CatBrat - Axiom Message Boards

Just in case you ever wandered what a CatBrat kinda, sorta, looked like. This is him in his habitat.

Dude, at least resize the picture a bit.

There is already a thread somewhere on what people look like, let me see if I can find it........wait for it.........

ok......found it......maybe we can get some updates everyone...

Are you afraid to show your face?

Brian, your cat takes good pics of you. I will forgive the slight focus problem, it's hard to work the lens with paws.

Ok. Thanks. I'll take care of that later.

Your eyes aren't moving in the photo. Do I need to update my browser ?

Originally Posted By: bridgman

Your eyes aren't moving in the photo. Do I need to update my browser ?

That's a tough one. I think I would try shaking your monitor and see if that loosens the eye's up a bit. Your image might be stuck.

I moved this topic to

http://www.axiomaudio.com/boards/ubbthre...mp;t=1315502079

where your not forced to view every pore in my face.

Thought I'd repost these links to 2 of my gmail spread sheets that I've made public in the past.

1. My Movie / Concert list Click me.

2. My list of Best Movie nominations No. Click me.

I just noticed the driver wasn't working in my M2v3 I have for my upper center channel. I exchanged it with one from a VP100v2 I had in a box and it works fine. I sent an e-mail to Axiom's service and don't expect any problems.

I was told last week that a new 5 1/4 inch vers 3 driver would be on it's way this week.

After listening to the system with a Vers 2 driver in the M2 box, I can say that this driver probably has been out for a long time. Female voices are a bit sharp sounding with the current setup, so I had to turn the center channel down about 2 db. It will be interesting to see if the V3 driver fixes it. If not, I'll probably have to removed the M2 from the mix.

Reran MCACC last night. Now center channel sounds good. Last time MCACC was run, it was with the non-working M2 driver.

Replacement 5 1/4 v3 has been shipped.

Testing....

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?...3c&hl=en_US

Thanks Axiom!

I got the v3 5 1/4 replacement driver installed in my M2 center channel speaker and it's working and sounding fine now.

BTW, I had a root canal done today. Yeah! I thought that would make some of you feel a bit better.

It was one of the end bottom molars. She even had to drill into the bone and insert pain killers there.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

She even had to drill into the bone and insert pain killers there.

Oh, please. I do that just because I'm bored.

I needed to move my movie collection from a spare bedroom, that I'll be working on, to somewhere. So, I moved them to the living room for now. I bought four $20 media shelves from Target, will probably need a fifth soon. I've spent the last 2 evenings putting them together and moving my movie collection to them. We all like pictures, so here's the new look in my living room with the media collection.

I wold buy that fifth one now if you know you'll need it. You might go back in six months and discover they don't carry them anymore.

I agree. I've depleted the local Target stores of their supply for now, but they said more will be on the way. I'll probably pick up 2 more of them.

Looks great, Cat. I bet your 500 really rattles that space!

I see a cat in the third picture. Placed there, or happenstance

?

Actually, it's a 350. But it's plenty powerfull for that space. More would be overkill.

And the cat. She just happened to be there when I took the picture. I didn't even notice until I looked at them later, otherwise I would have said something to get her to turn around for the picture. I was concentrating too much on the other content.

Tell me about that tv. I've been thinking of replacing the ole' crt with a 32" or so hdtv. Seems much easier to find reviews on the bigger ones.

This is a 32 inch Samsung. I think the model number has a 550 in it. I picked it up at Nebraska Furniture Mart about 3 years ago for $700. It was one of their cheaper models. It has a good picture and no troubles with the LCD panel. The only negative I can think of is the poor off angle viewing. The darks lighten up quite a bit as you move from the center viewing spot.

My next TV might be a Visio 47 inch from Target. They have much wider off angle viewing capabilities. It's $700 for a 2D or about $1000 for the 3D version.

Scott, Consumer Reports includes 32" models in their TV tests. In the latest rankings in the December issue the top-rated 32"s were the LG 32LK450, Samsung LN32D550 and Sony KDL-32BX320(all around $400).

Want to purchase 3 QS8's in Simi-Gloss Nutmeg Cherry real wood finish (to match the M2 mounted above the TV). But for $1,113.00, it might be a while. There's just something about the look and feel of the real wood speakers I like better.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

There's just something about the look and feel of the real wood speakers I like better.

Thank you, Brian. Now, as for the rest of you cheap bas

Updated photo of my living room setup. I just finished added a 5th shelf to the right that's currently empty. I need a subwoofer on wheels.

Link to my movie collection.

A way to make the Axiom subwoofers mobile would be another nice accessory, assuming it wouldn't affect performance at all.

It's called a hand truck.

I thought they were called muscles and a strong back.

I ain't got none of that.

Muscle bound giant freak.

I suppose neither sets of locking casters nor hand trucks will really work since I'm using SubDude HDs. Trying to fork under the SubDudes would probably compromise them.

I realized that I hadn't rerun MCACC since I've added the shelves to the living room wall, so when I pulled the mic from behind the TV, stretched out the cord, mounted the mic on the tripod sitting where I want it, started MCACC and it kept telling me to check mic. So, then I went to the room behind the TV where the other end of the mic was and... it was in 2 pices. Looks to have been chewed in two. I tried to just reattach it, and still didn't work, that's when I noticed several chew marks along the length of wire.

I was wondering why the cat wouldn't shut-up while I was trying to get this to work. It's like she was so excited that she was finally able to help with something. Jeesh!

I've checked, and so far I haven't found a replacement mic. There's a similar one on Amazon for about $15, but it only has a 6.5 foot cord for car use. Mine has a 16 foot cord and I need the extra length.

I did find and placed a bid on this one on e-bay. I hate bidding on e-bay. Someone else always comes along and takes it. Also, now I'm stuck waiting for up to 3 days, to see if I can even buy it.

That stinks!

Cat:
My GUESS (I don't have any knowledge of this one way or another) is that a replacement mic that's used in these types of calibrations needs to be the same make/model as the original.

Mics, like speakers, have their own FR deviations from perfection, and my ASSUMPTION is that when a receiver / processor manufacturer designs a calibration method, they're taking into account a mic's deviations from perfect flat response.

Replacing the manufacturer's supplied mic with a different one, even a much more expensive, "flatter response" mic, might just cause problems with the final calibration.

I would re-wire a plug (and maybe a new length of cable if needed) onto that one or buy an exact duplicate from the manufacturer.

I agree that it needs to be the same. The one on e-bay "looks" the same. I guess there's no guarantee that it "is" the same though. I'm not very good at rewiring these small (and I mean small) wires together, unless I can solder them perhaps. That might be worth a shot. I'm going to try the replacement method first.

I did finally find this mic for sale on the Pioneer web site. The cost is much higher here (of course). Pioneer link

I was outbid. Also after checking with the Pioneer site, there are at least 2 different models of this microphone and they look alike. The one I need is APM7009. There is also an APM7007, and perhaps others. After trying to order this from Pioneer's web site, after shipping, taxes, handling fees, the total comes to $61.34. I've decided to try and fix the one I've got instead.

Finally getting my basement wall fixed that has been bowing in. It was measured as comming in 1 inch, so far. It's going to cost me a little under $4000. They are going to dig a trench 10 to 16 feet away from the house, run 3 rods from thick metal strips on the inside to the trench, then fill the trench with concrete and tighten the rods. This has a 37 year warranty. Costs more, but supposed to be better than just bracing up the wall from inside only. I'm going to try and borrow $3000 from my 401k to get this done.

Good reputable company suggested by my insurance company.

I take it this is the outer concrete wall, best of luck with this work. Your house is scaring me away fom any future purchases of an older home to renovate someday.

Wow, big job. Sure beats letting the house begin to crack as the load shifts though. That would just be a downward spiral of repairs leading up to, well a very abrupt end to the need for any more repairs.

Price actually seems reasonable to me, but I am not in the know.

That wall is cracked pretty bad and the I-beam has broke the concrete and a piece of it is sticking out. The best I can do is just keep the wall from getting any worse. The salesman, who also has undergone their repair programs, said that they won't repair any of the cracks and not to worry about them since none of the cracks on this wall have gone all the way through. I can repair them myself if I want to, but he suggests just using some silicone based stuff that would allow future movement.

I opted out of the water proofing, which would of cost me closer to $7000 total instead of $4000. To do that, they would have installed a metal channel under the concrete floor, near the wall with a sump pump draining it. Since I don't have a water problem here, he agreed that it wouldn't be worthwhile to waterproof this wall.

I also have an outer door in my future home theater room, that I want removed and concreted or bricked up. Unfortunately, his company charges a minimum of $1500 to pour a footer and they wouldn't do this without pouring a footer for the 2-3 foot wide wall. A footer here would be nice, but it's not worth that kind of money.

Here on PEI where we have no true natural stone (we have red sandstone rocks but they crumble under the slightest pressure)so water in the basement is a big problem. If you are smart, you build on a natural grade and never have a problem. If you are dumb (or maybe "from away" & don't know) and build on low or flat land then water creeps in no matter how hard to try to keep it sealed.

Artificial grades do not work as the added soil just gets packed and acts like it's flat underground. You need the natural layers of sandstone for successful drainage or you are hosed, so to speak.

Of course, probably nobody cares but I'm bored on a call and maybe at least this will make you feel better.

Or, you can just put down some piers and build your basement off the ground...

That does sound like a bad place to build a house.

Anyhoo. Here's the particulars I learned about borrowing from my 401k, just in case you're bored enough to want to read this.

This is called a "General Purpose" loan and I can take one out for anything, anytime I want to.
I can borrow up to %50 of the total value of the account.
I can have up to 2 loans at the same time.
I can initiate the loan either through their web site, or phone system.
I have to pay a $75 loan origination fee and it comes out of the money that I borrowed. (If I borrow $3100, I get a check for $3025).
I can pay up to %50 of the loan early, or I can pay it all off at once. (So if I borrow $3100, I can only pay up to $1550 early, or I can pay the entire loan amount anytime I want)
When it's time for me to pay the entire loan amount off early, I call them and then they tell me how much and where to send the check.
The amount of interest that I pay myself for this loan is 4.25%.

Brian, yes those are typical legal and other provisions relating to 401k "loans"(actually you're using your own money). Typically you pay prime plus 1%(current prime is 3.25%)for the privilege. As for the "pay myself" comment, that's a bit of an oversimplification. The growth on the amount taken out(hopefully more than 4.25%)is lost, the amounts paid back are with after-tax dollars, yet will be taxed again when finally withdrawn.

Possibly you took these and other factors into account, but I usually advise clients or others to dip into their 401k only if no other option(e.g. borrowing against home equity)which may be less expensive in the long run is available.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Or, you can just put down some piers and build your basement off the ground...

Except then you are not eligible for a standard mortgage, substantially increasing your long term home cost. When we bought our waterfront property we built a cottage on it first until we could afford to build a house there and put it on posts so it could be sold to move later. It was only there for 10 years so it wasn't a big deal but we did have to get a special 'less attractive' mortgage rate because there was no foundation.

As far as the 401k loan and lost growth opportunity, I see little problem here, for me, especially when I see the up/down movement in one day about equal to the amount of the loan I took out. That might be a bigger problem to someone will less money in it. I've been borrowing money from my retired sister, and paying her back. But, I can't keep doing that forever. I like it better that this is a method that's sustainable (at least for now). (The last few days, the market has been going down, and my 401k is out of risk in a cash-equivalent fund, so while other people are losing money, mine is making a little every day instead. He, he.)

If I get a loan from a bank, when I pay it back, it's with money that's been taxed, so I don't see the difference on whether I pay me, or I pay them.

I finally got everything moved from the basement to the family room. Tomorrow, the foundation people are coming over to brace up my basement wall. I've been moving stuff from 3:30pm to 9:00pm. All that's left to do now is some sweeping. To say I'm pooped would be an understatement.

I think it may be about time to call 1-800-GOTJUNK. But want to tear out the ceiling in my future HT room first.

Listening to jackhammers and drills and watching people dig up your yard does not make for a fun day.

So much for ordering a new speaker. It looks like my water heater needs replacing instead. Noticed I wasn't getting a lot of hot water last night. Today, it's leaking.

Maybe I can make it work anyway. I know where I can get an extra $400.

VP160 ordered. I had to order the standard version on-line, then JC said he would change the order to be an in-cabinet version instead. Thanks JC.

Note: Black grill cover, if the order doesn't state what color. I didn't see it on any of my receipts.

Hi,
It has been done. Have you received an email confirming the modification of your original order ?

E-mail received. I didn't think I got it, but I re-read it and it says in-cabinet. Thanks.

Thats cool, need to see this in-cabinet VP160 once you have it installed.

Yesterday and today's project, cleaning and sealing behind the bottom row of ceramic tiles around the bathtub. I had removed the old caulk between wall and tub a couple of months ago, but never got around to resealing it.

This got me to worrying about mold buildup behind that bottom row of tiles, so I pulled that row of tiles out last night and cleaned up that area. There was some blackness that had started in that area, so I'm glad I did that. To kill any mold, I sprayed the area first with Hydrogen Peroxide, then later with vinegar. (Articles I read suggested not to use bleach because it won't attach porus areas.)

Home construction so old that they didn't use concrete backer board like today, but was just drywall that was also deteriating somewhat, but not enought to have to replace it. I just scraped off the lose material.

Then to seal up the tub to the wall, I used a tube of plasic roof cement that looks and smells like asphalt. Later today I'll go buy some tile cement and glue the pieces back on. A few broke. There's an old box of them I found in the house that I can cut (somehow) and use them instead. Then re-grout and caulk.

Re-grout and Whaaaaaaat?

Oh, re-read. Sorry.

Now here's a project I'm starting that's part of my "convert bedroom into an office" project. First, I hired an exterminator to spray my attic for silverfish 2 weeks ago today. Today, I'm going to (get started) bag up all of this old insulation that's somewhere in the neighbor hood of 30 to 50 years old. (Definitely using respiratory protection). It doesn't cover the whole house, just the bedroom areas.

Here's a picture looking to the Left.

Here's a picture looking to the Right.

Then once that's cleaned up. I'm going to make 4 holes for can lights in the bedroom (looking to the left). Install can lights. Then get exterminator back out to spray again. Then install Owen's Corning fiberglass batch insulation between rafters.

This way I have a clean installation without any bugs and with new insulation.

That reminds me of when my folks bought an old farm house. The insulation was a little older. It was sawdust!

I imagine you will have a much better insulated attic once you're done.

Whew. I made a small dent, but only did 1 1/2 hours of real work. The rest was just getting setup. The temperature has been moderate here today at about 65 degrees F. This is one time I'll be glad to see it drop because it gets hot working up there.

I thought the big black trash bags were going to be too big to fit in the hole to take them out, but they did fit ok. The hole is only about 2 foot by 2 foot. I load up my trunk with the bags, then unload them at my work's big industrial sized dumpster.

I found some newspaper mixed in with the old insulation. It's dated 1963. So that tells me the insulation is about 39 years old. (Correction: 49 years old)

I found a child's sized plastic snow shovel with extendable handle that's perfect sized for this job. It's about 10 inches wide by about 15 inches long, and about 3 inches deep.

Maybe you are older than you think ... I believe that would have been 49 years old and not 39 years old.

1963
1973 10 years
1983 20 years
1993 30 years
2003 40 years
2012 49 years

You're right 49 years.

(Hard to count past 21).

When you get that old what's a decade or two

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

This way I have a clean installation without any bugs and with new insulation.

Not sure what they'd charge, but a duct cleaning service with the big truck and 12" hose would probably make very short work of that insulation.

Bren R.

My guess is nobody would touch it on fears of Asbestos contamination. Most of that insulation is Rock Wool that contains only trace amounts of Asbestos. Not sure what the light (yellowish) colored stuff is. I did compare to pictures of asbestos insulation and this is not it.

But still. I might call around anyway. It'd be my luck that they would be the ones stepping through the ceiling.

Wow. Around here, just a threat of even small amounts of asbestos = hazmat suits, bubbled in work areas with negative airflow exhausting through special filters, air locked change areas with portable showers, etc.....

You are a brave man.

By trace amounts, I'm talking not measurable. At least, according to what articles I've read. Rock Wool's amount of asbestos is undeterminable (replace with your favorite word here instead).

Asbestos removal from our basement a couple of years ago:

Brian, if there's a possibility of asbestos in what you're dumping, prepare for a multi-tens-of-thousands fine if you get caught.

If you have ANY thoughts of the possibility of asbestos, you should have had samples tested.

And NOT wearing serious protection if you're suspecting Asbestos in loose fill is just asking for a shortened lifespan.

Mark just wants everyone to adopt his taste in headgear.

Seriously, Brian, I was about to post basically the same thing. Check your state and local laws. A trash collector could find it and report you to the EPA. The clean-up costs and fines are both gigantic!

I said it like a drama queen.

According to this article, there is no asbestos in RockWool insulation.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

I said it like a drama queen.

Wow! This is refreshing! It CAN be fun to agree with people!

Actually, Mark, you said it more like someone's Mom.

One thing I will probably do sometime soon as a preventative measure is buy and run a HEPA air filter in each room for a while.

Finally received shipping notice for the VP160 in-cabinet model I ordered.

What's the difference? You'll be dead from the Asbestos before it arrives anyway.

Sorry. Couldn't resist.

Maybe I should go back to just reporting on speakers.

Also, I don't get your logic.

[quote]Rock Wool's amount of asbestos is undeterminable (replace with your favorite word here instead). [endquote]

"Rock Wool's amount of asbestos is beer." makes no sense whatsoever???

Originally Posted By: Murph

Also, I don't get your logic.

[quote]Rock Wool's amount of asbestos is undeterminable (replace with your favorite word here instead). [endquote]

"Rock Wool's amount of asbestos is beer." makes no sense whatsoever???

Hey beer works for me. I couldn't think of a proper word at the time, such as indeterminate.

Yeah, the beer must be working for you if you're having trouble communicating.

My VP160 is due to arrive tomorrow.

I'm jealous!

Later today it should arrive. I asked the receptionist to call me when it arrives so I can see if the Fed Ex person will help me out to my car with it.

Can't do much tonight with it. I've got one of those interesting dates at her house.

Your going to date the Fed Ex girl?

Atta Boy! Brings a new meaning to "Pick Up at Depot".

Remember though, don't sign for anything and in this case, "Early Delivery" is not a good thing.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I've got one of those interesting dates at her house.

Is "interesting date" worthy of a Woop! Woop! from us? We all want you to say "yes."

Remember ... pictures, or it didn't happen!

I know nothing.

VP160 is in the backseat of my car.

It looks like Axiom is in the process of adding the VP160 speaker to it's on-line product catalog. I found it in the Center Channel section, but not in the in-cabinet section yet.

I found it in the In-Catbrat's-car section.

After filing taxes, I discovered I'm getting a little over $1500 back. I really want to replace my Samsung 37 inch LCD with a 50 inch plasma. I want one of the best ones that does 3D (Will have to apologize to cat, they don't make 3D glasses that small.)

Right now, I'm thinking about the Panasonic GT or VT models. VT is their top of line and looks like it runs around $2000. The GT is the next step down and it runs around $1200. 2011 is the model that ends in 30. I'm thinking that the 2012 models should be coming out soon, and the 2011 models would go on sale, but not sure. I'd really like to have the VT model, but cheaper. I don't feel confident ordering one on-line without a brick-and-mortar store presence to back it up.

It looks like the Best Buy Magnolia stores have the Panasonic Plasma TC-P50VT30's for $1500.

Weird. TC-P50VT30 was on the Best Buy site this morning. Now it's gone.

It's kind of like my local grocery store. As soon as I find something I really like and start buying it often, they stop selling it.

I wanted to put a link to a review of this tv here, to make it easy to find later.

It looks like the VT 50 inch is only available in Europe. It's 55 inches here. Won't fit my wall. 50 inch is the absolute max that will fit. I guess I'm back down to the cheaper GT version. Does anyone have experience with the GT version of Panasonic Plasmas?

Dang! I just got back from Best Buy store. Now the TV I've been researching, the Panasonic 50 inch TC-P50GT30 has just been discontinued and is not being sold by Best Buy anymore. That model has been replace with the TC-P55GT31 model. Number 31 instead of 30, and a 55 inch instead of a 50 inch. Panasonic discontinued the 50 inch plasma. Only a 50 inch will fit in this spot. The woman at the BB store mentioned that it seems a lot of brands are going from a 46/47 inch to a 55 inch, skipping that size.

