Derb theater part deux

[Derb]

Last update = August 7th (Post #20)

I don't think much has changed sinse my last thread.

Cabinet 1 Open is the best pic to show ya how far away I have my receiver to the Toshiba player.. 13 feet!

Well, where you see the Silver Sony dvd player... thats where the Toshiba HDA1 is now. Unfortunately, no digi cam sinse I got the player..

These shots are of different angles than previous post + dvds & cabinets..

The Source;



The Sub;



HDTV-SATT - Panny E30 - HK Receiver - Sub;



Main Left;



Main Left (Wire in wall);



Main Right;



Main Right (Wire in wall);



Center - Sony player - X-Box;



Behind Tv Center Wire;



Upper Right Ceiling Surround;



Upper Right Ceiling Surround; (Wire)



Upper Left Ceiling Surround;



Tv;



DvDs & Cabinets;

Cabinet 1 (Closed);



Cabinet 1 (Open);



Cabinet 1 First Shelf (Close);



Cabinet 1 First Shelf (Behind first row of flicks);



Cabinets 2,3,4 (Closed);

[Pirate]

I was about to ask where your A1 was.

Nice setup! I like the precise wiring and the (very full) cabinets.

[zepplongfellow]

Very nice setup

[ganthc]

Really nice setup. The cabinets are a great idea for storing DVDs. I think they look a lot better than racks do. I do like the rack for your hd and audio receivers.

[Derb]

A few upgrades..

Excuse the lousy pics.

I replaced the Panny DVD player for the Silver Sony DVPNS70H
I replaced the HK receiver for the 7.1 silver Panny HDMI



Here is a shot of the TV, nothing new here except a proper stand. What ya see is The Wild on Blu-Ray. It looks 100 times better for real, than this photo.





A close-up shot of some goodness. From left to right........

PS3 60GB
Toshiba HDA2
Sima HDMI splitter
Nintendo Wii
Klipsch Center
X-box 360 HD DVD add-on
X-Box 360

[Pirate]

Except for that "evil" PS3, everything looks great!

[ganthc]

Is the HD-A2 still glitchy when watching films?

[Derb]

Originally Posted by ganthc

Is the HD-A2 still glitchy when watching films?

I am a bit concerned with the weight on top of the HD-A2.

PH,

The "evil" PS3 might not be the ideal BD player, but at least it doesn't shine the whole room Blu like the standalone players.

[ganthc]

Originally Posted by Derb

I am a bit concerned with the weight on top of the HD-A2.

Yeah, I will admit that it is a heavy sucker. But since you have it squarely placed on the hd-a2 it's weight should be diffused as long as the toshiba is made of sturdy materials. But even if it is, it probably is safer to place it underneath the Sony upconvert dvd player. Which it's funny you even have that since I thought the hd-a2 was supposed to be a great upconvert player.

[Derb]

Originally Posted by ganthc

Yeah, I will admit that it is a heavy sucker. But since you have it squarely placed on the hd-a2 it's weight should be diffused as long as the toshiba is made of sturdy materials. But even if it is, it probably is safer to place it underneath the Sony upconvert dvd player. Which it's funny you even have that since I thought the hd-a2 was supposed to be a great upconvert player.

Yeah I still kept the Sony upcon player but I do not have it connected to HDMI

My set has a PIP mode but it can't accept 2 HD sources in that mode including Component. I just have that Sony player to compare 480 to native HD rez using S-Video. My set will then allow me to use the PIP mode for both SD & HD. A little patience & I can sync both films on the display. Great reference to show off HD to people who are not in the know or who say there is no difference.. etc

[sub780lime]

The only thing that would bother me is the uncentered center speaker...come on, its in the name...center speaker

Really nice setup...The wiring is the best part. I love how you did that and using the panels just looks great.

[Derb]

Originally Posted by sub780lime

The only thing that would bother me is the uncentered center speaker...come on, its in the name...center speaker

Really nice setup...The wiring is the best part. I love how you did that and using the panels just looks great.

Thanks.

Them pics are really lousy.. Yeah, the center speaker isn't perfectly positioned in the middle of the stand but oddly enough, it is centered with the room dimenions. My worry when getting the new stand was how bad would the audio be effected because the speaker is much lower than before. It was effected a bit, around 2-3db below reference. An easy fix.

[Derb]

Here are some updated pics of my HT currently along with my HD titles & extra's. I now have a decent enough receiver which gives my SUB a real workout with HD DVDs (Finally)

Toshiba HD DVD Player HD-XA2/Onkyo 7.1 HDMI Receiver TX-SR604


Removed Sima HDMI splitter & Toshiba HD-A2


TV,


BDs,


HD DVDs,


Control,


Most important,



Transformers HD trailer pics

Scorponok,


Optimus Prime,


Optimus Prime,


Barricade,


Bumblebee,


Optimus Prime,

[Sehnzeleid]

Nice!

