[jrref]

Ohm Acoustics speakers are very unique in their design and performance. They are manufactured in Brooklyn NY and are only sold on-line with an extremely generous trial period. With all of the new 3D audio formats such as Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D and with DTS:X on the horizon I wanted to start a thread discussing using Ohm speakers with these new formats.


In my situation, I inherited a pair of Ohm Walsh-2 speakers, manufactured circa 1987, about 14 years ago when I married my wife! I decided to use them as Rear Surrounds in my 5.1 configuration only to find that they sounded much better than my Infinity front mains. Over the years I got to speak with John Strobeen the owner of Ohm Acoustics in Brooklyn so recently when I upgraded my 5.1 set up to Dolby Atmos / Auro-3D configuration I gave him a call to see how I could use my Ohm Walsh-2's and set up a complete system using all Ohm speakers.


John is a wealth of knowledge and was eager to help. After a lot of experimenting, below is the setup for my home theater which is in my small to medium sized living room.


From Mains - Ohm Walsh 2000's
Front Heights - Ohm Walsh 2000 Omni Satellites
Front Center - Ohm Micro Walsh custom Center.
Rear Surrounds - Ohm Walsh Super 2000 Omni's ( upgraded Walsh-2's)
1- Cambridge Audio Subwoofer
Marantz SR7009 using Audyssey equalization.


My configuration is a work in progress and not set up to the exact Dolby Atmos or Auro-3D specifications but a compromise solution given my living room situation where I can't install ceiling or rear height speakers. What was interesting was that although my configuration isn't exact, I'm getting excellent 3D imaging with both Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D sources. Specifically with the Atmos and Auro bluray demo DVD's along with Dolby Atmos movies. In discussing this with John Strobeen at Ohm Acoustics, the experience is partially due to the fact that the Ohm speakers by design produce a near Omni directional sound field giving you that "immersive" effect. This coupled with the new audio formats is really providing an incredible 3D sound field in my setup.

If you are using Ohm speakers, lets use this thread to list your configuration, experiences, thoughts especially if you are using the new 3D audio formats.

 

[jrref]

Who has Ohm Acoustics speakers!

 

[ss3740]

I remember hearing those back in the late 70s maybe early 80s....They were over the top good back in their day. I live in central Ohio so maybe they were sold regionally back then . I remember them being pricey, and being worth the money. They were triangular shaped right? That's back when Polk and Infinity were first making the scene .

 

[jrref]

I remember hearing those back in the late 70s maybe early 80s....They were over the top good back in their day. I live in central Ohio so maybe they were sold regionally back then . I remember them being pricey, and being worth the money. They were triangular shaped right? That's back when Polk and Infinity were first making the scene .

Right that's correct but you should check out their web site at www.ohmspeakers.com. There have been many improvements made to the original design and in my opinion they sound as good or better than speakers in their price range especially with the new 3D audio formats such as Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D. Their inherent Omni/3D sound has really made them a great candidate for home theaters as well as for music. I had a pair of Walsh-2's from the 80's, started playing and experimenting with them with my Atmos setup and found them to create a really great sound field. I think that it's a great product for those audiophiles/videophiles who want to turn their living room or rec room into a home theater and get that great 3D sound field without making it look like a commercial movie theater!

 

[DS-21]

*** Their inherent Omni/3D sound has really made them a great candidate for home theaters as well as for music.***

Has anyone used them for surrounds? Walsh drivers have always struck me as a really interesting choice for surrounds, but I've also wondered if they'd work close to (or on) a wall.

 

[jrref]

Has anyone used them for surrounds? Walsh drivers have always struck me as a really interesting choice for surrounds, but I've also wondered if they'd work close to (or on) a wall.

Yes they are awesome for surrounds. I have my Walsh super 2000's set up as rear surrounds and for surrounds you can order any Walsh speaker with the Omni drivers for the same price. I have experimented and found that you can place them as close as 6 inches from your walls and still get great imaging even though they recommend a minimum of 12 inches. For my room, 7 1/2 inches from the rear corners was my sweet spot. They also have a micro-Walsh that can be mounded on the walls. If I have a larger room I would mount the micro's as rear height or side speakers but my room is just not big enough to support more speakers. With rear surround Omni's I get a near perfect sonic image for my situation which I wasn't able to get with standard "box" type speakers.