This is the story of my life. As soon as there's something I want, it goes away.

um... is there something here where I can't see anyone's reply other than catbrats.. its kind of weird. Anyways, you should try amazon.com, should be a lot of 50-inch Televisions there.

Originally Posted By: SmokeyMcBear

um... is there something here where I can't see anyone's reply other than catbrats.. its kind of weird.

It's Brian's own thread, so it's kinda like a mid-renaissance dutchy, or The Vatican.

However, like The Vatican, everyone is free to (and does!) throw their trash around St. Peter's Square.

well okay then. Glad it wasnt on my end. I'm just gonna go pick up my trash and leave then. my bad.

Yeah, I kind of ramble on about only stuff I'm interested in, I'm afraid. At least it gives me something to do.

Originally Posted By: SmokeyMcBear

Anyways, you should try amazon.com, should be a lot of 50-inch Televisions there.

I've looked there a lot. My problem is I wanted last years best rated TV at an affordable price. By bad.

Also, I figure that by the time it's being replaced by next years model, they've worked most of the worst bugs out of it by then.

There's a lot of things I like about the Panasonic TC-P50VT and TC-P50GT models. One of which is an all glass screen that has some anti-glare stuff built into it. I don't want another LCD because of the off-angle-viewing problems. I don't want an edge-lit LED and the other LED's are still too expensive. I checked the next Panasonic model down, but it has a bigger bezel and won't fit my spot.

Oh, and it has to be 3D. Might as well get one of those too.

Cat, you might consider the Samsung PN51D7000. Cnet had this to say about it.

"Earlier this year we called Samsung's most expensive plasma TV, the PND8000 series, the "Best overall TV of 2011 (so far)." Now that we've tested its less expensive brother, the PND7000 series reviewed here, that designation isn't as certain. Sure the PND8000 has a few extra features, chiefly a QWERTY keyboard remote and Web browser, but the two have basically the same picture quality: outstanding, second among this year's TVs only to Panasonic's much more expensive TC-PVT30 series, and better overall than the Panasonic GT30 and ST30 models. If you're in the market for a high-performance plasma TV and want the best blend of picture quality and value, the Samsung PND7000 is our new go-to recommendation."

Full review here

If the few extra bells and whistles, or the space age design, of the PN51D8000 model interest you, you can check out Cnet's review here.

Originally Posted By: SmokeyMcBear

um... is there something here where I can't see anyone's reply other than catbrats.. its kind of weird.

Now that's funny! Well played, sir.

Click to reveal.. (Large animated gif, 1.7MB. Safe for work.)

Thanks for the Samsung mention. I haven't really looked at them much. One thing I've noticed, is the 8000 has optical audio out and the 7000 doesn't. I'm currently using optical audio from the TV. I'm not sure how the 7000 gets sound to the receiver.

The 7000 is 15mil and the 8000 is 25mil dynamic range.

Not sure if there are any other visual differences and if the 25mil vs 15mil makes any difference. Reviews on both say in high contrast modes, that you loose shadow detail.

It also looks like for the 2012 models, the smallest screen size they'll have here is the 59 inch models.

My link of best picture nominations and winners.

I haven't looked but I would guess they both are HDMI1.4 compliant and as such the HDMI cable could carry the audio back to the receiver on the Audio Return Channel (A.R.C), providing you are using a 1.4 compliant HDMI cable and the avr is also 1.4 compliant.

I checked with Best Buy and they don't carry the Samsung Plasmas that I've been looking at lately. I guess about the only way to get one of these tv's that are being phased out is to order one from Amazon when one shows up on it. But, I'm hesitant to do that, in case I get a bad one.

It's going to be a couple of weeks before I have the money anyway, probably. If I wait for the 2012 models, then I'll also have to wait for a decent sale. Looks like I may have to wait until October, or something before a one at a decent price comes along.

That is IF there is one that will fit on my wall by then. Seems that they are only shipping the big ones to USA now. Have to live in Europe to get a 50 inch.

I fall asleep a lot while watching a movie. I keep reading in reviews that plasmas still have a burn-in problem. I'm wondering if maybe I shouldn't be getting a plasma, because when I fall asleep, it sometimes gets stuck for hours on the same thing. Sometimes it's the movie menu, other times it's the menu on the blu-ray player.

Brian, most TV's have burn in protection options to prevent scenarios like you describe - plus so do most devices you connect to your TV like the amp, PS3, BRD player etc.... Keep in mind there is a difference from a temporary image retention that can be easily and fully reversed versus permanent burn in. Temporary retention may still happen, but permanent burn in is much harder to cause with today's TV's. My 3 year old Panny plasma automatically shuts off if not interacted with in 4 hours or so. IMO burn in susceptibility is not a factor I would consider anymore in my decision to go for plasma or LCD, LED etc...

There's always the simple sleep timer...

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

There's always the simple sleep timer...

but I'd have to remember to set it. Movies also run from 90 minutes to 4 hours long.

Train cats to chew through power cords. Choose cords that take over two hours to chew through. Place Craigslist add stating "will take in unwanted kittens or strays." for replacement timers.

Might just work. But, no, she won't chew threw through power cords. Just microphone cords. They're more "tender".

I just noticed the training part... Hmmm. Wouldn't the timer expire before the time ran out?

If you have never bought a TV from amazon, this would be worth a read, it was very enlightening for me....

Originally Posted By: dakkon

If you have never bought a TV from amazon, this would be worth a read, it was very enlightening for me....

Link?

A link would be nice. I bought my panny plasma from amazon around 2 years ago. It was 60% off retail (well what they said was retail), free shipping and no tax. I was worried too about what would happen if I got a lemon. But thankfully it wasnt a problem. I didnt actually buy it from amazon, but a place that sells throguh amazon. I have bought other items this way, and the only thing that came basically doa was a chair massager that I sent back and they are in process of giving me a new one.

If it's DOA, I'm fairly sure they'd replace it, but what if it's just a few dead pixels, or some cosmetic blemish, or something else that's nothing major, but irritating, like a buzzing that's too loud. It might be that these things didn't happen right away, but sometime before the warranty expires. Or it take me a few months to notice that something was wrong, or not working.

Is there a guarantee that they are going to make good on it, or am I possibly just SOL?

How can I guarantee that I'm not getting a used for new exchange when I thought I bought new? Maybe it had some minor problem and the seller is trying to pawn if off on me. How can I guarantee that I'm not getting some old model that's been sitting in the back of someones warehouse that's before a lot of major fixes have taken place on the newer ones?

I worry about these things.

yeah i can understand those concerns. I know amazon offers some sort of 5 year warranty thing that is similar to best buys. Not sure how if works if you get credit or whatever. What I returned wasnt necessarily DOA.. it just rattled like there was something broken, still worked, but rattled, and sent back no problems. But yeah, having a place to go back to and talk to a manager is peace of mind. But the prices and free shipping and no taxes are what made me pull the trigger, and I couldnt be happier.

Oh and burn in, I have a have done that numerous times, slept with menu on for hours. Havent had burn in issue yet.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/?nodeId=200504840&qid=1287783617&sr=1-6

http://www.amazon.com/SquareTrade-3-Year...1854&sr=1-7

those are the amazon things i can think of. There is a difference if you dont buy actually from amazon but from a third party.

Concerning the return shipping. It looks like you have a 30 day window to return an item with Amazon.com. After that 30 day window, everything starts to look a little fuzzy.

Concerning Square Trade warranty service. From reading the reviews, it looks like a possible scam company today.

"So beware. Read the contract and know what you're getting for the money (maybe worth it for you, maybe not). It's NOT your standard extended warranty contract, and in my experience Squaretrade has been very deceptive about that fact."

yeah, i dont know about that warranty just remember seeing something when purchasing my tv about a warranty and thats what i found looking through amazon. I never buy those things for electronics anyways unless its around 5% of the purchase price. If electronics are to go bad, they tend to go bad in the first year manufacturer's warranty anyways. Maybe amazon isnt for you, thats up to you. I'm just saying I had a good experience purchasing through amazon with both price and quality of product.

I've bought many things on Amazon the past few years without a hassle. I think the most expensive thing I bought though was a UPS for my computer for $200. Most of the rest are mostly movies. No experience getting a bad item, so far. I bought all the other parts from newegg.com, except for the monitor.

I did return a cheap receiver I bought from newegg without a problem. It was within the first week or 2.

http://www.amazon.com/Nap-Zapper-Anti-Sleep-Alarm/dp/B000BK4KW8/ref=cm_cmu_pg__header

It needs to be more exciting, challenging, consequential; like adding dble. serrated edges.

It looks like the new 2012 model GT50 Panasonic plasma is going to be better than 2011's top of the line VT50 model was.

The GT50 will inherit the 2011 VT50's filter for blacks. The new VT50 gets an upgrade.

Both will go from 600hz to 2500hz refresh rates.

The GT50 will come in a 50 inch. VT50 starts at 55 inch.

Link to article.

Link to short launch video.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: dakkon

If you have never bought a TV from amazon, this would be worth a read, it was very enlightening for me....

Link?

F*&k!!!!! do you know how long it took me to find that link!!! i had to search the axiom forum for it!!!!!!!

Okok, now that i have that out of my system, let me look for it AGAIN... gr...

okok, here is the link... Now that i know how to find this one post... Just as long as David keeps posting regularly, so i can easily find a thread where he has posted....

http://www.axiomaudio.com/boards/ubbthreads.php/topics/360409/1

I remember reading that one. It's about the bad delivery guy. I would call it entertaining, not sure about enlightening.

Enlightening pertaining to amazons return/reject policy... I did not know that amazon had such a generous return/replacement policy.

Long wait for the new Panasonic plasma TV's. It looks like they will be available to purchase sometime the end of March. So far, from what I can determine, the top 2 line ups will be (given smallest sizes):

TC-P55VT50 MSRP $2499.99, actual price about $1999.99.

TC-P50GT50 MSRP $1999.99, actual price about $1499.99-1799.99

I'm waiting for the TC-P50GT50 model. I'm hoping the refresh rate from 600 to 2500hz will be a noticeable improvement.

I don't know how accurate my info is. I'm currently reading through the thread on avsforum.com

Linky

According to it:
The new plasma panels are 1.5 times brighter than before.
They jumped from 30 series to 50 series because the number 4 is bad luck in Japan.

Long story short: Black & Decker Parana blade cuts through MDF like butter.

A bit longer: I tried cutting through 2 foot of 3/4 inch thick Medium Density Fiberboard. It took about 20 minutes and produced a lot of smoke. It also heated up my 30 year old circular saw to the point that the metal warped, and the metal of a thumb screw broke off.

I went to Home Depot, Lowes, Ace hardware stores and no body knew what kind of blade it took to cut through MDF. One lady said that this blade that only had 3 cutting blades on it would do the job. When I asked her if she was sure, she left that blade and started pointing out a different blade. Uh-huh, she had no idea. Off to find a different sales person and store.

My last stop was an Ace hardware store. He sold me a masonry cutting blade saying that should do the trick. I also bought the Parana blade with medium sized teeth just in case.

I also bought a new circular saw. I tried the masonry blade first. Nada. Worked about as fast as the old blade on the other saw. Tried the Parana blade. Ta-da. This only took me about 3 seconds to cut the 2 foot length.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Long story short: Black & Decker Parana blade cuts through MDF like butter.

A bit longer: I tried cutting through 2 foot of 3/4 inch thick Medium Density Fiberboard. It took about 20 minutes and produced a lot of smoke.

Whoa Whoa! Brian. Glad it worked out, but...

In future, Black and Decker nothing, ever. MDF wasn't prevalent when your saw was made, (neither were some fourm members). 20 minutes isn't a number within the most remote realm of consideration for a single pass with any power tool, unless it's like a 1700 foot pass, which would put it in tiny mountains somewhere.

The instant there's smoke, the incorrect something (tool, tool accessory, etc.) is being employed for the task at hand. (For all saw blades, consider correct tooth rake(s), correct # of teeth, and carbide. No Marathon, CMT, or bargain-priced Freud or DeWalt blades.) A good circ. saw with a good cond. blade can cut full 1" MDF (try lifting a 4 x 8 sheet of that) with no fight at all.
Every good quality 7 1/4" circ saw blade in a decent saw will easily cut MDF, even the wrong blades, like an 80 tooth veneered plywood/melamine blade. The only differences should be the quality of the final cut.

Home center MDF is crap. Go to a lumber yard with a chunk of the home center junk and compare. Look at how tighly packed the particles are in the good stuff. Also, it may come from China at the home centers. No home building material from China is worth your time and effort.

I haven't been burned, but I've had friends who had jobs go south because if it. If it's a (non-exotic, of course) wood product that didn't come from the US or Canada, just keep walkin.' Canadian was better for a long while. Now it's about even, since some Canadian wood products have declined in quality in the past 4 or 5 years.

MDF dust is highly toxic to inhale and will still be found on a dust mop weeks later, so be careful. I take absolutley no workplace precautions, because my death wish has been ignored for so long.

This was some old MDF I bought around 10-11 years ago and never used. Hard to say exactly what it is. This is the first time I've tried cutting through MDF. I was surprised at how hard it was. I also found it amusing that none of the sales force in any of the local hardware stores had no idea what to cut it with. One of them was an old-timer. Looked to be near 70 years old. He's the one that suggested the masonry cutting blade (which didn't work).

Yes! Tax refunds are all in. I've got $1580 that I can apply towards a new TV. Either the Panasonic TC-P50GT50 or the Samsung PN51E7000 (I think). Both are the next to top of the line plasmas for 2012, but not being sold yet.

Hey Brian,

There are lots of good guides in the Interweb for choosing blades. One good thing, is that for the most part, you can even read an article on explaining table saw blade types and apply the same logic to your circular saw blades, chop saw blades etc.
Understanding stuff like why a different number of teeth, what's kerf mean, ripping vs. cross cuts, etc. are pretty universal across any round blade.

I mention this because I'm guessing you may have found difficulty trying to web research circular saw blades in particular, as many Average Joe's never find the need to swap away from a good combo blade on a circular saw. People with miter saws and table saws tend to change blades more often to suit their purpose so you may have better luck searching under the guise of say table saw blades and then applying much of the same logic. That is if you are interested in more info now that the original dilemma has passed..

No DeWalt? So is DeWalt the Bose of power tools? I always thought they were good...

DeWalt makes fine tools. Their blades are OK. Their bargain line of blades is very poor.

I've heard both DeWalt is bad and is good. I have a DeWalt reciprocal saw and so-far so-good. The circular saw I just bought was an $80 Porter-Cable with a laser light. So far, the gripe I have with it already is the tool they supplied to loosen and tighten the nut that holds the blade. It's very hard to keep it on the nut while turning it. Wants to keep slipping off.

I've never researched blades. Seems odd I haven't done that because I research just about everything else. But then I'd probably have to order one, because the stores near me seem very limited on what blades they sell.

DeWalt made their strong name on contractor grade tools. Later on they started a consumer line. The visual differences and packaging were purposefully made subtle so it's tough to tell the difference.

Other top brands aside... Although it's important to know which DeWalt you are getting, I think it would be safe to say that the consumer DeWalt models will still beat a Black & Decker or similar brand just about every time.

I don't know enough about blades to comment.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I've heard both DeWalt is bad and is good. I have a DeWalt reciprocal saw and so-far so-good. The circular saw I just bought was an $80 Porter-Cable with a laser light. So far, the gripe I have with it already is the tool they supplied to loosen and tighten the nut that holds the blade. It's very hard to keep it on the nut while turning it. Wants to keep slipping off.

I've never researched blades. Seems odd I haven't done that because I research just about everything else. But then I'd probably have to order one, because the stores near me seem very limited on what blades they sell.

The Blade is a lot like speakers. You can have a killer receiver but if the speakers are budget, the sound is budget....

I thought Black & Decker was more-less the consumer version of Dewalt, no?

On a different note....Bosch tools, a friend who worked in tool sales told me there's a huge difference between Bosch contractor and home tools(slightly different colour). You often hear about Bosch(home) drills burning out.

I've not heard anything good about Dewalt saw blades either, at least not the ones you find in Home D.

I would recommend Diablo blades that can be had a Home Depot. They are the big box version of Freud blades. I have one on my Dewalt circular saw and it makes a huge difference in the cut.

I'm with Rob on that one. But I will use them, new, for only one large project before they go into the re-sharpening pile. I wouldn't do that with a Forrester, but then, I didn't spend $110 US for it and have to drive 30 miles to get one.

The Freud blades that go by Avanti are a bit better than the regular $40 ones (about $60).

Since this started with 7.25" blades for Brian's circ saw, understand that there are not as many choices for 7.25" as there are for 10".

Be sure they're carbide (unless it's an 80 tooth plywood blade), and if they cost less than around $15, don't buy them.

Also, if you buy Freud, make sure that it was made in Italy, not Chiner. Seriously.

Ignore the fact that it's a reformation of the Axis Powers.

Can I do this and will it work ok? Next month, I'll have a 3D tv and player, but not the receiver. (Note: All hdmi cable would be the newer kind that supports 3D. I'm assuming they are interchangeable in the plugs).

3D TV
3D blu-ray player
2D receiver

Run HDMI to an amplified splitter, from the player.
Run one end to the TV.
Run the other end to the receiver.
Speakers attached to the receiver.
No output running from the receiver to the TV.

Best answer found.

Buy a Panasonic 310 player. It has 2 hdmi outputs. 1.4 for TV and 1.3 for receiver.

"It is nearly identical to the 210, except it has a second HDMI output so you can bring HD audio into your non-3D-ready receiver."

I recalibrated my MCACC system again yesterday, then experimented a long time with different cross-over settings. My choices were, none, 50hz, 80hz, 100hz, 150hz, 200hz. I had set it to 50hz about 2 weeks ago. I used parts of the TRON movie for sound. I watched this movie a few days before with the 50hz setting. I was amazed at how much bass I had with the VP160 in the mix. But running up and down the scale of available cross-overs, I ended up settling on the 80hz setting again, mostly as a compromise. At the 50hz setting I had better and louder bass and sound effects, but the background music suffered quite a lot. With no cross-over and all frequencies sent to all speakers it sounded the worst of all. Music was muted and more distorted sounding. I sort of liked the 100hz setting, but I lost too much lower sound effects. It just didn't impress me as before. At least with the 80hz setting, I have most, but not all, of the lower sound effects, and most, but not all, of the higher sounds sounding clearly. 100hz and higher had the best higher end and music. Also, it seems that voices had a more natural sound with the cross-over in the 80hz range.

Using the Rives disc 2 CD that plays through the different frequency ranges, I had to make a modification to my closet door. It would vibrate at low frequencies. I used what was available around the house, which was a 3 foot piece of trim and some spray glue. I sprayed both surfaces and applied the trim, so that it held the door firmly in place when shut. The other noise was coming from one of the speakers as it hung on the wall. I pulled it away from the wall and let it fall back, this fixed that problem.

That 160 is a bad boy ,isn't it!

I was thinking about replacing my 37 inch Samsung LCD with a 50 inch Panasonic Plasma. 50 inch is the biggest that will fit without me having to move my speakers (except perhaps for the M2 on top).

But, then I started thinking about how I could get a 70 inch into this spot. (Click on my signature link) I don't know where I'd put the speakers exactly, or how I'd place them. One option would be to just remove the top 3 speakers and go with the EP160 and the pair of M22 bookshelf. Or, mount the on-wall m22's below and the bookshelf M22's above and angled down.

It's just a thought worth thinking about. So far all I've looked at is the Sharp 70 inch at BB for around $2000. But it's not 3D and it's not plasma, and the off angle viewing might be bad. I don't know what else is out there in the 70 inch with a reasonable price (say under $3000). There's always the Panasonic 65 inch GT or ST 50 plasma models too.

Space wise, this wall is 65 inches from doorway frame on the left to hallway on the right. A 70 inch is 63.5 inches wide.

What do you think? Is it worth changing my wall of sound audio nirvana for video ecstasy?

Here's another option I just found. It's a 70 inch Sharp LC-70LE735U 3D LED. Or the LC-70LE745U. Except these are edge-lit, so probably not.

YES

If I mount a 70 inch above my in-cabinet VP160, I'm thinking the best I can do sonically here is to mount the 2 M22's on the wall below the TV, which will put them a few inches lower than they now are. Then buy 3 more M22's and mount them across the top of the TV, angled downward.

