Article: The Immersive Audiophile Update 5

[The Computer Audiophile]

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[jrobbins50]

Now that’s my kind of tax write off!  Are the finishes under the wraps in the orange/red to match your big Wilsons?  JCR 

[retro]

Quote

and the Lōkē powered subwoofer

 

Only one sub then? Beginners mistake. Order three more..😇

[The Computer Audiophile]

9 minutes ago, jrobbins50 said:

Now that’s my kind of tax write off!  Are the finishes under the wraps in the orange/red to match your big Wilsons?  JCR 

 

I ordered the Alidas in Ivory with Parchment grills, so they would blend into the walls a bit better than the Sur Sang Rouge :~)

 

 

 

1 minute ago, retro said:

 

Only one sub then? Beginners mistake. Order three more..😇

 

Everyone starts somewhere :~)

 

[AudioDoctor]

Holy crap Chris!

[The Computer Audiophile]

3 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

Holy crap Chris!

So, you’re saying you might want to stop over after all the work is done :~)

[AudioDoctor]

Just now, The Computer Audiophile said:

So, you’re saying you might want to stop over after all the work is done :~)

 

Afterwards, yes...  ;-)

[jrobbins50]

I find it interesting that Wilson has elected to use wooden crates for shipping. Is that how your big Wilsons were packed as well?  My Revels came in flight cases. I didn’t hire Manny’s to move them (although Manny’s has moved my grand piano!), but it took three of us to move those flight cases to the lower level in our home.  Those Wilson Alidas in the ivory should look nice on your walls. Darn heavy for a wall speaker!

 

And if you want my help on the setup, let me know and I will take the 20 minute drive up to your residence. JCR 

[austinpop]

Wow, Chris! 

 

I suspect you will have a lot of ASers show up who just happen to be "passing through MSP, and stopped by to say hello!"

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, austinpop said:

Wow, Chris! 

 

I suspect you will have a lot of ASers show up who just happen to be "passing through MSP, and stopped by to say hello!"

You’re always welcome to stop by Rajiv. 

[KDinsmore]

Damn!!!! Excellent

[cjf]

"I got a little concerned when the driver asked me what was in the crates and how long I planned to keep them in the garage."

 

Yeah that would certainly raise my eyebrows hearing that. What a shady question to ask. Good call on bringing them inside in a hurry 🙂

 

Do you have full access to the wall ceiling area where the new speakers will be mounted to run the cables? Looks like you have a cut out on each side wall but not sure if you can crawl around back there?

 

Are you doing anything crazy for speaker wires to the new speakers or are you just using basic in wall rated stuff?

 

Should be cool to see it all come together.

[The Computer Audiophile]

18 minutes ago, cjf said:

"I got a little concerned when the driver asked me what was in the crates and how long I planned to keep them in the garage."

 

Yeah that would certainly raise my eyebrows hearing that. What a shady question to ask. Good call on bringing them inside in a hurry 🙂

 

Do you have full access to the wall ceiling area where the new speakers will be mounted to run the cables? Looks like you have a cut out on each side wall but not sure if you can crawl around back there?

 

Are you doing anything crazy for speaker wires to the new speakers or are you just using basic in wall rated stuff?

 

Should be cool to see it all come together.

With respect to sketchy drivers, yes that was really something. Fortunately I have literally 15 security cameras all recording 24/7, uploading to the cloud, and sending me notifications. Over the winter I received a notification, pulled up the live video feed to see a guy steeling stuff in my garage. The police had him stuffed into the back of their car before I got off the phone with them. Anyone within a block of my house should smile, they’re on camera :~)

 

I have really good access behind the walls and sloped ceiling. I can crawl around easily behind the sidewalls and access a good 6 inch gap behind the slopes, all the way to the flat ceiling. 
 

I also have really good space under the floor boards because the joists run from left to right. I can pull cables from one side to the other easily. I even setup two pulley systems. One for power and data cables. One for audio cables (two joists away for separation). I attach a cable to the string and pull. I’ll include photos of everything and the install in my updates. 

 

I’m working with one manufacturer as we speak, about speaker cables. More to come on this. 
 

I really having fun researching and putting this project together, then writing about it. It isn’t everyday that we get to see the ins and outs of this type of project from start to finish and beyond. Life is good. 

[ShawnC]

@The Computer Audiophile A walk through video when its all done would be greatly appreciated.  Make it dramatic like opening up the door to your attic and walking up to your awe inspiring oasis 😉

 

I don't think reviewers do enough justice with photos of their actual space with the product they're reviewing. Stock photos only go so far.

