decided on emotiva for my HT but now which ones...

[buckethead]

Hello, im new to forum and need some advise on which setup to run for my ht. After looking online and in local stores for a couple of months at speakers i think i am ready to take the blind leap of faith and buy some emo's. Howerver i cant figure out which would be best for me. Here are a few of the options i was looking at

ert 8.3 l/r , erm6.3 c, erd-1s, with a xpa-2 for mains, and xpa3

erm6.3 l/c/r, erd-1s with xpa-5

erm6.2 l/r, erm6.3c, erd-1s, with xpa 5

once agian this mostly for bluray and games and maybe 10% music (mostly music with headphones). Going to also be running umc or xmc 1 once they are available h/k 254 for now. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

[hemster]

Welcome to the forum and the Emo family!

Given your usage preference I would think that you'd be best off with erm6.3 l/c/r, erd-1s with xpa-5.

I had the privilege of listening to the speakers you listed above and preferred the sound of the 6.3s over the towers.

Good luck and please post what you eventually end up with. Oh and ask questions.. you'll find friendly advice here on the forum.

[wowfactor]

Feb 12, 2010 11:38:39 GMT -5 hemster said:

Welcome to the forum and the Emo family!

Given your usage preference I would think that you'd be best off with erm6.3 l/c/r, erd-1s with xpa-5.

I had the privilege of listening to the speakers you listed above and preferred the sound of the 6.3s over the towers.

Good luck and please post what you eventually end up with. Oh and ask questions.. you'll find friendly advice here on the forum.

+1 ;D

[ntrain42]

I'd do 6.2's all around or 6.3's(both with a good quality sub or pairs of subs) if you have a VERY LARGE room. Dont waste the money on 8.3's or ERD's...............

[ICBM99]

I've heard several people say they prefer the 6.2s over the 6.3s.

I'd save the cash and get the 6.2s for LCR and ERDs for surrounds. Saves $900 over 6.3s for LCR

Then get 3 upa-1s for LCR and a UPA-2 for surround. For $1156 with current pricing (assuming UPA-2s are in stock quickly) vs $800 for XPA-5. Which would still net $600, or so vs 6.3s and XPA-5.

Plus the UPA-1s put out 350w on a 4ohm load vs 300 on the Xpa-5. Probably wouldn't hear a difference though.

[buckethead]

thank you guys for the replies. guess i could have put alil more info on what im putting this into. Room is 28x20 10 foot ceiling. I also have a rythmik 12 but i am in the process of trading it(plus cash...) for a friends svs pc13 ultra

[monkumonku]

Feb 12, 2010 11:28:17 GMT -5 buckethead said:

Hello, im new to forum and need some advise on which setup to run for my ht. After looking online and in local stores for a couple of months at speakers i think i am ready to take the blind leap of faith and buy some emo's. Howerver i cant figure out which would be best for me. Here are a few of the options i was looking at

ert 8.3 l/r , erm6.3 c, erd-1s, with a xpa-2 for mains, and xpa3

erm6.3 l/c/r, erd-1s with xpa-5

erm6.2 l/r, erm6.3c, erd-1s, with xpa 5

once agian this mostly for bluray and games and maybe 10% music (mostly music with headphones). Going to also be running umc or xmc 1 once they are available h/k 254 for now. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

If you look at my signature you can see what I am using.. 6.2's on the left and right, 6.3 in the middle and ERM-1's in the back. I think it sounds great (due in part to the XPA amps powering them). I was thinking of replacing the 6.3 in the center with a 6.2 to have the same speaker model across the front. However, yesterday I did some listening and while the 6.3 isn't an exact match with the 6.2's, it was consistent enough to where I said forget it, I will keep the 6.3 there. The 6.3 does an excellent job with dialog - everything (not just voices, but everything) is so crystal clear. It's way better than any other center I've used. Plus even if I got a 6.2 it wouldn't sound exactly the same as the left and rights because of the effect of the location. That said, you would definitely need a good subwoofer with these speakers. The 8.3's I am not sure, but the 6x series needs a sub. From 80 hz on up they are wonderful as long as you have enough power going to them (remember they are 4 ohm loads, too).