For the top I've thought of 3 M22, 3 M2, 3 M3, or 3 QS8. The M22's would probably look the worse, but sound the best. These would be for the upper L/C/R. Any ideas here? Could also mount 3 VP100's across the top that would probably look better (maybe), but the M22's would probably sound better (???)

All speakers would be the boxy kind because I don't really care for the sound of the on-wall kind.

Is there an option at add all of the above?

Originally Posted By: Murph

Is there an option at add all of the above?

I could probably make it fit.

I think 3 M22's across the top would look the worse, but sound the best. I'm in it for the sound. That is, to squeeze the best sound out of the smallest speakers, because there just isn't room in this smallish living room for the bigger speakers. If the sound difference between M2 and M22 was marginal, I'd go with the M2, but it's more than just marginal, IMO.

I doubt that QS8's would work well here.

After a trip to a Magnolia BB store yesterday and a talk with the sales men and some time viewing the TV's. I think I've decided on a Panasonic *edited TC-65VT50. The new model 65 inch plasma. I can't find a 70 inch I like. All of the LED/LCD tv's have off angle viewing problems and I notice more motion movement problems with them. I hate that flickering movements.

I would of gone with last years Panasonic TC-65TV30. They are beautiful sets, but the killer for me is the IR glasses for 3D for that TV that they probably aren't even making anymore. The new technology for glasses is Bluetooth. The new Bluetooth glasses will also be exchangeable amongst manufacturers, so perhaps 3rd party venders will be making them.

*edited: Originally I said GT50. Then I've discovered that the price difference between GT and VT will probably only be $400. If that is the case, then I'd spring for the VT.

European review of the Panasonic TC-P50VT50B 2012 plasma TV.

"dynamic false contouring"
It wears a girdle????

Originally Posted By: Murph

"dynamic false contouring"
It wears a girdle????

It's small red and green bars on faces, but smaller and less noticeable than last years VT30 models.

The different versions of my living room HT after introducing Axioms to it.

Version 1 (2010)

M22...TV...M22
......VP100

Version 2 (2011)

.......M2
M22........M22
.......TV
M22........M22
.....VP150

Version 3 (2012)

M22..M22..M22
...................
.......TV.........
...................
M22.VP160.M22

Due date for my living room HT version 3 makeover should be right around the 1st of May. If I come up a little short on cash, I've been promised a loan to make up the difference.

What I'll need is the 65 inch Panasonic plasma TC-P65VT50, 3 black boxy M22's (+ the 2 I have) and 4 black Full Metal Brackets (+ the 1 I have).

Then find a good professional calibrator. I can randomly find one on avsforum. Anyone know a good experienced one that would come to the Kansas/Missouri area?

I'm going to be needing 5 wall mount brackets for the M22 bookcase speakers. I have a single FMB that I ordered from Axiom that my M2 over the TV is mounted on. It seems to have a flaw that positions the speaker to always point slightly to the right. Soon, I'm going to take this apart and see if it's because of something I did that has caused this. It's not off a lot, just seems to be about half a click. If I take the next position to the left, I think it would be now pointing to the left a half click instead.

Has anyone else noticed this? or is it just me, or perhaps a faulty bracket. If I can't get them to point exactly straight ahead, then I'll be wanting to order from another source.

Trying to get this put together and was a little slow. That explains the next comment about house hit with an iceburg. LOL.

Here's what I'm talking about in the previous message. These FMB (full metal brackets) are good at holding speakers firmly to the wall, but it is not plumb.

There are 4 pictures here.
1) Picture of the bracket.
2) Picture of level on the computer desk to show it's level.
3) Picture of level on bracket in the "Most forward direction".
4) Picture of level on bracket one click over in an attempt to correct the problem.

Notice that there is no direct forward direction using these brackets. If I use these on all 5 speakers I'm going to mount to the wall, they would either all point to the left, or to the right. Never straight ahead.

1) Picture of the bracket.

2) Picture of level on the computer desk to show it's level.

3) Picture of level on bracket in the "Most forward direction".

4) Picture of level on bracket one click over in an attempt to correct the problem.

Brian, I think your house just hit an iceberg.

If someone knows where I can order sturdy brackets like these that can securely hold M22's on the wall, and allow the speaker to face forward, please let me know. I'd really like to use that one screw mount method, so I don't have to drill holes in the speakers and monkey around with mounting them a different way, but I will, if that's the only other option.

These Axiom brackets are useless to me. I've noticed this for some time with the M2 mounted to the wall, but for 1 small speaker it didn't really bother me. But for all of them to face one way, or the other, now that would bother me.

I really doubt that I've got a lemon bracket. I'll bet they are all made that way.

I suppose that one other option, would be to grind off the teeth on the brackets where they meet so I'm not dependent on them for direction. But, after looking at it, that would be rather difficult.

Ok. I ordered the bottom 2 Black with black grille M22's for the changes to my wall of sound. These will replace the 2 Boston Cherry speakers on stands. Now, if I just had some brackets to mount them to the wall.

is that you or did you hire a hand model for this.

It's a hand model. They're fairly cheap since they can perform with their clothes on.

I've got all the speakers stripped off my wall, except for the lower 2 M22's and the VP160. Still sounds good, except more 1 dimensional without the upper speakers. I wanted them off so I can package them for shipping.

He doesn't have claws like you may have thought Richard .

If anyone ever wanted to mount an M60 or M80 to a wall, this bracket would probably do it. It's much too big for what I need, The thing is 12 inches tall and sticks out from the wall by 9 inches.

I don't like this bracket. How are you going to center it on a stud and put screws in? You'd miss the stud by a mile. Also reviews say it isn't very sturdy either.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

If anyone ever wanted to mount an M60 or M80 to a wall, this bracket would probably do it. It's much too big for what I need, The thing is 12 inches tall and sticks out from the wall by 9 inches.

I opened the link, i thought it was a basketball hoop mount

Those mounts are fugly, who would put that in their home.

The VP180 is something like 19 inches deep with just about all the weight on the front. I can't imagine there is any bracket (at least not one that attached to the back) that would make wall mounting one a good idea.

I'm about ready to put the Axiom bracket in a vise and take my dremel with a grindstone to it and try to remove the teeth that limits the bracket to lock into certain positions. This might be easier than it sounds. (Hopefully).

A day in the Life of Brian. I may have the only Chrysler Cirrus that has gone this far.

Twa-la. Modified bracket success. Now I've got to order another one so I can mount the 2 new M22's when they arrive.

Only had to modify one side. No need to remove the teeth from the other side.

I'll probably have to make sure the screw that holds these 2 parts together are extra tight so they don't vibrate loose over time and move on me.

I always liked the Cirrus. I remember when it was launching new. If I remember correctly, 164hp and a double wishbone suspension.

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I always liked the Cirrus. I remember when it was launching new. If I remember correctly, 164hp and a double wishbone suspension.

I don't know about either one of those, but it still has a lot of get-up-and-go when you tromp it. Leaks oil pretty bad and burns it too, so I change the oil every 6 weeks and use 2 quarts of Lucas oil treatment when I do.

I just spent the equivalent of 2 M22's and 1 wall mounting bracket to have the rear brakes and front end repaired. That's funny because I also just bought 2 M22's and 1 wall mounting bracket.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I always liked the Cirrus. I remember when it was launching new. If I remember correctly, 164hp and a double wishbone suspension.

I don't know about either one of those, but it still has a lot of get-up-and-go when you tromp it. Leaks oil pretty bad and burns it too, so I change the oil every 6 weeks and use 2 quarts of Lucas oil treatment when I do.

I just spent the equivalent of 2 M22's and 1 wall mounting bracket to have the rear brakes and front end repaired. That's funny because I also just bought 2 M22's and 1 wall mounting bracket.

Brian, our currency is still based on the dollar, not the "M."

re: your Life of Brian. I've seen the movie and it doesn't end well for the title character. Careful.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Twa-la. Modified bracket success. Now I've got to order another one so I can mount the 2 new M22's when they arrive.

Only had to modify one side. No need to remove the teeth from the other side.

I'll probably have to make sure the screw that holds these 2 parts together are extra tight so they don't vibrate loose over time and move on me.

Brain, my 86-year old Dad's podiatrist used all the same tools!

You forgot to mention the pliers, sharp knife, and shears. My first experience with a podiatrist was for in-grown toe nails at the age of 12(?), with no anesthesia. My dad was having one of his bad days and trying to save money. Yeow!

A few months later it all grew back and we did it the right way. Back then, it included a 5 day stay in the hospital.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

A day in the Life of Brian. I may have the only Chrysler Cirrus that has gone this far.

I asked you to be careful, Brian. JP HATES photos of speedometers! (kinda like M. Emmett Walsh hated oil cans in The Jerk.) Remember what happened the last time we saw a speedometer here?!?

Re: You know what happened the last time we saw a speedometer here.

No. What?

I'm really not superstitious. I know I must be walking all over the superstitious peoples toes today. Yipes! A black cat just walked in front of me and I fell under a ladder, while I broke the mirror in my left hand.

Hint: it was a speedometer on a motorcycle.

Oh Jeeesh... I forgot about that!

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Oh Jeeesh... I forgot about that!

No worries, Mark, we'll NEVER let you forget!

It's OK if you ALL forget. I won't. This is not the first time I've "used," it. I may "shelve" jocular recollections for long periods of time, but I never retire them.

I thought JohnK was the Resident Recaller?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

I thought JohnK was the Resident Recaller?

I wrote "jocular" recollections.

He DOES keeps me in stitches, but that's because someone always find me before I can bleed out.

i recognized that dash, i have a stratus.

I'm thinking "Candy Apple Red" as the color to paint my living room, where it is now painted in "Clay Pot". Click on Sig. link.

Brain, if you do use red, buy C-2 or Ben Moore's Aura, unless you wanna do 5 or 6 coats. Muralo also makes yellow, orange and red primers.

I was just going to get Behr paint from Home Depot, or see if Sherwin Williams can replicate it. If I prime it first, I don't see any benefit to using any special paint. Never heard what you're referring to (???). Prime for red and 2 coats of red ought to do it.

Those must be Canadian companies. Don't think you can buy these in Missouri. Anyway Sherwin Williams should have the equivalent of these.

I think maybe I be needing sexy model for my speakers. Not selling well as it is.

Cat, unfortunately, my schedule doesn't really leave me to being available until later in the week.

Not exactly what I had in mind.

Posting this link to the auction site, in case people have a hard time finding it.

Brian, not all paint is created equal. Especially when you get into reds. I wouldn't dismiss Bob's advice so flatly. After all, he is our resident expert on such things. Your brands may be fine and hopefully two coats will do it but I can share one thing with you, I've already told one of my good buddies that if he needs help painting again and his daughter chooses red again, he can pound sand.

or up the beer bribes significantly, which is what our currency is based on.

Originally Posted By: Murph

After all, he is our resident expert on such ALL things.

Fixed that for 'ya!

Originally Posted By: Murph

... hopefully two coats will do it but I can share one thing with you, I've already told one of my good buddies that if he needs help painting again and his daughter chooses red again, he can pound sand.

It's funny because it's true! Our dining room is a dark red. Took a primer and 4 coats.

Wow. I guess I never painted red before. Wonder what it looks like with fewer coats, then?

I've got a 3 inch hole in the wall, that I've run some PCV pipe through that I want to repair before painting the wall. I'm not going through all the trouble to make the hole bigger and add wood, etc, etc. Someone suggested just using one of those mesh thingi-ma-bobs. I was thinking about making a plug out of drywall that fits tight, push it a little further in than the surface, then fill with spackling and sanding smooth.

Any thoughts here?

The next hole and pipe behind the TV is going to be bigger and in a different spot. Hard to thread several cables in the last one I did.

Well here's a thought. I could just leave it there. It might be handy for a future service hole for running some cable. It'll be behind the TV. The other end is in a closet at floor level.

Originally Posted By: BobKay

I asked you to be careful, Brian. JP HATES photos of speedometers! ... Remember what happened the last time we saw a speedometer here?!?

You get BACK!
YOU GET BACK IN YOUR CAGE!!!

Originally Posted By: medic8r

Originally Posted By: BobKay

I asked you to be careful, Brian. JP HATES photos of speedometers! ... Remember what happened the last time we saw a speedometer here?!?

You get BACK!
YOU GET BACK IN YOUR CAGE!!!

"That man must HATE these oil cans!" -- The Jerk

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Wow. I guess I never painted red before. Wonder what it looks like with fewer coats, then?

It is very patchy, depending on the primer you get multiple hues of pink to red. It takes a few coats before it finally gets consistent.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I was just going to get Behr paint from Home Depot, or see if Sherwin Williams can replicate it. If I prime it first, I don't see any benefit to using any special paint. Never heard what you're referring to (???). Prime for red and 2 coats of red ought to do it.

Those must be Canadian companies. Don't think you can buy these in Missouri. Anyway Sherwin Williams should have the equivalent of these.

Brian, Boston is still not in Canada. Benjamin Moore is based in NJ. Well that's a fine Hawaii, Missouri can boast the #1 crystal meth (oops) county in the US and there's no Benjamin Moore dealer? Hmmph!

Originally Posted By: Murph

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Wow. I guess I never painted red before. Wonder what it looks like with fewer coats, then?

It is very patchy, depending on the primer you get multiple hues of pink to red. It takes a few coats before it finally gets consistent.

+1

I just checked out their website. There are 17 Benjamin Moore stores in the greater St. Louis area. Buy expensive red, so Murph and I won't have anything to PM about when you post the pics.

Kidding aside, Cat, if you're gonna use reds, true oranges or bright, pure yellows, either buy the good stuff, or buy less expensive stuff, but use a primer designed for one of those 3 hues. Or don't.

The whole world is watching.

No pressure.

St. Louis is like on the other side of the state. I'm going to have to search what is in Kansas City.

Sorry, Brian. Why'd I think St. Louis? Well, if there are 17 in the Gr St. L area, then Kansas City will surely have more than a couple.

Edit: Maybe I've always only noticed your state and not the specific city, 'cause it has the word "Kansas" in it?

Originally Posted By: Murph

if he needs help painting again and his daughter chooses red again, he can pound sand.

or up the beer bribes significantly, which is what our currency is based on.

I found one that sells the BM paint (did I just say BM?) I mean Benjamin Moore paint. It's

PROFESSIONAL PAINT & COATINGS
8560 N. GREENHILLS ROAD,
KANSAS CITY, MO - 64154

which isn't too far from me. It's about 1.5 miles to Sherwin Williams, and about 12 miles to this place. I hope the paint is so much better.

ZEKE'S PAINT & DESIGN CENTER
111 NE 91ST ST,
KANSAS CITY, MO - 64155

is a little closer.

Originally Posted By: medic8r

Originally Posted By: Murph

... hopefully two coats will do it but I can share one thing with you, I've already told one of my good buddies that if he needs help painting again and his daughter chooses red again, he can pound sand.

It's funny because it's true! Our dining room is a dark red. Took a primer and 4 coats.

For some reason, I always knew you would have a redrum in your house.

Mmmm. Redrum. Tasty. Unless you live near old hotels in snowy weather.

I've had a lot of success with Behr Premium... like rolling on a milkshake. And yes... even in deep colours.

This coming from a guy who decided to paint the living room, dining room, foyer and hallways in his spare time while his (now-)ex was in Hawaii.

She's gone, paint is still here!

Bren R.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I found one that sells the BM paint (did I just say BM?)

Worst. Paint. Ever.

At least you wouldn't have that "paint smell".

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

At least you wouldn't have that "paint smell".

I'm sorry, Mark, but that is not correct. Depending on what I've had for lunch, both possibilites remain extant.

JP is trying to bait me!! Since we know he's never gotten his Metro fingernails dirty, ever, he therefore has no opinion at all. Schadenfreude, indeed!

Oh, WTF! It was eniwitaboh.

I will never say that Home dePot and bLOWE'S have bad paint, because they don't. And they're a bargain price. Valspar Signature line is my favorite of the home center offerings. 2nd choice would be the competition's Glidden. The higher cost lines are worth the $$ and still way less than Uncle Ben.

On more than 75% of designer and architect specs for color, it's Ben Moore. When you see "pros" not using BM, California, Muralo, Farrow & Ball, et al. (many good ones are regional brands), it's because they got hired out in front of HD just 2 hours earlier.

There are certain values and hues that suck in some lines of BM and I won't use them, but I have other choices there. I won't touch their value line primer/paint in one, partly because, as of yet, there is no such thing (well, not on MY newly skimmed walls, anyway). Also, for every kind of paint application possible (radiators, cement floors, etc.), Ben makes a base that can be tinted to any of it's 3600+ colors.

Pros cannot trust who happens to be on-shift at the home center, especially when it comes to custom-matching whites. Pros cannot wait for the 3 grannies in line ahead of them at the paint counter, nor, after that, the 5 people in front of them at self check-out. (Oh, Gawd, it's Marie today! She's an idiot. It'll be lunch before I get to work.) Pros need mfgrs. that listen to what the pros are telling their dealers. Pros cannot hear, "Hiii, there!!! This is my first day in the Paint Department! I just got moved up from Household Cleaners!" Pros cannot have their supplier change the formulation of their white (the base of ALL house paints) at whim without letting us know. This happens as many as 2 times in a single year at home centers. Home centers do not carry lines of oil paint as bases. Home centers are lagging when it comes to paint technology advances. In any older American city, there will be a BM dealer far closer than a home center. LA, SF or Frostheave, NH--- no matter where I've traveled to paint--- there's one closer than a home center. That's huge to us! Bottom line is that a pro needs a pro dealer, not this week's new hire, even if some of the paint at the other end of that huge parking lot is just as good.

I'm not finished, but I'm stopping.

We got Benjamin Moore for our house. It's holding up pretty well so far.

Great endorsement, Ken, but haven't you only been there several months? I like it. "Keep your expectations low." I like it!

I went to both of those places that sell Benjamin Moore paint near me, and they were both closed. Only open during normal business hours. That's convenient.

You can only watch paint dry for so long Brian.

That is true. But let me point out, I have 3 kids under 5 and I tend to be fairly clumsy/careless myself when it comes to not denting walls and/or chipping paint.

The colors are good, though! I think our painter only used two coats, as well (maybe less?!) Which either means the paint was good, or the painter was lazy. One or the other.

That's the recommened amount of finish coats for almost all domestic paints, Ken.

The most durable woodwork/trim paint I've ever encountered (that's not from Europe @ $90 per 1/2 gal.) is BM oil-based Satin Impervo. It's 20 years old in some of my clients' homes and still holding up.

I'm assuming the BM paint you suggest for me is water based, which I prefer. I don't really care for oil based (the fumes) nor extreme lasting qualities. I'll probably change the color in another 4 years.

Given the above, do I still want Benjamin Moore paint?

I'm thinking Behr paint from Home Depot would probably work just fine. Or Sherwood Williams.

Don't get Sherwood Williams! It's a cheap, dollar-store ripoff of the Sherwin Williams products!

I meant Sherwin Williams. Couldn't remember how to say it.

I'm having a problem with my Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH receiver after I moved it. (Moved all the electronics to living room while I'm working on the walls.) The RCA receptacle on back for subwoofer pre-out isn't allowing the RCA plug to make good contact. I have to hold it off to one side before I get any contact for subwoofer. Bummer.

I took the cover off, only to see that the plugs are part of a motherboard-like circuit board with the parts on the underside where I can't get to them. This board is also soldered to other boards making it a nightmare to be able to even get to the parts. So, I put the cover back on.

Anyone else have this problem? It seems a waste to have to abandon it. The cost of repair may be too high. Don't' know.

I found a local repair center called DANDO ELECTRONICS in South Kansas City. Might call them soon. Putting info here so I can find it easily again.

Dando Electronics, LLC
8043 Wornall Road #104
Kansas City, MO 64114
(816)361-6733

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I've got a 3 inch hole in the wall, that I've run some PCV pipe through that I want to repair before painting the wall. I'm not going through all the trouble to make the hole bigger and add wood, etc, etc. Someone suggested just using one of those mesh thingi-ma-bobs. I was thinking about making a plug out of drywall that fits tight, push it a little further in than the surface, then fill with spackling and sanding smooth.

Any thoughts here?

The next hole and pipe behind the TV is going to be bigger and in a different spot. Hard to thread several cables in the last one I did.

Well here's a thought. I could just leave it there. It might be handy for a future service hole for running some cable. It'll be behind the TV. The other end is in a closet at floor level.

I don't know how I remember all these posts but forget more pressing things...
Try this

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Putting info here so I can find it easily again.

