carbon summit

Well I got the email from Emo a few days ago that the XDA-1 is in stock and I can order it for $299 with free shipping. So its decision time now. I'm happy with the SQ of the ERC-1, it definitely is better than using my BD player as a CD player. As was stated above the ERC-1 has the same DAC chip set as the XDA-1 so I don't feel I'd gain much if anything (probably lose some I'd guess) running my BD player through the XDA-1 in its place. I'm guessing that digital music is the wave of the future but I'm just not that into it. I've got about 275 MP3s and a cheap DAC now but over all I have to think CD music in a good CD player will sound better than MP3 with a good DAC. Looking for some more opinions on the XDA-1. I've got until Monday to decide or los my place on the list. Its selling for $349 now so I guess I could try it and either send it back or sell it later and probably not lose much.

It's a valid reason. Who doesn't like good looking, solid feeling equipment over cheap throwaway stuff? Fair enough; I guess the point I'm trying to make is that if you're after the best possible sound, your money is probably better saved for a pair of Klipschorns than fooling around with the differences between a very very good dac and what may be a very very very good dac. At least in my opinion. Going back to this statement though: Just keep in mind, we're talking about a 7 dollar chip here. http://www.analog.com/en/digital-to-analog-converters/audio-da-converters/ad1955/products/product.html I agree with everything you're saying, I'm probably still justifying my purchase to myself as I've been responding!

SubBXeRo - Sorry to hijack your thread!

You can always ask Emotiva if it is a significant upgrade over the DACs already in the UMC-1, but for some reason, I'd seriously doubt it. If they could have significantly improved the UMC-1 for the cost of a DAC chip, I can't see any reason why they wouldn't have done so. I actually asked when I bought my ERC-1. They said the ERC-1(CD) and the XDA-1(DAC) have the same DAC chip, which is better than the DAC in the UMC-1. Now did they say that to justify me buying a ERC-1 vs using any CD player and hooking it to my UMC-1 via toslink? Possibly. Truth be told I've been using DVD or BD players as my CD player for years after retiring an old Sony 5 disc carousel to my second system and wondered what I was missing getting a "real" CD player. Seeing the higher priced ones for years I figured there must be some reason people buy them. I asked Emo that too and was given the story that you can also read on their website ( http://emotiva.com/erc1.shtm ). I do hear an improvement over my BD player which is why I kept it. Was it enough of a difference to spend the money? I think 95% of the threads on this forum are trying to justify that question in one way or another. Pointless waste of money or not I'm pretty happy owning the ERC-1 so I'll stick with it for now. I say for now because the XDA-1 does have me curious. Had the XDA-1 been available at the time I got the ERC-1 I would have probably bought that instead and tried running my BD player through it and also been able to run my computer through it too to see what SQ improvement I got. Of course if there is any truth to the story about the improvements a good CD player gives over an ordinary CD player I guess I'd still be missing something using my BD player over the ERC-1. I've got a cheaper DAC I use when listening to MP3s and it helps but I know the XDA-1 would be better. I emailed the link to the XDA-1 to the guy I bought the DAC from and he acknowledged it was a much better unit. I had $100 Emo Bucks to burn before the end of the year so I applied it to the ERC-1. Had they been willing to apply the $100 to the XDA-1 and shipped it later I would probably have done that but they would only let me use the $100 on in stock items. I figured if I changed my mind later I could sell the ERC-1 for what I have into it because I bought it $100 cheaper and then after the first of the year the price of it went up $80 so now I'm into it even better. I love that the ERC-1 doesn't have the cheap looking/feeling plastic tray that slides out. It has a solid quality feel about it and the UMC-1, ERC-1 and XPA-5 all lined up in my rack with black trim look awesome!!! Not a reason to buy a piece of equipment I know, but it does look good!

I checked my email this morning to find an email from Emotiva telling me their DAC is back in stock. Should I take that as a sign I should get it?!?! I'm not too sure about the DAC thing yet. I've been reading up and just like on this thread you've got people saying DACs are so great and then others saying not worth it. I've got until Monday to buy the Emo DAC at pre-order price or I lose my spot in line. I'll probaby pass for now until I figure out if I really need one. Maybe if I get more serious about digital content I'll reconsider getting one later.

Noticed in your signature you've got 5 x Cornwall II & 2 KP 301, I'd love to hear that set up!!!

