LCSeminole
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Res firma mitescere nescit.
Posts: 20,865
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Post by LCSeminole on Nov 20, 2022 21:18:09 GMT -5
Nice!!! Just before the holiday, so it sounds like you'll get time to set them up after Thanksgiving dinner?...or will you have a house full of guests? Here's a wonderful surprise... seems like some of the boxes will be delivered on Monday.  That's a nice surprise and two days early as well!!! |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 20, 2022 22:30:45 GMT -5
Couple of quick updates... I've been comparing the ATV 4k against the Nvidia Shield and there's no doubt, the ATV is much faster to navigate, open apps and use them. The ATV had HDMI handshake issues when connected via the SVS HDMI cable, so I swapped it for a similarly spec'd Amazon Basics cable; once switched, the handshake issues went away. The Shield has zero issues with the SVS cable. Picture quality, not sure if I'm simply tired, but I don't see any differences between streamers... I've tried Netflix, Vudu and Plex. Via Plex, I'm experiencing lip sync issues with the ATV and it can't cleanly play any 4k content; it pauses, shutters, and then stops playing all together. The Nvidia shield has no issues playing the same content and decodes the correct surround format. It might be a setting or two that I need to tweak within the Plex app of the ATV, but so far the Shield is the Plex king. I plan to perform additional testing this week and will post an update towards the end of the week.
While comparing the two streamers, I've been pushing the 1961 1v sub; movie after movie, it pressurizes the room very well and digs deep when the scene calls for it. Arendal specs show that the sub has a 550w amp, but they don't disclose peak power, so to be totally honest, for a 12.2" driver, it's been performing better than I expected. Musically, with the port plugged, its quick, blends well with the EVO 4.4s and it doesn't call attention to itself; without the plug, it digs deeper, bass is fatter, not slow, it simply has more meat to it, so it takes a little more effort to blend the sub and speakers together. Thus far, I'm extremely happy with the 1v and have no intention on sending it back once the 60 day trial period comes to an end. Will I need a second one, only time will tell, but right now, I'm satisfied.
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Post by LuisV on Nov 20, 2022 22:38:08 GMT -5
Here's a wonderful surprise... seems like some of the boxes will be delivered on Monday. That's a nice surprise and two days early as well!!! Just got an update... all 4 boxes are scheduled to be delivered tomorrow!! Looks like tomorrow will be a busy day... hope my back holds up.  |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 21, 2022 14:55:33 GMT -5
Sad to report.. but the boxes have stayed put within a FedEx facility roughly 2hrs away. Zero movement since 7:43pm yesterday... I guess I'll see them tomorrow.
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LCSeminole
Global Moderator
Res firma mitescere nescit.
Posts: 20,865
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Post by LCSeminole on Nov 21, 2022 19:54:00 GMT -5
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Post by LuisV on Nov 22, 2022 16:09:40 GMT -5
FedEx arrived and my son helped me bring the boxes into my den; well, he actually moved them while I chatted with the FedEx driver.  The towers and center are much smaller than anticipated; however, like the sub, Arendal uses HDF, so they are much heavier than their size suggests. All speakers came well boxed, with plenty of packing material to keep them safe during transit and wrapped in a nice "sock". Each speaker has a real solid feel to them, no visible seams, magnetic grills, vesa 100 mounting holes and a pair of very stout binding posts. Now the fun part... moving them into position, connecting them to the Marantz, running cables to the surrounds, etc. etc. Looking forward to the next several days and will post additional feedback, good or bad... Thus far... zero complaints.    |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 22, 2022 16:24:33 GMT -5
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Post by LuisV on Nov 23, 2022 12:28:03 GMT -5
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LCSeminole
Global Moderator
Res firma mitescere nescit.
Posts: 20,865
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Post by LCSeminole on Nov 23, 2022 20:19:25 GMT -5
I, more or less, did the same thing since the manufacturer recommended the 50hr break-in. When I wasn't watching TV or playing a movie, like you're doing now, I would play a CD set to repeat when I was busy doing other stuff around the house as well as when I was out and about. Yes comparing my 1723 speakers from when I first hooked them up to now, I'm sure I believe I'm hearing a difference but I think memory plays some role in this. I'm absolutely convinced the tweeters are now tamed and sound better and more to my liking now though still with a crisp controlled high, but I also know Dirac Live is playing a role in this as well. |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 23, 2022 22:55:34 GMT -5
I've been doing the same, when I can I play something... movies, streaming audio, etc. Tonight will be a late night... I went to high school with the actor that plays Guarnere. (11 hours and 45 minutes total running time)  |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 25, 2022 14:39:22 GMT -5
I'm still in a "food coma" from yesterday, so what better series to follow Band of Brothers? (8 hours 50 minutes total running time)  |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 25, 2022 16:52:52 GMT -5
Panasonic BR player was delivered today... ugh, gloss black, no bueno!! When are manufacturers going to stop punishing us with gloss finishes? After unboxing and connecting it, she already has a bunch of finger prints; I would gladly pay extra for matte.  |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 26, 2022 16:42:06 GMT -5
After watching all of the Band of Brothers episodes yesterday, I gave my family a break and turned the system off for a bit; as of last night, I put ~27hrs 17mins through the Marantz and Arendal speakers, so roughly 23hrs to go before that "magical" 50hr mark. Again, still not sure if it's necessary; however, I have no issues going through the motions. Earlier today I kicked off the Halo series... total run time is ~8hrs 25mins....  |
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ttocs
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I always have a wonderful time, wherever I am, whomever I'm with. (Elwood P Dowd)
