Xki

Ya know, that's one of the few negative (and honest) post I've seen anywhere. I've been looking for some disenters. [] They do have a different business nodel. I'm still impressed by the 5 year war. I've pre-ordered a UMC-1 and if I am disappointed, then it's my fault. I've read TONS of posts and reviews and so far I still really want this unit... bugs and all. I have heard McIntosh and Klipsh and it was sweet. That was 30 years ago. I promise if and when I get the Emo, I put together the best review I can. (Still pumped.)

I've been over at the Emo site looking through the issues and fixes. Their firmware crew is awesome. Be prepared for USB firmware upgrades! The UMC has many, many features than is advertised. Still pumped. The bugs were either fixed or due to lack of user knowledge with a few head scratchers that the video/audio engineers are working on. Their reported to fixed time is about 4 days! 4 DAYS! I guess I better tell the better half, huh?

That is truly good news!

I wouldn't worry about the plate, I would worry about the box behind it! If in fact you are planning on a box and not just a mounting ring. Good luck! Tell us how it works out. That will be a sight for sure.

I have a Harmony 1000 that I don't use due to the wierd setup of the current AVR. I am using Sony RM-AV2500. In fact I have one new one standing by. The first lasted 3 years with severe kid abuse. I'm on the second now. I'm hoping I won't have to assign all the various functions to alternate AVR inputs so I can take advantage of the Harmony. Fingers crossed. []

On screen menu OK? Discrete equalizers, and remote?

Well now I am PUMPED!

I just put in a pre-order today. The features and capabilities should last a good long time. I'll splurge for the amps when finances permit. I have a feeling the regular price will be higher than the pre-order price.

Mike, the subs are in phase. My surronds/backs set to 'large' reproduce the low end fairly well. When I set them to small, there are too many <200Hz frequencies routed to the mains. It just messes up the separation. I'm happy with the sound. I will play with the crossover freq. and the sub settings to maximize the 'warmth' of the entire range. (My 4 year old fliped the switch on 1 of the subs putting it out of phase and it took 2 seconds to notice.) Honestly, I am really surprised that the RB-25s put out as much as they do. Set to 'large' they can sing. When playing music in muti-channel stereo mode the room is filled. I found, as you stated, that the room below 100Hz is really picky. I'm glad the sweet spot for viewing is also the sweet spot for listening. I've been VERY lucky. Although, an inch or so makes a huge difference. The wife never knows where the furnishings will be when I'm in testing mode.

Thanks guys for all the input! I hope Jakeg123 is following. Based on my newly found uncertainty, about the only thing I would tell you (Jake) is to try setting all your speakers to 'large'. I tried small for the smaller speakers and was very disappointed.

Now that IS reason enough to rethink where I have the subs set. Thanks so much DrWho. There are at least 10 reasons in your post to do some serious comparisons. Step 1, turn the receiver's LF cutoff "ON". Regards, XKI

I'll pile on a question here. If your mains go down to xHz, why is it better to set the x-over to x+30Hz? The RF-62 is rateddown to 39Hz +/- 3db. I would start the testing with the x-over at 40. Am I completely, utterly wrong here? Is there a stated rationalle for the THX-80Hz cutoff?

I have both the surrounds and rears 5 feet off the floor. Since I have little kids, I had to hang them from the ceiling. I'm satisfied but tempted to try them lower.....

Perfect. Absolutely perfect. []

I agree with Klipsch and thaddeussmith. Is that possible here? When I finally got 1 sub, I was shocked by the directional nature of the low frequencies. All the thumps were coming from right where the sub was: right of center. Ok. Hmmmm..... Moved the sub to center. So, the low end was centered but, this position was really boomy. To the side, 1/3rd ish, sounded great. It was time to do the "crawl around"! Found the sweet spots. The corners were actually pretty good but there was something missing. Probably because my sub is relatively low end (KSW-12) and not made for corners. (Makes me want to audition a Klipsch corner unit.) Finally got a second sub and have them on the front wall at 1/3 and 2/3. Life is good. I suppose just what frequencies you are letting through to the sub has a lot to do with placement. I have mine set at ~50Hz and you CAN tell where the bass is coming from with just 1 sub. The corners are for the La Scalas, then the subs just off the edges of the 50" display. If you are cutting off the freq. lower, say ~30Hz, the closet just might be fine. Additionally, it always surprises me how what I thought was a pretty dead room isn't dead at all. EVERYTHING can be a reflector with the right frequency.

