[[email protected]]

Is there any reason why I wouldn't want to use Tannoy Precision 6's +
TS10 subwoofer in a home theatre 5.1 setup versus a package that's
actually marketed for home theatre hi-fi? My understanding was that the
key difference is that hifi speakers generally have intentionally
non-flat responses to make them sound more appealing but is this really
critical?

Also, I know these speakers have wide dispersion, so is this likely to
be a serious issue in an
untreated home theatre room with lots of sound splashing around?

I'm looking at using a Denon AVR-2307CI receiver to drive them - is
this likely to seriously limit their performance?

Thanks,

David

[Scott Dorsey]

wrote:
Is there any reason why I wouldn't want to use Tannoy Precision 6's +
TS10 subwoofer in a home theatre 5.1 setup versus a package that's
actually marketed for home theatre hi-fi? My understanding was that the
key difference is that hifi speakers generally have intentionally
non-flat responses to make them sound more appealing but is this really
critical?

Do you like the way they sound?

Also, I know these speakers have wide dispersion, so is this likely to
be a serious issue in an
untreated home theatre room with lots of sound splashing around?

Yes, but you probably have problems with any speaker under those
circumstances.

I'm looking at using a Denon AVR-2307CI receiver to drive them - is
this likely to seriously limit their performance?

Probably, but again it will probably limit the performance of any speakers.

The question comes down to this: do you like the way the Precision 6
system sounds?
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[[email protected]]

Scott Dorsey wrote:
wrote:
Is there any reason why I wouldn't want to use Tannoy Precision 6's +
TS10 subwoofer in a home theatre 5.1 setup versus a package that's
actually marketed for home theatre hi-fi? My understanding was that the
key difference is that hifi speakers generally have intentionally
non-flat responses to make them sound more appealing but is this really
critical?

Do you like the way they sound?

Also, I know these speakers have wide dispersion, so is this likely to
be a serious issue in an
untreated home theatre room with lots of sound splashing around?

Yes, but you probably have problems with any speaker under those
circumstances.

I'm looking at using a Denon AVR-2307CI receiver to drive them - is
this likely to seriously limit their performance?

Probably, but again it will probably limit the performance of any speakers.

The question comes down to this: do you like the way the Precision 6
system sounds?
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

I really like working with the 8's in stereo when mixing. This system
isn't to be used by me; I was asked by a friend to make recommendations
as he wants to put some decent money into a home theatre and has heard
my rants about consumerism in the audio industry and about people
buying "speaker" packages from bestbuy.

Unfortunately for him (and I've made him aware of this) I have no
experience with home theatre surroundsound systems. He's not an
audiophile and he's not willing to invest time auditioning different
speakers, so I believe he just wants me to suggest something that
there's a relatively high chance he'll like. The Tannoy's are the
safest choice I can come up with since they're all I've heard in his
price range.

So really I'm just wondering if there are any caveats I've
overlooked... I can't imagine any reason (other than the "built-in
eq"), but is there something that makes using a "studio monitor" in a
home theatre a faux pas?

As for the receiver... I fear it looks as though, as with most consumer
products, more of the money is going into features that he doesn't need
(hdmi functions, dsp, etc) than into a good clean amp stage. Is there
anything out there that focuses on dolby decoding, amplification, and
basic input switching?

[Scott Dorsey]

wrote:

I really like working with the 8's in stereo when mixing. This system
isn't to be used by me; I was asked by a friend to make recommendations
as he wants to put some decent money into a home theatre and has heard
my rants about consumerism in the audio industry and about people
buying "speaker" packages from bestbuy.

Unfortunately for him (and I've made him aware of this) I have no
experience with home theatre surroundsound systems. He's not an
audiophile and he's not willing to invest time auditioning different
speakers, so I believe he just wants me to suggest something that
there's a relatively high chance he'll like. The Tannoy's are the
safest choice I can come up with since they're all I've heard in his
price range.

The Tannoys sound decent and they have a good natural vocal sound. They
are hard to kill. Personally I'd suggest saving a little money and
going with something like the Reveals on the surrounds, or even the ICT-based
Tannoys like the i7. You don't need good imaging or much low end on
the rear and side speakers.

Tannoy actually makes a home theatre speaker system called the Arena.
It's based on the ICT drivers and I don't think it sounds as good as
the dual-concentric stuff, but it's a whole lot cheaper.

As for the receiver... I fear it looks as though, as with most consumer
products, more of the money is going into features that he doesn't need
(hdmi functions, dsp, etc) than into a good clean amp stage. Is there
anything out there that focuses on dolby decoding, amplification, and
basic input switching?