Awesome!
I never even thought of using the boards for that!

Let's see:

Milk
eggs
English Muffins
Miller Lite
Methamphetamine
Hustler
2 hookers (get one of each)
yogurt

Yeah, this using the forum as a personal form of leaving myself a note is great!

You forgot cat food!

Hole: Somewhere around the house I've got a piece of some metal patch mesh stuff made for this purpose. I think I'll just try that first. It's more of a 2 inch hole. I also have two 1/2 inch holes and I think I can just stick spackling in these.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Putting info here so I can find it easily again.

Awesome!
I never even thought of using the boards for that!

Let's see:

Milk
eggs
English Muffins
Miller Lite
Methamphetamine
Hustler
2 hookers (get one of each)
yogurt

Yeah, this using the forum as a personal form of leaving myself a note is great!

Joyce! I'm off to Stop & Shop. I'll be gone a bit longer than usual.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I found a local repair center called DANDO ELECTRONICS in South Kansas City. Might call them soon. Putting info here so I can find it easily again.

Dando Electronics, LLC
8043 Wornall Road #104
Kansas City, MO 64114
(816)361-6733

Over the phone, they said it'd probably take around $100-$200 to fix the subwoofer pre-out jack connection problem.

Or, I could just hold it off to the side with a friction fit. Hmmmm.

I would bet all they're going to do is solder in another RCA jack.. Cost about 2 bucks.... i would just use friction tape if you are not adept at soldering....

Soldering doesn't bother me too much, but the problem is the RCA jacks are on the bottom side of the board where you can't get to them. The board is soldered to other boards that run at 45 degrees to this board. Not a task to be taken lightly. There's probably a way to pop the whole thing out, but if there is, it's not apparent as to how to do that. Plus, lots of pins and plugs and wires to remember where they go.

Mark,
I am sick of the forum spiraling ever downward with degrading content. Your list is disgusting.

Miller Lite?

I thought the same thing, but didn't say anything. If the beer was made in the USA, spit it out and get some real beer. Something made in Mexico, or Germany maybe.

My speakers not getting much love here in auction site

I've got them listed on Craigs List now, until I can figure out how e-bay works, again.

I now buy exclusively Valspar paint for trim. Goes on really well with a brush and the brush lines virtually disappear. I usually use semi gloss for trim since it cleans up so easily.

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

Mark,
I am sick of the forum spiraling ever downward with degrading content. Your list is disgusting.

Miller Lite?

Yeah, That was to P.O. the beer guys. I was gonna say it was my WalMart list to give an extra jab to Tom, but I figured the beer would disgust him enough.

Hey Cat,

could you solder on the RCA pin to make a tight fit? might be worth a try! you can always file some off.

Originally Posted By: SBrown

Hey Cat,

could you solder on the RCA pin to make a tight fit? might be worth a try! you can always file some off.

Hadn't thought of that. It is worth a try. Just make the pin a little fatter with some solder.

2 of my new 5 M22's for my wall will arrive in KC, MO on Monday.

I've moved all electronic's to living room to an older TV stand and placed TV on top of it. All speakers off of the wall and either boxed up, or sitting on kitchen table. I'm just watching movies with a pair of M22's and EP350 at the moment.

Going to start working on wall repair and priming for paint this weekend. Going to replace 2 sets of drapes with blackout curtains too. Just haven't found anything I want yet. Will probably go to Bed Bath and Beyond soon and have a look around. I'm thinking of maybe curtain panels with grommets in the top. Will probably take 5 panels for one window, and 3 for the other.

Then some small blackout curtains for the top of my front door, and some sort of blackout curtain for the skylight. Perhaps I can buy a single panel and cut it up into the sizes I need.

Maybe something like this in olive.

I decided on Kilz 2 for primer and Behr Premium Plus Ultra for paint in eggshell Candy Apple Red. Will start today, if I can get all my chores done and the room prepared.

Happy Easter!

I found some curtains that match this Candy Apple Red very well at JC Penny, but unfortunately, it isn't a black out curtain. I like these enough that I'll probably spend the extra money to purchase a double rod and find a way to mount blackout liners to it, with the curtains on grommets on the inside most rod. It's difficult to find blackout curtains with grommets. So far not a lot of luck. I did see some on-line that had the blackout liner suspended from rings. There is a method to affix the liner to the back of the curtain, but the curtain is 50 inches wide and the liners are usually 30 inches wide. With the curtain being a light weight and the liner being a heavy weight, I'd probably be better off suspending each on it's own rod.

Here's some pics. I've decided to replace the blond trim with hi-gloss white. That's the goal for the entire house, eventually. Also, that blond closet door is coming out and being replaced with a white one.

Agreed, suspending heavy things on your rod can be dangerous.
AND NO, that's not what I meant!!!

Another long story....Sorry.
When I was a kid, we moved into a very old but beautiful house that my Dad bought for a steal because he did odd jobs all his life for the three old ladies who lived there. The living room had thick, solid wood sliding doors on two sides with hugely heavy, velvet curtains on brass rods. They were kind of spooky looking actually. In fact, years later when I was in high school our neighbour, an older gentleman whom I remember as being truly a master carpenter, asked if he could borrow them for a set he was building for the summer theatre production of Dracula.

It was a beautiful set that rivalled something you might see on TV. The curtains were used in the living room scenes. Tim, the carpenter had used a thick, wooden dowel to suspend the heavy curtains black side out. When it switched to the tomb, they were raised by a rope system, they swung the pole around and lowered them with the deep red coloured side out.

One night, whomever rigged the curtains for the Dracula show didn't secure them properly and in once scene when Renfield came barging through, they fell on his head knocking him out cold. The actors brilliantly worked it into the story line and got him off stage where he came around.

I should note that the fellow who played Renfield was almost always drunk and no doubt this contributed to the falling curtains and why the other actors were so accustomed to add-libbing as he stumbled about. I worked at the theater running the canteen and every night that Dracula played, I put on an extra pot of coffee to help sober up Renfield. In fact, I got to play Renfield myself one night when both he and his stand in were just too drunk to go on at all. But that is another story.

Murph- When are you planning on writing that necessary autobiography?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Murph- When are you planning on writing that necessary autobiography?

*nods head in agreement*

We all have these stories, I'm sure. I just have enough conference calls every day where I have to listen but probably only talk for 10% of them that I can use half my brain to type them out. It's the half brain thing that I blame all my spelling mistakes on, by the way. Ya, that's it!

Originally Posted By: Murph

In fact, I got to play Renfield myself one night when both he and his stand in were just too drunk to go on at all. But that is another story.

C,mon, Murph. That's the story we want!

I got 2 of the 5 new black M22's today that I need for my new living room system. The FMB (full metal bracket) that I received this time looks to be level without having to grind the teeth off of it. Maybe I just got a bad one the first time.

How's the painting coming along,pics???????. Seems odd i dont see any cats in your pictures, whats up wit that.

Been working too much on yard work last few days to work on living room. I'll have pics as soon as the room has been painted and drapes are up. Drapes are on back order and I won't have them for 2 to 3 weeks.

I accidentally knocked one of the new speakers off a table last night. It scuffed up the lower right front corner a little. Not too bad, but it's noticeable. I don't think it's fixable either. Perhaps sometime later I can order just the cabinet to replace it, if it bothers me.

I'm using the new speakers now as my main pair. They sound as wonderful, if not better, as the 3 year old pair of v2's.

The 2 living room walls that were painted "Clay Pot" are now painted with 2 coats of Kilz 2 primer for red paint. I'll let this dry for a week, then paint it Candy Apple Red next weekend. In real life, the color of these walls are much darker. The red will probably be skewed many shades lighter also. Once painted red, I'll have to try to find a photo shot that represents the true color.

Originally Posted By: BobKay

Originally Posted By: Murph

In fact, I got to play Renfield myself one night when both he and his stand in were just too drunk to go on at all. But that is another story.

C,mon, Murph. That's the story we want!

OK, but I may be revealing something that might haunt me in years to come. 'Remember Murph, the guy who ___ the ___ ___.'

I was a mere canteen worker when the call came to step in.
The regular was a drunken lush but equally hilarious actor who added his own take on the character by giving Renfield a perverted crush on Dr. Seward, head of the Asylum. I knew a lot of the lines and some of his ad libbed stuff from watching what I could in between opening, break and closing. However, I would never get to see the sections when I had the canteen open. I was told to adlib the best I could which they assured me should be easy, since this was an insane character. If you messed up, it still worked.

I was getting a lot of laughs and beginning to feel rather confident when I tripped over the hidden, rolled up carpet from the living room scenes and landed smack on top of Dr. Seward's leg. My shoulder hit his leg and both arms were on either side. I knew immediately what it must look like to the audience, so I made a good/bad decision and went for it. I began dry humping the good Doctor's leg like a dog.

I have to say, the actor playing the doctor was a pro. After very nearly cracking (I heard muffled spitting noises), he shook me off and said something along the lines of "Renfield, I told you if you keep doing that I was going to lock you in the kennels."

I got my one and only standing ovation that night when I came out to greet the audience at closing. Usually only Dracula himself got those.

PS
The actor who played Dracula did so in traditional garb but fashioned his persona after the B&W film character, Nosferatu. He was the spookiest Dracula I have seen yet, live or on screen. I wish I could remember his name to see if he ever made it to big time. Probably not, but you never know.

The walls are painted red. I've got new air duct vent covers. I just had the closet door and base boards delivered. I'll be painting them white this weekend. Some curtains have been shipped, but not delivered.

It only took 2 coats of Behr paint to get a good cover for the red. It actually looked good after 1 coat, but there were spots that I wanted done again so 2 coats were good.

When the 2nd coat was partially dry, after about an hour or 2, what looked like warts started appearing on the wall. These were air bubbles that I popped with a fingernail, then smooshed them flat.

Wow, things are really coming along nicely. Pics soon please.

Air bubbles? That's weird. Might you have mixed the paint a bit to vigorously or been a little too quick with the roller? You didn't spill some Dr. Pepper into the paint did you? Seriously though, hopefully someone can tell us why that might happen.

Could also have been some contaminant on the wall, stopping the new paint adhering to it and causing it to bubble or lift.

Splatters of Dr. Pepper.....

Is this where Dr Pepper was murdered?

There was no contaminate, and it wasn't applied too fast. There was 2 coats of Kilz 2 primer, then 2 coats of Behr's most expensive primer/paint combo.

Originally Posted By: Adrian

Is this where Dr Pepper was murdered?

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

.... There was 2 coats of Kilz 2 primer, then 2 coats of Behr's most expensive primer/paint combo.

I can see the headlines now:

"Behr Kilz Dr Pepper"

Nice one, Dan!

This weekend is just cutting and painting trim for the living room.

Here's a picture of the 2 walls I painted Candy Apple Red. The door and trim doesn't go on until next weekend.

This picture shows a bit more yellow that what I'm looking at in real life.

Lookin Good Cat.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Here's a picture of the 2 walls I painted Candy Apple Red. The door and trim doesn't go on until next weekend.

This picture shows a bit more yellow that what I'm looking at in real life.

Nice, but what's with the cat?

She was watching the birds out of the window to the left. I have a picture of that, but didn't upload it to photobucket.

Edit: LOL, I just saw your modification.

Got the money now to buy 3 more black M22's with wall mounting brackets, which I'll do soon, and the Panasonic 65 inch VT50 when they become available. Now to decide where and when to buy one. I'll feel more comfortable buying one from BB than from Amazon.

I ordered 3 black M22's with wall brackets and speaker wire this morning. That makes a total of 5 black M22's and 1 black in-cabinet VP160. I'll have my better wall of sound with 65 inch Tv some day soon.

I'm thinking of using a 1x4, with sanded edges, primed and painted the same color as the wall, that's as wide as the TV. Mount this board to the wall above the TV, them mount the 3 speakers to this board, with wires disappearing into the wall behind the speakers. May do similar for the 2 M22's below the TV on 2 smaller boards. This would also give me a little more wiggle room to aim the speakers toward the listening position.

Should I get a particular type of wood for this that would hold screws more securely under stress that other wood?

Standard 2x4s will hold wood screws just fine. Use a screw with the largest gauge that will still fit through the bracket, and make sure it's at least 1.5" long so you have more threads in the wood.

But instead of mounting the 2x4 on the outside of the wall, since you have access to the stud area behind the wall,why don't you put lengths of 2x4s between the studs behind the wall -- either toenail them into place or double up the studs and secure the horizontal pieces to the new vertical pieces -- and then screw into the new horizontal 2x4s from the front?

I only have access to the backside of the wall (without removing drywall) from about the bottom of the TV down. Up from there is the floor for the next level up (tri-level), and the inside of a closet wall.

I think 1x4's would look better than 2x4's when mounted on the wall where you would see them, although painted to match.

Also, the experience I had with the M2 mounted directly on the wall told me something. (It was screwed into a stud). It puts a dent into the wall over time at the bottom of the bracket. They supply a plastic piece to put there that should help with this problem, but I'm not sure if that would work well. The M22's are much heaver than the M2, so mounting them directory to the wall without the wood backing might just end up poking holes in the wall at the bottom of the bracket due to the weight of the speaker.

As you can see from this picture. The hole is where the VP160 in-cabinet speaker goes. There is no further room going up. But for the 2 speakers that are on the bottom. I can add extra wood here to give them something more to screw into.

Your just proud of your new duct!

I only see a duct; check your posted picture cat! i do see evidence of water running down from the floor above though; at least i hope those are water marks!

Those are old water marks. Hard to determine how long ago. I had a new roof put on 2 years ago, so I'm not too worried.

You don't see part of the hole for the VP160 to the rightmost part of the picture? I was just showing this again to prove there's no way for me to put wood on this side of the wall, from here, for the topmost speakers.

Here's all I got accomplished this weekend. 2 photos of the new curtains for the window on the front of the house and the left side of the seating position for my small living room HT. Pictures are dark, but it's late evening. I like how it blocks out 100% of the light, except for a small amount along the top on the wall when it's sunny outside. I have another window to do at the back of the seating position, where right now, there's a green blanket thrown up with the drapes to keep out the light.

It cost $400 to do this window, which included a double rod, and 2 sets of 4 panels of curtains. Chocolate brown blackout out curtains are behind this more decorative inner set.

Here's some (hopefully) better pictures.

I'm sure it's just the lighting, but it makes me think of the Necronomicon Ex Mortis from the Evil Dead series.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

It cost $400 to do this window,

I use to use 2 sets of sheets from Walmart. Total cost 25$, this included the thumb tacks to install them......

Mr. Fancy pants. Thumb tacks.

What? scotch tape wasn't available, so you had to splurge?

I tried to install the new coat closet split door casing in the living room yesterday, only to discover the wall is uneven, causing the upper corner of the door to stick out too much.

Fortunately, one of my neighbors is a construction contractor, and he showed me how to do it, but I was lacking a nail gun the correct size. He said he'd come over in about a week and finish installing the door for me, when he wasn't so busy.

No fair having a contractor neighbour. I demand that you share!!

CatBrat, I thought of you today as I surfed the web.

Deadmau5 is good for coughing up hairballs to.

Originally Posted By: CV

I'm sure it's just the lighting, but it makes me think of the Necronomicon Ex Mortis from the Evil Dead series.

I had no idea what this was. I had to look it up.

At least the curtains go with the Dexter episodes I like to watch.

Originally Posted By: medic8r

CatBrat, I thought of you today as I surfed the web.

Deadmau5 is good for coughing up hairballs to.

I got a good laugh from watching that.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Mr. Fancy pants. Thumb tacks.

What? scotch tape wasn't available, so you had to splurge?

i tried it, it wasn't strong enough

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I was lacking a nail gun the correct size.

Harbor freight man, the quality of the tools isn't contractor grade, but more than adequate for what most of us do around the house.

I'll just use a hammer for now for the trim, then go back and repair all of the problems I created by using a hammer. Bummer.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'll just use a hammer for now for the trim, then go back and repair all of the problems I created by using a hammer. Bummer.

use a punch when the nail gets close to the trim.

http://www.harborfreight.com/5-piece-long-drive-pin-punch-set-93111.html

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'll just use a hammer for now for the trim, then go back and repair all of the problems I created by using a hammer. Bummer.

use a punch when the nail gets close to the trim.

http://www.harborfreight.com/5-piece-long-drive-pin-punch-set-93111.html

I use a punch when the nail gets close to the trim. My problem is 1) missing the nail and hitting the wood. 2) bending the nail and having to constantly re-straighten it. 3) Getting it close to the wood, then having it bend over where it's too short to straighten, so I drive it in the best I can with a punch, leaving a bigger hole.

Grrrr.

You need more hammer practice.

Hammer Time at that guys' place.

If I tried what this guy is doing, I'd have to repair more than just the trim.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

If I tried what this guy is doing, I'd have to repair more than just the trim.

Yeah, but did you cut your sleeves off like that guy? like he said "you cant restrict the guns"....

Business Cat Post of the Day:

The 3 M22 speakers that will go across the top of my new TV are on Fedex truck for delivery.

One more step done in getting my living room HT #3 completed.

Jenkins ^^^ is a real trooper!

Checking online, I just noticed that the Panasonic 65 inch VT50 TV's are in the Magnolia stores in my area. 3 more weeks to get the money I need for it ought to do it.

And the 3 M22's are in my car.

Going to be nice Brian,enjoy!

Went over finances and it looks like I'll be getting the 65 inch Panasonic VT50 this weekend.

But may be a couple of weeks or so before I have everything mounted on the wall.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

before I have everything mounted on the wall.

There fixed it for you.

You can't mount it on THE WALL yet. You have to catch the red dot first.

I've been trying to catch it, but it just keeps escaping me.

Looking for a good wall mount that will span 3 studs with 18 inch centers, and fit a 65 inch TV (most say 63 inch) and can pull away from the wall to make fishing wires behind it an easy job. Needs to easily hold 130 lbs, so should be rated for higher.

Monoprice seems to have some good choices, but they say 63 inch max, not 65.

Try OmniMount.

It seems like all of these mounts are made to mount between 2 studs, (or the occasional 1 stud mount). The problem with mounting between 2 studs is my rather narrow wall has a stud right in the middle of it (off by about 1 inch). I need a mount that can mount across 3 studs.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Looking for a good wall mount that will span 3 studs with 18 inch centers, and fit a 65 inch TV (most say 63 inch) and can pull away from the wall to make fishing wires behind it an easy job. Needs to easily hold 130 lbs, so should be rated for higher.

You could go to a local steel yard, and get some 1/4" plate steel to span the 3 studs, then mount any flat panel mount you want, bolt it to the plate steel, then anchor the plate steel to the 3 studs that you want.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Looking for a good wall mount that will span 3 studs with 18 inch centers, and fit a 65 inch TV (most say 63 inch) and can pull away from the wall to make fishing wires behind it an easy job. Needs to easily hold 130 lbs, so should be rated for higher.

You could go to a local steel yard, and get some 1/4" plate steel to span the 3 studs, then mount any flat panel mount you want, bolt it to the plate steel, then anchor the plate steel to the 3 studs that you want.

That's a thought. But I'm not sure how I would apply the nuts to the back of the bolts. The steel plate would be on the wall. I'll have to think about that one.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'm not sure how I would apply the nuts to the back of the bolts.

Very carefully?

Most steel yards have welders on site, you could take the plate steel home, mark it up and drill the holes for either bolts, or all thread, then take it back to get the threaded item welded to the plate. If you use a bolt, then the bolt head can help support the load.

The steel yard i go to have professional welders on site, they have to weld regularly to maintain their proficiency, so you might get lucky and get the welding done for free or a very minimal charge.

Hope this helps.

According to the people at BB, I would buy a wall mount that spans 2 studs, then mount the TV so that it's offset with this and centered with the wall.

I know that sounds reasonable, but I'd prefer something straight on and not mounted 18 inches to the left of center.

I'd feel more comfortable just ripping out the backside of the wall in the closet and installing more wood, than I would messing around with steel plates. There may be somewhere in Kansas City that will do that, but I don't know of anywhere.

Problem with how to mount the TV on my wall solved by someone on avsforum. I'll cut a wide piece of 3/4 inch plywood that will span 3 studs, painted same color as wall, and mount the wood to the outside of the wall, them mount the articulating wall mount to the plywood.

Someone else did this and says it is extremely strong and holds a lot of weight.

Well, for years I've been showing examples of "panels" behind everything I've mounted because of my plaster lathe walls!