Oh boy! There will be as many ideas as forum members! For what it's worth..... my mains go down to ~50 Hz. So I set the crossover on the subs to ~ 50Hz also. That sounds very good and music has a much punchier low end. I run all speakers as "large". I tried variuos combinations of small/large and leaving all as large sounds the best for my setup. The AVR allows a +/- for each speaker so based on the sensitivity, I boosted the center, surrouinds, and surrond backs to compensate for the differnence. The La Scalas are 104db, the Heresy is 97db, and the rb-25s are 94db. So I set the +/- for the center Heresy at +5 and the rb-25s at + 7 which is just below what the db rating differences would dictate. This is just right. I admit giving the rear surrounds an extra +1 or 2 just cuz multi channel stereo for music is SO cool. Having the subs set to anything over 50Hz causes a sonic competition that is really distracting. Lower than 50 and there is certainly something missing. (The La Scalas drtop off quick below 50 Hz. I'm assuming you are using the KA-100 amp with the KW-120s so you should be able to dial in the sound that YOU like. It's all about YOUR preferences. Since your RF-83s are rated down to 29HZ, I don't know if setting the sub amp at abot 30 will give you the thump you are looking for. Experiment. My gut is telling me that 40 to 45 will do the trick. Then again, your room could be absorbing the 83s low end and 45-55 might be better. Let us know what you find!

83SE? (Drool!)

Thanks guys. That's one thing about some of us. The toy factor has a great amount of pull. There is a local shop here that carries HK and Klipsch + a lot of others. I'll have to get over there on a quiet day and do some detailed listening. I'll leave the credit cards at home.

The UPA-7, on the other hand, looks huge. A rack would be great but a complete budget buster. There is one spot in the room where I could build in the components. That's always an option. There are 2 things that are the underlying reasons for asking the original question. Back in the 70's when I first purchased my LaScalas, stereo was all there was. I had a complete Sony system: pre-amp, amp, tuner, turntable. Heck, I still have them! I put an SAE 10 band stereo EQ between the stages and spent a couple hours manually setting/balancing each band. I was able to get the mains just right. I really miss that control. That's the first reason. The second is that it seems with most receivers in my price range, when approaching -15 db, the mains tend to lose a lot of the punch I was accustomed to. I'm fully aware that mny LaScala's crossovers need work and auditioning receivers in-store isn't a true test. But, having fully discrete amplification just makes sense. I'm using a low end Sony right now (STR-DE898) that has served our needs pretty well. It's just when the SPL goes up, the tonal quality goes down and having just bass/treble adjustment is, well, frustrating! I suppose a little research is in order here and there are a lot of options. The Emotiva units are winning the battle at this point.

Thanks for the come back. My space is rather limited at the moment and I would have to rethink placement, power, and ventilation. I have a feeling that going the Emo route would be a long term move. The buzz on the UMC-1 is everywhere!

Very nice room you have there!

I've heard only good things about Emotiva. Eventually, I will need a new setup with HDMI (using component now). An Emotiva UMC-1 preprocessor and UPA-7 amp will run $1300. The popular receivers by Marantz, Onkyo, Denon, etc, can cost more than that. Do you guys have any preferences and pros/cons as to which would be the "smart" purchase? Right now there are LaScal mains, Heresy center, KSW-12 subs, RB-25 surrounds. I am going to hook up another pair of RB-25s for rear surrounds in the next month. So, the 125w/channel of the UPA-7 is just about right. ???????????

Hey, did you consider mounting the 50" on the wall? Even if it's for a short time... spackle plugs most holes.

Ditto on the directv. My understanding of the center channel technology is that when set to a mode that uses center, the L/R are NOT left along. The center isn't just 'added'. The L/R are reduced by the signal that is shared by both. In other words, if listening to just 2 channel, and is sounds centered, those signals will be subtracted from the L/R to feed the center. Having a matched timbre center makes up for the subtraction very well. I recently upgraded to a Heresy center and I'm very happy with the results. The Academy that I was using was good but the Heresy is MUCH better with LaScalas. Also, when I switch to 2 channel, the LaScalas kick butt! Not so much with center enabled.BUT the Heresy makes up the difference in conjuction with the subs. Hope that helps!

What are you listening to? A movie, music DVD, CD, or radio (broadcast or satellite)?