Triad Owner's Thread - Page 7

Hey, I don't really like ANY receivers, but at least most Sherwood Newcastle receivers will drive a semi-tough load.

My first choice for moderately-priced receivers is still NAD. Neither Triad nor I have any affiliation with them; they just sound great and deliver more power into 4 ohms than into 8 ohms.

Thanks for the quick feedback, Paul! I look forward to discussing my purchase with the local TRIAD representative in South Florida.

I think his recommendation was for this Newcastle

http://www.newcastlebrown.com/home/


There's nothing "YUK" about Newcastle!

This swill is big out here. Read the label closely...

BTW, the next-to-top-of-the-line Newcastle receiver delivers 100 watts per channel, all channels driven, into 8 ohms, and an amazing (for a receiver) 160 watts per channel into 4 ohms. Yeah, Baby!

I await your very short list of other new receivers that can do this.

Oh yes, you're in Utah.

I generally like a good Porter, but I personally don't understand Polygamy. At first, it seems like a good idea. A typical marriage is usually a better deal for the women than it is for the men. In theory, two or more wives seems like the ideal situation for a man. My one wife is more than enough of a Pain in the A** for me. More than wife would kill me, not from too much sex and excitement, but from too much aggravation. No Thanks!

As for Porter, give Sam Smiths Taddy Porter a try. It's pretty good stuff.

Well, back to the Triad conversation.

Sorry I missed your question the first time. We have many high-impact square (and a rectangular) ceiling speaker, and with paint-matched grills, they disappear better than round speakers. But, because the market has dictated it, we are working on round versions of the Silver and Gold Omnis and the Silver and Gold Omni SEs. I'll keep you posted, but they won't ship before the end of the year. They'll use the same drivers as the conventional Omni and Omni SE products, but in a metal, round enclosure, and with angled baffles. (Ceiling speakers that point straight down should never be used for home theater, other than maybe the surrounds.)

We're not following; we're the leaders. We've had a $2450 rectangular ceiling speaker with an angled baffle for five years, and we now have an additional nine angled-baffle ceiling speakers, not counting our four rounds. Snell and Def Tech have blatantly copied us with square ceiling speakers, following two years after we introducded them. Snell has a $1250 ceiling speaker that looks exactly like our $750 InCeiling Bronze/8 LCR. Snell and Def Tech make great speakers, and I'm sure these are very good, but they were definitely not first.

Ours:



Theirs:



We think Snell is pretty good, and we're flattered.

Oh man, I have Snells and Triads, don't make me pick a side!

I'm not asking you to! Snell has always been a great company. I knew Peter Snell back in the day.

BTW, you have discriminating taste in speakers.

Hi all,

I'm currently researching what speakers to use to replace my current front Kenwood THX LCRs (3 x Kenwood LS-X1F - all 3 positioned vertically). I power them with a B&K 200.7 amp and my preamp is an Integra Research RDC-7.1.

Mostly I use the system for gaming (Xbox 360) and movies...I'd say about 70% movies/gaming and 30% music. My musical tastes are pretty narrow...Electronic, modern rock and some hip hop/rap (mostly Beastie Boys there) although we do use the system for Country as well since my fiance is into that.

Speakers I'm looking at are Ascend CMT-340SEs and Sierras, Outlaw LCR, Klipsch KL-650THX and the Triad In-Room Silver LCRs. My budget is about $800 tops per speaker which is about 50% more than what the Kenwoods were retail back when I bought them almost 13 years ago.

I'm only looking for speakers that I can use 3 identical units in vertical position as I want pans from one speaker to the next to be as seamless as possible. For anyone who's interested, my center channel is below my TV is my Salamander stand...not the best solution, but I had to do that as one of my cats knocked my center off the on-top-of-tv stand twice (and that speaker now has some damage do the HDF - yes the Kenwoods are made from HDF not MDF - which is the main reason I want to replace the fronts.

My plan is to move the left and right Kenwoods to the rear for 7.1 duty and eventually replace my two dipoles with the same speakers that I choose for the LCRs.

I guess my question is, how do the Triads compare to the other speakers I've mentioned. Also since I'm in Beaverton and Triad seems to be located in Portland do you have demo rooms. I understand that since you custom make each speaker that demo units are probably not available, but if they are, please let me know this too.

Thanks much!

Alex

Looking for a location in Manhattan where I can audition Triad speakers. Anyone know of a place?

I seem to read everywhere the recommendation to listen to speakers before you buy, but what on earth do you do with a brand like Triad that doesn't seem to be stocked anywhere!?

Thx

I'm actually going to give a protracted answer, so bear with me. First of all, in New York, call Steve Glatzl at 914 337 3178, and ask him if there's a location near you where you can hear Triad speakers. Make sure you tell him early on that I gave you his number. Steve has been my New York rep since the 1980s, and he's a good guy. Triad models are usually specified into custom jobs for the appropriate application by a CEDIA installer, and the customer rarely hears them first. I have never had a complaint in my 12 years here, other than the rare one where the wrong model is used, the room sounds horrible, or the customer is Raymond Leggs. We'll take stuff back if the client isn't happy.

