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I'm planning to revamp my HT setup with a main focus on music, and I'm looking for some opinions on my plan to power the L and R. I'm running a 5.1 HT system with parallel sets of vintage Klipsch for each of the fronts and center (parallel Chorus+Chorus II for each of the L and R, and a pair parallel Forte II as the C...I know, it's a strange arrangement, but it really fills the room.) So each looks like 4 ohms. The rears are single Quartets. I'm running a Marantz SR7001 with an Adcom GFA-5503 powering the L, C, R. The rears run straight into the Marantz. I'm planning to replace the SR7001 with a SR7008 (the 7001 has been going into protect mode on startup...99.9% sure it's not related to the speaker arrangement.) My thought is to move the 5503 to the C and rears and get a Vincent SP-331MK to power the L and R channels. This should vastly improve 2-channel listening. Does anyone have any experience powering vintage Klipsch with the Vincent? I heard a McIntosh the other day (granted, not with Klipsch) and fell in love. I would like to think it's a tube thing and not necessarily a McIntosh thing. Granted, it was a $50K setup, so that might be wishful thinking. Thanks, Mike

Well, I tried reintroducing the surrounds one at a time, and guess what? They work. I don't know if I was more afraid that something would blow or wouldn't. The only unusual thing about the surrounds is that one of them has stripped posts, so the nuts don't tighten. I have the wire wrapped fairly tight around the post. I plan on fixing it. When I reattached the wire, I tried jiggling the wire a bit and nothing happened. I'll try movies of varying mounts of surround sound, but it sounds like I have an intermittent problem. Any other suggetions? Otherwise, I'll report back anything new. One other question: Do you think I risk damaging the receiver by tripping it? Not that I have much choice, except reverting to a 3 channel system. Mike

Thanks for the post, CECAA850. I tried your suggestion. I disconnected the two surround speakers and unplugged the unit. When I plugged it back in, it powered up as normal. I haven't yet tried reconnecting the surrounds to isolate the problem. I'll try that tomorrow. It seems strange to me that the problem appears to be with the two speakers connected to the normal outputs of the 7001. I followed Wuzzers advice and made sure there was no shorting at the speaker or receiver. Even though I never performed the MultiEQ setup, I wouldn't think that would be a problem. I've always heard that was only an optimization.

Hopefully this isn't anything specfic to the 7001. I found many people very happy with the 7001, which is why I went with it. You can always find people having problems with any gadget...they're the ones posting for help or simply complaining. You have to look a little harder for the good comments; the 7001 had many. It's possible I bought someone else's problem since this was used. It's also possible I did somehting wrong.

Youthman, I've heard others were very happy running two speakers per channel in a tower config for improved sound (specifically, I've seen KG4s and Chorus hooked up in this way.) I felt more comfortable doing this with the Chorus since the KG4s are only rated at 4 ohms. I considered running them in series, but I heard that the downstream speaker would see a variable load from the upstream speaker causing poor performance...I think I described that correctly. True, the parallel load is harder on the amp, but that's why I didn't want to try it without a power amp. It did run nicely for 2-3 months and never seemed to get very hot. I was also careful not to crank the power up too high. I was more interested in sound quality and fullness than volume. It did sound very good by the way. Mike

Youthman, I have them connected as you say. The LRC go from 7001 preouts into the 5503 then on to the speakers (2 speakers in parallel per channel.) The other two surround channels go from the 7001 directly to the speakers using the normal 7001 outputs. Do you see any reason why this would cause a problem for the 7001? I specifically avoided trying this without the 5503 for fear of blowing up the 7001.

Yes, page 8 of the Marantz manual: "Preamp outputs: Jacks for L, R, C, SBL, and SBR. Use these jacks for connection to external power amplifiers." I'm using the L, R, and C preouts connected to the 5503. The Adcom GFA5503 is a three-channel power amplifier.

Hiya Wuzzer. Sorry, I wasn't clear on this. All speakers are connected to the 7001, but the fronts and centers are connected to the Adcom and run through the preouts on the 7001. The surrounds run directly into the 7001. I'll check the connections for shorting, since I am running the wires bare. But I was very conscious of this when I connected them. It was tight though.

