The JBL Control Cinema

[Andysu]

You might say I like to be in control of things.

My listing so far…

AVR/AV

Kenwood KRF-9050D THX select main decoder for all Dolby/dts features

Yamaha DSR-7Pro acting as preamp for additional left right extraction of centre phantom left and right fronts or just in plain simple bypass mode, depends on the type of presentation I put on.

Also supports low pass filter for sub bass centre

Yamaha DSP-100 acting as centre preamp that also has the line feed from DSR-70Pro for centre phantom to me meagre together or separately if I wish.
Also supports low pass filter for sub bass centre

Pioneer VSP-200 this is the decoder that I use for extracting centre back surround plus it has a matrix rear that can be put to some usage.
Also supports low pass filter for sub bass centre

Crossover system

Behreinger DCX2496 this is used for the JBL control 5 left centre right fronts for full protection and shaping the tone for more easy listening over the complex LCR fronts

EQ

There are assorted EQ models some of which will be replaced with DEQ2496 as soon as I get the money saved up for several models. In the meantime this will have to suffice.

Behringer FBQ2496 40 band
Technics SH-8055
Technics SH-8058
Maratnz EQ551 10 band
Genexxa 10 band
JVC SEA-E30 10 band

Amplifiers

More Alesis RA300 and RA500 will be added soon and will replace the vintage Marnatz amps that have served very well over the past 20 years.

Alesis RA300 LFE.1 bridge mode
Alesis RA300 LF left/right front
Alesis RA300 LF centre front
Marnatz 1050 HF L/R
Marnatz 1050 HF C and centre back surrounds
Marnatz 1030 sidewall surrounds

Loudspeakers fronts

I have no intention of replacing the control 5 as they fit nicely into small rooms where space is limitedly tight. The same goes with control 1 they are versatile easy to install in matter of minutes and provided excellent all-around sound.

JBL control 5 modified for B-chain five sets of control 5 for the LCR plus inner-left and inner-right LF powered by Alesis RA300 HF powered by Marnatz 1050

The fronts are critical for timbre matching of tonally HF and LF thou that doesn’t necessarily make it so? It takes a few hours to adjust since the speakers are spaced apart from one another and the tone pink noise changes its signature slightly. That slightly needs to be adjusted and takes hours. It’s all good fun.

Loudspeakers surrounds

JBL control 1 custom surround x3 per each sidewall x4 for centre back surround and x2 for overheard surround

Loudspeakers Subs

x1 JBL diy version of JBL 4645 for LFE.1 powered by x1 Alesis RA300 at present time
This sub will play plenty loud enough and I’ve seen it respond below 20Hz and that’s good enough. The slam impact of fabricated sound effects on the LFE.1 track is marvellous.

Depth is nice on openings like Cloverfield even thou I dislike the rest of the film for its annoying camera jittering! Should pack a punch of Star Trek this month!

I have no complaints about this sub in the 12 years I’ve had it.

x1 Eltax A-12R for sub bass extension LCRS
This is small yet plays loud enough thou I don’t want to smear the rest of the LCRS upper bass mid. It plays handsomely down to 30Hz thou I’ve seen it sneaking slightly lower to 25Hz any lower will result in reduce output and possible cuffing at the port.
30Hz is average at best, thou lower would be nicer as most action takes place over the LCRS most of the time.


DVD/Laserdisc/VCR

The blow players well you get the idea, except for the VCR that’s being used as an audio limiter for the surrounds. Didn’t you know most VCR, are fitted with an audio limiter.

Pioneer CLD-1750 laserdisc player
Pioneer CLD-2950 laserdisc player
Pioneer DV-525 DVD player
Sony DVP-S366 DVD player
Cello DR-810 DVD-RW
Ferguson Hi-Fi NICAM VCR

Miscellaneous gear

Behringer MIC100 preamplifier
Behringer ECM8000 calibration microphone
Soundlab UD 236 microphone
Realistic SPL db meter analogue model
Tripod for SPL db meter
Microphone boom stand

Realistic Audio Mixer 6 channel, that’s used for LCRS and LFE.1 as fader controller.
The inputs 1 is used for summed left/right front with its pan pot set to hard-left
The inputs 2 is used for centre channel and its pan pot set to hard-left
The inputs 3 is used for summed left/right surround channel and its pan pot set to hard-left

With the pan pots set to hard-left they’d only output on the left output of the mixer that is feed to the Eltax A-12R sub bass

The input 6 is used for LFE.1 with the pan pot set to hard-right

The output will only sound on the right output and its sent to the Alesis RA300 but not before passing into filter to reduce some hiss that is generated by the Realistic audio mixer where the hiss is virtually been eliminated.

Monitoring TV/video projector

Panasonic widescreen 32” can’t be asked to pull it forwards for the model number. Nice colour brightness and contrast range

Hitachi CP-X430 LCD video projector gets very little use, only with new film DVD titles or the odd golden oldies now and then very rare usage it gets.

Additional loudspeakers not in use

x1 JBL HT-1F
x2 Eltax Symphony 6.2 towers need new 6 ½ bass mid drivers HF drivers are intact

I found these strays and brought them in cleaned them up
x2 Awia SX-77
x2 Awia SX-N7
x2 Panasonic SP-BM15

[Andysu]

Images

[Andysu]

Some more pictures when I brought the widescreen 32” off a friend for £50.00. No body wants the ole CRT expect me of course.

