A Poor College Student's Modest Bedroom HT Setup

[lalakersfan34]

Well, since some of you asked (or demanded), I decided to acquiesce, wave the white flag, and take some pictures . Again, it's nothing too spectacular, but in the tiny 900 cubic foot room, this setup can rock pretty well.


Here's the list of gear:

Screen: Samsung 4042H 40" 720p LCD HDTV
Receiver: Pioneer Elite VSX-52TX
HD DVD: Toshiba A3
Blu-Ray/Games: Playstation 3
Front Speakers: JBL Venue Series Stage
Center Speaker: JBL Studio Series S-Center II
Surrounds: JBL Venue Series Tour
Back Surrounds: JBL Venue Series Tour
Subwoofers: Two SVS PB10-NSD, stacked
EQ: Behringer FBQ 2496
Treatments: 2 GIK 244 Bass traps

OK, now for the pictures of my modest setup. I apologize for the blurriness. I used a very old digital camera with no stabilization feature, so it's almost impossible to take pristine pictures.

Incidentally, the little Sony speakers in the corners are remnants from my very first foray into HT. I've just been too lazy to take them down

UPDATES: NEW PICTURES!!
http://s245.photobucket.com/albums/g...=nav_tab_album

[Prof.]

lalakersfan34 wrote:

this setup can rock pretty well.

I bet it ROCKS!!! in that little room..
Looks like a great set up...Do you get any complaints from others nearby?

[lalakersfan34]

Hey, thanks a lot. I know I like it .

Actually, I haven't had any neighbor complaints. My walls are probably at least 25-30 feet from the nearest neighbor walls. The walls are very well insulated, and my window is dual pane, so the sound really isn't too bad. Sure, if I'm cranking a movie at reference you can hear it outside, but it's not all that loud outside, and if my neighbors are in their house, they probably wouldn't even hear it.

The only people I annoy when I play movies at reference is my own family . Even then it isn't bad, because my room is at the end of a hallway. My room has a solid core door I can close, and there's another solid core door at the other end of the hall about 15 feet down. If my family is watching TV in the other room, they don't really hear anything. Sure, if they're just sitting reading they can hear it a bit, but I've really lucked out with where my room is, because I can get away with cranking things pretty loud with no repercussions .

Speaking of reference, that's why I ended up getting the second PB10 . One couldn't really keep up at those levels, but two is incredible (at least to someone who hasn't heard Ultras, F113's, etc). I've measured uncorrected peaks of about 112dB at the LP and didn't want to go any louder for my own sake. But the PB10's didn't sound like they were compressing, so I think they still had more in the tank.

Anyway, thanks for your interest and encouragement on my little HT. This hobby is addicting, and I'm really glad I found something I enjoy so much.

[eugovector]

Wow, very nice setup, and pretty clean too. I gotta think 2 subs is overkill, but I bet a whole line of people would disagree.

One thing I'd do, take a couple chunks of wood and stick them under your TV to raise is up above your center.

Oh, and you've got plenty of room for some acoustic panels $200 and some labor would go a long way in that room. You'll be blown away by the difference it'll make.

Overall, much nicer than I had most of the way through college. Kudos.

[Prof.]

Sounds like an ideal environment..Double glazing works wonders for sound isolation..
That's something I wish I could have had at my previous location..not to keep sound in, but to keep the sounds of heavy traffic out..

I've since moved to a country region where my nearest neighbor is about a kilometre away!!..and the nearest main road can't even be seen!..so I can play it as loud as like..

[salvasol]

Prof. wrote:

...Do you get any complaints from others nearby?

I think the only complaint will be ..."Not to get invited to watch movies"

Nice set up Stephen

I agree with Marshall, put something under your TV so the image is not blocked by center speaker and if you ever use accoustical panels, it will make a big difference ... you can DIY the panels if you don't want to a lot

[lalakersfan34]

eugovector wrote:

Wow, very nice setup, and pretty clean too. I gotta think 2 subs is overkill, but I bet a whole line of people would disagree.

One thing I'd do, take a couple chunks of wood and stick them under your TV to raise is up above your center.

Oh, and you've got plenty of room for some acoustic panels $200 and some labor would go a long way in that room. You'll be blown away by the difference it'll make.

Overall, much nicer than I had most of the way through college. Kudos.

Hi, thanks . Yeah, the TV does need to move up just an inch or two. I was running my system with the Voice center channel before, which has nearly identical dimensions to the S-Center II I'm using now, but I didn't realize the S-Center was about an inch taller. I'll give the TV a "boost" soon, though.

Funny you should mention acoustic panels. I'm actually considering acoustic panels and a FBQ 2496, but it'll have to wait a couple months so I can save up the money (college tuition and books are no fun!). I've been talking to Ed Mullen about ways to improve response across the board, and he thinks both are good ideas as well. I'm actually pretty happy with my bass response right now, as I'm +/- 4dB or so from 17-75hz. I have a peak at 75-90hz which I'll look into taming with EQ and room treatments in the not-too-distant future.

