Casual hobbyist "Frankenstein" setup =D

[khaliss]

Hi all,

I've been a lurker to these forums for awhile now, and recently only started posting here... cuz sometimes I do like to geek out on AV & HiFi-audio (casually, that is). Middle-aged guy (50 to be exact), and when you reach this age... you get a bit nostalgic of the yester-years. As an 80s kid, I loved all kinds of music & what was more interesting to me was the technical aspect of it (audio gear). My uncle had this Technics component system (complete with dual Tape player/recorder, Graphic Equalizer, spectrum analyzer, radio tuner, Amp & PreAmp stack, vinyl player, & of course big 3-way speakers)... it was just a fascinating time!

Fast forward today, I got back into the hobby again recently... but starting out with a very limited budget. Here is my modest "Frankenstein" setup in my little man-cave... well not literally, it's just a large spare bedroom converted into a listening & play room (Sim Racing), also have my indoor virtual-cycling setup (Zwift) in there!

to note:
* half of the gear I got from FB used marketplace (speakers, TV, 15" sub)
* the other half are my old stuff that was previously not in use, I pulled out of storage (bluray player, the two 10" subs)
* I use this setup ~70% music & ~30% movies, shows, bluray/dvd concerts, etc
* I bought a brand-new Yamaha A-S701 a year ago that was originally in this setup, but I replaced it with the Marantz AVR as I also would like to have a simple 4.2 surround setup for watching movies/shows... plus I find the audio actually sounds pretty darn good with the Audyssey mEQ-XT room correction
* I work in IT, that's why I have a PC in this setup (instead of a dedicated music streamer like Wiim Ultra, etc)
* the two subs connected to the LFE pre-outs play 40Hz & below (from the Front L/R channels) plus LFE channel (when playing Dolby 5.1 content)
* this setup has an audience of one (me)... only one sweet-spot: I sit in one position (on a solo recliner seat), which is dead center of the AVR rack... about 8 feet from the each front speakers. That's where I took the setup photo above, no other listening spot in the room =)

Diagram of how my setup is put together:

Measurement results:

Just thought I'd share... would appreciate any feedback (positive or negative LOL), maybe suggest a few things on how I could improve on this setup, what possible upgrades to get, etc! =)

 

[staticV3]

Nice setup!

Three notes:

1. I'd check out @OCA's room correction script that piggy-backs onto your AVR's existing Audyssey correction, but with more advanced processing behind the scenes.
Here's the link: https://youtu.be/tNj-nWR-Yyo

2. I'd do PC->PO100 2024->Optical->SR-5006 and keep the Audyssey correction active even for Stereo listening.

3. When sharing frequency response graphs, make sure the the dB range, so the area between the lowest and highest dB values shown does not exceed 50dB.

In REW, this can be adjusted with the "Limits" button.

Also, set smoothing to 1/12 Oct or Var smoothing to not hide away all the details.

Even better would be to measure the in-room response using the Moving Microphone Method, in which case no additional smoothing would have to be applied at all.

 

[khaliss]

1.) ok, I'll have to review that video... I'm not super technical yet, but trying to learn here =)
2.) what's a P0100-2024? I have the LavaDAC for "critical listening" (though I don't consider myself an audiophile, just a casual HiFi guy)... when I'm listening on Tidal, I do the exclusive device output so the raw PCM is unmodified by the PC, and goes directly to the DAC for processing to output to RCA and to the Marantz AVR in Pure-Direct mode (the bass management is bypassed, no output on the 2 LFE subs) ... to me it sounds the most natural (versus the PC outputting through the HDMI input of the AVR with Audyssey correction & bass management enabled). Both sounds great, but have a slight difference in sound reproduction.
3.) I need to further work on the 90-100hz range, as I do see a bit of a dip... it's a bit better now with the JBL sub helping the Martin Logans on the low bass range (the dip was bigger when I disable the JBL). I'm not sure if it's the room & positioning of the Logans -or- it's a hybrid-design flaw of the speakers themselves (it's an older model after all)

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[staticV3]

what's a P0100-2024?

See here: https://www.google.com/search?q=PO100+2024

 

[khaliss]

gotcha... not sure if I need that, as I can currently bypass my LavaAudio DAC and just pass on the raw/unprocessed digital audio feed (PCM, etc) directly to the Marantz AVR, through HDMI from my PC's Intel ARC GPU... it supports up to 24-bit & 192khz audio format. Can optical/coax even go that high (audio format) when passing through raw PCM?

edit: I just googled it, looks like COAX can go 24-bit/192khz, but optical only 24-bit/96khz

 

[khaliss]

also, this setup has an audience of one (me)... it's not for the family or anyone else (I have a 7.1.4 Atmos setup in the main living/family room). This is just for me, so I'm not worried about multi positioning (dead zones etc). I sit in one position (on a solo recliner seat), which is dead center of the AVR rack... about 8 feet from the each front speakers. That's where I took the setup photo above, only one permanent "sweet spot", no other listening spot in the room =)

 

[Chrispy]

Not what I'd call a Frankenstein setup, looks fine, altho the tv is a bit small.

 

[khaliss]

haha yeah, I do plan on upgrading the TV later on, but I got this from FB marketplace free... I don't need anything fancy at this point as I'm just experimenting. I sit 8-feet away from the TV, so the 32" is not that bad... plus anything bigger I'm not sure will fit on the top shelf of the rack

 

[Sokel]

I like the all-black in combination with the gray wall (I exclude the wood backs of the speakers from my vision )
Doesn't look like Frankenstein to me though, we have seen others approaching such much closer.

Igor maybe?

Jokes aside, I see sensible choices there, hope you enjoy it!

 

[Keith_W]

Your dipoles are awfully close to the front wall. This means that the reflections will be very early and integrated with the direct sound. If you position them further from the wall, the reflections will be more delayed and might create a more spacious sound.

 

[khaliss]

I like the all-black in combination with the gray wall (I exclude the wood backs of the speakers from my vision )
Doesn't look like Frankenstein to me though, we have seen others approaching such much closer.

Igor maybe?

Jokes aside, I see sensible choices there, hope you enjoy it!

thanks! the black areas of the pic was just photoshopped... it's a mess of cables etc, this is the actual (& newer pic), lol:

Your dipoles are awfully close to the front wall. This means that the reflections will be very early and integrated with the direct sound. If you position them further from the wall, the reflections will be more delayed and might create a more spacious sound

it was an older photo... the speakers are actually about 3 feet from the wall (measured from the front side)... and about 8 feet apart from each other. It's not a big room, and I got a lot of other stuff in there =D