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Problem with how to mount the TV on my wall solved by someone on avsforum. I'll cut a wide piece of 3/4 inch plywood that will span 3 studs, painted same color as wall, and mount the wood to the outside of the wall, them mount the articulating wall mount to the plywood.

Someone else did this and says it is extremely strong and holds a lot of weight.

But isn't that the same as....but didn't you say earlier....Wouldn't it look more pleasing if you.....

Oh never mind. Just yanking your chain. heheheh

3/16" plate steel...

I overengineer everything.

Bren R.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Problem with how to mount the TV on my wall solved by someone on avsforum. I'll cut a wide piece of 3/4 inch plywood that will span 3 studs, painted same color as wall, and mount the wood to the outside of the wall, them mount the articulating wall mount to the plywood.

Someone else did this and says it is extremely strong and holds a lot of weight.

Yo dawg, I heard you like walls, so I build a wall on your wall so you can put your in-walls on the wall on your wall and mount your TV to the wall on your wall.

*yawn*

Just ordered this Sanus Systems XF228-B1 full-motion flat panel mount for $301.78. I saved the $40 shipping from Amazon by signing up for the free 1-month Prime membership trial. This paid for half of a 1 year membership, so far. Good choice. :patting self on back:

Sanus site for this mount.

Now I can't decide between a Panasonic 65 inch VT50 or the Samsung 64 inch E8000 (or E7000). I've been reading that the Samsung has the best picture quality, on both the Panasonic and the Samsung threads. Eeoww!

I guess it's better to wait and see for myself.

You know, I've never really discussed this, but sometimes I think comparing TVs in a showroom is a little like trying to imagine how speakers in a showroom will sound in a different room / in your home.

You can't really calibrate them properly, so how can you really tell which will be better? I'm not even talking professional calibration...just good, careful end-user calibration can make a big difference over the pre-set "picture types" in the menu. Not to mention the uncommon lighting in many stores.

To be honest, I just read many reviews when I bought my main TV, and purchased it through BestBuy.com, with a store pickup. I didn't even walk back to the TV department to see if they had one on display.

Yeah, normally I'd agree with you here. But after reading all the threads on avsforum for both the 2012 models of Panasonic and Samsung, it's probably going to take my own eyes to make some sort of judgement.

I think the best thing to do right now is just wait a bit longer for the dust to settle and see what the professional calibrators have to say. Patience isn't always easy for me.

So far, it looks like Panasonic has the darker blacks, and less reflective screen, but Samsung has a sharper and clearer picture.

One person who had both, set them up side by side, and said his whole family preferred the Samsung over the Panasonic. Panasonic had some ghosting issues that were impossible to adjust away.

You definitely can not trust your eyes in most retail stores, especially the big box ones. Many stores adjust TV settings to influence what models they wish to move that week or month. This is not hearsay or assumption. This is very much common practice.

The Value Electronics 2012 TV panel shootout takes place in New York this weekend.

I'm waiting on results from this before deciding which panel to buy.

The Value Electronics 2012 TV panel shootout is over. I watched today's presentation of it in the live feed.

Results should be posted sometime tonight on www.valueelectronics.com

The 65 inch Panasonic VT50 won this year's Value Electronic TV panel shootout.

It hasn't been officially posted on their site yet, but D-Nice, one of the calibrators in the event, confirmed this in one of the 2012 shootout threads.

At this location. Message number 86.

More information on the Value Electronics 2012 shootout.

Ordered a 65 inch Panasonic VT50 today. Will be delivered on Wednesday. Woo-Hoo!

Installing the new white baseboards. Thank God for spackle and paint.

20 years from now, "I wonder what idiot installed these baseboards? Look at all the nails used."

Just get a giant play-doh press, attach a mold with a profile matching your desired baseboard, and squeeze baseboard-shaped spackle right into place. No nailing necessary.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Just get a giant play-doh press, attach a mold with a profile matching your desired baseboard, and squeeze baseboard-shaped spackle right into place. No nailing necessary.

Hey, that might even work!

Getting an appointment set up for a professional calibration in about a month from now.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Getting an appointment set up for a professional calibration in about a month from now.

I'll be interested to hear the results.

Originally Posted By: fredk

I'll be interested to hear the results.

Cat should have been more specific- He's planning on having the picture calibrated, not the sound.

You won't hear a difference, Fred.

Here's a current view of my living room where I'm making all the changes. Next will be addition of 65 inch tv, then adding wood to the wall for mounting speakers and TV, then TV articulating bracket and TV, then speakers. Need to add some vinyl to the wood in front of the doors.

That paint really hides the blood spatters well.

That wall looks so bare.... There aren't even any speakers on it.....................

Purchased TV on Monday at Best Buy.
Was told I would receive a call on Tuesday for approx delivery time.
Tuesday went by, no call.
I called 1-888-BESTBUY and was told order was put on reschedule mode. Person put me on long hold and finally said they couldn't resolve the issue at their end.
Told to call the store at 10:00am (20 minutes from now) to try to resolve the issue there.

I called the store 45 minutes ago, to resolve the issue. They would check into it, then call me back. So, far, no return call.

Originally Posted By: fredk

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Getting an appointment set up for a professional calibration in about a month from now.

I'll be interested to hear the results.

Is it being done by an ISF certified calibrator?

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I called the store 45 minutes ago, to resolve the issue. They would check into it, then call me back. So, far, no return call.

I can see, how that would, be pretty, annoying.

They never called me back, so, I called them. Here's what I had e-mailed someone else:

Never received my call yesterday to give me approx time of delivery.
Called BB 1-888 number this morning, and was told to contact store.
At 10:00 called store and was told to wait for a call back after they checked it out.
Never received a call back.
I called back and was told the Store sales software doesn't communicate with the delivery software. The order was put on delivery reschedule status and that they couldn't change it from the store.
Truck delivery driver called me and said he can't deliver TV while it's on reschedule status. He said he would try and resolve the issue sometime today and probably deliver the TV tomorrow.

If they don't deliver it tomorrow, I'm going back to Best Buy and cancel the order and get my money back, then order it from Amazon.com.

The Best Buy store can't fix their problem and places you at the mercy of a truck driver? Mercy! (Not the French Merci)

Originally Posted By: Powertothepeople

Is it being done by an ISF certified calibrator?

Not from what I can tell. I sent him an e-mail asking this question. In his e-mail signature he does have this:

HAA Level III Design Master Certified,
THX Certified Professional

And he does have the equipment to calibrate a TV in 3D mode, something else I was looking for. It seems most calibrators won't calibrate 3D.

Here's his home page. He's known as SierraMikeBravo on AVSFORUM.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: Powertothepeople

Is it being done by an ISF certified calibrator?

Not from what I can tell. I sent him an e-mail asking this question. In his e-mail signature he does have this:

HAA Level III Design Master Certified,
THX Certified Professional

And he does have the equipment to calibrate a TV in 3D mode, something else I was looking for. It seems most calibrators won't calibrate 3D.

Here's his home page. He's known as SierraMikeBravo on AVSFORUM.

HAA certification is for audio calibration, and THX, is, well, THX

.

I checked out a couple of his posts, and they're discussions regarding speaker placement etc.

I find it odd that most calibrators won't calibrate 3d. Maybe it's because it's a relatively new technology?

Good luck, Cat. Hopefully he knows his stuff and you're happy.

His company provides services for building in-home theaters, which includes TV/projector calibrations. THX includes both audio and video presentations. Tbe Panasonic GT50 and VT50 are both THX certified TV's. This isn't because of the sound. From reading about the 2 (isf and THX), they sound very similar.

I did get a call early evening yesterday for a delivery of the TV today between 9 and 11 am.

They finally showed up at 11:15. 15 minutes after the 2 hour window. It's setup on the old TV stand and I've checked it for dead pixels. There weren't any. Tonight, I plan on putting the 65VT50 on one of the THX modes and watching the movie, "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest".

What? Not something cat related?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

What? Not something cat related?

I do have "Puss in Boots". If I watched that instead would it make you feel any better?

Our you can click here and pick a movie from my collection for me.

BusinessCat says you're misusing your money:

But... I have no use for a boat. I don't like water, fishing, skiing, swimming, canoeing, kayaking, floating, scuba diving nor snorkeling.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

But... I have no use for a boat. I don't like water, fishing, skiing, bathing, swimming, canoeing, kayaking, floating, scuba diving nor snorkeling.

Meow.

I get $75 dollars back from BB's reward zone and was going to buy 2 or 3 3D blurays. (I already have these Puss in Boots, Thor, Coraline, Polar Express, Under the Sea, Harry Potter 7-pt 2, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Resident Evil afterlife)

I'm looking for suggestions on good 3D movies to buy. I want Hugo, for sure. Anyone else seen any good 3D movies that are not on my list?

TC-P65VT50 + Cat

The new colors look great.

looks like you're gonna need to cut about 6-8" off of the left side of that TV.

Now you have no room for your speakers.

I am a little confused...is the red room the old peach colored room? Or do you have two different set ups?

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Now you have no room for your speakers.

3 L/C/R M22's will be mounted above the tv. 2 L/R will be mounted below the TV. Retaining VP160 in-cabinet below center of TV. (The 3 M22's and mounting brackets are still in their unopened boxes in a downstairs room.)

This is what I would have done the first time, if I had known what it is I wanted. (Would of used 6 M22's because VP160 didn't exist yet.)

There is no room for M50 and above sized cabinets here.

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I am a little confused...is the red room the old peach colored room? Or do you have two different set ups?

Same room. Repainted. Closet door replaced. Almond colored trim replaced with white trim. Painted HVAC vents replaced with new white vents. New curtains.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

looks like you're gonna need to cut about 6-8" off of the left side of that TV.

There will be 2 1/2 inches to spare on both the left and right sides. TV is 5' wide. Wall is 5' 5" wide.

Nice TV, that is going to be some wall now.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I am a little confused...is the red room the old peach colored room? Or do you have two different set ups?

Same room. Repainted. Closet door replaced. Almond colored trim replaced with white trim. Painted HVAC vents replaced with new white vents. New curtains.

Looks good. So, what color are you going to next month?

Originally Posted By: fredk

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I am a little confused...is the red room the old peach colored room? Or do you have two different set ups?

Same room. Repainted. Closet door replaced. Almond colored trim replaced with white trim. Painted HVAC vents replaced with new white vents. New curtains.

Looks good. So, what color are you going to next month?

I like chocolate and my favorite color is clear.

Clear is not a colour.

Originally Posted By: jakewash

Clear is not a colour.

It's a contender amongst it's followers.

I coulda bin a contenda.

Originally Posted By: jakewash

I coulda bin a contenda.

... but I became a painta...

Almost have new TV mounted on wall.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Almost have new TV mounted on wall.

Almost only counts in horse shoe pitching, and grenade throwing.
So GIT HERRR DUNN.

It's on the wall now, whew. A lot of work. Mount plywood to wall with 5 lag bolts through 3 studs. Mount the mount to plywood and wall with 12 short lag screws and 2 long lag screws down the middle through studs. Had to drill 2 holes through the steel mount in the center, because they didn't put any holes there.

I got lucky because once the mount was ready, I just pulled the tv and stand it was on back towards the mount and the holes almost were in line, so I mounted the tv to the mount by myself.

Can't take any pictures because my camera's batteries are dead and I don't have any right now.

It'll probably be about 2 weeks more before I have all 6 speakers mounted above and below the TV.

With TV mounted on the wall and with a pair of M22's just sitting on the floor, (and the EP350 off to the side), I think sounds better than with the M22's sitting on the stands. (Ran Pioneer's MCACC first.) They are about 2 foot away from the wall, on either side of the stand the TV used to be on, which will go away soon.

Check out avsforum.com right now before the screen goes away.

Every time you refresh the screen, a new saying appears at the bottom.

This one sums it up:

Quote:

...You get mad at the guy who asks a question that was already asked on page 34 of the 80 page thread. - snookaloo

I just paid $31 today so I can run a short 3 inch diameter pipe through the wall behind the TV. Last time it was a 2 inch diameter pipe. That was much too small.

So what type of tube are you using to complete the bong all the way to your couch?

Do you think that would make the picture on the TV look any better?, or would it just make me fall asleep faster than a couple of beers?

Just opened my Panda Express fortune cookie, "A partnership shall prove successful for you. Panda Express. Panda Inn."

Well, last night, I made my $31 hole through the wall behind the TV. Will probably have to wait for this weekend before I can get the electronics moved to the other room. There's always something I can't get to work right away every time I do that, and don't want to go without TV for the rest of the week by moving it now.

This may be an addiction.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

This may be an addiction.

What, the hole in the wall, or moving electronics, or waiting for the weekend, or my movie collection?

Wow, I finally looked at your movie collection link. That is one BigAss collection.

Not wanting to make progress on the TV mounting project because it would mean not being able to watch TV, despite knowing that watching TV after the project is complete would be more enjoyable.

I'm pretty sure that's a textbook definition of addiction.

EDIT: Just checked, and yup!

Well, in my own self-defense. I bet if "just about anyone" had bought a 65 inch plasma VT50 in the last 2 weeks, they would probably have a TV addiction also. But, then again, if I didn't have the addiction, then I probably wouldn't have spent (or rather, will have spent), $7500 recently for a TV (cost of TV + tax + extended warranty + professional calibration + 5 more M22's + wall mounts + $31 for a hole in the wall + room darkening curtains). And a new movie once or twice a week.

Oh, well. What else does an older man, who lives alone with a cat, do with his life. On the positive side, I do have a few good women friends, and a church group I meet with twice a week, and a yard to mow.

Another positive, I am starting to lose weight by limiting what I eat to stuff like popcorn in the evening, instead of a meal or lots of snacks.

Next year, I plan on having all the concrete near the front of my house tore out and replaced (cost $3300 from one estimate). This will beautify the home a bit, and provide a small patio where I can sit outside and work on some form of a new addition, like reading, maybe.

Where the sidewalk from garage to front door is now, there's a few feet of lava rock between sidewalk and house. Then there's the stoop with steps that are all pitted and sick looking. This is across almost the entire front of the house on 2 levels with about 3 steps leading up. I'm going to have all that tore out and replaced with all new concrete, going from against the house, to out to about another foot into the yard. This will give plenty of space for some planters and chairs.

There are 3 big old tall trees in the front yard for plenty of shade.

(Not sure about speakers yet. Probably not.)

After thinking about it, the reason for not wanting to make quick changes that might cause longer term problems with my TV setup, that would cause me to go without for a few days. I have company that comes over on occasion to watch movies with me. That's what I don't want to screw up, not the possibility of me not being able to watch TV.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

and a yard to mow.

I swear I read this as a "yard to meow".

I've been following the VT50 owner's thread over at avsforum, since the thread started. Right now, I'm sick of 75 pages of "OMG. Plasma's still have IR (Image retention) problems. I wonder if I ought to send my set back for another one.... yada, yada, yada."

My last comment was, "You guys ought to get 2 TV's. One for Dvd and Blu Ray playback, and another one for everything else." You know, beat the crap out of the cheaper LCD, and reserve the good Plasma for the good stuff.

I bet it get's to 300 pages, and still, "OMG. I'm getting IR on my TV. I wonder if I ought to send it back for another one."

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

"OMG. Plasma's still have IR (Image retention) problems. I wonder if I ought to send my set back for another one.... yada, yada, yada."

Is this "Brun in"?

Besides, what's the point in buying a new TV if your not going to enjoy it....

It's neither "Brun in", nor "Burn in". Just "Image Retention".

In Boston, it's "Bruin In"

In Westwood, CA, it's "Bruin"

In Milwaukee, it's brewin.'

Saturday, I worked on moving the HT electronics to the closet behind the wall where the TV is. In the process, I broke 2 HDMI cables and a flashlight. It was 15 minutes before closing at the Target store down the street from where I live, so I went there to be at the mercy of whatever they had for sale.

I needed a longer cord than 6 feet. The other, I only need one around 2 feet long to connect the BD player to the AVR. I wanted a 10 foot, but ended up with a Monster 8 foot cable, because of limited selection, and a 3 foot from a different company.

The Monster cable was only a few dollars more. I noticed that it had a much better connector than the cheaper varieties. It snapped into place and held a tighter connection, whereas the others were loose.

Also, I lost the subwoofer. I'm assuming it's the connector at the back of the Pioneer Elite AVR. The Subwoofer pre-out using RCA connecter. I've had problems with it in the past, and now there seems to be no connection there. I guess, I need to check the voltage at the connection where it plugs into the subwoofer.

Cat, that's too bad, it looks like Murphy's Law reared it's head up over you on a late Sunday afternoon. Were you thinking of continuing to use those cables, or switching them out to something you're more a custom too, then saving them as spares.

Originally Posted By: Gary Vose Sr

Cat, that's too bad, it looks like Murphy's Law reared it's head up over you on a late Sunday afternoon. Were you thinking of continuing to use those cables, or switching them out to something you're more a custom too, then saving them as spares.

I was going to use them if they were long enough, but one of them wasn't. One of the ends snapped right off, leaving just bare wires exposed. Oops. Similar problem with the other one. All's well now, cable-wise so-far. Just need to work on getting the subwoofer up and running, and getting all the speakers installed, which includes priming and painting some wood they will get mounted to.

Just wondering.... Since the SW pre-out doesn't work on my Pioneer VSX-21TXH....

Is there a way I could purchase a cheap receiver, connect it to my pioneer and use just the subwoofer out pre-out on the cheap receiver?

(The cheaper, the better, as long as it works good.)

Part 2....

Looking at the Harmon Karmon avr 146 at the moment. It's $146 on Amazon.com (I have pre-paid shipping there).

Just wondering if all I have to do is connect the optical out on my Pioneer to one of the 2 optical in on the HK, then connect my Subwoofer to the SW pre-out.

One problem is the HK requires OSD to a TV for set-up. I guess I could temporarily connect my old TV to it for that.

But, there's always the possibility this set-up with a 2nd receiver wouldn't work for some reason.

Part 3....

Another thought is to wait, a few months with no subwoofer :(, and purchase a different AVR. Looking at the HK receivers, it uses something called EzSet/EQ like MCACC, Audyssey. Wondering if it is any good?

Please no comments on no room equalization software (or whatever it's called) being better. I much prefer MCACC being on than off. At least with MCACC.

And would I notice a difference going from Pioneer's Elite 110 WPC to HK's 95 WPC?

Currently looking at HK avr2650 for $654

I think you should get the same as you have or better because you remember before the Pioneer.right!

Originally Posted By: SBrown

I think you should get the same as you have or better because you remember before the Pioneer.right!

Yeah, but the Pioneer let me down with poor RCA plugs. I like the Pioneer, other than that. I'm thinking Harman Kardon is a good brand also. But it has to be able to handle 2 sets of speakers for Mains and 2 sets for centers, wired in Parallel, plus have plenty of overhead for special effects volume when needed. I'm thinking 110 to 95 watts as not much difference there. I also don't think this watts measurement has much meaning, because my first receiver was a very cheap Sony 100 WPC 5.1 and it didn't have much power, at all. The Pioneer 110 WPC just blew this cheap unit "out of the water". (Don't you love it, lol).

I don't know about you, but I'm a member of the "When it rains, it pours" club.

Now, my Harmony 1100 universal remote is malfunctioning. This is my 2nd 1100 remote in 2 years. After about a year of use, the touch pads start to get squirrely. You touch it on one spot, and it activates a button on a different spot. Last time I bought a 2 year extended warranty at BB for it for $40. I found the receipt, now I need to locate the box it came in. This may be my last 1100 when it breaks next year.

What remote works well, to control 3+ devices, with one button activity starter, + ability to control other functions using RF because the devices, except TV, are in another room?

Also, the person that offered me the loan for my TV, has offered an extension to get a new receiver. I'll probably be looking in the $600 to $800 range. Any suggestions? I use HDMI direct from player to TV, so I don't have to have 3D passthrough, but it does have to have a good room calibration equalization capability, and 90+ watts per channel, and capable of 6.1. (Oh yeah, almost forgot, not a Pioneer).

Brian, you can get an excellent unit for less than that if you go with the Onkyo 709 factory refurb for about $420 from Accessories4less .

Originally Posted By: JohnK

Brian, you can get an excellent unit for less than that if you go with the Onkyo 709 factory refurb for about $420 from Accessories4less .

Looks good. 0.08 harmonic distortion as opposed to Pioneer's 0.05. I doubt if that relates to anything audible, but don't know.