 

[g_bartman]

I had some Walsh 2's back in the mid 80's, great speakers for the money. The drivers eventually rotted out and the cabinets started to chip. I haven't heard them in years. Interesting to know they are internet direct now.

 

[jrref]

I never had that problem with my Walsh 2s but if they still support most of their existing speakers! They can change and update the drivers at a very reasonable price. I would imagine that the cabinet could be fixed depending on the problem. There aren't many companies that support their products no matter how old like they do.

 

[g_bartman]

I never had that problem with my Walsh 2s but if they still support most of their existing speakers! They can change and update the drivers at a very reasonable price. I would imagine that the cabinet could be fixed depending on the problem. There aren't many companies that support their products no matter how old like they do.

No doubt they have great customer service and make very good speakers. Like many of us, I've changed out several pairs of speakers over the years and no longer have my 2's.

 

[jrref]

No doubt they have great customer service and make very good speakers. Like many of us, I've changed out several pairs of speakers over the years and no longer have my 2's.

Too bad you didn't save the cabinets. You could have put I new drivers and had an awesome set of speakers!

 

[jrref]

Anyone have any experience driving Ohm speakers with AVR in a home theater setup?

 

[eg320]

I love my Ohm Walsh 2 2000's......great sound. Just running the Walsh 2's in a three channel setup because of house setup. I gave John a call and described my room and setup, and he then designed a custom Walsh center speaker for my room. Sounds totally amazing.....but needs lots of power to really open up the soundstage. In fact....it's so good that I no longer run any subwoofer at all...it's just not needed.

Just my 2 cents

 

[jrref]

I love my Ohm Walsh 2 2000's......great sound. Just running the Walsh 2's in a three channel setup because of house setup. I gave John a call and described my room and setup, and he then designed a custom Walsh center speaker for my room. Sounds totally amazing.....but needs lots of power to really open up the soundstage. In fact....it's so good that I no longer run any subwoofer at all...it's just not needed.

Just my 2 cents

Sounds really good! Which custom center did you get? Can you describe it? Also how many watts/channel is your amp?

 

[eg320]

The custom center was made specifically for my entertainment unit's shelf that is above plasma display, and has a Walsh 2000 driver firing inside of speaker enclosure that is totally enclosed and fires out from the front and both sides. Not sure which way driver is pointed as it totally enclosed with speaker grill material. John had me send room measurements, entertainment center measurements, and a few pictures and then he had it made in shop. Looks nice and sounds great.

 

[jrref]

The custom center was made specifically for my entertainment unit's shelf that is above plasma display, and has a Walsh 2000 driver firing inside of speaker enclosure that is totally enclosed and fires out from the front and both sides. Not sure which way driver is pointed as it totally enclosed with speaker grill material. John had me send room measurements, entertainment center measurements, and a few pictures and then he had it made in shop. Looks nice and sounds great.

Does it look like a box with a rounded front?

 

[eg320]

Does it look like a box with a rounded front?

No, it looks like a traditional bookshelf speaker that is rectangular in shape, with flat front and sides. The front and sides are mainly open but covered with the black grill material. Not sure if the driver points up like normal Walsh drivers or maybe points horizontally towards back wall....I can't see inside

 

[jrref]

No, it looks like a traditional bookshelf speaker that is rectangular in shape, with flat front and sides. The front and sides are mainly open but covered with the black grill material. Not sure if the driver points up like normal Walsh drivers or maybe points horizontally towards back wall....I can't see inside

The driver has to be pointing up like a regular Walsh Driver. I tried to post a picture of my custom center but the file is too large. I'll try to post it but can you show us what yours looks like?

 

[eg320]

The driver has to be pointing up like a regular Walsh Driver. I tried to post a picture of my custom center but the file is too large. I'll try to post it but can you show us what yours looks like?

Yeah I just pulled out a flashlight and the driver is pointing up. Let's see if I can attach a picture on this forum.....

 

[jrref]

Here is a picture of my center channel. It has a micro walsh driver but i'm getting one retrofitted with a 2000 driver to match the rest of my system.

 

[jrref]

Here is a picture of my center channel. It has a micro walsh driver but i'm getting one retrofitted with a 2000 driver to match the rest of my system.

Here is my Walsh Super 2000 surround.