Triad Owner's Thread - Page 51

Originally Posted by hardmoneylender

So I'm rereading this entire thread and it's taken like three full evenings. Thank goodness I make minimum wage! Well, anyways, I seem to remember reading something by Paul that you can't put gold LCR's into a coffin like that. Am I hallucinating or is this not a big deal if you stuff mineral wool or foam into that cavity??

Originally Posted by mojiram

This is a query for Paul Scarpelli or anyone who is knowledgeable about Triad in ceiling.
My house is being built and wired for in ceiling surround sound in a loft like space which is to the right as you come up the stairs. The area is approx 15'-8" by 14'-4". The ceiling height is 8ft and I am planning to mount the TV on the wall about 6ft up from the floor. When seated to watch TV the space to my left is wide open and provides access to the bdrms and the stairs. I am considering either the Bronze/8 LCR or the Silver/6 Monitors for the front stage and either the bronze/4 or the silver/4 for the surrounds. My subwoofer is going to be in room. My question to you is which of these two speakers would be best for a great home theater......what are prices of these speakers ? I haven't had a chance to listen to these speakers and my dealer will contact me if he can set something up. So for now I am driving blind and I need your expertise here.
Thanks.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

The InCeiling Bronze/8 LCR will do a great job for your installation, considering the TV is 6' off the floor. The angled baffle aims the sound at the listener, and the speaker has good sensitivity. They're $800 including custom paint matching. The InCeiling Silver/6 Monitor will only work if the ceiling joists run from left to right as you view the TV because they're wider. The Silver Monitor uses the same two Scan-Speak midrange drivers we use in the $7,000 Platinum LCR, with a premium Seas tweeter. I think it's the best front-channel ceiling speaker on the market, ($2,450 each.) There's a review from December, 2003, on the Triad website under "reviews," and even though Brent Butterworth is really a tough reviewer, the Silver Monitor gets kudos. With a decent sub, they're spectacular.

You could do Bronze Surrounds ($600 each) or Silver Surrounds ($800 each), and they'll both do a nice job. The Silver plays a bit louder.

Originally Posted by mojiram

Wow the silver/6's are $2450 a piece?? They must be really good. In any case the Bronze/8 seems to be in my budget. I am mainly going to be using it for movies and on occasion some TV. So I really want a good system.But my only concern is the feeling of the sound coming from the ceiling. How much of an imaging problem am I going to have ? I have been reading these forums and people always seem to be discouraging an in ceiling set-up. At the same time I have also heard people say that if you want in ceiling Triad is the way to go.I wish I could listen to a properly set up bronze/8 system. My dealer here in Raleigh,NC doesn't have one for me to listen to. Would you know of any dealer here where I could go and sample it. If you can just point me in the right direction that will be great.
Thanks for your input. i appreciate it very much.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

Because of the angled baffle, the image seems to match the video display. The plasma in my office is less than 4' off the floor, with Triad InCeiling Gold/8 MiniMonitors. Some time ago, a dog was barking on a commercial, and my golden retriever looked right at the television (not the ceiling speakers) and barked back. Okay, he's an idiot, but my point is, the sound coincides with the action on the screen very well. The problem I have with ceiling speakers in a theater application is where the speakers are round and they aim straight down, except for maybe a pivoting tweeter. That really doesn't work, even though Triad makes speakers like that, too.

By far, the best value in our ceiling speaker lineup is the InCeiling Bronze/8 LCR. Three of them will work very well.

As far as hearing them, I don't know what to tell you. It appears Audio Advice is the "big dog" around where you live, and if they don't have the InCeiling version, maybe they have InRoom, OnWall, or InWall versions, which are essentially the same speakers.

Originally Posted by mojiram

Thanks Paul. I see your point in having the angled baffle and especially with my TV being 6ft of the floor imaging might not be that much of a problem.
Let me ask you this......are the silver/6 also designed for a bigger sound stage considering that they are so expensive or is it mainly because of the drivers that their price is so high ? Will they work in my 15'-8" by 14'-4" room assuming that the ceiling joists can accomodate their wide design ?
Audio Advice is the dealer I was referring to in my earlier post. I am hoping that he can arrange something for me to listen to.
Also a question about receivers..... I am leaning toward Pioneer Elite vsx23txh....is it powerful enough for the bronze/8's ?

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

The Pioneer Elite is fine for Bronze LCRs. If you were to go to Silver Monitors, you might think of upgrading the electronics to something with more oomph, though. The Silver Monitors like separates. They'll play louder with more detail, and I think they're twice as good as the Bronze LCRs, but they're also three times the price.