Same wattage as my Pioneer. Not new, that's the only thing that worries me at the moment. It's those little things that go out over a couple of years, like the RCA jack that may be ready to go out on a refurbished unit, is another worry. Dealing with shipping units that are defective if I have to return it and doing without a receiver in the meantime. That's what makes places like Best Buy look good.

It's not all about the price. I'd rather pay twice as much, if I can deal with less hassle and future down time. I'll have to give this some thought.

If I had bought an extended 3 or 4 year warranty for the Pioneer, this wouldn't be an issue.

Distortion numbers of that magnitude are far below audibility. When playing music a figure beyond about 1% may begin to become significant.

Factory refurbished units have been said to be more reliable than brand-new ones. Both theory and personal experience lead me to agree.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

It's not all about the price. I'd rather pay twice as much, if I can deal with less hassle and future down time. I'll have to give this some thought.

With Electronics it's a complete crap shoot... Right now my processor, and all of my amps are used/referb. 2 of my amps were built in the 90's... They are all going strong, one was serviced before i bought it... However, when i buy a brand new piece of electronics.. I almost ALWAYS get the 1 in 1,000,000 that fails... So, i almost always buy electronics used, not due to economics, but due to my crappy luck... Even my laptop, i bought used from a buddy....

Call a local electronic repair shop, they can solder a new RCA connector on your receiver for you.

Re. the remote.
I know some people have had better luck here on this board but all my friends with Harmony models seem to be replacing their remote at least once year due to total failure or screen issues or the buttons starting to act flaky.

Harmony lovers flame away but recently just bought only my second URC remote since since 2006 and I am very tough on them. It's a wonder my first one ever survived my old dog's constant coffee table cleaning with his tail. As soon as you pick one up you can feel the difference in the build quality. Maybe not as easy to program as the Harmonys but once that is done, it's done and my latest was actually very easy to program.

Just my opinion that I thought I'd share. We all like to critique technology so sometimes it's nice to give credit where credit is due.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Call a local electronic repair shop, they can solder a new RCA connector on your receiver for you.

If it were that easy, I would have already done it myself. I took the cover off, thinking all I had to do was solder a new RCA plug, but it was buried in a stack of cards, that were all soldiered together. Not a simple task.

Originally Posted By: Murph

Re. the remote.
I know some people have had better luck here on this board but all my friends with Harmony models seem to be replacing their remote at least once year due to total failure or screen issues or the buttons starting to act flaky.

Harmony lovers flame away but recently just bought only my second URC remote since since 2006 and I am very tough on them. It's a wonder my first one ever survived my old dog's constant coffee table cleaning with his tail. As soon as you pick one up you can feel the difference in the build quality. Maybe not as easy to program as the Harmonys but once that is done, it's done and my latest was actually very easy to program.

Just my opinion that I thought I'd share. We all like to critique technology so sometimes it's nice to give credit where credit is due.

That's nice to know. I'm going to try one of the top of the line models of URC remotes next time.

It seems that I've read recently that the newer Onkyo receivers suffer from build/parts quality. Trying to save money instead of using quality parts, or something.

Is this a true statement? Seems like I've read that here from people associated with Axiom Audio.

I've decided to scratch the Onkyo 709 off the list after reading the reviews on Amazon.com. Too many unit failures.

I've also decided to scratch Harman Kardon off the list also, due to reports of newer units having a lot of problems.

The Denon avr3312c looks like a good unit.

Anyone have any long term experience with this one?

What do you think of the Marantz SR 6006? It can be had for the same price as the Denon 3312CI.

This bit of review was stolen from an Amazon.com review for this Marantz receiver. I know the coloring of the wording is not what most like to see, but interesting, none-the-less. It's a comparison going from Onkyo to Marantz as a sizable upgrade.

Begin quote - "I purchased an Onkyo TX-SR608 last year (along with various DT and Polk speakers) under the idea that I would make upgrades to my system each year. The Onkyo has been having increasing issues where it cuts out briefly (like a reboot) and comes back on. The speakers are doing their job so I decided I would replace the Onkyo with this years upgrade fund. This Marantz receiver has been on my shopping list for sometime. After reading several reviews and seeing the $799 special price at Amazon I purchased the SR6006. It was quite easy to swap out and setup. The most time consuming piece of the project was reprogramming my Harmony One. The sound difference is hard to describe, it's 'cleaner' and voice are more defined, they don't seem to fade into the background/music. The real difference is in the HD picture. It seems noticeably clearer and more 'crisp' on HD channels and DVD's. The sound through my back speakers (running 5.1) is VERY nice and noticeably louder. I'm using Definitive ProMonitors in the back, Pro Center 2000 in the center, and Polk TSi 400's bi-amp'd and Polk PSW505 for a sub. I'm really enjoying this new receiver, though I'm not sure I appreciate it enough to pay full retail for it. Next up, some DT BP8040's." - end quote.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Call a local electronic repair shop, they can solder a new RCA connector on your receiver for you.

If it were that easy, I would have already done it myself. I took the cover off, thinking all I had to do was solder a new RCA plug, but it was buried in a stack of cards, that were all soldiered together. Not a simple task.

Damn, sorry man, i guess we both had the initial assumption.. I was thinking the RCA's were all on one board with a ribbon cable transmitting the signals... I would never guess that the boards were soldered together.

On a side note, This is why i like buying older tools, or professional grade tools.. It seems like all consumer grade tools today are non-repairable.. One example was my Ryobi weed-eater.. the fuel lines had broken down.. So, i was just gonna change out the lines and go about my business... NOPE.

Anyhow, that's WAY off topic i think..?

I sure get tired of reading on the avsforum site and coming across comments like these.

If you listen primarily to Jazz, buy a Pioneer.
If you're into pop or hip-hop, buy a Denon.

This is what someone said he got as sales advice from a BB Magnolia store.

I guess based on this ^^^ logic, that if you like country music, you should buy old equipment and play country on it exclusively.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I sure get tired of reading on the avsforum site and coming across comments like these.

If you listen primarily to Jazz, buy a Pioneer.
If you're into pop or hip-hop, buy steal a Denon.

This is what someone said he got as sales advice from a BB Magnolia store.

Now, here's something I haven't thought of. I was using the Harmony 1100 (or similar), because of it's RF capability. I could just use this IR extender instead and either stick with the original remotes, or get a better quality universal that doesn't need to produce RF.

For a receiver, I'm going to get the Denon avr3312ci from Amazon.com for $799 with pre-paid shipping. If I order it now, I'd have it by Thursday. I'm making arrangements to borrow $600 of that amount now.

I checked with Best Buy first to give them a shot at the sale. First off, they wanted the original price of $1099 + sales tax. I could only talk them down to $899 + sales tax. Not a good deal.

It comes with a 3 year factory warranty, so I doubt I'll be buying an extended warranty. That's what I thought with the Pioneer I bought. It came with a 2 year factory warranty. Right at 2 years is when I started having a problem with it. I think they have these mean times before failure down to a science. Either that, or Murphy is really busy.

Concerning the Lottery. "Whoever wins either is already rich or has won at least once before."

Originally Posted By: JohnK

Brian, you can get an excellent unit for less than that if you go with the Onkyo 709 factory refurb for about $420 from Accessories4less .

Sorry John, but I've read a lot of opinions today about the various receivers. What is making the bottom of the list, as far as quality, and reliability is Sony, Yamaha (except for most expensive ones), and all Onkyos. I never once, encountered something positive about the newer Onkyo receivers.

At the top of this list is Pioneer Elites (but not the cheaper ones like I have), Denon, and Marantz.

On the remote front- I've had a urc tx1000 for 3-5 yrs, can't really remember, with no problems,knock wood. I got it for right around half msrp. from surf remote control. com. I had to email them for the price but they're legit. I seem to remember that scenario is not uncommon. Forgive me if this is old news but I'd hate to read about you paying msrp.

Originally Posted By: duckman

... but I'd hate to read about you paying msrp.

It happens.

Yay, I finally broke down and bought some batteries for my camera. This is definitely a work-in-progress. Need to work on getting 5 speakers mounted next. Replacing the receiver. Returning my harmony 1100 remote for a new one (malfunctioning) using extended warranty. Purchasing an extended warranty for TV at BB this weekend. Getting the TV calibrated on Sunday. Then I'll be broke again.

I ordered 50 foot of CAT6 wire to connect my new receiver to my router for a wired connection for firmware updates.

This is the suggested method to keep from bricking the Denon 3312ci.

These firmware updates are said to take in the neighborhood of 40 minutes.

I'm hoping CAT6 will work the same as CAT5. Able to plug into Ethernet ports and transmit data, etc.

The reason I ordered the CAT6 is because of bad reviews for the cheap CAT5. 50 ft of CAT6 was $11 on Amazon.

Using CAT6 can make the data arrive too quickly and your new receiver may overheat. To mitigate this possibility, you should enable the "bit bucket" feature in the receiver's firmware. This will give the overflow bits a place to go.

Peter, I'm pretty sure Denons don't have the bit bucket option.

I think that's an exclusive feature of Marantz and HK.....(unless Denon offers it as a firmware upgrade, not that it will do much good here)

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Using CAT6 can make the data arrive too quickly and your new receiver may overheat. To mitigate this possibility, you should enable the "bit bucket" feature in the receiver's firmware. This will give the overflow bits a place to go.

Perhaps I could install a bit collider, and make money from selling extra power generated to the government.

I was thinking a CAT6 might have different end connecters, or wiring configuration and not be compatible with CAT5.

I found a buyer for my Pioneer Elite with the broken subwoofer jack. My auto mechanic friend with his country garage want's it to drive a couple of largish speakers for his garage. His going to replace his Insignia with it. Doesn't need the subwoofer jack.

Can't wait to tryout the Denon 3312ci next week. I'll probably order it on Sunday so it'll arrive on Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. I'm so used to MCACC, it'll be interesting what Audyssey will be like.

I've heard that Sears has the Panasonic 65 inch VT50 plasma on sale for $2999.99. I haven't been able to verify that on-line. If that were true, and I could prove it to Best Buy, then I could get an additional $200 back in price match, plus get the 4 year extended warranty for $500 instead of $600. I've got until June 20 before my 30 days runs out for price match.

Sunday a calibrator is coming out to calibrate my TV.

I couldn't believe it. I was going to wait for Sunday to order the Denon avr3312ci receiver for $799.

I just clicked on Amazon.com and guess what was the deal of the day? The Denon avr3312ci receiver for $549.99. It's a done deal. Ordered.

Fate!!

Congrats on the good deal!

Here's a real CATastrophe:

Come here! Mr. Fluffykins. I've got some catnip for you... Go wild!

With that kind of luck, I went by my bank and applied for a credit card. I've been turned down for over 8 years.
Don't have results back yet. Waiting for a call.
Not that I need one. I just wanted to use it as a tool for rebuilding my credit to a better score.
Never charge more than 50% of borrowing limit. Always pay it off in a reasonable amount of time.
Never just pay the minimum. Always pay on time.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I couldn't believe it. I was going to wait for Sunday to order the Denon avr3312ci receiver for $799.

I just clicked on Amazon.com and guess what was the deal of the day? The Denon avr3312ci receiver for $549.99. It's a done deal. Ordered.

Sweet, looks like Christmas might have come early this year for you.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Come here! Mr. Fluffykins. I've got some catnip for you... Go wild!

With that kind of luck, I went by my bank and applied for a credit card. I've been turned down for over 8 years.
Don't have results back yet. Waiting for a call.

I guess my luck wasn't that good. I got turned down for a credit card, again. Will have to try again next year.

Only 1 1/2 hours before my TV calibrator gets here.

You can't tell I'm a little excited though, can you?

Great, but don't they charge time and a half on Sundays?

Must be taking awhile or he's liking it.

i vote, taking awhile?

It took 4 hours. The jury is still out on whether I like it. He's a THX guy. Says he can do ISF, but it takes much longer, and THX is so close you can't tell the difference.

He calibrated.
1) THX Cinema. (To me, the blacks look a bit too black with not enough detail. Seems the overall picture should be brighter, but I've read that's what most people think when viewing a calibrated picture for the first time.)
2) THX Bright Room (Will have to evaluate later).
3) THX 3D Cinema. (Will have to evaluate later).

With the blacks this black, there is a strong feeling of contrast in the video. Almost too much contrast. Other than that, the colors are beautiful.

Well. That's my first impression. My Denon receiver should be arriving sometime today.

Edit: He used an older version of Calman (he has the newest version, but doesn't like it), and a meter with a narrow beam that was set about 3 feet away from screen, and it works with 3D glasses.)

if you'd like to check on the brightness setting (black level), then put the monitor on an unused input, get real close to the screen and try this;

when the setting is good, if you increase brightness by 1 notch, then the image will be brighter; if you decrease brightness by 1 notch, then the image will not change brightness, it will not get any darker. this is the optimum setting.

just don't forget to put the control back to where it was.

this has to be done in the same room lighting condition that the monitor was adjusted on.
what you'll see, by getting close to the monitor, is a dark gray image and some noise on the screen.

I'll try that sometime today. So, if I put it in the mode that he calibrated (THX Cinema), then change the input to HDMI 3 that's not being used. Then try changing the brightness one notch up, and one notch down, from where it originally was. I hope when I do this that the mode is still in the one he calibrated.

On thing I noticed about this TV (all others probably similar), is the blue was set too high. Blue causes the screen to look artificially brighter. When you put it on Vivid mode, the blue is off the charts.

That probably explains why the screen now looks dimmer. The colors are balanced instead of some artificial coloring, just to make it look brighter.

He got, 41 lumins (I think), with either cinima, or bright room, I don't remember which.

Before calibration, using the 3D glasses, THX 3D lumins was about 4, and Vivid was about 6. Those glasses really cut the light.

But after calibration, with 3D glasses, THX 3D had 12 lumins.

it's for a good reason that tv's, as sold, are in the "torch" mode; lots of people want to have an image so bright that it's watchable in a sunlit room. in the showroom, the manufacturers do this so their tv's are brighter than the one next to it and people will think brighter = better.
but all this is not very good for those poor overbright tv's. it shortens their life.

a good test to see how well a tv is calibrated is to go at a well equipped cinema and watch a good quality movie. then you go back home and play the same on Blu-ray.
on the Blu-ray, the images should not look different than those at the cinema.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

On thing I noticed about this TV (all others probably similar), is the blue was set too high. Blue causes the screen to look artificially brighter. When you put it on Vivid mode, the blue is off the charts.

That probably explains why the screen now looks dimmer. The colors are balanced instead of some artificial coloring, just to make it look brighter.

He got, 41 lumins (I think), with either cinima, or bright room, I don't remember which.

most new tv's are set to very high color temperatures, some as much as 18000 K. when they should all be at the 6500K standard.
as you say, there is too much blue, because it makes the screen "appear" brighter, and it sells more.

I've got the Pioneer Elite 21 replaced with the Denon 3312ci, and the Harmony 1100 remote about 90% programmed for it, Audyssey 6 point run. Done for now.

The subwoofer works again. Yay!

The outer box it came in was trashed, pretty much, but the inner box was untouched. As soon as I got the box free of it's contents, the cat couldn't be happier with a new box to play in.

You probably got the cat thinking it's Christmas again.

Originally Posted By: J. B.

if you'd like to check on the brightness setting (black level), then put the monitor on an unused input, get real close to the screen and try this;

when the setting is good, if you increase brightness by 1 notch, then the image will be brighter; if you decrease brightness by 1 notch, then the image will not change brightness, it will not get any darker. this is the optimum setting.

just don't forget to put the control back to where it was.

this has to be done in the same room lighting condition that the monitor was adjusted on.
what you'll see, by getting close to the monitor, is a dark gray image and some noise on the screen.

I just finished trying this. Put TV in HDMI 3 where nothing existed. Noticed the mode changed, so I set it to THX Cinema. The brightness was at 44. I had to change it to 50 before I could detect any change. Set it back to 44. Will have to try that with something playing on HDMI 1.

I've been trying to get the Panasonic VT50 plasma to play audio through the HDMI cable using ARC to the Denon 3312si. So far, no luck. (HDMI 1.4 from HDMI #1 on TV to Monitor #1 on receiver.)

I can't get it to play via the digital optical cable either. (Optical out on TV to TV Optical port on receiver.)

About the only thing I watch on broadcast TV is some news and weather, so it's not a big deal. Currently just using the TV speakers for that.

The Denon seems to drive the VP160 and M22's good. I won't know what it really sounds like until I get the VP160 and all 5 M22's attached, then crank it a bit.

Someone said to use HDMI #2 on the TV. It's reserved for ARC to pass the sound back to the receiver.

So, you would say that the cost of the calibration was worth it ya? How much did it cost you?

Originally Posted By: dakkon

So, you would say that the cost of the calibration was worth it ya? How much did it cost you?

The jury is still out on if it was worth it. It was a THX calibration, for $450. The picture is beautiful. But, it was beautiful before the calibration. I'm not sure how much improvement there actually was. The most noticeable after affect is, 1) The THX Cinema is dimmer. 2) The THX Bright Room is about the same. 3) The THX 3D Cinema is brighter. 4) Skin tones overall are better looking.

To me the blacks are too black with little detail in THX Cinema. I asked the calibrator about it and he said to try increasing the brightness and/or contrast no more than 2 or 3 clicks to see if that helps any.

I have the same disk he uses for demo material to check for black detail and I can see good detail in the demo material, but I had 2 noticeable problems. 1) Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, near the beginning, where Harry is being told about Serious Black by Mr. Weasley. They appear as 2 black silhouettes with little to no detail. Not what I remember. and 2) In New World when Mr Smith is romancing with Pocahontas, there's an Indian with face painted in blue. The blue is mostly washed out and appears too dark.

He's supposed to e-mail me the before and after settings, so I assume that I could setup either the standard or custom the same as THX cinema before changes to flip back and forth and examine the changes. Will have to also make service panel changes to do that, perhaps.

Sometime later, I might hire an ISF calibrator, if I can get one at a decent price, to calibrate at least one custom mode as a dark room cinema mode. Then I could really compare the difference.

If there is an ISF Calibrator with an ISF certification and experience in my area, or will be going through my area (Kansas City, MO) that is up to the challenge of producing a better picture than a THX Calibrator, then send me a PM. Maybe we can work something out.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Sometime later, I might hire an ISF calibrator, if I can get one at a decent price, to calibrate at least one custom mode as a dark room cinema mode. Then I could really compare the difference.

What is the difference between an ISF calibrator, and what you got with the THX calibration?

First impressions at comparing MCACC with Audyssey.

MCACC was a one shot setup. The only thing I had to adjust afterwards is setting Mains and Center to small. That's all.

Audyssey was a 6 time setup with mic, but short, not long like MCACC. I had to set cross over in 2 places. I had to readjust the level of center channel by about +4db. I could no longer use a max volume setting because I'll be using settings higher than the available max.

With MCACC, I'd watch TV at about -10. With Audyssey, it's at about -7 for the same volume level.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Sometime later, I might hire an ISF calibrator, if I can get one at a decent price, to calibrate at least one custom mode as a dark room cinema mode. Then I could really compare the difference.

What is the difference between an ISF calibrator, and what you got with the THX calibration?

I can only tell by observation and what I've heard and read, so I don't know how accurate it is.

With ISF, there are special modes that can be turned on in the tv (Like THX Cinema is a mode), but they have ISF tuning attributes separate from normal user access. I don't know what is there because I haven't seen it.

With THX, it's using the service panel, that's not necessarily ISF specific, but hardware specific.

Now, I might be totally wrong.. But if I am, I'll let someone more knowledgeable correct me.

So, THX calibration is something that "anyone can do". but, ISF is a hardware calibration, that requires more specialized equipment to access the hardware settings?

Brian, check the manual for the proper procedure of course, but typically(if you haven't already done so)to change from internal TV speakers to external audio system, the setting in the TV's sound menu has to be changed.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

So, THX calibration is something that "anyone can do". but, ISF is a hardware calibration, that requires more specialized equipment to access the hardware settings?

No, I think they are probably both hardware controlling menu panels, just different ones, or the ISF adds it's own ISF panel plus the same one used by the THX person. Too much conjecture on my partt here. Someone that knows needs to address the issue.

Originally Posted By: JohnK

Brian, check the manual for the proper procedure of course, but typically(if you haven't already done so)to change from internal TV speakers to external audio system, the setting in the TV's sound menu has to be changed.

