but cannot find a place that sells them and I much prefer they be in black

Have you looked at Soundcity outriggers?

Another option - http://www.aandmcustomsteelspeakerstands.com/

No experience with either, but I'm thinking of the custom place for a little project.
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post #2622 of 2742
1/20/13 at 5:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fjames View Post

Have you looked at Soundcity outriggers?

Another option - http://www.aandmcustomsteelspeakerstands.com/

No experience with either, but I'm thinking of the custom place for a little project.

The soundcity ones look like a viable option, any tips on whihc model works bets for the Gallo 3.1's?
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post #2623 of 2742
1/20/13 at 5:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by swanlee View Post

The soundcity ones look like a viable option, any tips on whihc model works bets for the Gallo 3.1's?

No, I just keep up with this thread because I'm considering the CL. They've got all the info you need on the site though, or mail them.

I'd check with Gallo since you have to drill the bottom of the speaker to install them.
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post #2624 of 2742
1/20/13 at 5:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fjames View Post

No, I just keep up with this thread because I'm considering the CL. They've got all the info you need on the site though, or mail them.

I'd check with Gallo since you have to drill the bottom of the speaker to install them.

Why would I have to drill? The Gallo's have bolt holes in the bottom, I have the gallo spikes and the discs in them now, just need something that extends out to give them more ballance.
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post #2625 of 2742
1/20/13 at 10:16pm
Any classico 3 or 4 owners tried running them with hi pass and a sub. Thinking about getting a Emotiva XSP-1 that has dual sub outs and base management for a killer 2.2 system that would have the heavy base for movie watching as well. My CL-4 go down to 26hz but would like to have the extra power with a pair of CL-10's. Any idea at where you would cross them over?
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post #2626 of 2742
1/21/13 at 4:11am
I have CL4's and have them crossed at 80hz. When I run Audyssey, it detects them as small. I have them pulled out from the front wall almost 3 feet, so they don't get much bass reinforcement. My CL4's are set-up for better imaging rather than bass reinforcement.
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post #2627 of 2742
1/21/13 at 1:37pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by trekker View Post

I have CL4's and have them crossed at 80hz. When I run Audyssey, it detects them as small. I have them pulled out from the front wall almost 3 feet, so they don't get much bass reinforcement. My CL4's are set-up for better imaging rather than bass reinforcement.

Where does Audyssey put your xover? Your placement is similar to what mine would be.
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post #2628 of 2742
1/21/13 at 1:38pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by swanlee View Post

Why would I have to drill? The Gallo's have bolt holes in the bottom, I have the gallo spikes and the discs in them now, just need something that extends out to give them more ballance.

I'm just looking at their installation instructions - a specific diameter and depth hole to be drilled.
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post #2629 of 2742
1/21/13 at 4:08pm
Audyssey puts my CL-4's ~100Hz or so. I didn't want the xo too high. The next time I run Audyssey, I may just leave the xo's alone.
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post #2630 of 2742
1/22/13 at 2:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by vishal View Post

I will ask one more question here since it's up for debate elsewhere on the forum and probably warrants some experimentation on my part.

Since my room is only 13 feet wide and I sit 16 feet from the display (19 foot long room), how much benefit would I expect from widths over heights? I would need to place the widths on the side wall since the fronts will be 10-12 feet apart on the front wall in order to maintain the desired 22-30 degree angle.

As I mentioned earlier, in order to do heights, I could either place them all the way at the top of the front wall (8 foot high ceilings), or move them out into the room further and mount on the ceiling in order to get as close to the 45 degree vertical angle as recommended by both Dolby and Audyssey.

Anyone else experimented with widths/heights with either the Stradas or any other speaker?
You can put wides on the side wall; they may add more volume to the front soundstage there. Just try to keep them as close to the front of the room as possible. If you place them too far to the rear they might start functioning as 'front surrounds'. Wides will help alleviate the vagueness in localization of sounds that are positioned between the fronts and their corresponding surrounds, but may shift the balance too far forward if there are only two rear speakers. Height speakers are nice to have, but are not 100% necessary; 4 channel ambisonic playback can have a very tangible height image.
For the best phantom height image:
1. Avoid toe-in; a speaker aimed directly at your ear will telegraph its exact location. The Strada manual shows the speakers extremely toed in, possibly to minimize side reflections, but having the woofer's dustcaps aimed right at your face won't exactly allow the speakers to 'vanish'.
2. No toe-out either; the center image collapses.
3. Side surround speakers should be the aimed at each other, not your head.
4. Keep surround speakers low: High surround speakers shift the phantom height image forward, ruining it. (Picture a hemispherical soundfield anchored by L,R,RS,LS with the phantom height image centered at the north pole)
5. Try to get all the speakers as close to equal distance from the listening position as possible. (No wallcouch!)

That gives you two reasons to move closer to the display; according to both SMPTE and THX, at 16 feet you would be further than optimal from even an 84" display. eek.gif
But to address your question: In a narrow room (and mine is) I'd go with 7.1+ height for 9.1 channels. I might even go with 5.1+ height because height speakers are cool.cool.gif
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post #2631 of 2742
1/22/13 at 10:05am
just something to share... I purchased the 5LS mostly due to the positive comments from other users in this thread! Thanks for all of the contributions!

My previous set of speakers were Ref 3.0. Obviously jumping from 3.0 to 5LS is a significant upgrade; furthermore, it is my very first experience with line source speakers, which are quite rare in the market.

