From a soundbar to an all-Seaton Atmos setup

However, a combination of factors (pricing, the extra gain and the fact that it was my first choice) meant I finally made the decision to go with a Stewart Luxus 150 in diagonal in 2.4.1.

Having described the thought process behind the other aspects of the screen selection process, I left out one of the most important ones: Size!

While the 135 in diagonal 16:9 worked reasonably well for us in terms of immersion where we were seated, scope content left a fair amount to be desired. So, even though our movie watching is restricted to at most two a week, I decided that I now wanted an immersive experience for them. While I originally envisioned a 135 in diagonal in 2.4:1, that would have meant an image size of ~106 in diagonal for 16:9. Way too much of a drop from the 135 we have.

After discussions with my dealer and the Stewart rep, it was decided that a 150 in diagonal in 2.4:1 would work for HDR (looking at mid 20's FL after calibration and accounting for AT screen and other factors). Truth be told, I would've liked to have gone bigger, but my dealer said that while he preferred a wide screen, 150 was his recommended limit for my setup.

So, 150 in diagonal it is. That translates to a 118 in diagonal in 16:9. However, the plan is to install the screen about 3 ft into the room. So, the size difference for 16:9 can be mitigated somewhat. Brightness is such a subjective preference though, so fingers crossed until everything is set up.
 
Custom amps for my surrounds and overheads have been delayed. As a result, I decided to get a pair of the Powersoft Quattracanoli 1204 to power the 4 overheads and 2 side surrounds. 300W/ch at 8 ohms is pretty close to what Mark Seaton advised me to get to allow the Ember 400's to keep up with the rest of the system, so I'm really looking forward to receiving these in a couple of days.

Quattracanoli 1204

I expect that this will be the penultimate equipment purchase as I look to finish my HT. When one considers that the main speakers got to me in September of 2017, it's about time too!
 
How are powering these equipment. Have you worked out your total power consumption and upgraded the main line that powers this room inluding your AC line
 
Have you worked out your total power consumption and upgraded the main line that powers this room inluding your AC line

No and no, although I should do it now that things are more or less finalized. HST, I remember Mark posting a long time ago that the draw from the wall for the Submersives was likely to be around 1/3 (or was it 1/2) the rated amplifier power. At 1/3, the Submersives' draw is going to be 2000 W. Add roughly another quarter for the pair of JS-12's and a half for the LCR.

The projector and video processor are hooked up to an online UPS rated for 1200 W to allow for graceful shutdown in the event of a power cut. Which still leaves the Anthem AVM 60 and my sources.

I currently have an AVR powering the overheads and I've managed not to trip a breaker in this room. Yet. You are right though. I do need to spend some time thinking through this.

How much were you quoted for the Powersoft?

My quote for the Powersoft alone may or may not be meaningful when viewed in the context of my overall purchases from my dealer, but I'll be happy to provide you with an introduction to them if you're so inclined.
 
Custom amps for my surrounds and overheads have been delayed. As a result, I decided to get a pair of the Powersoft Quattracanoli 1204 to power the 4 overheads and 2 side surrounds. 300W/ch at 8 ohms is pretty close to what Mark Seaton advised me to get to allow the Ember 400's to keep up with the rest of the system, so I'm really looking forward to receiving these in a couple of days.

Quattracanoli 1204

I expect that this will be the penultimate equipment purchase as I look to finish my HT. When one considers that the main speakers got to me in September of 2017, it's about time too!
ur setup rally looks great & very impressive ..very curious to know seaton speakers costed u to bring india?
 
Custom amps for my surrounds and overheads have been delayed. As a result, I decided to get a pair of the Powersoft Quattracanoli 1204 to power the 4 overheads and 2 side surrounds. 300W/ch at 8 ohms is pretty close to what Mark Seaton advised me to get to allow the Ember 400's to keep up with the rest of the system, so I'm really looking forward to receiving these in a couple of days.

Quattracanoli 1204

I expect that this will be the penultimate equipment purchase as I look to finish my HT. When one considers that the main speakers got to me in September of 2017, it's about time to
I never heard of this amp..
Have u tried QSC or ATI or Crown pro power amps ...Any specific reason about this amp.
 
No and no, although I should do it now that things are more or less finalized. HST, I remember Mark posting a long time ago that the draw from the wall for the Submersives was likely to be around 1/3 (or was it 1/2) the rated amplifier power. At 1/3, the Submersives' draw is going to be 2000 W. Add roughly another quarter for the pair of JS-12's and a half for the LCR.