Last night my SR7001 unexpectedly shut off and I don't know why. The standby light is flashing and "PROTECT" appears on the display when I try to restart. The manual offers no advice other than to say I have a problem. I bought the receiver used about three months ago without issue to this point. I've been running it ~5 hours per day for 2-3 months now. The 7001 is powering five channels (but a total of eight speakers) at the moment. The rear left and rights are Quartets. Each front is consists of two Chorus (4 total) in parallel and the center is a pair of Forte II also in parallel. An Adcom 5503 is helping power the front and center channels, but the rears are run directly to the 7001. I don't know if it matters, but I haven't run the calibration yet. Does anyone know what might be wrong and how much it might cost to fix? I'm hoping my setup is not the cause. I bought the Adcom to make sure the front/centers did not overly burden the 7001. I would hate to have it fixed only to see it happen again. Thanks, Mike

I ordered a bunch of speaker wire from Blue Jeans. While discussing the order, I mentioned that I was trying to keep a constant wire length for the fronts and center...similarly for the surrounds and rears. They told me that was a myth and that I could run only what was needed to get from A to B. I'm sure they know their stuff (not to mention that they could have sold much more cable otherwise). I was never sure if the phase delay would really matter, but I always tried to match just in case. Is it true that this is a myth? Mike

Mark, No problem. I'm dividing my time between a few projects right now, so I haven't had much time to set up the 7001. In addition to my HT, I'm putting in a bathroom on the other side of the basement. So I haven't been able to dedicate as much time to the HT build yet. That should change once my screen arrives on Mon/Tues. I have a bunch of Blue Jeans speaker wire and a 25' HDMI cable that I have to run through the ceiling. Luckily no drywall yet! I'm hoping to have a power amp for my fronts and center in a couple days. That will allow me to test the parallel/series config of my speakers that we talked about before. In the meantime, I've been running the 7001 in 2-channel mode with music. It's amazing how much better it sounds than the HK220. The HK gave the Chorus a noticeable hiss between tracks; the 7001 sounds like it's off. It's awesome! I'm hoping the power amp will make a similar improvement. Oh, I also picked up a 400-disc sony jukebox off CL for $100. I should be up and running in a month or so. Maybe you can stop by if you have time after the holidays. Thanks and Happy Holidays! Mike

My screen has been shipped and I'm starting to think about wiring the electrical for my room. Does anyone have any recommendations on how many circuits and what capacity would be required? I was thinking about running one dedicated 20 amp circuit into three outlets...two outlets in my component closet and then another on my ceiling for the projector. Would this be enough for a 7.1 system with a couple power amps (tbd)? Does someone make a single outlet equivalent of the Monster surge protector that I can use for my ceiling outlet? Thanks, Mike

I like the jumper idea. What would you run in the wall back to the avr in that case? My preference would be to run one wire for both parallel speakers (or series, obviously) but I don't know if one 10 gauge wire would be adequate. Mike

Are you recommending a series config for the centers as well as the fronts? I thought it was a no-no to run speakers in series, since the variable load of one speaker would cause problems for the other. Is there any danger of damaging the speakers or avr in this config? Assuming I address the underpowered avr in the future, would the parallel config be the preferred approach? The reason I ask is that I'm wiring my wall now (no drywall yet), and I want to get it right the first time...even if I run them differently for a while. If they are in parallel, do you know if I could run one wire in the wall (10 gauge) and split at the speakers, or would I need to run wires from both speakers back to the avr? Mike

I know this thread is a little dated, but I'm considering Chorus I/II, Forte II, and Quartets for a 5.1 system and there are a couple interesting aspects I see in this thread. At this point I'm going to try my Chorus I + II for my fronts (one of each per side in parallel), both Forte II in parallel as the center, and the Quartets in rear. I'd look at upgrading to 7.1 at some point in the future. My impression also was that the CII and FII in particular matched well since they both have active cones and tractrix horns. I was more concerned that the CI and CII might not be as compatible as fronts, but I've seen others do it. My other concern is using the Quartets (or any other with rear-facing bass), since I won't have a rear wall. The other configuration I'm considering is a 7.1 with the CII as the fronts, one (or two) Forte II as the center, the CI as the rears, and the Quartets as the surrounds (thanks wuzzer!). Any comments on these two setups? Any recommendations on power amp configurations? I won't have the budget to go big on the amps at this stage. Unfortunately, I'm not in a good position to evaluate the sound myself at this point. That's why I'm looking for some input. I'm still running my H/K 220 avr, and I just don't think it comes close do doing these speakers justice. I'll be upgrading soon, but I also anticipate needing a power amp on at least the fronts and center. Thanks, Mike By the way, this endeavor started with planning to use my KG4s as fronts along with my old 5.1 quintet (not Quartet) surround system. So at this rate I'll end up with stacked KHorn fronts, a bank of La Scalas for centers and...what the heck...let's mirror that in the back!!

