Piega
September 15, 2002
Editor,
Good article
on the Piega speaker system! I have had the speakers for two years, and I was waiting
for somebody in the US to realize how good they are. Thanks.
Diego Devalle
Frustrated
September 12, 2002
Editor,
I've spent the last three hours reading through speaker
reviews. I must say that I am terribly disappointed. Apparently you guys give good reviews
to every speaker. It is almost impossible for someone to make intelligent decisions based
on your information. I understand how the politics of any business can cause this kind of
result. Maybe you are confined by the powers that be to give everyone favorable results.
Whatever the cause, I find the effect very unhelpful.
I recommend that you dispense with this format and employ
more scrutiny in your articles. I understand that much of the listening experience is
subjective according to that person's taste, but some kind of rating mechanism would help,
in particular some way to compare equipment within the same price range. How helpful that
would be! Instead, I can find no way to make heads or tales of the clutter on your
website.
There are many things about the articles and your site that
I like, so please don't take this as just somebody bashing everything just because it
doesn t fit into his little world, rather as something that might actually help.
Thanks,
Adam Huskey
While I agree that some sort of ranking system would make
the purchasing process easier, the relevance and accuracy of such a system would not do
justice to the products we review or the readers we inform. Let me explain. There are
numerous criteria we use to evaluate a product. Some products excel in certain areas,
perhaps an area that the designer deemed important. Another product may excel in other
areas, and be suited to a different environment or purchaser altogether. Making a blanket
judgment, something that claims product A is simply better than product B, without regard
to individual performance criteria, would not only be inaccurate but irresponsible too.
What we try to do in its place is compare products so that you can see how a product
performs in any given area against a competitor. This is more relevant in the real world
because we each have differing tastes and environments. If we tell you how something
sounds or looks in comparison to something else, and in absolute terms, you have a frame
of reference when you audition the products yourself.
So while I agree that simply providing a numerical ranking
system would cut out the homework on the consumer's part, it really would do a disservice
to everyone involved in the long term....Jeff Fritz
Turning on amps
September 9, 2002
Editor,
I recently purchased three Harman/Kardon amplifiers for a
very low price. I will soon be purchasing a DSP and the amplifiers will be powering six
channels.
I would like to automate the power control of my amplifier
with the use of a computer. In other words, I would like to initiate power on or power off
from a nearby computer for each amplifier. There are a couple reasons for this:
1.) All of the DSPs I have looked at in my price range
feature only two AC/DC triggers, not three.
2.) Even if I could find a DSP in my price range with three
or more AC/DC triggers, I fear the current spike generated by all three amps and the DSP
coming on at once might blow a breaker, and then I would have to answer to my landlady.
3.) I am a programmer and experienced in writing graphical
user interfaces. Writing a program for Windows to control a device that cycles the power
would be very easy, and the coolness factor of a computer-controlled entertainment center
is through the roof.
So here are my questions.
1.) Do you know of any devices that hook up to a computer's
serial, parallel, or USB port (or even a PCI device) that can execute an AC or DC
trigger-on command? I have been researching it for a very long time and have come up with
nothing.
2.) Assuming that the above device does not exist, I was
thinking about purchasing a network-controlled power strip. I would then leave the
amplifier power buttons in the on position and cycle the power whenever I wanted the
amplifiers turned on or off. As far as I can tell, the power button is a hard switch, so I
don't think there would be any damage to the amps using this method. Do you think there is
potential for damaging the amps?
Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Zach Taylor
There's a number of power strips available that will
power on in a sequence that incorporates delays for the amplifiers. This, as you surmise,
is to avoid the in-rush current that three amplifiers would cause. The delay times are
dependant upon the manufacturer. I'd be surprised if you could not find a unit that would
work for your amplifiers, but I would be cautious with respect to the current draw of the
H/K amps. Make sure whatever device you purchase can handle the amperage, or you may
damage the unit or the amplifiers themselves. As to the computer-controlled aspect, that
is one I'll have to investigate....Jeff Fritz
Dipole mains?
September 6, 2002
To Roger Kanno,
Thank you for your article on speaker placement in January 2001. It was quite
informative. As you mentioned in your article, I do not have the ideal room for a home
theater. Also, you should know that I stumbled on an exceptional deal on Sonance in-wall
speakers. I have already acquired two pairs of Cinema Two surround speakers and anticipate
adding the Sonance MC and The SUB. I plan on using the Cinema Two as both front and
surround speakers. I know that the front speakers are supposed to be the Sonance LCR, but
I was hoping that the Cinema Two could suffice, especially with my U-shaped viewing
arrangement.
Regards,
Dick Gevat
I looked at the Sonance Cinema Two speakers on the
company's website, and it appears that they are dipoles designed specifically for surround
use to provide diffuse imaging. This will limit the amount of precise imaging, which is
critical in localizing onscreen effects when watching films. I would not recommend them
for use as left and right mains no matter what the arrangement of your room....Roger Kanno
Placement of in-wall speakers
September 5, 2002
To Roger Kanno,
I install structured wiring in new homes prior to the
drywall phase. In addition, we install in-wall speakers for home-theater setups. As I am
working from simply an "items ordered list," I almost never have the opportunity
to speak to the homeowner about things such as video-monitor height and other parameters.
Could you give me a little guidance as to an average front speaker height and width that I
might use that would be acceptable in most cases. The rears are in the ceiling. Should
they be the same distance apart as the fronts, or wider?
Thank you,
Matt Wheatley
Front speakers are normally designed to be placed so
that the tweeter is at or near ear level. If the speakers are placed higher or lower than
this, they can be tilted up or down to compensate, but they should be kept relatively
close to ear level. I like to place the front speakers approximately six feet apart for
good stereo imaging, but home-theater systems often have the left and right mains farther
apart with the center-channel speaker filling in the center image.
The surround speakers can be the same distance apart or
wider, but probably should not be any closer together. One thing to consider, though, is
the height of the ceiling. If the ceiling is very high and the speakers are far apart and
thus very far away from the listener, the sound may become too diffuse. So in this case,
it might be preferable to place the speakers a little closer together....Roger Kanno