The projector and video processor are hooked up to an online UPS rated for 1200 W to allow for graceful shutdown in the event of a power cut. Which still leaves the Anthem AVM 60 and my sources.

I currently have an AVR powering the overheads and I've managed not to trip a breaker in this room. Yet. You are right though. I do need to spend some time thinking through this.



My quote for the Powersoft alone may or may not be meaningful when viewed in the context of my overall purchases from my dealer, but I'll be happy to provide you with an introduction to them if you're so inclined.

Just curious about the Indian price, if you don't mind please PM me, otherwise no worries.
 
ur setup rally looks great & very impressive ..

Thank you. The equipment is good, yes.

very curious to know seaton speakers costed u to bring india?

You mean shipping cost?

I never heard of this amp..

Heh. Me neither, until I mentioned to my dealer the delay with the custom amps.

Have u tried QSC or ATI or Crown pro power amps ...Any specific reason about this amp.

As you know, I've only ever had powered speakers until now. So, no experience with amps of any sort (other than the ones that came with the Yamaha AVR that is currently being lent to me). Would've loved to buy the ATI, but unfortunately I couldn't justify the price. Didn't consider QSC, was iffy about Crown based on some feedback.

My dealer said that they use the Powersoft for the mains in some of their installs. Neutral, quiet, pretty decent S/N and at 300W/ch the headroom I wanted (probably around 3 dB at reference levels for the overheads and surrounds). I was pretty clear that I wanted something that just amplified and stayed out of the way. I didn't want any "audiophile" amp with woo about musicality, sound stage and a whole load of other stuff I had no interest in and I was told that this would work just fine. So, I got them!

Just curious about the Indian price, if you don't mind please PM me, otherwise no worries.

Sure, will send you a PM.
 
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One simple test you can try is put a incandescent bulb in a socket which receives power from the same line. Then go turbo on your setup with a dynamic scene and check if the bulb flickers on thundering bass notes. If it flickers, you need higher amp fuse breaker and a thicker wire from the mains to your distribution box and a very strong earth drain
 
Thank you. The equipment is good, yes.



You mean shipping cost?



Heh. Me neither, until I mentioned to my dealer the delay with the custom amps.



As you know, I've only ever had powered speakers until now. So, no experience with amps of any sort (other than the ones that came with the Yamaha AVR that is currently being lent to me). Would've loved to buy the ATI, but unfortunately I couldn't justify the price. Didn't consider QSC, was iffy about Crown based on some feedback.

My dealer said that they use the Powersoft for the mains in some of their installs. Neutral, quiet, pretty decent S/N and at 300W/ch the headroom I wanted (probably around 3 dB at reference levels for the overheads and surrounds). I was pretty clear that I wanted something that just amplified and stayed out of the way. I didn't want any "audiophile" amp with woo about musicality, sound stage and a whole load of other stuff I had no interest in and I was told that this would work just fine. So, I got them!


Sure, will send you a PM.
No speakers including shipping & custom charges over all from US to reach ur home..PM me if u dont like to mention in group..thanks fo rur reply..
Planning to buy Seaton sub & LCR
 
With the upgrade of the video to 4K and the potential addition of Atmos at that time, I felt it was time to take a serious look at my source for movies. A friend and fellow FM (svvikram) was kind enough to lend me his Sony X700 UHD player and some 4K discs for testing.

Think it is safe to say the missus and I were blown away by the UHD disc version of Passengers. Either rented/purchased the same movie on iTunes and, subjectively, there seemed to be a clear difference between disc vs streaming. The visceral impact in the LF was much more with the lossless audio on the disc. Even with the significant dip in my subwoofers' response in-room between 26-42 Hz at that time. Standard disclaimers re. blind testing and level matching apply, so I'm not going to hold this up as objective evidence of any sort as to the difference between streaming audio vs lossless audio from disc. There are visible video artifacts with streaming as well, especially when the internet is not up to speed;). One can really get taken out of the movie at times like this. First-world problems clearly, but it is what it is.

So, I was sold on making the move up to lossless sources via a UHD player instead of the far more expensive, but only other alternative for licensed access to downloadable content.

I ended up with the Sony UBP X800M2 along with a dozen or so UHD discs. A short time after, the additional subs and the overheads got here. When we first watched the original Jurassic Park in 4K in this setup, the missus commented (for the first time in the time we've had the HT) that she felt like she was in the middle of the action. Seminal moments like that are what make building a HT so worthwhile.