I've gone through the menus of TV, receiver, BD player many times in the past couple of days, and made changes. I've tried all the different settings for speakers. It works fine, as long as I don't try to play sound from TV to receiver. I have to have the ability to play TV speakers when watching broadcast TV for now. But I've turned them off and back on. The only thing I haven't done is choose to send TV audio to Home Theater, instead of to Receiver. To Receiver always seems like the correct choice. I'll try Home Theater later. Don't know why that would be different.

I've hooked my old TV up to my spare blu-ray player in the bedroom. Mainly so I could check the difference in blacks and shadow detail.

I was thinking the Panasonic 65VT50 was clumping the blacks into black blobs, leaving little to no shadow detail. Particularly in the THX Cinema (post calibration) mode.

Good thing I did this, because I'm seeing the same thing on the old one. But because the blacks aren't as deep black, it wasn't as noticeable. There is also no comparison in colors. The VT50 has brilliant beautiful colors, whereas the cheap Samsung LCD now looks washed out.

You are using a HDMI 1.4 rated cable or at least one rated to do ARC right?

Originally Posted By: jakewash

You are using a HDMI 1.4 rated cable or at least one rated to do ARC right?

Yes. I have both, but my 8 foot Monster cable is 1.4. I currently have it in HDMI #1 slot (which doesn't support ARC) on the TV. When I had it in HDMI #2 slot, and set the TV to use HDMI #2, arc didn't work. I'm wondering if maybe I need 2 HDMI 1.4 cables? One for receiver to TV for video only for blu-ray and OSD, and another one for TV audio to receiver?

I've currently got a digital optical cable installed from TV to Monitor #1 on the receiver, but that's not working either. There may be a setting on the AVR for this that I've missed.

Brian, the TV optical output has to be connected to the TV optical input on the receiver, not Monitor, if you really meant that.

Originally Posted By: JohnK

Brian, the TV optical output has to be connected to the TV optical input on the receiver, not Monitor, if you really meant that.

It looks like I wrongly called it Monitor. Looking at a picture of the back side, it's Called Optical with 2 connectors. 1(TV), and 2(DVR). I have it plugged into 1(TV) optical.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Sometime later, I might hire an ISF calibrator, if I can get one at a decent price, to calibrate at least one custom mode as a dark room cinema mode. Then I could really compare the difference.

What is the difference between an ISF calibrator, and what you got with the THX calibration?

The person who calibrated my TV is qualified in both ISF and THX, but he prefers the THX method because it's simplier with similar results.

Check out this thread. It attempts to answer the same question.

I'm thinking about getting this IR extender, so I'm not limited to only the Harmony 1100 remote, or other RF remotes. I can use the original remotes, or some other all in one remote that I've yet to find.

My Receiver and Blu-ray player are on the other side of the wall, in a closet.

There are some cheaper ones out there, but about this one I like 1) the positive reviews, and 2) the very small receiver.

I love Target stores. They are always mis-marking something. They had Tron Legacy 3D in a slot that said Tron 3D and marked with a price of $22.99. It rang up at $34.99. After fussing with the person in charge for a few seconds, she just let me have it for $22.99.

It's a fun place to shop.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I love Target stores. They are always mis-marking something. They had Tron Legacy 3D in a slot that said Tron 3D and marked with a price of $22.99. It rang up at $34.99. After fussing with the person in charge for a few seconds, she just let me have it for $22.99.

It's a fun place to shop.

Some if not most states, have a state law that protects the consumer in this matter. If it's label pricing on a particular product is less than what the retailer is actually wanting for it. They are required by law to sell it at that price.

Well, Best Buy just screwed up my bank account. They removed the $599.99 for extended warranty twice. Now, I'm set up for 2 overdrafts and a negative balance in my account.

I've got to go there in person during my lunch break to try and straighten this up.

Finally got the BB fiasco straightened out. I hope. They added the amount back to my account (but not an immediate thing), and I got the bank watching out for overdrafts, so I won't be charged with any over this problem.

Bank account problem is finally straightened out with a positive balance, because of BB's double deduction for TV Warranty. Not that everyone was waiting with baited breath for this to happen.

I also finally got both windows in the living room covered with the same red and brown curtains. I've covered the skylight and window on the front door. When curtains are shut, it seems almost like it's night outside. Except for the light coming down the hallway and from the kitchen area. It's plenty dark, though. Some light also comes from the top of the curtains.

I've been thinking about adding a battery backup unit (UPS) to my HT setup. I get a few power drops and blackouts a year. This is more about battery backup, line conditioning, and surge suppression. Not about whole house surge protection only.

Here's what I currently have:

Panasonic 65 inch VT50 plasma TV.
Denon avr3312ci receiver.
OPPO BPD-93.
Monster 1800 surge suppressor/power conditioner.

Should I get the biggest UPS I can find like this one, or would a smaller one do? I'd rather have the bigger one, if I can get a lot more up time with it. Don't want the smaller one if all it allows me to do is immediately hit the power off button on my remote.

It would probably be best to retire the Monster unit, if I got one of these.

Or, is there a better unit, or method, I'm not familiar with?

Hey Brian, there is no need to guess about these things in today's information age.

Here is a UPS calculator I often use for PBX gear. Choose the middle column and ignore that it says it is for Telecom. Just choose the [Configure by Load] button and enter in the total amount of wattage for all your gear totalled together and then the other preferences you can pick.

It will result in an overkill model from their lineup but you can compare the stats of the model with other units you are considering. I like it because at the bottom of each model it shows a graph of the % of total utilization you are using.

UPS Sizing Selector

Here is another that simply shows the suggested minimum size you need. Just ignore the labels on each row. You can put the wattage for any device into any row and it will still be the same total.

A simpler one.

Originally Posted By: Murph

Hey Brian, there is no need to guess about these things in today's information age.

Here is a UPS calculator I often use for PBX gear. Choose the middle column and ignore that it says it is for Telecom. Just choose the [Configure by Load] button and enter in the total amount of wattage for all your gear totalled together and then the other preferences you can pick.

It will result in an overkill model from their lineup but you can compare the stats of the model with other units you are considering. I like it because at the bottom of each model it shows a graph of the % of total utilization you are using.

UPS Sizing Selector

Here is another that simply shows the suggested minimum size you need. Just ignore the labels on each row. You can put the wattage for any device into any row and it will still be the same total.

A simpler one.

I used the 1st one, and did a calculation "by load".

TV = 560 Watts
Receiver = 670 Watts
BDP = 35 Watts

Total = 1265 Watts with zero expansion for 10 minutes.

From that I get this unit. Where it would cost me $770.31 (today) for a UPS. That seems a little severe. I guess I won't be replacing my Monster unit any time soon.

My movie list.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

My movie list.

Pretty impressive library for sure. But where are the rating stars?

That cyperpower unit has a following over on avs, fwiw.
I've been kicking around getting one of the Furman units myself.

is John carter any good?

Originally Posted By: dakkon

is John carter any good?

I liked it. It's a good sci-fi flic. The 3D version didn't add much, if anything, in my opinion.

Originally Posted By: duckman

That cyberpower unit has a following over on avs, fwiw.
I've been kicking around getting one of the Furman units myself.

The up time seems a little short with this unit:
Satellite Receiver + Game Console + Projector = 7 Minutes

The Furman f1000-ups, which you mentioned, is $700 on Amazon, whereas the Furman F1500-ups is about $1200 on Amazon.

The APC UPS that I mentioned seems to be closer to the f1500-ups for around $890 (today) on Amazon.

Given these choices, I'd probably go with the APC UPS.

I read in avsforum about the APC UPS SMT2200. It's fan run's constantly. Quietly, but still audible. This isn't a problem for me since my equipment's plug-in's are in a different room.

It apparently also supplies extra apostrophes.

Grammarbot is rolling over in his unmarked grave!

Crimnie! Can't say Ive ever a problem with apostrophie's.

STAB STAB STAB STAB

Man, that was the real deal, too. No cute "STABBITY"s, just the hardcore action.

Cat down! Cat down!!

I was nodding off, but I thought I heard "hard core action..."

Yeah, I can't get that to play on these work computers. 'tis a pity.

Brian, or anyone else who has seen John Carter on their HT. Did you guys experience any crackling during some of the fight scene's, or other scene's where there was a sudden volume change?

I am almost completely certain, that it is not my system, but rather the Blu ray disk that i got from the video store.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Brian, or anyone else who has seen John Carter on their HT. Did you guys experience any crackling during some of the fight scene's, or other scene's where there was a sudden volume change?

I am almost completely certain, that it is not my system, but rather the Blu ray disk that i got from the video store.

Crackling? Well, I was wondering what movie I was going to watch after my nap. I think I'll do the 3D version again.

I heard no crackling in the John Carter movie.

hrm... maybe i will get another movie tonight... I can't really think of any to get though... I don't know of any good ones that are recent releases..

I got inception tonight, and had none of the issues that i had with John Carter last night. It must have been the copy of John Carter that i got from the rental store..

Sounds like you downloaded an inferior copy via torrent to me. Rental store..... Suuuuure.

Murph, i actually do go to the rental store.. Due to my system not having any type of PC integration, it isn't worth it to me to download any movies...

It is actually much easier for me to go to the rental store, as the store is about 2 blocks away, so i can make a 2 minute car drive, or wait hours to download... And, the store has a subscription service for 10$ a month, i can get unlimited videos at an average price of about a buck... See my post in the deals thread as well, to see my point of view..

I know your harassing me, which is fine. But at the same time, this is a topic which could be addressed...

On a side note... movie actors get paid millions, while teachers get paid around 40k$/yr... The reason i bring this up, is my other thread the "math is fun thread". While watching movies is fun, but at the expense of an educated society.. Well, i dont think they are "that" fun..... Granted, there would not be a 1 for 1 shift.. i am only attempting to point out the skewed sense of priorities we seem to have in the U.S.

Yup, I was just joking not judging. I think most of us here are like you in that we rent or buy. If not for moral reasons then to get a guaranteed quality source material.

Someone recently turned me on to thepiratebay.com, I haven't downloaded anything, yet. Would probably need a Bluray burner, or a 50 foot hdmi cable. If I did go this route, I'd use it to screen movies to see if I wanted to buy them or not. It might save me money, because I often do some splurge buying, then decide that it wasn't that good of a movie after all. I do use Netflix for this function, but they don't have everything, especially 3D movies I'm interested in, and I only get to view around 2-3 movies a week with them.

Originally Posted By: Murph

Yup, I was just joking not judging.

I know murph

Originally Posted By: Murph

I think most of us here are like you in that we rent or buy. If not for moral reasons then to get a guaranteed quality source material.

I would say, at this point there is a significant difference in quality between the random stuff you can download, and a Blu-ray. In the future, when movies are primarily distributed electronically. Akin to the strait to itunes music, then the quality difference between the "random download" and the pay download will diminish, if not move towards zero. However, there were several studies done with regards to napster. The results of these studies was that a significant amount of people would "download" a song, and the download would lead to them buying the album.. This may not be the same with a movie though, as movies are not as portable as songs. I.E. ipod while jogging ect....

I think it will be interesting to see where things go in the future.

The quality of pirated movies is subpar and compatability with your streaming device is problematic which just doesnt work for try videophiles. I do however copy and compress my movies and stream them with my xbox 360 ,for convenience. I can scroll through and pick somehting ,plus if i change my mind a couple clicks and i can be watching something else.Burning blu ray is cost prohibitive ,but a bd drive to rip is relatively inexpensive. The end of physical media is definetly in sight. In canada rogers closed all its video stores.

To me, streaming is cost prohibitive. VUDO has the best quality I've found yet, but to watch a movie runs ~$6.00. Plus, I'd have to upgrade my internet connection to a higher speed. For me, at least. Blu-ray is here to stay.

I found this thread to be interesting for anyone wanting to build their own AT projection screen.

Attention starved kitty interrupts newscast

Too funny. It was handled well by all concerned, IMO.

I've recently took notice of Hayao Miyazaki as a famous Japanese Animator, after buying Ponyo and The Secret Work of Arrietty. I've also rented Howle's Moving Castle a couple of times. Now I'm interested in purchasing all of his full feature animations that I can find. Unfortunately, only a few are on blu-ray, most on DVD, or worse. So far, my list is as follows:

The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
Ponyo - 2008
Whisper of the Heart - 2006
My Neighbors the Yamadas - 2005
Porco Rosso - 2005
The Cat Retuns - 2005
Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
Spirited Away - 2001
Princess Mononoke - 1997
Pom Poko - 1994
Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
Castle in the Sky - 1986
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

I like a lot of Miyazaki's stuff . . . be forewarned though, Grave of the Fireflies is a real tear jerker.

I have avoided Fireflies for that reason. Spirited Away is my favorite. Arrietty is so beautiful.

Originally Posted By: Lampshade

I have avoided Fireflies for that reason. Spirited Away is my favorite. Arrietty is so beautiful.

I'll be ordering a few of these when I get paid Friday. I'll make sure Spirited Away is one of them. Was wanting to buy the newer ones first. Since his (the animator) videos are so popular, I wonder why only 2 or 3 of them (out of about 17) are on blu-ray?

There are some dvd sets of his (none of them blu-ray) that are outrageously priced. Much cheaper to buy them individually.

One thing about these movies, they have subtle yet very well done surround tracks. Really listen to Spirited Away.

I picked the 3 Hayao Miyazaki animations I'm going to order Friday.

My Neighbor Totoro.
Kiki's Delivery Service.
Spirited Away.

I watched Spirited Away (Japanese animation) last night. Very creepy cartoon. Good. But creepy. I loved the faceless guy.

I haven't been to a casino in about 3 years. Been practicing my black jack on computer programs, then went yesterday with the idea if I win $400+ I'd just cash in and buy an iPad 2. I've now got a free iPad.

awesome!!

Best iPod app around.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltJzAndNyLo

Ha! As long as they don't have their front claws.

At CNBC.com, there was an article today on Pfizer. The first 2 comments were there when I first looked. Now, there are 3. Sorry, I couldn't resist. (Pfizer makes Viagra for those that don't know.)

COMMENTS
beachbum40 | Jul 31, 2012 07:41 AM ET
Sell it.
Report Abuse

Crazzy8s | Jul 31, 2012 11:38 AM ET
Buy it.
Report Abuse

CatBrat | Jul 31, 2012 04:37 PM ET
Or, just take some Viagra and hold onto it.
Report Abuse

Just checking to see which of these movies I still need to order, of Hayao Miyazaki. [x] I have. (Just received Princess Mononoke and Whisper of the Heart to watch this week.)

[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 2006
[ ] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 2005
[ ] Porco Rosso - 2005
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[ ] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[ ] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[ ] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

I watched "Whisper of the Heart" for the first time last night from Hayao Miyazaki's collection and I thought it was fantastic. Slow paced for your average animated movie, but the story, video, music and sound effects were awesome. An animated drama / fantasy of young love between 2 Japanese middle schoolers. The boy who knows what he wants to do in life and is good at it, and the girl, who's not sure of herself and wants to be like him, but fails, until she learns that she's just a diamond in the rough that needs polishing.

Whisper of the Heart was made in 1995, not 2006. Corrected.

[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[ ] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 2005
[ ] Porco Rosso - 2005
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 1995
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[ ] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[ ] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[ ] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

While searching, I did find one more movie that belongs to this list. Making a total of 18. In 2011 Hayao Miyazaki was one of the writers and his son the director of "From Up On Poppy Hill" in 2011. Audio is Japanese, with English sub-titles.

One thing I find a little aggravating after watching Princess Mononoke, then going back and comparing the sound between portions of the Japanese version and English version, is the Japanese version sounded much better, because it was louder. For some reason, they tamed the sound down for the English version. You can't turn it up much, because then the voice overs would be too loud.

[ ] From Up On Poppy Hill - 2011
[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[ ] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 2005
[ ] Porco Rosso - 2005
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 1995
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[ ] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[ ] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[ ] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

Just ordered Grave of the Fireflies and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. I was warned about "Grave" being a tear jerker. Perhaps, I should watch it alone.

Just updating the list of Hayao Miyazaki movies I own, after I receive my latest order.

[x] From Up On Poppy Hill - 2011
[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 1999
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 1995
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[ ] Porco Rosso - 1992
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[x] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[x] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[ ] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

PIG CAT!

New Listing Hayao Miyazaki (and son). Space Adventure Cobra turned out to be a much better movie than I had thought it would be.

[x] From Up On Poppy Hill (Japanese version) - 2011
[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[ ] Tales From Earthsea - 2006
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 1999
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 1995
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[ ] Porco Rosso - 1992
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[x] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[x] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[x] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

Only 2 more to go.

[x] From Up On Poppy Hill (Japanese version) - 2011
[x] The Secret World of Arrietty - 2010
[x] Ponyo - 2008
[x] The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - 2006
[x] Tales From Earthsea - 2006
[x] The Cat Retuns - 2005
[x] Howle's Moving Castle - 2004
[x] Spirited Away - 2001
[x] My Neighbors the Yamadas - 1999
[x] Princess Mononoke - 1997
[x] Whisper of the Heart - 1995
[ ] Pom Poko - 1994
[x] Porco Rosso - 1992
[x] Kiki's Delivery Service - 1989
[x] My Neighbor Totoro - 1988
[x] Grave of the Fireflies - 1988
[x] Castle in the Sky - 1986
[x] Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind - 1984
[x] Space Adventure Cobra - 1982
[ ] Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro - 1979

I watched The Girl Who Leapt Through Time last night. Very good anime. Not a Studio Ghibli.

Cat buses themselves are always meowing anti-Islamic slurs against the Islamic religion. They didn't know that until now. So, all buses will be destroyed by rioting religious groups trying to get to the one true catbus.

I hear there are reasonably-priced vacation options right now.

Death to Catbus!
Death to Catbus!

Where did I put my blood pressure medicine?

Are you sure it's the blood pressure medication you are looking for?

Ah, here it is. I found it. Nighty night.

Started working on my speaker mounting project again. Will provide pictures when all done. 3 M22's across top, M22 - VP160 - M22 across bottom. Probably be about a month. Take 2 to 3 weeks to prime and paint board and let it dry sufficiently.

I'm getting an itch to get a pair of QS8 Surround Speakers in a
Real Wood Finish With Custom Wood Oak Cinnamon in Satin low gloss
With Burnt Sienna grilles.

Should I scratch it, or just apply liniment?

They will have to be placed halfway between me and the screen. It's the only location available. Later I'd add a third that goes directly to the rear for a 6.1 setup. I've mentioned this before and got a lot of negative replies on placement, but wouldn't it sound better this way than without any surrounds?

I'm curious more than anything...
How far in front of you are they?
Is hanging them from the roof out of the question?

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

I'm curious more than anything...
How far in front of you are they?
Is hanging them from the roof out of the question?

The surrounds would be about 4 feet from the screen, and I would sit 4 or 5 feet back from the surrounds.

Hanging from the ceiling is out of the question for several reasons. 1) Any seating positions behind the speakers would be odd. 2) It's a vaulted ceiling with only half the ceiling in the room. High one side, low the other. 3) They would look much better mounted in the positions I've reserved for them.

For normal mounting positions, there's the entry to the dining room on one side, and a wide window covered in blackout curtains on the other side.

FMSQS stands at 90 degrees?

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

FMSQS stands at 90 degrees?

Stands would be in the way for the new furniture I'm going to buy later. There will be a couch on the far wall to the rear. A table with lamp in the corner. Two love seats, side by side going across the wall where the window and curtains are. Good for larger groups this way. Then I'll have the option to pull out a love seat for up close viewing whenever I want (With padded underside to not scratch hardwood floor).

I'm curious to hear others thoughts on this as well.
(I'm considering placing my front presence at 60 degrees, which would be in a similar position to what you've asked about here.)
P.S. I think its cool you have your own thread.

You must have a much wider room. I'm somewhat limited. To the front, is a 5 foot wide TV. To the left of the TV is a closet door then the left wall. To the right of the TV is a stairway leading up, then the right wall. Still working on mounting the speakers, but will have M22's lined up with the left and right edges of the TV mounted above and below the TV. A 5th M22 above the TV in the center, and a VP160 in-cabinet mounted below the TV. Mounting should be done within 30 days. Doing some painting, etc at the same time, and have to allow for dry time.

Having the QS8's mounted on the side walls, should expand the sound stage quite a bit, depending on what's playing on them.

I should be ready to mount my 3 M22's above the TV this weekend.

Haha. Good one.

I just lauighed out loud at my desk!!

Nice work as usual, Peter.

Cat, you are a good sport.