The speaker brands that are easy to hear are in retail stores...which are disappearing. They are generally the brands with declining sales due to their distribution channel; retail. In New York, even Harvey Electronics (a non-displaying Triad dealer) is cutting back to only two stores. With more and more people buying internet brands and big-box store speakers, independent retail hi-fi stores are in dire straits. (That's where Mark Knopfler buys his speakers.)

Triad has had double digit growth for 12 consecutive years due to our business model of using high-end CEDIA dealers. In fact, retail stores rarely want to even carry Triad, and they continue carrying the usual array of popular freestanding speakers and plastic inwalls. Our product line addresses the custom market, which makes us the de facto high end speaker choice for these dealers, few of which have or need showrooms. If we had twelve models of inexpensive towers, our line might have more visibility in A/V retail, but most retail customers, knowing little about speaker nuts-and-bolts, can't see why our stuff costs much more. It is a conundrum.

Still, a few stores have demo facilities, and Steve should be able to help you. I know it can be frustrating, but if we were in Best Buy (they don't want us, and we don't want them), who would buy a $2,000 Triad LCR from them?? I feel your pain, but in a few years when more and more brands are weeded out by a cratering economy, we'll still be here.

Hopefully, I have answered your question and given you a path to hear Triad. If you're looking for a substantial enough Triad system, some dealers can even take you to a client's home for an audition, too. Thanks for asking.

If you want to venture to NJ (Berkeley Heights) send me a PM. I have in-wall silvers. A year ago I was in the same boat and ended up buying without hearing. I have not been disappointed, but then I am not an expert.

Ray

I failed to address the issue of a dealer stocking Triad. No Triad dealers keep any inventory, and for good reason. We have 70 different products, and they can be ordered in an infinite number of paint and veneer finishes. If you multiply 70 times infinity, you come up with...um...infinity. It makes no sense for a dealer to have anything in stock when we build to order and ship within four days of the order, unless there's custom work involved. Dealers like this business model, and they don't have to carry $75,000 worth of inventory taking up warehouse space, which is death to a business in this market. Plus, when you buy a Triad product, it was probably manufactured within ten days ago, and it's the most current version.

The number one killer of retail A/V businesses isn't as much lack of floor traffic as it is excess inventory. (Actually, these days it's both.)

I don't feel comfortable recommending Triad over other decent brands because speakers are a personal choice. However, if you have an amp that can drive a 4 ohm load (which you do), you need at least 92 dB sensitivity, you want custom-matched paint on the speaker and grill (free), the Silver LCRs will work great. The InRoom Silver LCRs are $950, and May 1st they go up to $1,000 each, in any color you specify, including the metal grill color. If you want a more reasonable match for the surrounds (and smaller), use InRoom Gold Omnis (or InWall). They use the same drivers as the Silver LCR, but with only one woofer/mid. They make great point-source surrounds, and they aren't as directional as the LCRs.

We are still building out the factory, having recently finished our chamber, but we haven't done listening venues yet. You can contact Steve Colburn at the factory (800 666 6316), mention my name, and ask if there's any venue for a Silver (or any other) demo at the factory. I work 1,000 miles from the factory, so I am somewhat useless in this.

Thanks for asking.

Alex,

I just read your post and thought I'd offer up my opinion as a Triad owner. I have the Triad Silver InRoom LCRs in my theater and they are awesome! Based on your comments and requirements I think they'd be a great choice. By having three identical (and spatially accurate) speakers across the front of the theater in the correct alignment, they will produce an amazing soundstage, which I believe is important when enjoying a movie.

I like the occasional heavy bass track, Gears of War session or special effect scene in a movie (I have two Triad Silver subs) but what really amazes me every time I experience a movie or video game in my theater is the clarity and accuracy I get out of the Triads. Sounds cross seamlessly across the scene as originally intended by the sound engineers in a movie. The other aspect of the Triads I love is their accuracy and balance. You can literally hear the smallest/quietest details in a movie ( ie. a shell casing dropping, a footstep scraping the floor, etc..)

Overall I couldn't be happier with my Triads. I don't think I'll be moving anytime soon, and my current theater is relatively small, but if I ever move to a bigger house and build another theater I would probably go with the Triad Platinum LCRs, Subs and Gold in-wall surrounds.

What I'm saying is I don't think you could go wrong with the Triads. Based on your budget you may also want to scour the online auction sites such as ebay, videogon, audiogon or here on AVS Classifieds. If you are patient and know what you are looking for eventually something shows up. That's how I picked up my second Silver Sub.

Good Luck!