However, as we ran through the discs, an uncomfortable problem began to emerge. Sourcing discs. For a variety of reasons, I was hung up on discs from the US. I'd figured this might be an issue, but I thought there were a couple of options (a contact in India who was offering UHD discs at 1700 per or have folks traveling here bring them).

Unfortunately, when push came to shove, I couldn't bring myself to pay up for the discs here and the latter option just didn't seem to be a workable option in the long-term. Not to mention the hassle of managing a physical disc collection, especially when I didn't think we'd end up watching the same movie twice, let alone multiple times. On the other hand, it seemed clear that we would be leaving a lot of the setup's potential on the table if we stuck to iTunes for movies. Damn this hobby sometimes. Double damn.

So, it was back to considering the only other alternative that I'd dismissed as being too expensive the first time around. Licensed, downloadable content. Not streaming. Quality at least as good as disc. While the hardware price hadn't changed since the first time I'd looked at it, there had been one fundamental change: It was now possible to rent titles from their movie store! This made it a far more appealing proposition in the long-term for me as opposed to having to always buy titles at UHD disc prices (or more) in order to get lossless quality.

So, after a lot of hand(head)wringing, I made the decision to buy into the Kaleidescape ecosystem. Will be going with the entry-level Strato S 6 TB player. IMO, this is not a move without risk. I'd feel a whole lot better about Kaleidescape's future if they were somehow able to get Netflix and Apple TV+ original programming on to their platform. This would effectively secure their long-term future, along with the introduction of a significantly cheaper rental-only player. There are no guarantees in life though, so you make your decisions in the now and here and accept the future consequences.

Really look forward to receiving the Strato and finding out just why the ones who own one rave about the Kaleidescape experience. Should be fun, which is what in the end this hobby is all about!


It is even more special as it is part of the missus' gift for my upcoming 45th!

This is the other part of the missus' gift. This concludes the major equipment purchases for my HT. At least, it ought to, if I were interested in maximizing my chances of having a 46th...

Kaleidescape-Strato-S.jpg
 
We can never get the best from our systems through OTT. When I am forced to watch something in OTT most of the times I just use the TV speakers. Also it becomes inconvenient if all our movies are going to be through blu ray discs. Best solution is either download blu ray remux or stream them. I have used Sony bdp4500, sonyx700 and ps4. Gave everything up and now I only stream or download the remux files.
 
When I am forced to watch something in OTT most of the times I just use the TV speakers

Well, okay. I am not as down on streaming as you seem to be. Some of the Netflix and Apple TV+ programming looks and sounds quite stunning to me. Especially when my internet is stable.

Best solution is either download blu ray remux or stream them.

That isn't the best solution for everyone, though. I had access to a Plex server with enough content to last me a very long time, but I used it exactly once I think: To playback Sully, IIRC, in lossless when I wanted to demo 4K for the first time when my parents visited. However, the content wasn't mine and it didn't sit right with me to use it for movie playback all the time. I won't pretend like the temptation wasn't there for occasional use, but I resisted.

The Kaleidescape will allow me to sleep well at night, both in terms of lossless quality as well as being licensed content. HST, there's very little that practically stops people from doing as they wish in this regard.

If I couldn't do the Kaleidescape, I would probably mostly go iTunes for movies. And do discs whenever possible i.e. folks traveled from the US. As the saying goes: Different strokes for different folks.
 
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Really look forward to receiving the Strato and finding out just why the ones who own one rave about the Kaleidescape experience.

While I do look forward to this, one thing that will have to change is the decision-making on what movie to watch. The spontaneity of picking something at a whim and immediately starting playback will be gone with the Strato.

Reported download times for a full 4K movie (60+ GB) have ranged from as quick as 50 odd minutes to longer than twice as much.

Either way, movies will likely have to chosen a day before and downloaded overnight. Or, pick a bunch that we’re interested in and have them downloaded in one go. Rinse and repeat for the next batch to provide the illusion of somewhat of a real-time choice.

I expect that we’ll miss the whimsical, on-demand nature of streaming, but this is a trade-off that needs to be made currently in the system for access to lossless AV quality. Otherwise, one needs to step up to the Terra servers (15 minute downloads for 4K movies), but that’s not happening anytime soon. Perhaps ever.

Still excited for this as my HT gets closer to a long overdue completion.
 
A beautiful, well-constructed speaker with class-leading soundstage, imaging and bass that is fast, deep, and precise.
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