Originally Posted by NCCaniac

Which of course leaves him with the common question, "Is the difference I can hear between two sets of Triad speakers enough to make me spend the additional money?" You CAN certainly hear the difference, but it is that old tricky balance between what I would like to have and what I can afford. Based on the size of the room he has, either will be better than many, many other choices.

Of course, we would all LIKE to have top of the line Triad speakers.

Originally Posted by NCCaniac

Which of course leaves him with the common question, "Is the difference I can hear between two sets of Triad speakers enough to make me spend the additional money?" You CAN certainly hear the difference, but it is that old tricky balance between what I would like to have and what I can afford. Based on the size of the room he has, either will be better than many, many other choices.

Of course, we would all LIKE to have top of the line Triad speakers.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli



The difference between two speakers will almost always be greater than the difference between two receivers, though. In the overall budget, I have always (since the '70s) advocated better speakers with "sufficient" amplification. I'd rather listen to my current Triad theater setup on a $1,200 receiver than a Triad Bronze system on a full-blown Lexicon setup.

Originally Posted by mojiram

Sure Paul. I wouldn't disagree with you there. But I am limited by monetary factors and want to get the best speakers my wallet can afford right now. Are there any other choices in Triad in ceiling which are in between the Bronze/8 and the Silver/6? The diff in price of $800 and $2450 seems to be too wide.

Just out of curiosity what is your current Triad set-up and how are you powering them ?

I would appreciate your tips on positioning the speakers too.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

There's the InCeiling Gold/8 MiniMonitor at 2,000 each, but I would generally use those for high-quality distributed audio without a sub; not so much for home theater. That said, I use three of them in my office 5.1 system. There's the InCeiling Gold/8 Omni SE for $1,050, but it doesn't have the higher sensitivity of the Bronze LCR. For a theater application in a ceiling speaker, the InCeiling Bronze/8 LCR is a real deal. And it's the most copied speaker in our line. A half dozen companies have ripped us off with something that *looks* like it. A few are even $500 more than ours.

One system, as stated, uses all InCeiling speakers, and it's powered by an NAD T-743, which has no business sounding as good as it does for being a lowly receiver. The 2-channel system uses high-end Citation stuff from the '90s and Gold MiniMonitors. Another system uses a Silver sub and Gold Omnis. The theater uses Gold Monitors, Silver Surrounds, and Gold Omnis, with two Gold Subs, powered by Lyngdorf semi-digital amps. They're as good as anything at any price.


Install them as far apart as you would if they were inwalls. With your TV that high off the floor, I'd install them maybe one foot off the back wall. I installed mine in a slight arc because of my room, but if I had it to do over again, I'd mount them three-across. Here's my office from four years ago before it was completed. The grill next to the wall is my InCeiling Bronze/10 PowerSub.

Originally Posted by mojiram

I will take your recommendations into consideration. By three across you mean all three (LCR) in a straight line...is it ? And when you suggest installing them one foot off the back wall,what is your reasoning for that ? Does that make it closer to the imaging on the TV ? How far should one install inwalls from the TV ?
How high is the ceiling in the photo ? It looks like 9ft or maybe the TV is mounted lower.
In any case The bronze/8 it is, for me. Can I combine the Triad fronts with Def Tech surrounds ?

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli



The difference between two speakers will almost always be greater than the difference between two receivers, though. In the overall budget, I have always (since the '70s) advocated better speakers with "sufficient" amplification. I'd rather listen to my current Triad theater setup on a $1,200 receiver than a Triad Bronze system on a full-blown Lexicon setup.

Originally Posted by mojiram

Thanks for your input too. Have you had any experience with the Bronze/8 LCR ?
As far as the like to have and what I can afford, the silvers are way out of my wallet right now. Bronze would be stretching it too, but I am willing to spend that much to design my home theater. I am no audiopihile but I have heard good speakers from Paradigm,B&W,Def Tech etc and I realize what a good speaker sounds like. Having said that I am more concerned with the imaging and want to compromise a little as I can to achieve that.....which is reason for going with Triad.

Originally Posted by NCCaniac

I do not have the Bronze8 LCRs, but I do have Triad Mini/8 LCR in-ceiling speakers as the surrounds in my 5.1 system. I already had other in-room front speakers, but needed to add in-ceiling surrounds as this is in a room with an open floorplan. The Mini/8's also have the angled baffle and I have them mounted in the ceiling to direct the sound toward the main listening area. They work well with my other speakers. So, no matter what you decide in terms of Triad in-ceiling speakers, I think you will be very pleased with them. They are excellent sounding, high-quality speakers.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

Three across in a straight line will look better. And the reasoning behind keeping them 12"-18" from the wall is so the sound will correspond with the image on the screen.