Check out this link for some info on the distortion issue: http://emotivalounge.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=preamps&action=display&thread=16228&page=1 I have not had this issue, so I have not kept up on this thread but was reminded of it when I read your post.

No drop out issues with mine. The new firmware is rumored to be out in the next few weeks. If you're in no hurry I'd wait and see how that effects the unit.

I don't doubt you, but why do you say that? Its hard for a newbie to totally understand the stats given on each website.

Maybe I'm avoiding the future by not jumping deeper into the DAC arena. I might have bought Emo's new DAC instead of the ERC-1 if it was avalible but it wasn't. I have not been impressed with the sound quality of MP3s using my cheap DAC. I figure its more the fault of my source material than anything. I have some music on my laptop and some on CDs. I have not bought a CD in years so I know moving towards a better DAC might be the wise choice but just not really impressed with the SQ yet. What format of digital music are you using, where do you get it, and at what cost?

Thanks guys! I posted a thread in the subwoofer section asking for opinions about my four finalists in my subwoofer search rather than hijack your thread. They are all bigger than what I had planned on getting but after faxing my floor plan to both HSU and SVS and they came back with recommendations for monsters I figure thats all the excuse I needed to go big!!! Maybe they are just upselling me, but my living room has a lot of open area around it and vaulted ceilings so they probably are right. http://forums.klipsch.com/forums/t/144571.aspx

I recently sold my two subs and am shopping for a replacement. I've narrowed the battle down to these four subs: SVS PC12-Plus DSP vs SVS PB12-Plus DSP vs HSU VTF-15H vs used SVS PB12-Plus/2. I've kind of already made up my mind which one I'm going with but I'd like to hear opinions from people who own any of these just to help put my mind at ease. I realize that cost plays a part so I'll put out there the price of each with shipping: SVS PC12-Plus DSP=$1448 SVS PB12-Plus DSP =$1327 HSU VTF-15H =$1018 (introductory priced it says on the internet, not sure when, if, or how much it might go up) SVS PB12-Plus/2=$850 Any insight anyone can give me would be great. I tend to think, rethink, then over think my buying decisions!!!

Saying something as rational as that should be grounds for banishment from the forum!!! What fun is that idea regardless of how right it really is! [] Seriously though I've never used a PS3 as a CD player so I can't speak to how it would compare to the ERC-1. I was using my BD player as a CD player before I bought the ERC-1 and I think I do hear a difference. If I didn't I'd have sent it back during the 30 day period because I'd rather use the money for something else than have it sitting on my rack and not gaining sound quality. So I guess I'd hold out until you can get a good CD player and use your PS3. When you have the cash order the ERC-1 and listen like crazy for 30 days. If there is no gain box it up and return it.

+1 I've got both Forte IIs and Cornwalls. A sub helps both sound better. Which SVS subs do you have?

Once you own a pair of RF-7s there are no other Klipsch Reference speakers. Fwiw, on the Klipsch.com Reference page they have them listed according to price points: http://www.klipsch.com/na-en/products/reference/ That just shows the current line up. I'm thinking a family tree that shows all the different lines of Reference so a guy can tell how each one rates against another. If they were in numerical order then it would be easy, but a pair of RF-15s are not as good as a pair of RF-7s even though the number is bigger. To me the uneducated, there seems to me no rhyme or reason to the names, but I'm sure a little research and I'd figure it out.

I just noticed that the UPA-7 is close out priced now. $599 with free shipping. What was the price before, I can't remember? It was $699 + shipping. Now it's $599 + Free Shipping I just reserved a UPA-7. Congrats!

I've owned Rotel and really liked them. The 1095 was the one I was looking for but kept reading so much about the Emotiva XPA-5 (5 x 200 watts) for half the money for a new one with 5 year warranty vs a used 1095 without warranty. I've read a lot of reviews that say that if you take two amps of the same power and the gains are set so the SPLs are the same that in blind A/B test people couldn't tell one amp from another. I think for the money I didn't lose out buying the Emo, but I've always felt my Rotels had a better sound stage and sound that my Emo has now. If a 1095 came up for sale close to me at a good price I'd probably jump on it just to know for sure which one should be sitting on my shelf.

