Xki

I have an SC-3 center that is currently out of service. The kids found the speaker in the closet and pushed in the dust caps. I've tried the vacuum trick and could not budge them. There is no sound degredation that I can detect but I would sure like to get the caps back out! Any help would really be appreciated....

Yesterday, on Pandora, I accidentally ran across Liquid Tension Experiment. I just sat there smiling at about 90db.

Wow - It seems a lot longer than ~1 month! There was a UPA-7 for sale a while ago and it sold in about 3 hours. I expect to see more for sale. There are a few people who are constantly trying/changing gear and will part with just about anything to help pay for their latest passion. BorderCollie is right.... things don't last very long. One other nice thing about the UPA-7 is it runs very cool. Mine gets about 5 hours a day usage average and even when I blast away, it remains about the same temperature as Chinese take out food once you get it home. Maybe 100-105 degrees? Add on top of that that this amp is dead quiet. No hiss or hum whatsoever. And that's with LaScalas! Emo makes some really good amps so whatever you decide upon, if it's Emo, you'll be happy with your purchase.

Youthman summed it up quite well. You will hear a marked improvement in sound quality separation and overall clarity. Just for comparison sake, the UPA-7 weighs in at ~67 lbs. That's just the amp. Very few receivers come close to the weight. I know what your thinking...... whay does weight have anything to do with it? That's a researchable topic but trust me, the toriodal transformer of the UPA-7 kicks the crap out of a lot of amp sections in a all-in-one receiver. At low to moderatey low listening levels you may think that the sound quality is about the same. As you get above that level, the difference is startleing. With your current Klipsch loudspeakers, you will hear the difference immediatly. I can tell you that the Emotiva line of amplifiers is top notch. Thats from a price vs performance standpoint. Once I received the UPA-7, hooked it up, and started re-listening to all the source I have, I couldn't be more pleased. Sure there are plenty of other amps out there that are super. For me, the price was a big factor.... along with the reviews of this particular amp from various sites. (See Emotiva.com for the reviews.) I hate to tell you this but, the UPA-7 is no longer available. I got mine in one of the the last waves of availabilty. However, EMO offers many other amplifiers that are as good as the UPA-7 for value. They are more expensive and a 7 channel is no longer available but, that's the way it goes. I'll never need more that 125 watts per channel so I'm set for quite a while. Ya never know.... A UPA-7 could come up for sale and it would be a real steal to be the one who gets to it first.

True, and true. It's the same as a person who runs Cat6 cable throughout their house and hooks it all up to a 2Mbps cheapo Uverse internet connection. It's only as good as the weakest link. In most audio setups, the weakest link in not the speaker cable.... It's what is on the ends of the cable that makes all the differnce and is usually the weakest link. Power cables included. Been there, done that. The power feed where I live is really quite good. There are time where I hear a slight buzz or click in an otherwse clean signal. Maybe my neighbor fired up his wire feed welder again? []

I couldn't agree more. I'm half way through all of my favorites and I'm still smiling.

I can't make out just what those terminals are. I've never seen them but that doesn't mean they aren't original. Have any pics of the refinish job?

Very sweet! I like the black and white theme. So, how about a little more info on your gear? BluRay player, etc?

i take that back......... had some buddies came over last night, and decided to crank the amp up a bit....and BIG difference... listened to the Eagles Farewell Tour again, and i noticed bass was a lot tighter and smoother. clarity on instruments was much better, and i also hear a big improvement in soundstage.... guess i have to listen a bit louder from now on.... Edit: no sure the improvment was purely on the amp, since i got also got the Integra 9.9, and upraded the crossovers. perhaps, it's a combination of all things. Great! []

Personally, high end cables for speakers are a waste of money. Think about it. The signal is AC, not DC. It travels both directions on both wires. Direction on speaker cables means nothing. It would be like having wiring in your house having arrows on the leads. Higher guage is the way to go to make sure you don't lose any signal. Heck you could run cheapo 18 guage cable and wouldn't be able to hear much a difference unless you're in a lab environment at reference listening levels. It's the same with HDMI. HDMI is digital. If there were any bits lost, you would hear and/or see it. If the digital stream is getting there, it's all good.

Pardom my last post to you. I did read futher up! (4 kid distraction syndrome.) I like your description of the sound being "less pingy" and more "wholistic". I experienced that too. No one will beat you up for the sub stuff. If only my mistakes were that simple to resolve! Glad you are enjoying the UPA. And the headroom makes a big difference, no?