[ntrain42]

Feb 12, 2010 12:15:51 GMT -5 buckethead said:

thank you guys for the replies. guess i could have put alil more info on what im putting this into. Room is 28x20 10 foot ceiling. I also have a rythmik 12 but i am in the process of trading it(plus cash...) for a friend svs pc13 ultra

You could go either way with 6.2's or 6.3's with that size room. I personally would still do the 6.2's......they sound better.

And as far as the sub. The SVS is a DOWNGRADE musically(build quality too). Why not keep your Rythmik 12 and just get another one to run in parallel? 2 Rythmik 12's will have more output for that size room and be musically more accurate and detailed.

[RadTech]

Feb 12, 2010 11:56:28 GMT -5 ntrain42 said:

I'd do 6.2's all around or 6.3's(both with a good quality sub or pairs of subs) if you have a VERY LARGE room. Dont waste the money on 8.3's or ERD's...............

I'd skip the towers as well.

[buckethead]

So you guys think its better to use 6.2s over erd for surrounds? If i do decide to get the 6.2 as my L/R would xpa-2 power be fine for them... i like stuff loud

[bfisher]

I do not have 6.2s to compare with... but I do have the 6.3s and will say they are amazing. I have the ERM-1s in my office (which are slightly smaller than 6.2s and no longer available) and I believe I'd take the 6.3s any day over the ERMs for music or movies. But for some reason, (iirc) the 6.3s were set up poorly at Emofest and gave people the impression that the 6.2s are better and it's created a self-perpetuating opinion that the 6.2s are better.

I see you are in NC - where? I'm in Charlotte if you want to hear them...

[ntrain42]

Feb 12, 2010 13:16:35 GMT -5 buckethead said:

So you guys think its better to use 6.2s over erd for surrounds? If i do decide to get the 6.2 as my L/R would xpa-2 power be fine for them... i like stuff loud

6.2's for em all yep. Those 6.2's can take POWER, the XPA-2 would be a great match for them. And for surrounds, a BIG YES, those 6.2's are superior to the ERD's. Having identical matching speakers to all sound channels will keep the F/R balance perfect for effects.

[ntrain42]

Feb 12, 2010 13:41:11 GMT -5 bfisher said:

I do not have 6.2s to compare with... but I do have the 6.3s and will say they are amazing. I have the ERM-1s in my office (which are slightly smaller than 6.2s and no longer available) and I believe I'd take the 6.3s any day over the ERMs for music or movies. But for some reason, (iirc) the 6.3s were set up poorly at Emofest and gave people the impression that the 6.2s are better and it's created a self-perpetuating opinion that the 6.2s are better.

I see you are in NC - where? I'm in Charlotte if you want to hear them...

The 6.2's do have a smoother in room response over the 6.3's which have a more forward sound in the midrange, too much IMO. Ive heard em both, and unequalized the 6.2's are smoother and more natural sounding.

[titelies]

Today, I received the Emo 6.3 to be used as my center and an XPA-5 to power my 5 front speakers. I currently use 2 pairs of ERD-1s as side surrounds and as front heights, ERM-1s as surround backs. ALL I CAN SAY IS... WOW!

Just noticed that the 8.3s went on sale for the Valentine holiday, you can bet I will be picking up a pair cause I am IN LOVE! ;D

My room is 23' x 13' 6" x 7' 6"

[moodyman]

See my sig. My system rocks...plays loud and clear. Awesome dynamics. My HT is in my basement..my wife comes running down sometimes from the 2nd floor of the house to screaming at me to lower everything.

Yes..it might be overkill. Nice having those reserves though. I should have the UMC-1 this Monday.