This same basic idea was discussed on this thread for the Yamaha 667: http://forums.klipsch.com/forums/t/144203.aspx Like I posted there about the Yamaha 663 receiver I had: I read a review of my receiver on ultimateAVmag.com and they had this to say about my 95wpc X 7: This graph shows that the RX-V663’s left channel, from Multi input to speaker output with two channels driving 8-ohm loads continuously at 1 kHz, reached 0.1% distortion at 166.7 watts and 1% distortion at 190.7 watts. Into 4 ohms, the amplifier reached 0.1% distortion at 218.0 watts and 1% distortion at 245.9 watts. With five channels driven continuously into 8-ohm loads, the amp reached 0.1% distortion at 60.0 watts and 1% distortion at 74.9 watts. With seven channels driven continuously into 8-ohm loads, it reached 0.1% distortion at 47.3 watts and 1% distortion at 57.8 watts. Yamaha's stated distortion of 0.09% was reached at 46.9 watts with seven channels driving 8-ohm loads. This is roughly half of the 95Wpc specified by the manufacturer, which could be why the AVR seemed to run out of gas at higher listening levels. I guess my point is the ratings on receivers are not to be trusted, at least with Yamaha. Unlike SuBXeRo I do like Yamaha receiver and think they sound great with Klipsch. Onkyo was another brand I was considering when I bought my 663 but they were having issues with the model that competed with the 663 so I skipped them and went Yamaha.

I just noticed that the UPA-7 is close out priced now. $599 with free shipping. What was the price before, I can't remember?

I can wait until after the shoot out to buy. It sucks not having a sub but I'd rather wait and figure out what I want than rush in and regret my purchase. In the mean time I'm trying to read up on a few different subs to narrow down which one I'll pick.

1) I think the smaller HSU would disappoint for HT. Not enough extension. 2) Ported subs are preferred for home theater. Of course, let's not get carried away. This does not mean that ported subs will ruin your music. 3) The filter caps how high the sub will play. The higher the frequency from the sub, the easier it is to isolate in a room. Thanks for the response. OK its go time, I just sold both my subs on craigslist. tonight so I"m sub-less! So I need to make a decision now for a replacement. I've read the review on the Emo Ultra Sub 12 and it sounds great for the money, The HSU has a couple that catch my eye, and a few other brands. I wasn't in a hurry, I put my two Klipsch Sub 10s (crap) on Craigslist just to see if someone would bite because I aways seem to end up with extra stuff sitting around but they went fast so now I've got to fill the gapping hole in my system! SVS SB12-NSD is another one that comes to mind.

That A/B comparison sounds like it would benefit me too. You guys should get together and report back your findings. I'm not opposed to the Emo, but it seems to me I've read that a sealed sub isn't great for HT. Thats why I was looking at the HSU ones I pointed out. The "Variable Tuning Frequency" stuff helps be a better one to use for both music and HT, right? Another question. Can somebody explain what this means? Bypassable 24 dB/Oct, continuously variable 30 - 90 Hz low pass filter The web page says the response is 18 Hz, +/- 1 dB, so I'm confused about the filter cutting it at 30 Hz. I'm sure I just don't understand so please educate me!

They are both geat subs if you have $100 more to spend then the VTF 2 MK3 is the winner. Not as worried about the $100 as I am having too much sub. I know you can never have too much sub!! I recently bought a duplex, rent half and live in half plan, so I don't want too much bass that I'm offending my tenants! But the VTF 2 MK3 does dig deeper and would probably sound better and if I set the level where its under control I should be ok... I guess I'd like to stick around that $500 - $600 range as far as money, so any suggestions in that range that are good for both HT and music would be appreciated.

Not to hijack the thread, but what would you guys recomment for someone using it 60% HT/40% music? I'm kind of thinking one of these: http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-2-mk3.html http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-1.html I would consider other brands as well, not loyal to HSU, just have read some good things about them.

Maybe consider Wuzzer's LPA-1 that he has for sale in the Garage section: http://forums.klipsch.com/forums/p/141428/1441272.aspx#1441272 5 channels at 125 watts, and two at 50 watts vs all 7 at 125 watts. It would save you a little cash and I'm not sure surrounds need 125 watts anyway. I know I say that having 200 watts going to mine, but I do think its over kill. I used to have front & rear Forte IIs with the Academy at center and listened to 7 channel music more (thats what Yamaha calls it, of course I only had 5) but now I find I don't really listen to it much so my surrounds are truely just surrounds and I listen to music on two channel.