Yes, I was wondering if/how often the screen might need to be adjusted. The screen is tightened using wood screws between a velvet border and a hardwood frame. I believe the velvet border itself is mounted to its own hardwood frame. It might be that the specific materials combination is of sufficiently high friction that the screen stays put. But velvet is pretty slick. We shall see.

I had already emailed the vendor for instructions, just to see what's involved. It looks pretty straightforward. Too bad they don't have a gray screen option. The only potential difficulty seems to be having the patience to stretch the material properly to remove wrinkles. So I just ordered one now. I'll post how it goes...in about three weeks :>( Mike

Youthman, I discovered this option for a screen: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330371474135#ht_4127wt_1097 I was going to go with Goo paint but this looks too good to pass up. They're quoting $229+shipping for a 120" diagonal 2.35:1 white screen with border. That's even cheaper than the paint. I know you went with a fixed screen. Did you try paint before going with a screen? What should I look for to make sure I'm making a good decision? The product reviews seem to be very good and the ebay feedback is all positive. Has anyone else bought a screen from this vendor, by chance? It takes ~15 working days to construct and my Panasonic PT-AE4000U should arrive on 11/4, so I'll be using drywall as a screen for a little while. Thanks, Mike

My sub is a KSW-12 left over from my old quintet 5.1 system. It's better than nothing and I don't have a new one in my budget in the near term. I do expect to get a different one at some point I suppose, but I don't know what would match my setup. I looked at the Emotiva link. Looks interesting. Is there a Nak pa-7 era three-channel version that I could consider as well? I've been wondering though if there might be a downside to going with a 20 year-old amp. The capacitors don't last forever. Is this a legitimate concern with the Naks (or others)? How would you rate the Emotiva against a similarly spec'd Nak? Mike

Roger, I'm going to have to think about your response a bit before I follow completely. My only audio experience has been stereo and 5.1 surround using a 5.1 avr. I will be using a 7.1 avr, but I'm hearing that the sound quality would be improved significantly with additional amplification. I've also heard that the surround speakers probably don't need anything other than the avr, since the fronts and center put out most of the sound (not sure about the rears by comparison.) How would you recommend I supplement my avr in this case? Which channels should I consider (rears and sub as well???) I would like to use the Naks and still might, but you mention cheaper ways. Thanks, Mike

Dougdrake... Yeah, that makes perfect sense...not sure what (or if) I was thinking.

Roger, Thanks for the response...no problem on the delay. I'm looking at a used pa-7. I believe the guy powered a pair of speakers from each channel, so I assumed I could connect my Chorus II fronts to one channel and my Forte II center (and maybe sub) to the other. If they're 8 ohm speakers then wouldn't the amp see 4 ohm net and be able to drive them? Or am I thinking about this incorrectly? Thanks, Mike

Thanks, Roger. Would either or both of these be beefy enough to drive my 7.1 system? I'm not sure how to tell if an amp can handle bridging multiple channels. At the very least, I'd want to feed my center and fronts...maybe the sub woofer too. Thanks, Mike

Yeah, I think I'm done fore a while...at least for speakers. I just picked up the last pair. I realized I mistyped before. This last pair are Forte II. I like your option 2, except maybe one of the Forte IIs as the center. I hope to finish the drywall soon so I can try out various combos. I think we can certainly work out a deal if you're in the market. Thanks, Mike

Thanks, Roger. Would either or both of these be beefy enough to drive my 7.1 system? I'm not sure how to tell if an amp can handle bridging multiple channels. At the very least, I'd want to feed my center and fronts...maybe the sub woofer too. Thanks, Mike