If you get the 8.3's bear in mind they aren't exactly the most efficient speakers....so they will appreciate the xtra juice from an XPA-2...

[pitbullmike]

Feb 12, 2010 12:53:40 GMT -5 ntrain42 said:

Feb 12, 2010 12:15:51 GMT -5 buckethead said:

thank you guys for the replies. guess i could have put alil more info on what im putting this into. Room is 28x20 10 foot ceiling. I also have a rythmik 12 but i am in the process of trading it(plus cash...) for a friend svs pc13 ultra

You could go either way with 6.2's or 6.3's with that size room. I personally would still do the 6.2's......they sound better.

And as far as the sub. The SVS is a DOWNGRADE musically(build quality too). Why not keep your Rythmik 12 and just get another one to run in parallel? 2 Rythmik 12's will have more output for that size room and be musically more accurate and detailed.

Have you even listened to the SVS pc13 Ultra? Ive listened to both. In fact I listened to the F15, Dont say its a downgrade if you haven't even heard the SVS. Yes the Rythmik subs sound pretty damn awesome but IMO they aren't better than the pc13u.

Your like the biggest Rythmik nutt hugger here

[ntrain42]

Feb 12, 2010 19:43:06 GMT -5 pitbullmike said:

Feb 12, 2010 12:53:40 GMT -5 ntrain42 said:

You could go either way with 6.2's or 6.3's with that size room. I personally would still do the 6.2's......they sound better.

And as far as the sub. The SVS is a DOWNGRADE musically(build quality too). Why not keep your Rythmik 12 and just get another one to run in parallel? 2 Rythmik 12's will have more output for that size room and be musically more accurate and detailed.

Have you even listened to the SVS pc13 Ultra? Ive listened to both and I prefer my SVS. In fact I listened to the F15, Dont say its a downgrade if you haven't even heard the SVS.

Your like the biggest Rythmik nutt hugger here

Owned a pair of 13 Ultras in Gloss black for about 2 months. Replaced em with 4 Kef 12" subs. Granted lots of output for HT, I never warmed up to them, the very last "ported" subs I owned. Even with the plugs in and the subsonic set to sealed or 10hz, the bass wasn't as defined as I like. I could get a pretty smooth frequency response out of em with the PEQ's, but the detail and blend factor wasnt there compared to other offerings Ive dealt with. Most people CANNOT set their subs up correctly or with decent accuracy due to lack of good audio tools. I can, and can get a better setup than most typical users are capable of. Most people try to tune their subs with their ears or a basic spl meter(like the Radio shack one thats brought up alot)with limited accuracy and it leaves alot on the table.

That being said take the price of the SVS sub. Its $1800 bucks plus shipping. Is it more musical than any of the servo offering subs from Rythmik? 12's or 15's? No way. Does it have more output over a single Rythmik sub? Sure does. Now ask the same question. For $1800, you can get 2 Rythmik servo subs(2 12's or 2 15's for the price of one Ultra 13). Is it more musical? Again no. Does it have more output over 2 12's or 2 15's? No way again, especially 2 15's.

So you may have heard a Rythmik(and who knows how well it was set up), but have you leveled the playing field in a dollar sense and heard 2 well tuned 12 or 15" Rythmiks vs. a single well tuned 13" Ultra? Ask yourself that.

Right before I traded out my SVS subs, I had a chance to hear them both compared to a single Revel B15A. My 13's had more output over the single Revel sub, but the B15A was much more detailed and musical, the difference was significant.

Now I havent heard and SVS direct compared to a Rythmik(and I really dont need to), but I have had a chance to play a D15SE and AB it with the Revel B15A. Both subs were literally identical in their musicality, with the D15SE having a touch more low end extension and the B15A having a few db's more output. But the difference was very negligible. The kicker in the regard now is the price. $3k for a new Revel B15A, $1k for a D15SE. Do the math. Alot of times thats how I look at products, especially items like subs where many times multiples are better than single counterparts. What do you get for the money spent? If I spend $1800 on "X" product, is it better than 2 "Y" products for the same price? Its a way of thinking many times people forget about.

