[evalese]

I finally got this put together. My main goal was to have an analog path as well as a 7.1 digital path. I've been happy with the audio quality. Video's not bad either...


Paradigm Reference Studio 60 v.4 fronts, CC-590 v.4 center, ADP-590 v.4 sides, ADP-470 v.3 backs, PS-1200 sub

2 x Monster PowerCenter HTS 3500

Amps: Emotiva XPA-5 (200wpc) and XPA-2 (250wpc)

Preamps: Emotiva RSP-2 (analog), Onkyo PR-SC885 (digital, 192/24), PA 928 flat phono (for pre-RIAA 78s)
Omaura cased HTPC with HDHomerun QAM box. PC runs digital into Onkyo and analog stereo into Emotiva.

Vestax BDT-2500 turntable goes through RSP-2 to XPA-2 with XLR cables for a straight analog connection or into the pc for recording.

Sony KDL-52XBR4 tv

PS3 (60GB), Wii, Sony BDP-S350 bluray

Denon 955S(2910) dvd for SACD (DSD Direct via analog out to Onkyo) or DVD-A (HDMI to Onkyo)

 

[Aaron Gilbert]

evalese,


That looks great! I'm not usually a fan of glass-shelved stands and racks, but I'm really digging those. I love the triangular support configuration. Your equipment is just gorgeous, and so nicely laid out - big giant pieces on the bottom, getting progressively slimmer and lighter towards the top. That's quite the painting you have behind the TV. What is it?

 

[croseiv]

Very darned nice. I'm eye balling an Emo XPA-5....

 

[ldgibson76]

Hello evalese.


I see that you made it over to this section of the website!

You have a formidable setup. Nicely balanced and just plain good looking!

But the real accomplishment is your system configuration. Creating the dual paths for all of your sources. With my system, all of my components are connected with both analog and digital cables, but I'm running all the cables to my AVR. Not even close to what you've accomplished. You literally have a analog system and a digital system. That's strong!

Not to mention, I'm a sucker for 3 rack setups!

Regards.

 

[evalese]

Thanks for the comments. And thanks ldgibson76 for the heads up. I couldn't resist

It's nothing like the 'my little setup' thread, but I do what I can. The racks are Omnimount. I should've mentioned that. I was in a bit of a hurry earlier. Didn't even get the plastic off the RSP-2! I'm much more a reader than a poster. I should have also mentioned that AVS Forum has been a great help to me. A lot of calibration help and also where I discovered a lot of these components. I couldn't give enough thanks for having a source like this.


I didn't think about the painting. Glad you asked. It's an original from a Russian painter that I'm not remembering the name of. It's called the dancers. I think of it more like ghosts. It's thick, sort of 3D, and has some metallics. After playing guitar hero awhile, there's a swirl effect that happens when you look up at it. Fun. Maybe falls into the V part of AVS? It's hard to get a good picture, but here's an idea.

 

[Latinoheat]

Wow lots of components! Nice selection of Audio & Video.

 

[Aaron Gilbert]



Quote:
Originally Posted by evalese /forum/post/15503833


...

I didn't think about the painting. Glad you asked. It's an original from a Russian painter that I'm not remembering the name of. It's called the dancers. I think of it more like ghosts. It's thick, sort of 3D, and has some metallics. After playing guitar hero awhile, there's a swirl effect that happens when you look up at it. Fun. Maybe falls into the V part of AVS? It's hard to get a good picture, but here's an idea.

Thanks for the additional pictures! That gives us a much better idea that there's actually something inside the frame instead of just a bunch of blobs.

I really like that painting, and the frame goes with it perfectly. I don't believe I've ever seen another painting quite like it, very unique!

 

[kaiservt]

Why did you decide to go with a PS3 and a stand-alone Blu Ray player? Just wondering, because I am trying to decide between those two options.

 

[evalese]

The bluray player was half accident/half curiosity. It was supposed to be a gift that someone else also bought, but the black Friday prices were so good that I didn't return it. I've been wanting to test the bitstream vs pcm for uncompressed audio to see if it is better than the ps3. The best test I've had is flipping back and forth with Kung-Fu Panda disks. Current experience says it is a bit better, mostly on the audio side, but I need more time to be sure. I still need to get out the level meter and see if the perceived improvement is volume related.


Another reason I may keep it is to give the PS3 a break. If I lose my 60GB and can't get another one, I'll be inconsolable, and I really don't want to stuff a PS2 into all of this again. It seems like a good idea to stick with games on the PS3 and movies on the player if given a choice.

 

[kaiservt]

Thank for the explanation....interesting insight.