[The Computer Audiophile]

1 hour ago, ShawnC said:

@The Computer Audiophile A walk through video when its all done would be greatly appreciated.  Make it dramatic like opening up the door to your attic and walking up to your awe inspiring oasis 😉

 

I don't think reviewers do enough justice with photos of their actual space with the product they're reviewing. Stock photos only go so far.

I’ve long wanted to do a VR or AR version of my room people could walk through and view as they please. It would be great to look behind components, at inputs/outputs in use, cable choices, network switches behind the wall, etc… I haven’t seen this done exactly how I envision it, so my idea is a little dreamy at the moment. 
 

Your feedback is noted :~)

[botrytis]

The best way I have seen this done is with a raised floor and route the cables in that space. I know that this could not be done in your space.

[Kevin M.]

This is going to be spectacular! Can't wait to see the finished set-up.

[botrytis]

I wonder if there will be a version of ELP Brain Salad Surgery in ATMOS. I mean the original master was recorded in Discrete QUAD, so getting an ATMOS version might be easy from that, not sure. The other LP that I remember was recorded in QUAD was Queen's - Night at the Opera. Another LP worthy of mentioning.

 

I have those two LP's on DSD, vinyl and, DVDA. The ELP Vinyl was part of my first vinyl buying trip. That and Jethro Tull - War Child. Who knew I could just throw caution to the wind. 🤣 The 2nd trip I bought A Night at the Opera.

 

All I can say is now, thinking about it all....

 

 

Joking aside, it will be interesting to read what you think about it. I have a friend who has a phobia about surround sound and music. He thinks music is stereo only. I think it can be so much more. I HAVE enough speakers on hand 😇 and can do it in one brand also. I just need the processor/amp is all, I still have my 43" Pioneer Plasma screen (See I am a pack rat).

 

This is fun to read about.

 

[jrobbins50]

Brain Salad Surgery and Queen Night At The Opera are both already available in 5.1 surround.  A good number of the existing 5.1 mixes are the ones showing up as new Atmos mixes, such as The Doors albums, which just showed up this week on Apple Music spacial audio. JCR 

[Kal Rubinson]

39 minutes ago, jrobbins50 said:

Brain Salad Surgery and Queen Night At The Opera are both already available in 5.1 surround.  A good number of the existing 5.1 mixes are the ones showing up as new Atmos mixes, such as The Doors albums, which just showed up this week on Apple Music spacial audio. JCR 

My superficial survey of previously released 5.1 recordings, especially those that were not even 5.1 originally, is that they sound inferior in Atmos.  Yeah, there are more "effects" but they are not improvements.

[GregWormald]

That's going to be some set-up. Though I guess when receiving such light speakers as the Alexas they don't need really good packing.

 

My speakers came in similar wooden crates, but each crate can stand upright and has inbuilt castors and handles for movement. When opening the FRONT of the crates the speakers on a separate shipping dolly just roll out into the room.

 

 

[scintilla]

You are going to thoroughly enjoy multichannel.  I have ~550 albums in surround now and listen quite a bit to discrete 5.1 with an ITU layout embedded in my 9.1.6 theater setup.  I prefer to mostly listen without upmixers.  If you don't have Fagen's Nighfly in DSD 5.1 yet, get it ASAP.  It's a must-have and a perfect example of top-quality production in a restrained, but truly impressive multichannel mix. My buddy Kevin couldn't stop talking about it the next day after we listened.  

[bbosler]

On 5/9/2022 at 6:01 PM, scintilla said:

If you don't have Fagen's Nighfly in DSD 5.1 yet, get it ASAP.  It's a must-have and a perfect example of top-quality production in a restrained, but truly impressive multichannel mix.

 

OK got it....    with ~ 550  do you have a few more must-haves for those of us just starting out ?

 

thanks

 

 

[scintilla]

Both Wish You Were Here and DSOTM are must haves.  If you like Gilmour, Rattle That Lock is a superb album on BD. Kind of Blue of course.  Thrak, by King Crimson is most impressive. Brothers in Arms. Gaucho. There are three Groove Armada SACDs that are superb. There are starting to be more 5.1 FLACs available.  I suspect that HD tracks will soon be adding more to their surround downloads, which are currently mostly classical releases.  It's a great time to be diving in...

[bbosler]

well this is getting a bit complicated. I don't want to turn this into a software discussion, but for instance, I see Brothers in Arms was released as both a hybrid CD/SACD with multichannel and a DVD-A multichannel. The SACD on Discogs is around $20 while the DVD-A is $50+.. how can you find out if they are the same mix and if not, which is better... Are there any good websites that discuss the different versions of albums released in various formats?