Regards,

Bill

I'm a custom dealer in the NY Metro area. I've posted this before -- I have InRoom Platinums (with dual Plat subs) and OnWall Gold LCRs. I also have InRoom Gold LCRs including center. The Platinums are by far the most dynamic speaker I have ever experienced in my demo room. I also have the Def Tech's reference BP7000SC and its no slouch either; both very dynamic for HT, but the Platinum still shines.

I am interested in the in-room silver lcr(s) but my center is space is only 8" high. Can one be built as 7" or should I be looking at a (or 2) bronze lcr(s)?

The drivers in the Silver LCR are too big in diameter to allow the speaker to be customized down to 8" wide. An InRoom Bronze LCR will fit, and it uses the same woofer/mids as the Silver LCR, except in a smaller diameter (and different enclosure and crossover). Using two will cause all kinds of comb-filtering problems, and I don't recommend it. You could still use a pair of Silver LCRs for left and right. If you run the center speaker with the crossover at 100 Hz, you should get enough headroom to keep up with the left and right better.

Hi Paul,

Thanks for the response. I have a couple of follow up questions:

I didn't see a performance graph of the Silver IR-LCR anywhere on the website...do you have those available?

What was the design goal for the speaker? How would you characterize the sound of the speakers (IE are they neutral/accurate or what?).

Also exactly what components of the speaker are made in the US and what are made overseas?

I noticed that the specs for the Silver LCR recommend max power of 150 watts. Do you feel that this will limit how much "oomph" the units will deliver when pushed to reference level volumes (for instance during scenes such as the Matrix's "lobby shoot out") or is there any danger of my 200 watt amp damaging the speakers when playing at reference level assuming that my system is properly calibrated (which it is)?

And lastly, is the design of the Silver IR-LCR a true D'Appolito array or just generally an MTM design? I ask because as far as I know, and please correct me if I'm wrong, but a true D'Appolito array speaker requires specific ratios of placement distance of the tweeter within the midranges. The tweeter in the Silver IR-LCR is much closer to the midranges than you typically see in other D'Appolito arrays. Do you think that the current design still allows for proper control of vertical directivity?

Again thanks for your time and input. The next set of speakers that I buy will (had better) last me another 10-15 years, so I want to make sure I'm completely satisfied with my purchase.

Cheers,

Alex

How well do the Triad speakers match timber wise, across lines? Would I be able to use a Silver Monitor for the center channel with two Classic Gold LCR's for the right and left speakers?

Also, how would I go about soundproofing with the Triad Inwall speakers? I am going to be using 2 layers of sheetrock with greenglue, but then will have to cut out sections for installation of the inwall speakers. Should I look into building an MDF backbox to go around the cutout, or will the seal of the speaker and metal frame be sufficient?

Lastly, I have a pair of inwall Gold Subwoofers. What would be the best placement for them? Right now I am intending them to be near the floor in the center of the front and back walls.

Thanks!
CJ

They were designed by the same person, David Nelson, and his design goals include flat response and accuracy. He does not voice his speakers for a "warm" or "detailed" sound. That said, the dispersion patterns are different, and although they have a family sound, I still prefer identical fronts. Refresh my memory...why Classic Gold LCRs? Do you own them already? Sorry if I should know this, but I have a lot on my plate. That speaker is 14 years old, and has been discontinued, although it's still a great product.


Cut the hole, install them, period. You may need longer screws for double sheetrock, and we have those at the factory. The InWall Classic Gold LCRs (like all Triad speakers) have a braced MDF enclosure already.


Under most conditions, with that placement, you won't have very good or very much bass. (There is no InWall Gold subwoofer. You either have a Bronze or Silver, OR you have an InRoom Gold PowerSub.) Without room correction or EQ, I like subs placed at the 1/3 wave on the front wall, not the 1/2 wave. With room correction, I like subs in the front corners for maximum output, with the room correction sitting on the peaks. Lyngdorf is a big proponent of this with their corner subs, as is Atlantic Technology.

Yes, I already have them, but that is not something you should know (unless you are omnicient as well as overworked!).



That's great news and will save me quite a bit of time. I had no doubt about the MDF enclosure, I just wanted to be sure that the sound couldn't escape through the small space between the cutout and the frame.


More good news- the front wall works better with my layout anyway. I hope to get by with minimal bass treatments and will probably not want to use more than a few bass traps in the corners (this is more my wife's decision than mine), so I might be better off with placement at the 1/3 waves.

I was going off memory as far as the subs' designation. They are actually Inwall THX Subwoofers that I got back when I got the Gold LCR classics.

Thanks for all of your help. I'm in awe of how many balls you can keep in the air at one time. I'm pretty sure that you love your work, but I hope that you also actually have time to enjoy the nice system you have in your house.

CJ

Hey guys I just finished a home theater using Triad in wall speakers

Check out some of the pictures
http://www.eliteavi.com/eliteavi/ind...e=P1010009.JPG

Check out the gallery at http://www.eliteavi.com go to the portfolio and see the building of a custom home theater section

Hope this helps