Post by red5ive on Aug 1, 2014 16:10:34 GMT -5
I haven’t posted here much the last so many years, and while I also realize I'm way late on any kind of input on Emotiva's ERM-1 monitors as they were discontinued 4 years ago, I felt compelled to share my experience with these "little" gems after pulling them out of 3 years of dormancy (storage).
I picked up a set of 5 ERM-1s for my home-office during the closeout sale back in 2010. I ran them for about a year or so with a UMC-1 and LPA-1 combo. The sound was smooth and elegant, yet still detailed. I was happy. However, I eventually removed the ERM-1s from my “Office HT” setup after moving the UMC-1 into my main room and replacing it with a Marantz SR6005 AVR. I also took the LPA-1 out and ran the Marantz solo. The result? Simply put, I did not like the sound of the ERM-1s with the Marantz and 2-channel music, and given the Marantz’s reputation I half-wittedly assumed that the ERM-1s just didn’t cut it without the UMC/LPA-1 combo. I ended up removing the front ERM-1 stage and put them in storage. I replaced them with my ol' Rocket RS250 MKII bookshelves that I had sitting around, and I also picked up a second Rocket RSC200 "Bigfoot" center (I also have one in the main room). The other two ERM-1s that I used for surround duty remained. I felt the Rockets were a much better match with the Marantz across the front stage (particularly 2-channel duty), and while they didn't blend perfectly with the ERMs for surround, after running the auto-calibration the combo was perfectly acceptable.
I eventually replaced the Marantz with a Yamaha Aventage RX-A1010 in the Fall of 2012, which believe it or not I preferred the Yamaha mated with the Rockets versus the Marantz. However, there was one problem that I had with this combination which materialized after I foolishly moved the front right speaker while cleaning one day. It resulted in an off-centered vocal imaging, and for the life of me I could not correct it. Now, the speakers are not in an optimal setup to begin with. For one they’re in a bookshelf (audio police please remain steady, this is not a critical listening room
), and they are also not at ear-height. I knew the limitations and never expected perfect imaging, sound, etc., although I also didn’t want the imaging to be drastically off. So even from the beginnings of this setup, the center imaging was never really perfect, but as I mentioned I don't do critical listening in my office so it was still acceptable up until I moved that darned speaker. Nevertheless, I've since off-and-on tried tweaking the settings, re-aligning the speaker tow, etc., but the problem remained. Because of this, over time I eventually grew to dislike using the system for music and started using the setup almost solely for movies, and mainly at night when I don't want to wake the household. However, on the other side of the coin, the problem with having ported speakers in a bookshelf began to materialize. With music it was never noticeable as I never turned up the volume enough to notice. But with movies at moderate listening levels, the “muffledness” and boomy sound of having rear-ported speakers in a bookshelf became evident.
So here I was a few days ago thinking I'm going to replace my speakers, when low and behold I remember that I have those good ol' ERM-1s boxed up in the garage. So I swapped them out almost as fast as I remembered I had them (ok, not really, but I did it the same day). After running auto-calibration and with the ERM-1 boundary compensation enabled, the tweeter at -2 (which was also my preference when the ERM-1s were paired with the UMC-1 + LPA-1), and the Aventage RX-A1010 in the "Natural" eq setting, I popped in some tunes and my jaw dropped. The centered imaging not only returned, but it was MUCH better than before. Also, the smooth yet detailed sound that I remember that the UMC-1 + LPA-1 provided was also back. Now I'm not going to say that the Yamaha RX-A1010 will compete with the UMC-1 + LPA-1, but this Aventage and ERM-1 combo overall is reminiscent of what I remember sound-quality wise with the UMC + LPA-1. Music is more than enjoyable again, and I've been doing nothing but listening to music the last few days (outside of meetings), and also at night when I'm just surfing the web, or making extensive and boring forum posts like this one
. I was excited enough after rediscovering the great sound that these “little” speakers produce that I decided to go online and read input from others, where I found that the speakers are best setup with the speaker positioned with the tweeter on the outer edge. I had them positioned with the tweeter on the inner edge as for some reason I thought that was the optimal configuration. So I repositioned the fronts with the tweeters out, re-ran the auto-calibration, and BAM! Center imaging is pretty much spot on now, which was something I never expected given the less than optimal placing.
To say that I'm happy is putting it mildly. I never knew how great these speakers were, as I thought it was the UMC-1 + LPA-1 were unique in making them shine, being that I didn’t like them with the Marantz SR6005. However, perhaps such a thing as "system synergy" is true in this case, and IMO only shows how well Yamaha's Aventage line has improved in the music category. I otherwise was never previously pleased with anything Yamaha and music listening, to the point that I would label such a phrase a contradiction in terms. I’m hearing ERM-1s that have detail and clarity, yet they are never harsh. Even with the tweeter switch at -2 these speakers bring out the little nuances I would expect from more expensive speakers, and I’m merely powering them with the “wimpy” amps of a receiver. Granted I’m not running anywhere near reference levels, the results still only leave me with what we all want out of this hobby, and that is smooth, rich, and satisfying sound.