5? Oh my! I need a bigger room. The RB 25s are mounted off the ceiling and we still bump our heads. Thanks for the link fastslappy.

Oh, sure. Another quest! Did you build or buy the CS-1.5s? If it aligns with the Heritage line, is there any other choice? I've been using a Heresy II for center for a while. If the Crites matches timbre, I know what I'll be doing next.

It sure should be! Hook it up and see. []

I believe everyone's way is different. And yes, this shows the problem with the UMC bass management. Those sweep tones along with an iPhone app (RTA - Real Time Analyzer) really worked well to show where my room was lacking. In a perfect world, the EQ on the UMC-1 would be capable of adjusting down to 5Hz bands. ***** Then I woke up! [] I would be interested in the methods you use to get things in order. Share if you have time. Regards, Xki

I think when you do find the time, you'll like it more. Set up is SO important and even a 'theater in a box' can be passable if set up right. I'm satisfied with the UPA. I can't imagine what level of sound pressure could be generated if I really cranked the heck out of the La Scalas! By my reconing, I was pushing an average of 40-50 watts and it was loud. And clean. Unless I plan to move or take the mains outside for a party, the UPA will never have to grunt.

I can imagine! The integra is really pushing the envelope with processor functions. The write-ups are saying great things. Congrats!

Oh my! So much for the budget!

Any advice on how to tweak the EQ? How do you do it? I don't know if there is any 'good' advice I can give. It's a really subjective process. I'll try to explain what I do and that might help. I don't have any sophisticated testing equipment except for my ears! I'm snowbound working from home today. I could multi-task and write some stuff quickly but even though I CAN muti-task, that isn't how I prefer to work. I'll try to get some thoughts posted later today. :-) What I do first is make sure only the surrounds are playing. I unplug everything else and use PLIIx with 2 channel source CD. EmoQ has a tendency to reduce the low end on the sourronds and I know they can handle more. I bring up the lows at the crossover point and above until it's warmer. Done. Next I check that the surrounds are focussed in the middle of my head in the sweet spot. +/- 1 or 2 db does the trick. Done. Next I hook the mains back up and disconnect all others. Again with 2 channel source CD. This is where you really have to concentrate. I look for a center mixed part of the source and try to hear if any of the frequencies are pulled to one side or the other. For my LaScalas, thats pretty easy. The 1, 2, 4k bands are where the biggest difference is usually found. I've found my left front to be a little harsh so I play with those 3 bands until the left sounds just like the right and the center mixed part is a narrow as possible. (Wide is bad!) Done Next is the speaker level. This is the easiest part. Put in a movie that has a lot of surround and just sit and listen. If you want more, push the surrounds up. I normally have the rear surronds 2/3 db higher than the sides. That's just my preference. Done. The subs are the hardest part but with the new EmoQ it was much easier. I have a few examples of source material that are really bass heavy and can boom if the subs are too hot. So I put those in first and get rid of the boominess with LFE level. I found that my room sucks up bass at about 53 Hz. It's a big notch! -10+db! So I adjust the bands in that area to find a happy medium between too much and too little. That's just part of it. Now I have to pay attention to which speaker is redirecting the bass to the subs. (Avia II disc is perfect for this) If the surrond speaker makes the sub boom, you have to lower the bass bands, below the crossover point until the sub sounds better or more in line with what you expect. THis is a 1 speaker at atime deal but, I do the rights first and then just set the lefts the same. Once that is complete, I switch to the center. Same exercise. I have needed to do more trial and error on this one. TheLFE/Sub crossover frequency makes a huge difference. So does the slope. I've gotten it all set and changed my mind many times. Settled on 90Hz crossover on the subs at 12db slope. It makes the subs blend well. Done. The final bit is to really pick some well mixed source and just listen. I've found that tweaking the 500Hz band by 1 db up/down can change the whole experience. My room is to blame. And that's OK! Done! Back in the days of plain old stereo we had it made. Now we need more time, a more discerning ear, and crutches in the form of setup discs and SPL meters. Keeps us young!

Maybe a movie will show some differences from the 805. One things for sure.. if you decide to switch pre/pros in the future, you won't have to look for and/or invest in amplification! The specs on te 805 are impressive. I wonder how it performs agaist the UMC-1 with the new firmware? (PQ and HDMI locks.) I have both and it feels like they were meant for each other. I'll bet the Onkyo performs just fine.