So for $1800 you can get 2 quality custom built Class A/B 375 watt servo amps and 2 high quality 12" or 15" aluminum high sensitivity drivers in a pair of sealed enclosures, or for the same money spent, you can get one lower sensitivity 13" driver powered by a 750watt class D BASH chip amp and a ported enclosure.

Me? I'd take the first choice without even thinking.

And as far as hearing about the F12's bottoming, your sure right they can, that Class A/B amp is flat down to 5hz and isnt limited by a subsonic filter(unless you turn it on), so its very easy for someone not knowledgeable to set the gain too high and over drive the subwoofer with low frequency information. But to be quite fair, you can bottom out any driver. Especially PORTED subs, and I can say that my Ultra's bottomed out on a few occasions(U-571 comes to mind) when the volume was close to reference levels in my theatre room. Thats another reason why I am a fan with multiple subs. More cone space means lower gains, which means lower distortion and less to no chance of over driving a subwoofer.

And I am now replacing my Kef subs in my main theatre room with 4 DS1500 kits. 4 15" drivers, 4 XLRA370 servo amps, building my own custom boundary loaded sealed enclosure to house the 4 15" drivers( 16 cubic feet total, each driver in its own sealed 4 cubic foot partition ). Cost for the 4 15" kits and 3 sheets of 1"thick HDF, just under $2150. Not too shabby. Basically about $200 more than a single 13" ultra shipped.

[roadrunner]

Buckethead,

It is tough to say which configuration of Emotiva speakers you will prefer. You will find people on this forum who will swear that one is better than the other, but most of them have never had long-term listening experience with the models they don't own. My brother own all of the Emotiva speakers you are considering and I have spent countless hours listening to all of them; and, even with that advantage I don't think I would be comfort telling you which you would like the most. There is simply too much we don't know about your listening room and what your listening habits are like. Even though you don't do a lot of music listening, it would be helpful for us to know what genre of music you like and dislike.

You have a large listening room, but the more you tell us the better our advice will be. Where are the door and windows, how big are they; what construction materials for walls, floor and ceiling; rugs or hardwood or tile or???; where will the equipment be located; where will the furniture be; what type of furniture; if you have pictures all the better, but keep in mind without this type of info all you will be getting is our own personal biases.

One of our members says to use the 6.2 all around. For your preference for HT I would disagree with him. I would definitely go with the ERD-1 for your surround. If you had a higher preference for music, I might be more inclined to agree with the 6.2s all around.... but you are not as interested in music as that particular member is.

Emotiva's Theater room in their headquarters in Franklin, Tn is of similar size to your listening room; and, their setup includes the ERT-8.3 for FR and FL, the ERM-6.3 for Center, and 4 ERD-1s for the side-surrounds and the rear-surrounds, and an Emotiva Ultra series sub woofer. This is one of the most awesome sounding Theater setup I have ever had the pleasure to spend time in. I can't think of a single thing I would change in Emotiva's Theater Room.

Bfisher has a nice theater setup using the ERM-6.3s and when he mentioned why a lot of people feel so strongly about the ERM-6.2s he hit it dead center. At Emofest, the 6.3s were setup in a very poor spot while the 6.2s were setup to great advantage. They are both excellent speakers. As a matter of fact they share the exact same drivers except the 6.3 adds 2 4-inch drives and has an enclosure several inches larger. I also agree with the member who pointed out he thought the 6.3 was the best center channel speaker he had ever heard.