 

[kaiservt]

Also, a pic of your wiring would be cool. Sorry for all of the questions/requests, I dig your setup.

 

[ldgibson76]



Hello evalese.


I just believe that your system should to be viewable the minute someone opens your thread!

I hope you don't mind, but your setup deserves nothing less!


BTW, love the dual power centers!


Regards.

 

[evalese]

You want to see the dark side... That's not so pretty. Always a work in progress. It's hard to stuff all the wiring into the racks. Some levels just had too many cables to run through the holes, so I ran around them. Other places I tried to keep cables away from the power cords. It's not too bad except that some are piled up on the floor. I kept extra length on the speaker cables in case I need it, but I'm thinking about tightening them up. I also need to fix three cables that cross by the bottom of the tv instead of being long enough to go to the floor, then it won't look too bad from the front. For now, I'll just encourage people to stay away from the back...

 

[ddgtr]

Gotcha!! evalese, is that a fireplace behind your system?? If yes, I am so happy I'm seeing someone else do it also!! Because in the house we sold about 2 years ago I did the same thing, and everyone thought I was nuts for covering up the fireplace!! The thing is, we were never using it...


Anyway, system looks awesome and the cables in the back don't look bad at all.


Cheers!

 

[evalese]

In case you're interested, here are the rest of the speakers. I don't have an ideal layout in my townhouse. If I could, I'd have more room to move the speakers out of the corner on the right side and, well, have an actual wall on the left. Maybe the next house. The Audyssey setup did a good job of balancing them out, though.


Some may wonder why the fence? There are bunnies in the house. They don't go in the room with all the wires. Just wouldn't turn out well for anyone. Others may wonder why the ugly chandelier? Well, I'm working on it. Slowly. Not as important as gear.

 

[evalese]

That's exactly what happened with me. I used the fireplace a handful of times, and it doesn't look so good anyway. I've also got comments from people who thought it was strange to cover it up. It's comforting to hear someone else has been through it .

 

[Aaron Gilbert]



Quote:
Originally Posted by evalese /forum/post/15519709


That's exactly what happened with me. I used the fireplace a handful of times, and it doesn't look so good anyway. I've also got comments from people who thought it was strange to cover it up. It's comforting to hear someone else has been through it .

If we had a fireplace that we didn't use, and it was right in the way of an ideal system setup, you can believe we'd cover it up, too! So many apartments, condos, and townhouses around here do seem to put the fireplace right in the middle of the biggest wall of the living room. Maybe that has started to change, with more people into surround sound and big flat panel TV's - I haven't been apartment shopping in over 10 years. I always thought it was weird to have a fireplace in an apartment anyway. I mean, it seems a nice feature, but who's going to have a pile of wood sitting around their apartment? I guess you could go with firelogs and not real wood, but it's just not the same.


So why do you have bunnies wandering around the house?

 

[THE_FORCE]

That looks pretty damn tasty mate !

Wicked kit, and speakers to boot. Excellent display choice too.

 

[evalese]

I agree Aaron. Central air kind of makes the fireplace irrelevant. The bunnies dug their way in through the basement. They improve my OTA reception, so I keep them around.

My gf is obsessed with buns. It was only a matter of time before we had some. They're cute and fun. Not bad to have around.

 

[ldgibson76]



Quote:
wiring

You want to see the dark side... That's not so pretty. Always a work in progress. It's hard to stuff all the wiring into the racks. Some levels just had too many cables to run through the holes, so I ran around them. Other places I tried to keep cables away from the power cords. It's not too bad except that some are piled up on the floor. I kept extra length on the speaker cables in case I need it, but I'm thinking about tightening them up. I also need to fix three cables that cross by the bottom of the tv instead of being long enough to go to the floor, then it won't look too bad from the front. For now, I'll just encourage people to stay away from the back...

Hello evalese.


I feel your pain when it comes to achieving proper wire management.

I've been on that quest for quite some time now. It's been at least two weeks now and I'm still not finished.

With a three rack setup, it bordering on impossible to achieve perfect wire management. You can come close if you have the right cable lengths and proper positioning of the components and of course, the racks have to be able to accommodate the cables. What I like about your equipment positioning is the fact that your power centers are on the outboard racks. Unfortunately, mine are currently positioned on the TV rack. It looks cool, but makes it difficult to have complete separation of the power cords and audio/video cables. I will eventually move the power centers to the two audio racks because a multi-channel amp will reside in the space the power centers will leave vacant.

I agree with ddgtr, the back of your system does not look bad.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/3174860...7610165549421/


Regards.