While I realize this input will not help anyone in the market for new bookshelf speakers, I at least wanted to give a shout out to the quality that Emotiva puts into their product. A few days ago, I was ready to spend some $$$ on new speakers (and possibly gear) before realizing I had the ERM-1s in storage. Now all I want is to say THANKS to Emotiva for making excellent products!
I picked up a set of 5 ERM-1s for my home-office during the closeout sale back in 2010. I ran them for about a year or so with a UMC-1 and LPA-1 combo. The sound was smooth and elegant, yet still detailed. I was happy. However, I eventually removed the ERM-1s from my “Office HT” setup after moving the UMC-1 into my main room and replacing it with a Marantz SR6005 AVR. I also took the LPA-1 out and ran the Marantz solo. The result? Simply put, I did not like the sound of the ERM-1s with the Marantz and 2-channel music, and given the Marantz’s reputation I half-wittedly assumed that the ERM-1s just didn’t cut it without the UMC/LPA-1 combo. I ended up removing the front ERM-1 stage and put them in storage. I replaced them with my ol' Rocket RS250 MKII bookshelves that I had sitting around, and I also picked up a second Rocket RSC200 "Bigfoot" center (I also have one in the main room). The other two ERM-1s that I used for surround duty remained. I felt the Rockets were a much better match with the Marantz across the front stage (particularly 2-channel duty), and while they didn't blend perfectly with the ERMs for surround, after running the auto-calibration the combo was perfectly acceptable.
I eventually replaced the Marantz with a Yamaha Aventage RX-A1010 in the Fall of 2012, which believe it or not I preferred the Yamaha mated with the Rockets versus the Marantz. However, there was one problem that I had with this combination which materialized after I foolishly moved the front right speaker while cleaning one day. It resulted in an off-centered vocal imaging, and for the life of me I could not correct it. Now, the speakers are not in an optimal setup to begin with. For one they’re in a bookshelf (audio police please remain steady, this is not a critical listening room
), and they are also not at ear-height. I knew the limitations and never expected perfect imaging, sound, etc., although I also didn’t want the imaging to be drastically off. So even from the beginnings of this setup, the center imaging was never really perfect, but as I mentioned I don't do critical listening in my office so it was still acceptable up until I moved that darned speaker. Nevertheless, I've since off-and-on tried tweaking the settings, re-aligning the speaker tow, etc., but the problem remained. Because of this, over time I eventually grew to dislike using the system for music and started using the setup almost solely for movies, and mainly at night when I don't want to wake the household. However, on the other side of the coin, the problem with having ported speakers in a bookshelf began to materialize. With music it was never noticeable as I never turned up the volume enough to notice. But with movies at moderate listening levels, the “muffledness” and boomy sound of having rear-ported speakers in a bookshelf became evident.So here I was a few days ago thinking I'm going to replace my speakers, when low and behold I remember that I have those good ol' ERM-1s boxed up in the garage. So I swapped them out almost as fast as I remembered I had them (ok, not really, but I did it the same day). After running auto-calibration and with the ERM-1 boundary compensation enabled, the tweeter at -2 (which was also my preference when the ERM-1s were paired with the UMC-1 + LPA-1), and the Aventage RX-A1010 in the "Natural" eq setting, I popped in some tunes and my jaw dropped. The centered imaging not only returned, but it was MUCH better than before. Also, the smooth yet detailed sound that I remember that the UMC-1 + LPA-1 provided was also back. Now I'm not going to say that the Yamaha RX-A1010 will compete with the UMC-1 + LPA-1, but this Aventage and ERM-1 combo overall is reminiscent of what I remember sound-quality wise with the UMC + LPA-1. Music is more than enjoyable again, and I've been doing nothing but listening to music the last few days (outside of meetings), and also at night when I'm just surfing the web, or making extensive and boring forum posts like this one
. I was excited enough after rediscovering the great sound that these “little” speakers produce that I decided to go online and read input from others, where I found that the speakers are best setup with the speaker positioned with the tweeter on the outer edge. I had them positioned with the tweeter on the inner edge as for some reason I thought that was the optimal configuration. So I repositioned the fronts with the tweeters out, re-ran the auto-calibration, and BAM! Center imaging is pretty much spot on now, which was something I never expected given the less than optimal placing.To say that I'm happy is putting it mildly. I never knew how great these speakers were, as I thought it was the UMC-1 + LPA-1 were unique in making them shine, being that I didn’t like them with the Marantz SR6005. However, perhaps such a thing as "system synergy" is true in this case, and IMO only shows how well Yamaha's Aventage line has improved in the music category. I otherwise was never previously pleased with anything Yamaha and music listening, to the point that I would label such a phrase a contradiction in terms. I’m hearing ERM-1s that have detail and clarity, yet they are never harsh. Even with the tweeter switch at -2 these speakers bring out the little nuances I would expect from more expensive speakers, and I’m merely powering them with the “wimpy” amps of a receiver. Granted I’m not running anywhere near reference levels, the results still only leave me with what we all want out of this hobby, and that is smooth, rich, and satisfying sound.
While I realize this input will not help anyone in the market for new bookshelf speakers, I at least wanted to give a shout out to the quality that Emotiva puts into their product. A few days ago, I was ready to spend some $$$ on new speakers (and possibly gear) before realizing I had the ERM-1s in storage. Now all I want is to say THANKS to Emotiva for making excellent products!