As for two subs, it's absolutely not overkill once you get near reference levels. While the PB10 is pretty well behaved at its limits no blatting, bottoming, port noise), it does start compressing pretty bad at really high listening levels. You wouldn't believe the difference in dynamics the second PB10 gave me. They don't ever run out of gas, even at reference. With a strong room-shaking rumble, they can still deliver the visceral punch of a loud explosion far louder than the rest of the track.

Thanks again for the kind words. I like my setup a lot and am constantly adding/tweaking it (aren't we all? ). If you're experienced in room treatment or EQ let me know, and maybe I'll consult you when I have the funding to pursue such endeavors.

[lalakersfan34]

salvasol wrote:

I think the only complaint will be ..."Not to get invited to watch movies"

Nice set up Stephen

I agree with Marshall, put something under your TV so the image is not blocked by center speaker and if you ever use accoustical panels, it will make a big difference ... you can DIY the panels if you don't want to a lot

Will do. The TV I can get around to as soon as I find a couple 1" thick pieces of wood. The EQ/acoustic panels will be happening at a later date once I've recovered from college tuition and books fees.

[salvasol]

lalakersfan34 wrote:

.. If you're experienced in room treatment or EQ let me know, and maybe I'll consult you when I have the funding to pursue such endeavors.

You need to talk to the experts Bryan Pape and Ethan ... they can help you with accoustical treatments

[lalakersfan34]

eugovector wrote:

Wow, very nice setup, and pretty clean too. I gotta think 2 subs is overkill, but I bet a whole line of people would disagree.

One thing I'd do, take a couple chunks of wood and stick them under your TV to raise is up above your center.

Oh, and you've got plenty of room for some acoustic panels $200 and some labor would go a long way in that room. You'll be blown away by the difference it'll make.

Overall, much nicer than I had most of the way through college. Kudos.

salvasol wrote:

I think the only complaint will be ..."Not to get invited to watch movies"

Nice set up Stephen

I agree with Marshall, put something under your TV so the image is not blocked by center speaker and if you ever use accoustical panels, it will make a big difference ... you can DIY the panels if you don't want to a lot

Well that was easy. Walked into the garage, saw a couple pieces of thin, 3/4" thick wood and gave the TV the required boost. Crisis averted . The acoustic panels and EQ are still going to have to wait, though .

[salvasol]

lalakersfan34 wrote:

Well that was easy. Walked into the garage, saw a couple pieces of thin, 3/4" thick wood and gave the TV the required boost. Crisis averted . ... .

Did you paint the wood??? ... if you didn't, it wont match with your TV and speakers

[lalakersfan34]

salvasol wrote:

Did you paint the wood??? ... if you didn't, it wont match with your TV and speakers

Picky picky . It's behind the center speaker and you can't really even see it. Still, I am pretty anal about this kind of thing, so I might end up painting it eventually.

[Sheep]

That is a good looking system you have there. I can't help but think that placing the subwoofers apart would yield a more uniform response.

Great work!

SheepStar

[lalakersfan34]

Sheep wrote:

That is a good looking system you have there. I can't help but think that placing the subwoofers apart would yield a more uniform response.

Great work!

SheepStar

Thanks Sheep! Regarding subwoofer placement, unfortunately, my room is an 11x10, <900 cubic foot room which is also a bedroom. There just aren't many placement options, and I've actually found that location to be the best. I've tried one sub there and one sub near field but didn't like the result quite as much. Fortunately, my bass response is surprisingly linear. I'm +/- 4dB from 17-75hz or so, with a peak in the 75-90hz range that maxes at around 7dB. In the next couple of months I'm going to be getting an FBQ 2496 EQ, along with some bass traps as well which should help even out response even more . Thanks for your comments.

[Sheep]

lalakersfan34 wrote:

Thanks Sheep! Regarding subwoofer placement, unfortunately, my room is an 11x10, <900 cubic foot room which is also a bedroom. There just aren't many placement options, and I've actually found that location to be the best. I've tried one sub there and one sub near field but didn't like the result quite as much. Fortunately, my bass response is surprisingly linear. I'm +/- 4dB from 17-75hz or so, with a peak in the 75-90hz range that maxes at around 7dB. In the next couple of months I'm going to be getting an FBQ 2496 EQ, along with some bass traps as well which should help even out response even more . Thanks for your comments.

Oh wow, that is pretty good.

Well, keep it how it is then!

SheepStar

[lalakersfan34]

Sheep wrote:

Oh wow, that is pretty good.

Well, keep it how it is then!

SheepStar

Yeah, I was really surprised when I measured it. My room is almost a perfect square (11x10x8) and I thought for sure my bass response would be a mess, but it's really pretty flat at the LP. It's extremely flat from about 18-62hz (+/- 2dB!!), with a slight 4-5dB null around 65hz and a rather small 5-7dB peak from around 82-90hz. I'm still going to pursue EQ and room treatments, though. Thanks again for the comments .