The LCD front video projector when I installed it early this year. Sooty my cat is always mugging for picture, he one of curiosity.

Images are from Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) Poltergeist (1982) Cape Fear (1992) and Apollo 13 (1995).

[Andysu]

Images are from The Dream is Alive (1985) Valkyrie (2008) The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Casablanca (1942).

[Andysu]

Okay I’ve watched I disliked the format war between HD-DVD and Bluray these past years, that left one contended standing.

So this morning at ASDA while shopping I saw Philips BDP3000 for £97.00 pounds. I kinder hesitated for while looking at the specific features it had that included DVD playback.

HDMI I don’t have at present with current flat screen but I can survive with the look of the image on the regular Panasonic CRT widescreen.

The component RGB with 1080i on the LCD video projector that supports HDReady looks marvellous when comparing the same film that I brought today Terminator 3 Rise of The Machines is slightly lacking resolution on DVD.

Other features

Dolby TrueHD
dts 2.0 digital output
Divx/Divx Ultra
BD Live
X.V. Colour

Plus I have to read though the owners manual a few times to familiarize myself with the device.

I was kinder disappointed that it didn’t support optical output, but I have had no issues as of yet with the coaxial digital out that is plugged into my 9 year old Kenwood KRF-X9050D THX select. The Dolby digital indicator displayed without a problem as well as dts on DVD and CD dts discs.

One thing I’ve noticed between the region 2 DVD is louder mix that seems to be around 8db 10db higher don’t quote me on that, I haven’t fully analyzed each formats in the audio chain yet.

The bluary Dolby digital seems detailed in someway that I can’t put my finger on, oh I like but I’m very curious as too why I like it.

I’ll do some frequency waterfalls later on and A & B between the two DVD/Bluray.

I can’t, still can’t believe the prices of some Bluray titles £33 pounds for I can’t remember the title, it was Fox/Bluray and all I can say is RIP OFF! They are charge prices that were fit for PAL laserdiscs 12 years ago…sigh.

Well I’m going to change my pre-order for Star Trek next week for Bluray.

The image of the video projector doesn’t come out too well under certain lighting conditions with Vivitar ViviCam 3785 unlike my, dads phone camera that can take reasonable picture with the light turned OFF.

The next step is towards a new AVR that supports the new Dolby and dts HD features. I’ll be keeping an eye out for model that has THX on it, and not a silly price tag wrapped around it. My Kenwood has lasted 9 years, now than.

Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines was £15.00 pounds at HMV thou I was thinking of buying 2001 A Space Odyssey for £10.00 pounds, but was fearing it might be the same dreadful re-mix with all the crazy wild dialogue panning junked like the 2001 release of the DVD that had virtually all centred with only few passages of (crazy wild dialogue panning anchored in the centre) Sigh.

Now if someone can confirm it’s the version as heard on the 70mm six-track original mix and not the new 70mm I think it was dts70mm that had the remix with split-surrounds SIGH.

Also brought a component lead 17 meters for £17.00 pounds from D.J. Electronics and performs fine. I doubt you’d even get Monster Cable for that price with that many meters of cable, not at there silly otherworldly prices.



(Okay since the above was my thoughts from about 90 minutes ago) I’m really starting to get the grips of the Bluray Philips BDP3000 player.

The audio is stunning on the trailers Terminator Salvation bass mid range and high is smooth while LCRS sub bass extension has fresher impact. LFE.1 didn’t seem so out of control, thou I may need to re-check with a few frequency waterfalls too try and suss out the difference.

One other thing I noticed the audio compressor or night time mode doesn’t seem to do anything on my Kenwood KRF-X9050D THX select, does that mean anything to anyone?

The video audio commentary that pops up on the screen is a different approach.

I’ll have to look into this BDLive thingy if I have lead long enough to attach to the Bluary player.

Another thing the start-up only takes few seconds. One thing it can’t do is replay from last scene if STOPPED.

DVD starts from last scene if ejected at given moment in the film.

anyone I’m going to do some further investigation on the audio side. Blast I really need micro super perforated screen as the bed sheet is really bad, well not too bad its fairly acoustically transparent with the five JBL control 5 behind the screen.

Terminator 3 Rise of the Machines Bluray sounds wicked with centre back surround turned ON along with x3 JBL control 1 per sidewall and x4 on the rear sounds like I’m at the Empire Leicester Square screen 1.

[Andysu]

Over the last few nights I’ve manually re-equalized the LCR by placing the microphone in close proximity on each LCR LF and HF while stepping though each sine wave tone within the 50Hz to 10KHz as I have ran out of EQ filters on the Behringer DCX2496 which as limited parametric EQ bands due to crossover filers.

Yes that’s right I placed (the microphone up really close to the LCR LF/HF up really, really close).

I’ve managed to get the tone in the LF LCR to match-up within the 90% range and I want 100% as well in the HF range.

[Andysu]

A few frequency waterfalls shows there is difference between the Bluray and region 2 DVD. The LFE.1 output was connected directly from AVR to pc audio input.

Screen capture are from the region 2 DVD as my pc doesn’t support Bluray.