If what I read between the lines from what little you posted is correct, I am guessing that the bass, mid-bass and upper-bass are very important to your listening enjoyment. If this is so, I would suggest you would be happiest with the ERT-8.3s for the Fronts. The dual 8-inch woofers are very smooth and dynamic and the 8.3 has one of the best mid-to-upper bass responses I have heard in any speaker selling for less than $3000. It is not lacking in any area of sound reproduction... its frequency response is ruler flat from 40 Hz to 20 KHz +/- 2 dB and still has very useful output below 30 Hz. You would still want a good sub woofer for its sub-sonic energy.

So, with what little I know about your situation, I would go with either the 8.3LR/6.3C/ERD-1 or the 6.3LR/6.3C/ERD-1. Of course, either choice would need a good dynamic sub woofer. If your room layout would not easily accept the Towers I would not hesitate to use the 6.3 for all three front speakers.

With more input from you, I may modify my recommendation as to the make up of which model speakers to use. If you were someone who liked listening to live performances and you wanted to hear life-like attack/decay/timbre of the instruments I would lean more toward the 6.3s; and for male or female vocals the 6.3 would again be my preference. If percussion instruments are your cup of tea then the 8.3s would be my choice. It all depends on your room's acoustical properties and your preferred listening habits. Speakers preferences are undoubtedly the most subjective thing we do when building a Home Theater. ;D

Oh, by the way, welcome to the Emotiva Lounge. Come often and have fun. We have lots of folks from all walks of life and many very knowledgeable members willing to help. Hope to see you again, soon.

[pitbullmike]

Feb 12, 2010 20:37:26 GMT -5 ntrain42 said:

Feb 12, 2010 19:43:06 GMT -5 pitbullmike said:

Have you even listened to the SVS pc13 Ultra? Ive listened to both and I prefer my SVS. In fact I listened to the F15, Dont say its a downgrade if you haven't even heard the SVS.

Your like the biggest Rythmik nutt hugger here

So you may have heard a Rythmik(and who knows how well it was set up)

How well it was set up? I was at the owner of Rythmik's house who happens to live an hour from me, Im not saying Rythmik isnt good, They sound phenomenal and at a great price but to say an Ultra is a DOWNGRADE is flat out retarded and nutt hugging at its best

Both subs are awesome

FYI The TS stated that he listens to music 10% of the time so why would he need a musical sub? IMO for HT SVS would be the right choice

[ntrain42]

Feb 12, 2010 22:33:03 GMT -5 pitbullmike said:

Feb 12, 2010 20:37:26 GMT -5 ntrain42 said:

So you may have heard a Rythmik(and who knows how well it was set up)

How well it was set up? I was at the owner of Rythmik's house who happens to live an hour from me, Im not saying Rythmik isnt good, They sound phenomenal and at a great price but to say an Ultra is a DOWNGRADE is flat out retarded and nutt hugging at its best

Both subs are awesome

FYI The TS stated that he listens to music 10% of the time so why would he need a musical sub? IMO for HT SVS would be the right choice

Even, if he listens to music only 10% of the time, and does mostly home theatre, do you really think 1 lower sensitivity 13" driver is going to stack up to 2 12" drivers with a higher sensitivity value for the same price? What makes bass? SD and Xmax. 2 higher sensitivity 12" drivers with a PAIR of higher quality(direct servo drive no less)amps is going to trump a single 13" in both gross output and musicality, ported or not.

If he already owns an F12, he would be much better off buying another one, insteading of just trading out one 12" sub plus cash considerations for basically another similiar sized driver in a ported enclosure. He would gain significantly more output and keep the pure detail and musicality that the Rythmik subs offer.

And to add your words here:

The The D15SE sounded so smooth and clean, I didnt get the chance to actually see the full potential of the sub thou. I should have turned up the bass a bit more but I didn't want to mess with his settings. I myself like alot of BASS with my music.

You yourself heard only ONE sub playing, and from the sound of it, you didn't even get to see what a SINGLE Rythmik sub is capable of in terms of sheer output, let alone 2. 2 F12's are going to put out some serious output and its going to be very accurate with very low distortion doing it.