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Post by ttocs on Nov 26, 2022 17:23:30 GMT -5
. . . . so roughly 23hrs to go before that "magical" 50hr mark. Again, still not sure if it's necessary; however, I have no issues going through the motions. I've noticed changes during the first period of hours for all the speakers and subs I've purchased in the last eleven years (the previous 32 years were with one pair of speakers). But, even the first minutes playing music the sound was awesome! So I would expect your experience to be similarly awesome! It's only some parts of some tracks which expose why break-in time is needed. My current main speakers needed over 50 hours for the cone drivers to settle-in, and well over 130 hours for the stat panels to stop "shrieking" while playing some specific portions of several tracks I use to check such things. Break-in SPL was 90dB for all but the first 20 hours which were at a slightly lower level. |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 27, 2022 16:03:16 GMT -5
Halo is done, been streaming Andor since this morning... (~9hrs 20mins runtime). Once Andor is done, I'll be scratching that 50hr mark!!  |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 27, 2022 16:10:45 GMT -5
. . . . so roughly 23hrs to go before that "magical" 50hr mark. Again, still not sure if it's necessary; however, I have no issues going through the motions. I've noticed changes during the first period of hours for all the speakers and subs I've purchased in the last eleven years (the previous 32 years were with one pair of speakers). But, even the first minutes playing music the sound was awesome! So I would expect your experience to be similarly awesome! It's only some parts of some tracks which expose why break-in time is needed. My current main speakers needed over 50 hours for the cone drivers to settle-in, and well over 130 hours for the stat panels to stop "shrieking" while playing some specific portions of several tracks I use to check such things. Break-in SPL was 90dB for all but the first 20 hours which were at a slightly lower level. I've found similar changes with tubes and associated gear... before comparing tubes, I made sure they all had 50hrs or so. To be honest, for the most part, I haven't sat in the room that long; however, long enough for it to put a smile on my face. I've been hitting play and set it at a volume that doesn't disturb the rest of the family... well, at least I don't think it disturbs them.  Then I close the doors and go about my business... checking on it from time to time. |
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Post by LuisV on Nov 28, 2022 12:03:17 GMT -5
Alright, if I've done my math correctly, the Arendal speakers have ~40hrs and 45mins on them; just about 10hrs to go. After a quick review of my options, I just hit play on the following series; total runtime is ~11hrs, so once this is done, I should be ~2hrs over the recommended 50hrs break-in period.  Once this is complete, the plan is to run Audyssey, sit down and start listening... |
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Post by LuisV on Dec 1, 2022 14:45:45 GMT -5
Quick update and sort of how I look and feel right now:  Although it was fun having the various shows running in the background, it seemed like it took forever to hit that 50hr mark, yes I need a shave, no it's not that bad... well... maybe... lmfao Now for a blessing in disguise as I completely forgot that my wife had this planned with our daughter... Saturday AM, they are heading to the beach for 5 days!!! Therefore, my son and I will be home alone!!! We can run Audyssey and tweak to our hearts content... then enjoy movie after movie... after movie!!! Talk about perfect timing!! Since I have a couple of days until I can run Audyssey, going to listen to some music via Roon... |
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Post by LuisV on Dec 3, 2022 15:31:02 GMT -5
The ATV 4k has had nothing but handshake gremlins... lip sync issues with an occasional freezing of video yet audio continued to play... it drove me nuts to the point I was considering to return the ATV 4k. I've been using Amazon Basics in the living room between a Shield Pro and LG OLED, so I figured to give old faithful a try. All I had on hand was an 6 footer, after a quick test... voila... no issues. All I swapped was the cable between the ATV 4k and Marantz; I kept the SVS cable between the Marantz and TV. After a quick chat with SVS support, they provided me with an RMA and free return label; the Shield worked perfectly fine with the SVS cable, but having mismatched HDMI cables would drive me nuts. Yea, I know, no one would care nor would they look at the back of the Marantz and see two different brands of HDMI cables, but I would know they were different, so yes, OCD got the best of me and I returned all 3 to SVS. They were perfectly cool with the return... so kudos to SVS for their customer service. |
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LCSeminole
Global Moderator
Res firma mitescere nescit.
Posts: 20,865
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Post by LCSeminole on Dec 3, 2022 15:53:47 GMT -5
The ATV 4k has had nothing but handshake gremlins... lip sync issues with an occasional freezing of video yet audio continued to play... it drove me nuts to the point I was considering to return the ATV 4k. I've been using Amazon Basics in the living room between a Shield Pro and LG OLED, so I figured to give old faithful a try. All I had on hand was an 6 footer, after a quick test... voila... no issues. All I swapped was the cable between the ATV 4k and Marantz; I kept the SVS cable between the Marantz and TV. After a quick chat with SVS support, they provided me with an RMA and free return label; the Shield worked perfectly fine with the SVS cable, but having mismatched HDMI cables would drive me nuts. Yea, I know, no one would care nor would they look at the back of the Marantz and see two different brands of HDMI cables, but I would know they were different, so yes, OCD got the best of me and I returned all 3 to SVS. They were perfectly cool with the return... so kudos to SVS for their customer service. Hey Luis, I had been using all Zeskit Maya 8K/HDMI 2.1 cables for the past year or so and they are quite reliable. I however was not a fan of how stiff they are, so I tried the new Emotiva 8K HDMI cables. They are most certainly more flexible with a much better all metal brass connector and quite affordable as well. I still use a long Zeskit Maya 8K in-wall CL3 rated cable from my OLED to RMC-1, this is because of local county electrical codes. emotiva.com/collections/cables/products/xhd8k-8k-certified-hdmi-cable |
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