Perhaps. I'm unable to remember what your listening level and preferences are. And I'm sure you don't have dead ears. The 805 is stated as 130 watts per so maybe it was just fine for your Cornwalls and your listening style. Even if the 805 managed 100 watts per with all chanels driven, it would be incredibly loud me thinks. For me there was a huge WOW factor. Every source has is better SQ. The bass is tight - finally. (And that's with the run of the mill Klipsch KSW 12s) The main sound stage has depth instead of being 2D. The extra headroom makes a huge difference in the action scenes. And this amp is 100% silent whithout a source. Dead silent. The surround signals are crisp and full. Of course I upgraded from a Sony STR-DE898. 7 ch 100 watts per. We've been using the system all day and the UPA is barely warm. The Sony would have been toasty! That's probably why the WOW factor was big in my case. The Sony didn't clip but it sounded like it was breathing really hard when I pushed it. The UPA-7 is just cruising at 95+ db. I think I'm going to be spoiled. If I were to upgrade the HT surrounds and backs with LaScalas (I wish), there wouldn't be a need for any more power at all. The high efficiency of Klipsch lends well to this modestly powered amplifier.

Any advice on how to tweak the EQ? How do you do it? I don't know if there is any 'good' advice I can give. It's a really subjective process. I'll try to explain what I do and that might help. I don't have any sophisticated testing equipment except for my ears! I'm snowbound working from home today. I could multi-task and write some stuff quickly but even though I CAN muti-task, that isn't how I prefer to work. I'll try to get some thoughts posted later today. :-)

Did the upgrade yesterday. Ran EmoQ and recalibrated the TV today. Tested with CDs, Pandora, BluRays, and DVDs. Watched Lord of the Rings, Disk 6 - The dynamic range is much improved. When the actors are whispering, it now sounds like a whisper instead of modulated pink noise. Cracks, thumps, bangs, clanks, explosions are great! Picture quality is the best yet. Recalibration of the plasma was needed. The new firmware is much more accurate in PQ. I had to flatten out most all of the boosts that I did prior to the firmware upgrade. The black levels are deeper. Sharpness needs zero boost. Avatar BluRay shows the color accuracy of the new f/w. I don't know if that was tweaked or not but, during the floating mountain scenes, there was more detail in the background and the color specks on the foreground went right down to the pixel. SQ during orchestral passages was very full. I actually played parts of these 2 DVDs before and after the upgrade for comparison. The surround experience is also better. LOTR showed this very well. The forest sounds in Avatar really wrap you up in the stage. Danny Elfman on Pandora was better than before. A full orchestra is a great test for the new f/w. Honestly, I think if I listened hard enough, I could tell you how many violins were playing at any given time. Enya was fuller and smoother across the entire frequency range. There was an improvement here but not as much as CDs. The noise floor is so low that between CD tracks I sometimes thought my amp was off. Really! I put in Rush - Snakes and Arrows for a few tests. With the new firmware, the La Scalas just plain sang. Mind you I just added a UPA-7 for amplification. That upgrade in and of itself was startling. But the difference with the new f/w took it up an additional level. PLIIx - Movie, with dimension set at 5, center width at 3, and the db meter peaking about 98 was killer. That's about as close to the much sought after "party mode" as you can get. The punch was better than before and each instrament was easily discernable. Vocals on this CD aren't mixed very well so I switched to some Transiberian Orchestra. Now that was a treat. Instead of sounding sort of studio compressed and altered, the vocals were more raw. That was a good thing. Every breath inhaled sounded right. EmoQ is substantially improved. Distances were spot on except for the subs that are always problematic. Crossovers were where they should be. Speaker levels were so close that I only needed to boost the surround rears by 1.5 db. EQ needed about 30% of the tweaking it needed the last time I ran it. For some reason it set the 2k and 4k on my left main 3db too high. Easily fixed. It set my HeresyII center exactly right to match the mains. It never did that before. Amazing. I'm a happy camper so far. I'll test basic HDMI lock on and decoding this week. The UMC-1 powers on/off about 15% faster. Also, my learning remote all but lost all the UMC codes with the upgrade. The Emo remote was fine. Taught the learning remote again and all is well.

I'm going to try this afternoon, also. After getting the UPA-7 running, everything needs to be readjusted so it's the perfect time to upgarde. From what I hear, the new firmware is much more an upgrade than an update. We shall see!

Holy cripes! Just got the gorilla hooked up 30 minutes ago. Threw in Rush - Snakes and Arrows for a 5 minute speaker test before the system was hijacked by the family. I'm at a complete loss for words! When I find them, they will all be completely positive for sure.. [:|] I think I'm in shock! 40 year old Klipsch. Magnificent! For those of you waiting (Olorin), it's worth it.