I'm curious why you'd mix another brand of surrounds, though. Being able to have all the grills custom paint matched and being uniform-looking can be a big deal. In fact, if you bought Triad InWall Silver/4 Surrounds (whether installed in the wall or the ceiling), the grills are the same size as the InCeiling Bronze/8 LCR. I have six speaker grills in my office ceiling; all the same size and all paint matched to my ceiling color. They disappear.

Originally Posted by mojiram

On second thought maybe I won't go another brand of speakers for the surrounds. How are the mini/8's or will I see the difference with an all bronze set-up ?
I am also re-thinking mounting the TV 6ft up on the wall. It seems to high even though the seating area is a bit further away. I think 5ft would be much better. It would make it seem almost eye level.
How should I space and angle the surrounds Paul ?

Originally Posted by mojiram

Thanks for that input. I am leaning toward to the bronze surrounds but just might go with the Mini/8's. Are they smaller in profile compared to the Bronze surrounds ?
I too have a open floor plan in the my loft. When seated to watch TV the left area is open to the bedrooms and the stairs going down. How far apart have you mounted the rears from the central seating/listening position ?

Originally Posted by NCCaniac

The Bronze/8 surrounds are dipole speakers and designed to be installed in the wall. I guess you could install them in the ceiling, but since my open floor plan necessitated a ceiling install of my surrounds, I ended up going with the Mini/8 LCRs (instead of the Bronze/8 LCR) due to the hole cut required would fit between the ceiling joists. This is in my first floor family room which opens into the kitchen. I wanted the angled baffle of of the in-ceiling LCRs to direct the sound toward the viewing area. I have them mounted in the 9' ceiling just roughly in line with sofa about 5' out from the sides of the sofa.

Originally Posted by NCCaniac

The Bronze/8 surrounds are dipole speakers and designed to be installed in the wall. I guess you could install them in the ceiling, but since my open floor plan necessitated a ceiling install of my surrounds, I ended up going with the Mini/8 LCRs (instead of the Bronze/8 LCR) due to the hole cut required would fit between the ceiling joists. This is in my first floor family room which opens into the kitchen. I wanted the angled baffle of of the in-ceiling LCRs to direct the sound toward the viewing area. I have them mounted in the 9' ceiling just roughly in line with sofa about 5' out from the sides of the sofa.

The only reason I didn't go Triad speakers all the way around is that I didn't really become aware of Triad and look into them until I started looking for options for the in-ceiling surround speakers. I already had the front speakers (Era Design 5 sats and LCR center channel). I have found the Mini/8 LCRs match well with the Era D5's.

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

Five feet up for the TV is better than six feet, and the speakers will still work well a foot out from the wall. If you do Silver Surrounds (same grill size), put them a few feet back from the listening area on the side walls or in the ceiling. You can do Bronze Surrounds and save $400, but the grills are smaller. That shouldn't be a big dealio...

Originally Posted by mojiram

I see. But can the bronze surrounds be installed In ceiling?

Originally Posted by mojiram

I can't install anything on side walls because the left side of the seating area is open. I can only install them in the wall behind the sofa or in the ceiling.
Can the Bronze surrounds be installed in the ceiling or do they work best In wall ?

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

In my office, I have Silver Surrounds in the ceiling. In my theater, the side surrounds are Silver Surrounds, in the ceiling. So...yes.

Originally Posted by mojiram

I take it that this applies to the Bronze surrounds as well !

Originally Posted by Dan Hitchman

What are your guys' thoughts on Silver in-room LCR's vs. in-wall LCR's integrated into columns for the side and rear surrounds? Gold in-rooms would probably be up front. I really don't want to use dipoles for the surrounds.

I'm looking into creating a theater that is as acoustically "tight" as possible and want to minimize breaching the drum with holes in the drywall (only for a couple HVAC flexducts and wires).

Tricks? Tips? Theater builds that might show how to integrate these into columns with the best acoustics possible? I wouldn't want to end up making a solid investment in quality speakers sound like crud.

Thank you!

Originally Posted by Paul Scarpelli

If you can move your seats up closer to the screen, the experience will be better. One thing you'll have to be careful of is not to have seats at 15.5', though. There is NO bass at the halfway point of the room, and there's no way to compensate for it unless you have porschecab's system...