If he wants fancy surround decoding, a good route toward that would be to
buy the powered Tannoys and get the Violet Audio ADP61 in place of a
receiver. It's basically a surround decoder/switch/preamp sort of thing
with no amplifier stages but with good level calibration and calibrated
bass management. I do not know what long-term support for it will be
like, though.

I will say that there are lots of inexpensive home theatre speakers that
are worth checking out, like the higher end Parasounds (avoid the Atom/Titans
like the plague) and the current NHT home line. But the Tannoys sound
good, and if you like the way they sound, he likes the way they sound, and
he can afford them, there's no reason not to use them.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

[[email protected]]

If he wants fancy surround decoding, a good route toward that would be to
buy the powered Tannoys and get the Violet Audio ADP61 in place of a
receiver. It's basically a surround decoder/switch/preamp sort of thing
with no amplifier stages but with good level calibration and calibrated
bass management. I do not know what long-term support for it will be
like, though.

Thanks Scott, that's a good idea. An idea just came to mind... I assume
it would involve me having to calibrate the levels (a learning process
I'd enjoy) but how about:

Used Technics SHAC-500
Powered Precision 6s for Front L/R + Center
Passive Reveals or other for L/R Rear
Average quality 2-ch Amp

How important is centre channel imaging and low end?

[[email protected]]

If he wants fancy surround decoding, a good route toward that would be to
buy the powered Tannoys and get the Violet Audio ADP61 in place of a
receiver. It's basically a surround decoder/switch/preamp sort of thing
with no amplifier stages but with good level calibration and calibrated
bass management. I do not know what long-term support for it will be
like, though.

Thanks Scott, that's a good idea. An idea just came to mind... I assume
it would involve me having to calibrate the levels (a learning process
I'd enjoy) but how about:

Used Technics SHAC-500
Powered Precision 6s for Front L/R + Center
Passive Reveals or other for L/R Rear
Average quality 2-ch Amp

How important is centre channel imaging and low end?

[[email protected]]

wrote:

If he wants fancy surround decoding, a good route toward that would be to
buy the powered Tannoys and get the Violet Audio ADP61 in place of a
receiver. It's basically a surround decoder/switch/preamp sort of thing
with no amplifier stages but with good level calibration and calibrated
bass management. I do not know what long-term support for it will be
like, though.

Thanks Scott, that's a good idea. An idea just came to mind... I assume
it would involve me having to calibrate the levels (a learning process
I'd enjoy) but how about:

Used Technics SHAC-500
Powered Precision 6s for Front L/R + Center
Passive Reveals or other for L/R Rear
Average quality 2-ch Amp

How important is centre channel imaging and low end?

Forgot to mention, rear speakers must be passive since unsheilded
speaker cable's been run to their locations

[Scott Dorsey]

wrote:

If he wants fancy surround decoding, a good route toward that would be to
buy the powered Tannoys and get the Violet Audio ADP61 in place of a
receiver. It's basically a surround decoder/switch/preamp sort of thing
with no amplifier stages but with good level calibration and calibrated
bass management. I do not know what long-term support for it will be
like, though.

Thanks Scott, that's a good idea. An idea just came to mind... I assume
it would involve me having to calibrate the levels (a learning process
I'd enjoy) but how about:

Used Technics SHAC-500
Powered Precision 6s for Front L/R + Center
Passive Reveals or other for L/R Rear
Average quality 2-ch Amp

This seems like a reasonable idea, but I am not sure the SHAC-500 has
level control. So you might want to add a level control (maybe a homebrew
passive preamp?) to that. I assume the user will ONLY be playing stuff
through the DVD player so having external analogue inputs for a turntable
or tuner is unimportant. If it is, add a switcher to that level controller.

I don't think the SHAC-500 has bass management built-in either, which is
probably not a big deal if you're using the Precision 6 for fronts, but
could be a severe problem if you used something with restricted low end.

How important is centre channel imaging and low end?

Center channel imaging is critical, but it's not anything you can do
anything about. The dialogue comes from the center channel, and the
dialogue is the most important part of the film... it needs to sound
natural and it needs to sound like it's coming from the center of the
screen.

Low end on the center channel isn't critical, since anything _really_
low is going to be routed to the LFE by the mastering engineer anyway
if you're playing a digital film, and if you're playing something in
a matrix format (Dolby Surround, etc.), the low end is going to be
routed to all the front channels. But the center channel DOES need to
have enough low end response to be able to accurately reproduce a
basso voice... if it can't, vocal realism will suffer.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."