Though I gotta say I imagine you someday moving into audio seperates...

[Iguana Man]

Derb, how does the Onkyo sound compared to your previous avr? How would you classify it sonically?

And dude, try coasters for what looks like the ugliest cup of beer I've ever seen!

[tomdkat]

Dude, what's up with the stains?

Peace...

[ganthc]

Um...why do you have the Complete Matrix Trilogy AND the Ultimate? It makes no sense!!

[Derb]

Originally Posted by Iguana Man

Derb, how does the Onkyo sound compared to your previous avr? How would you classify it sonically?

And dude, try coasters for what looks like the ugliest cup of beer I've ever seen!

I don't know what I'd do without my favorite cup errrr Bowl of coffee.

I'm testing the Onkyo output from different sources right now. It seems the receiver does properly output LFE internally. I have the db set to +12 anyways. There are 2 surround modes for PCM, Multi-Channel & Direct If I play any HD DVD with Direct, I get no (or barely any) LFE. Playing back HD DVD with Multi gives me the same level of LFE compared to any BD disc. It doesn't matter what setting I have it on when playing back BDs, the LFE is the same on Direct or Multi which I find strange.

The sound from all other channels is great. I think my old Panny had some sort of "auto" dynamic compression no matter the source. First thing I noticed (other than LFE) was subtle sounds from the mains & surrounds were much more aggressive including the Center with the Onkyo. I still had to up the center channel db output to 6+ thou.

Audio is displayed (db) in reverse from my older receivers. So 0 is well.. mute, 99 is max volume. Every different audio type of sound needs to be tweaked to get the same db output.. If I don't find the right level of output than I can't rate any HD audio tracks like I have been doing.

Testing "Constantine" on HD DVD "Pirates 2" for BD & "Reservior Dogs" (dts) for BD, I think I am very close to getting an "equel" output from every source.

HD DVD - DD+ - 45db (Dynamic on + Dialog-norm on)
HD DVD - TrueHD - 60-65db (Dynamic on + Dialog-norm off)
BD - Dolby - 60db
BD - dts - 55db
BD - LPCM - 50db

Originally Posted by tomdkat

Dude, what's up with the stains?

Peace...

Yeah, my bad. I filled my 1 litre mug of coffee up, set it down & well...

Originally Posted by ganthc

Um...why do you have the Complete Matrix Trilogy AND the Ultimate? It makes no sense!!

I know, I guess because I ordered "The Complete" online & was getting impatient with my mail service. That & it was too late to change my mind in getting the "Ultimate" over the "Complete". I realized I did want all the bonus features from the 10-disc set. Nevermind, it makes no sense.

[sub780lime]

Dude, your HD and Blu-ray collection just seems huge to me already. Then again, its not like your DVD collection is miniature.

[Derb]

Well here is my latest installment.

Excuse the lousy photography

Sony KDS60A2020

Matrix in 1080p

[zepherman]

Derb,

There is no doubt that you are indeed the current king of optical media! While my DVD collection is fairly large (1,500+), my high def library needs some work (34 HD DVD/26 Blu-ray). I'm jealous.

Gotta tell you bud, I love the new TV! Sweet!


Seth

[sub780lime]

Very pretty! Did you finally center your center speaker?

[Derb]

Originally Posted by sub780lime

Very pretty! Did you finally center your center speaker?

Nope. still falls within the dimensions of the octagonal room. Only thing that isn't quite appealing to me is my stand is silver & my new tv is black.

[zepherman]

Originally Posted by Derb

Nope. still falls within the dimensions of the octagonal room. Only thing that isn't quite appealing to me is my stand is silver & my new tv is black.

The silver stand with that black TV doesn't look bad at all. Makes a good contrast. So until you do change it out with a black one, to me it looks just fine.


Seth

[Derb]

Originally Posted by zepherman

The silver stand with that black TV doesn't look bad at all. Makes a good contrast. So until you do change it out with a black one, to me it looks just fine.


Seth

Ah thanks. There actually is a silver trim on the TV you probably can see in that pic. I don't think I'll get a new black stand anytime soon. The silver doesn't distract me from viewing content which is key. If/when it does, I'll just get some black paint.

[zepherman]

Originally Posted by Derb

Ah thanks. There actually is a silver trim on the TV you probably can see in that pic. I don't think I'll get a new black stand anytime soon. The silver doesn't distract me from viewing content which is key. If/when it does, I'll just get some black paint.

Sure enough, your new TV does indeed have some silver trim on it. Yeah I think you'll be just fine with that silver stand. And like you said if the silver EVER did start to distract, this as you mentioned, will definitely do the trick.