5LS is definitely a lot harder to set up than the 3.0, and requires very demanding audio equipments, which I was not expecting. Now I am seriously considering to Bi-amp it with another set of nCore400.

I am only using the 5LS for music play back, thus I cannot comment how well it performs with movies or with AV receivers. But I can imagine you will need some very powerful class A amps to drive it properly, especially for the bass woofers. It has a relatively high sensitivity but somehow it is irrelevant. My friend has warned me line source speakers requires very high end/professional set ups to drive them properly (and often times those equipments will cost a few times more than the speakers), I guess I do understand now. Positioning the speakers is the most challenging/frustrating part - even a few mm of turning will affect the imaging greatly.

The major differences between 3.0 and 5LS are imaging, accurate positing, separation between instruments in orchestra music or live recordings, and very dynamic type of sound. The bass quantity is less than the 3.0-3.5, but it has a hell lot more details/layers in them. I believe only bi-amping can release the full potential of the bass section.

I had my doubts with 5LS because there were basically no constructive reviews by any major magazines nor blogs like 6moons - I guess either Anthony knew the media can't set them up properly for a positive review or the fact that it is simply too tall to move into the elevators or 5LS has an identity crises of targeting the proper consumers.

So here you go, i personally recommends potential buyers of 5LS to audit the 3.5 first - because it will easily work very well with your current or future audio equipments. If you are going to 5LS, you are opening a can of worms... you have been warned! biggrin.gif
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post #2632 of 2742
1/22/13 at 11:11am
I read two articles about Gallo on my lunch break today. Reviews seem good. I am looking to upgrade from my Swan Diva 5.1 to something much better for two ch music. I like the Ascend Sierra Towers with the RAAL, the Salk SCSTs and the PSB Imagine T2s.
Any thoughts?

Also what is this tweeter made out of? How does it compare with domes and ribbons?
Finally, does the lack of a crossover have negatives that impact sound quality?
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post #2633 of 2742
1/22/13 at 11:58am
The Ref 3.n does have a fairly normal crossover; series coil with the bass, series caps with the midrange and tweeter, but also series coil(s) with the tweeter.

The Strada don't have anything in series with the bass mid drivers but do have caps and coils in series with the tweeter.
Edited by Ian AS - 1/22/13 at 2:36pm
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post #2634 of 2742
1/22/13 at 12:05pm
Check out the article available online on the CL-3 speakers; I assume you are talking about the CDT tweeter?

It is from The Absolute Sound.
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post #2635 of 2742
1/22/13 at 12:08pm
I am sure they will put out quite a bit of bass down to at least 50 Hz, even with that placement.

You want to manually override that so they operate full-range and set the subwoofer's rolloff control to around 50 Hz..

I assume you ARE using a subwoofer?

Quote:
Originally Posted by trekker View Post

I have CL4's and have them crossed at 80hz. When I run Audyssey, it detects them as small. I have them pulled out from the front wall almost 3 feet, so they don't get much bass reinforcement. My CL4's are set-up for better imaging rather than bass reinforcement.
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post #2636 of 2742
1/22/13 at 12:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by commsysman View Post

Check out the article available online on the CL-3 speakers; I assume you are talking about the CDT tweeter?

It is from The Absolute Sound.
I am. Can't find much about it...pros or cons relative to ribbons or domes.
Also what are their other drivers made out of? The webpage specs just say "no" for a lot of items...

With no crossover specs or any detail on driver design it is hard to learn about them.
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post #2637 of 2742
1/22/13 at 12:59pm
I think the tweeter is a metallised plastic film wrapped around a foam core.

The Strada mid units are carbon fibre cones. I think the Classico are carbon fibre also.
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post #2638 of 2742
1/22/13 at 1:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ian AS View Post

The Ref 3.n does have a normal crossover; series coil with the bass, series caps with the midrange, series coils with the tweeter.

The Strada don't have anything in series with the bass mid drivers but do have caps and coils in series with the tweeter.

There is no crossover between the mids and the tweeter. You can see the schematic on page 79 of this forum.

Cheers,

OldMovieNut
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post #2639 of 2742
1/22/13 at 1:54pm
The tweeter does have a coil arrangement in series with it. I've taken mine apart and measured it all. With the Strada there's a 40uF cap and with the 3.n, according to the diagram, there is an 100uF cap in series with the two mids and also, therefore, in series with the tweeter.

http://www.avsforum.com/t/805768/official-anthony-gallo-owners-thread/2340#post_22041432

It's not impossible, I guess, that in the TCOM is another coil effectively across the mid units to steepen the bass roll off.

What seems to be a series coil is perhaps there to tame the tweeters high frequency?

Normally a tweeter has it's own small series cap, eg, 5.6uF, to stop bass damaging it. The CDT would appear to not need such protection but I presume it needs DC blocking, hence in the Strada it has it's own series 40uF.

Normally a 40uF would be used with a mid unit to cross over at about 330 Hz. So that's very low for a tweeter.

Either way, to me, cross over less means no 'passive' components in series with the speakers, and the Ref 3.n do have passives in series with all the speakers.
Edited by Ian AS - 1/22/13 at 2:32pm
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post #2640 of 2742
1/22/13 at 4:39pm
The question I believe you are referring to regarding the lack of a crossover is for the Classico series.
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