I have to laugh at myself. Everyone else does.

Quote

"They will have to be placed halfway between me and the screen. It's the only location available."
"I've mentioned this before and got a lot of negative replies on placement, but wouldn't it sound better this way than without any surrounds?" end quote

I think you might have been onto something with this....
I'd like to know how it went and your thoughts on the following.
I'm going to try moving my rear surrounds up to 65/75° and moving my rears to 110/115°, in effect I'll be swapping the locations. Because there is little info going to the rear surrounds and because its simple enough to swap the cables after I'd say its worth a try. This can go either way...

"swapping" wasn't the right word as both sets are to be moved from 90 degrees and 125 degrees but I will be placing the rear surrounds in front of the rears, and the shuffling continues.

Interesting. Let me know what you think about how it sounds.

Did you find it distracting when you placed yours in front of the listening position?

I haven't bought the surrounds yet. Maybe sometime next year.

Don't you need some more fronts first?

I'll give it a go.
See what happens.

Originally Posted By: Ken.C

Don't you need some more fronts first?

Maybe about 3 more subwoofers first would be better.

I thought that history was good enough to keep over here in my thread too.

Bought 2 M22 bookshelf = 2
Bought 2 M22 in/on wall = 4
Returned 2 M22 in/on wall = 2
Bought 2 M22 on wall = 4
Bought 1 VP100 in/on wall = 5
Bought 2 M3 bookshelf for a gift = 7
Gave the M3's away = 5
Bought 1 VP150 in/on wall = 6
Bought 1 EP175 = 7
Returned 1 EP175 = 6
Bought 1 EP350 = 7
Bought 1 M2 real wood = 8
Bought 1 VP160 in cabinet = 9
Bought 5 M22 bookshelf = 14
Sold original 2 M22 bookshelf = 12

Wow, that's a lot of transactions. It's called keep fiddling with it until you get it to sound just right. And I haven't even got to the surrounds yet. I'm prolly on my 6th blu-ray player, and 2nd receiver, and 3rd universal remote.

Extra speakers not being used:
1 M2 real wood bookshelf.
2 M22 on wall.
1 VP100 on/in wall.
1 VP150 on/in wall.

I'd have M80 if my viewing wall was wide enough, but got to fit in all into 5 1/2 feet.

Going to be mounting 3 M22 bookshelf above my 65 inch plasma this weekend. Then still have 2 M22 bookshelf to mount under the TV to get them off the floor, but will do a little later, when I have the wood painted and mounted for them.

Well, here's a picture of the board mounted to the wall with 5 lag screws, 3 speaker mounts and wire run. Almost done.

Hard time getting a decent picture with this cheap POS camera.

May have to find a way to tame the bass. Right now there is too much bass. Ran 6 position Audyssey, it did a lot of bass cut in the equalizer, but still too much. Didn't realize those 3 M22's on top would produce kick-ass bass.

What seems odd, is the top left M22 was too quiet during Audyssey, compared to the other speakers, about half volume. I swapped it with the center and it sounds normal now. I stood in front of it during just to see if it was quieter, but it wasn't. Not sure what the problem was. Not an out of phase issue. I checked for that first.

Someone suggested I stuff a sock (or something) in the ports of the 3 upper M22's to dampen the bass. You know that's such a stupid sounding idea, but it just might work. I'll have to give it a go, then recalibrate, and see how it sounds.

So far, I'm liking the results of Pioneer's MCACC a whole lot better then Denon's Audyssey. It always sounded good with MCACC, not so with Audyssey, so far, but maybe I've gone beyond Audyssey's (and MCACC's) ability to handle it with my particular speaker arrangement. The funny part is, when I turn Audyssey off, I couldn't hear a difference.

Were they being that specific? Or did they just say "Stuff a sock in it" and you assumed they were talking about your sub port?

[quote=CatBrat]Someone suggested I stuff a sock (or something) in the ports of the 3 upper M22's to dampen the bass. You know that's such a stupid sounding idea, but it just might work. I'll have to give it a go, then recalibrate, and see how it sounds.

[/quote/]

CatBrat, don't just add any old sock too block the ports, but rather use knee high ones because it has more material to work with. Oh and make sure it's a dirty sock as well, it will help to lesson air filtration through the pores of the the sock.

Cat, the install looks really nice. The black/silver against red looks sweet.

I still think you're overdoing it on the fronts, but hell, if it makes you happy, more power to you.

I guess I'm really overdoing it with LFRs and M80s then....Not!

Looks good Brian, I guess you don't need an EP500 now.

Before it always sounded like all the dialog was coming from under the TV. Not it sounds like it's coming from the TV. Plus, I've got my wall of sound effect back. Much less localized. Just pure sound, and it can easily do it loud.

Edit: Concerning bass, I forgot to mention earlier that I have L/C/R set to small, and the cross over set to 80.

That is one major setup Cat. Nice to see it all has finally come together. You certainly worked hard at it.

Nice work!

For the amount of speakers you have there, it looks pretty damn orderly.

Are you considering getting the bottom M22s up off the floor so so their tweeters are at the same height as the VP160?

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

For the amount of speakers you have there, it looks pretty damn orderly.

Are you considering getting the bottom M22s up off the floor so so their tweeters are at the same height as the VP160?

Thanks, guys. It was a lot of hard work getting them mounted. I spent about 12 hours mounting the top 3 Sunday. One more change to them is to move the outer speakers in about an inch so that the outer line is even with the TV.

My next step is go get the bottom 2 mounted, and get them off the floor. Not sure about getting the tweeters even, but it should be close enough.

I've repositioned the upper 3 so that they point downward further than the picture. That helped hearing the tweeters from my current seating position, which is about 8 feet back from the screen.

I think my next step is to purchase a new reclining love seat with the drink holders in the middle. I spotted one that belongs to a living room set I want. Retail about 1700, on sale about 1300 at Lazy Boy furniture for the loveseat. My current one is 18 years old and getting uncomfortable.

If anybody wants to play Words with Friends, my id is MadCatCritter.

Talk about luck. The same Love Seat that I had my eyes on at Lazy-Boy furniture is on sale now. I can order one this weekend.

It's cloth so the cat can kneed it with her claws all she wants = happy cat.
Cost $999

You know, I hadn't thought your avatars could get much more disturbing, but you continue to amaze. Good show, and, oh yeah, YIKES, my eyes!

Originally Posted By: medic8r

You know, I hadn't thought your avatars could get much more disturbing, but you continue to amaze. Good show, and, oh yeah, YIKES, my eyes!

I haven't figured out what your new avatar is. Can you enlighten me?

It's copper wires. Bbig copper wyres.

I'm a cat fish, or rather, a cat shark, I think. If you stare at it long enough, you can smell it's breath and see it's mouth moving.

I think he's saying, "Hi there mate. Would you throw me one of them large rats, please." But, be careful and don't fall into the water. Don't know if you can trust a cat shark or not.

I think your avatar is called a "shat"

Thanks for the morning chuckle.

At least it isn't a cat with a sex change operation. Those I'd call a She-It.

Good one.

If all of the female animals at a zoological park got neutered, would it be considered a she-it zoo?

I dunno. But if they were Islamic and it was a madhouse, it might be a Shiite Zoo.

Anybody got any air freshener?

This week I've learned what NOT to do when selling on Craigs List. I'm trying to sell my old Sofa and Love seat for $200. (Orig $2500, but had a recliner). About 18 years old. The price seems good, but the 1st 6 callers have all been no-shows.

What not to do is try doing this during the week. I think week end selling could be more successful.

Sold the living room furniture and bought a Lazy Boy Lancer love seat with center console to be delivered Tuesday.

With the living room empty, I decided to mess around with audyssey on my Dedon 3312. I used the 6 position with my computer chair in middle of room as seating position. With audyssey on, I have excellent high end, but the low end suffers. With audyssey off, I have good low end, but the high end suffers. Tried different crossover points, but not getting any improvements that way.

Audyssey set all the speakers to around -7. I changed SW to -4 and that helped a little. I never had this problem with Pioneers MCACC, it always had a good well balanced sound. I see where Audyssey has a manual equalizer option, but all I've been able to find is a way to turn it in or off. Maybe that function is available via computer only, I don't know.

I'm regretting that I bought a Denon.

I'm going to try calibrating audyssey with the mic in the same listening position for all 6 times, and see what happens.

That didn't work, but I found that just doing the first mic calibration from a central position, like you do with MCACC, then exiting straight to calculation and save is producing good results, so far.

Been testing with Adelle. Her voice is difficult to get right.

Other settings.
Mains small.
Crossover mains 80, M22,. Center 40. Vp160.
Audyssey flat.
Dynamic volume off.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'm regretting that I bought a Denon.

Intesting...I have a Pioneer and a Denon and much prefer the Denon, I find the Audyssey much better for equalizing the whole room than the MCACC. How are you running all those front speakers? Maybe it is affecting the room correction somehow?

Originally Posted By: 1sweetspot

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'm regretting that I bought a Denon.

Intesting...I have a Pioneer and a Denon and much prefer the Denon, I find the Audyssey much better for equalizing the whole room than the MCACC. How are you running all those front speakers? Maybe it is affecting the room correction somehow?

Working fine now that I only calibrate with 1 mic position. When I use all 6 positions, I lose all my bass and the highs are too bright. One thing I read is to put the mic positions closer together because this can happen when the outer mic positions go outside of your best tweeter range. Although I wasn't out by much, it might of affected it. So there again the single position seems best overall. This is the same that MCACC uses. Sound's much better this way. It is a little bass heavy, but in a good way, but I prefer that to no bass.

My mains are probably too close together for the Audyssey 6 mic position calibration. Pic on next page.

I found a good use for books.

Note that this is a 3.1 system. One set of L/C/R above TV and another set below TV. 65 Inch Panasonic VT50. Mains are about 5 feet apart.

With all of the speakers being so close together, i have to ask... Do you get very good imaging? I would think there would be nearly no imaging at all? I understand your under a space constraint given the layout of your room..

I get some imaging, or separation distinction, but not fully. Sounds better than mono. Adding surrounds should help. Concentrating on furniture, right now.

Brian, I haven't had the difficulties you mention. The points I can comment on include measuring when the room is fully furnished, not empty. 8 measurements are available and should be used for the best accuracy. Doing them at the same point doesn't accomplish anything, but they also shouldn't be separated widely. Two a foot or two to the left and right, three more a foot or two in front and two the same distance behind should work well.

You should also try the Audyssey, rather than the Audyssey Flat curve for a less prominent treble.

You mention that Dynamic Volume is off, which is suitable in most situations, but you should be sure that Dynamic EQ is on.

The manual equalizer works as described in the manual, as an alternative to Audyssey(not an adjustment to it), which Dr. Kyriakakis has termed "crude". It only allows adjustments at nine specific frequencies, rather than the hundreds of frequency and time adjustments Audyssey does. Selecting it means that Audyssey is off.

I haven't found the mic positions for 8 yet. When I run audyssey setup, it only tells me the position for 6. I search online and haven't found it yet.

Dynamic EQ is on. I prefer flat for now. Wider range and doesn't sound too bright.

I discovered doing all 6 measurements at same spot made it sound worse. But stopping after the first mic position and measurement made all the difference. Plus I got results similar to MCACC. Sounds good to me.

It would be interesting if others that run with Audyssey off, or don't like it, would try the one mic position, then go straight to calculate and store after that one measurement, and report back as to what they thought.

One other thought about the imaging is to me it works out ok, things that happen on the left side of the TV come from the left side, and visa-versa. For example, Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds at Radio City (Image on TV from pic above). With Tim on the left and Dave on the right, I can hear the separation of the 2 guitars in stereo separation just fine.

Just for fun why not use the bottom L/R as surrounds until you can add QS8's to the mix?

Originally Posted By: 1sweetspot

Just for fun why not use the bottom L/R as surrounds until you can add QS8's to the mix?

I've got a pair of on wall M22s not using for that if I wanted to, but rather wait for the real thing. I'm in no hurry.

Another thing I miss with the Denon receiver is the multiple saves for sound calibration. The Pioneer Elite had 6. Denon has 1. I calibrate it for a seating position in center of room, but it sounds crappy at the back of the room, would be nice to save calibrations for different seating positions.

Because the upper M22s point down to center of room, it would probably be a real challenge to get it to sound good in back of room anyway. You get mostly the tweeters from back there.

Sitting here twitling my thumbs, waiting for my new love seat to be delivered. Are you supposed to tip delivery people? I never have in the past.

Another delivery truck got away without a tip. Darn.

To me, it depends on their attitude and helpfulness.

We had a new washer and dryer delivered Monday, and the two guys really didn't do much of anything other than taking it off the truck and walking it into our basement (walk out door). I had everything open, clear, and accessible. They didn't hook them up or anything. No tip.

I've had other delivery people that bring something to the second floor or take just a moment to offer some tips / advice on the item, or do a hookup, and I tip them.

We had a fridge delivered no too long ago, and the guy took a bit of time to explain the ice maker and how some of the electronic controls work, and I gave the two guys $20 to split "for lunch".

I made it a point to hand it to one of the guys while the other was right there so it doesn't get pocketed by the one guy.

OT, I realized yesterday that...unintentionally... in the last year I've purchased a 55" LG TV, an LG Fridge, and now the LG front-loading steam washer and dryer. I guess I've become an LG fanboy without realizing it.

All three were on sale (the W/D were just 50% off on a Pre-Black Friday sale) but I wouldn't have bought any of them if they weren't also top-rated.

EDIT: Ooops- I see I'm too late!

First movie tonight with my new couch, "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" with someone who never seen it before. I've probably seen it 2 times. Can you tell, I'm at work and bored?

Which Dragon Tattoo - the european or american version? I heard the euro one has subtitles but is superior.

Originally Posted By: Nachosgrande

Which Dragon Tattoo - the european or american version? I heard the euro one has subtitles but is superior.

American version. For the next 2 movies in that set, I have the European version, English dubbed. I'd like to see the European version of the Dragon one. May have to order it.

I just bought Avatar for the 3rd time.

1) Theatrical Blu-ray.
2) Extended Blu-ray.
3) Theatrical 3D Blu-ray.

Stop me before I buy the Extended 3D Blu-ray. You know it's going to happen.
Then it'll be the Extended 3D Blu-ray with extra special features, then the Extended extended version, then the Extended extended extended 3D version in 4k with coupons for Sonic.

Kitty now has 2 large scratching posts positioned close behind the loveseat as a deterrent. Works, so far.

As a deterrent from using the love seat? not a romantic, are you Bryan?

But doesn't she need a theatrical scratching post? Then an extended scratching post? I'm pretty sure it's already 3-D but c'mon, show the little critter some love.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Kitty now has 2 large scratching posts positioned close behind the loveseat as a deterrent. Works, so far.

ya but will she tire of those scratching posts and start in on something else. Oh I don't know, say maybe... aaaaa loveseat. Brian if that's the case you could always try to go back on the warranty though. Good luck with that one.

Originally Posted By: Adrian

As a deterrent from using the love seat? not a romantic, are you Bryan?

With teeth like those, I'm thinking romantic might be a bit of a challenge.

Oooooo. Let me nibble on your ears, my dear. (Drool, drool).

I decided to take a loan out from my 401k so that I can get a matching love seat and corner piece at the sale price. Also have money left over for a large area rug. Want an oriental one. It needs to be an odd size, though. Preferably 13 x 7, but could also be 12 x 7,

I'm sure it'll tie the room together.

Picked out a rug. It's 8 x 11 foot. No need for odd size because I've discovered the leveler that was applied to the hardwood floor in front of tv will come up with a little work using a scraper. Scuffed up floor looks a whole lot better than leveler, which looks like plaster.

Rug is a typical oriental look with smallish detail that has a lot of red in it. Hoping it doesn't clash with the red walls. Can return or exchange it.

Probably be a magnet for cat urp in the middle of the night. Cats never throw up on an easy to clean surface. They always gyrate to the hardest spot to clean up.

Maybe treat with Scotch Guard.

I finally got all of the leveler scraped off of the floor. It ran all the way to the wall. In that spot, it was thinner and I could remove it with a hand scraper, preserving most of the stain on the floor. In the scrapped area I had to use a large long handled floor scraper and it still was a ton of work.

It's a mystery why the leveler was even there. I took a long straight edge over the floor and it was only down about 1/8 of an inch. No reason to use leveler as far as I can see. This floor was carpeted when I moved in, and since have removed the carpeting. There are a few gouges in the wood, but if it's carpeted, who cares. Still no reason to use leveler.

I'll eventually have these floors sanded and re-stained. For now, the large area rug I'm buying will cover the worst of it.

If there are any hardwood floor restorers in the Kansas City area reading this, send me me a Private Message. (Click on CatBrat name above my avatar, then on Send a PM) This area is 286 sq ft in an L shape. There are also 3 bedrooms with HW floors, but I'm not concerned about restoring them, at the moment.

It looks like I'll have enough money left over, after furniture and rug to buy a pair of black QS8's from the Factory Outlet. Was going to get real wood, etc, but that cost's $300-400 more. Since I'll have the moola for these, I think I'll go with them. ||wagging tail|| When is that loan check going to arrive?

They will be positioned more as wides than surrounds. Hopefully, it'll give a wider sound stage, and not something that doesn't sound quite right.

Maybe I can experiment and try them as wides, without having any surrounds, if the Denon 3312ci allows that configuration. I know it allows wides.

I have a pair of on wall M22's left over. Maybe I can install them as surrounds somehow. Like mount to the wood beams in the ceiling where one is much higher than the other one. Or on the back wall flipped 90% to mount above the window there. (Would have to invent a new mounting system with straps, maybe.)

When I click on the VIEWS column in WaterCooler (to sort threads by # of views in descending order), my CatBrat thread comes up on the 3rd page. Not bad for number of views. Currently 53,018.

Too bad it's not like Face Book and pays me a fee to run ads in it.

I wonder what ever happened to the "Eating Spiders" thread.

You are far and away the top poster in this thread.

So, the high number of views the thread gets are akin to the high number of views a person gets when talking to themselves in public.

Well, at least I don't have a good excuse like those people with the ear pieces for their phones.

Since Tom has me on ignore, I'm wondering if I can make faces at him without him seeing them.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

You are far and away the top poster in this thread.

So, the high number of views the thread gets are akin to the high number of views a person gets when talking to themselves in public.

The view count has gone up 178 in about 20 hours. I know that wasn't primarily me.

That works out to 1 view about every 7 miutes. Kinda like me fat fingering my iPad and accidentally pulling up an ad. (Which I do quite often.) "Man, what am I doing looking at THIS stuff!"

We just like seeing what trouble your cat has gotten into now.

UUmmm....I rest my case!

Given the above layout, the QS8's I'll be installing, will actually be in the Front L/R Wide position (only higher than shown in picture, but about even with the upper L/R/C in my dual main speaker setup). The Denon 3312ci has amplified speaker out for Wides.

I'm just wondering, and don't expect anyone here to know the answer, without a lot of research, but what happens when I have the following speakers setup, and only these?

Left Wide - Left Main - Center - Right Main - Right Wide.

No surrounds, only wides, and the wide speakers are not connected to the surround channels, but to the wide channels.

I'm assuming that 1) the wides are some form of electronic derivation between Mains and Surrounds and not provided as separate sound tracks, and 2) I'll still be without most, or all of the surround sound track, like I currently am now with the 3.1 setup (I know this because of the Yellow Submarine movie when some of the voices are silent during a song. Sent to the surrounds), or 3) on the outside, I'll get nothing at all from the wide speakers without having the surrounds in the mix.

I got the coolest phishing letter today. Says it's from the FBI. Going to take all my possessions, get me fired, and put me in prison for life, if I don't send $151 USD to a certain address.

I sent a copy of this letter to the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I got the coolest phishing letter today.

Funny. Definitely funny.

"After being on this board for 3 years, I've concluded that CatBrat...."

I voted "none of the above" so I could see the poll results.

Haha...me too!

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I got the coolest phishing letter today. Says it's from the FBI. Going to take all my possessions, get me fired, and put me in prison for life, if I don't send $151 USD to a certain address.

I sent a copy of this letter to the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Send them leftover onions instead.

I clicked on multiple items just to skew the results.

Anarchy Forever
or
whatever else is popular at the time!

Originally Posted By: Murph

I clicked on multiple items just to skew the results.

Good Man!

Woohoo! I just ordered 60 foot of speaker wire and 2 factory outlet QS8's in Black Oak to match the other speakers. Now the waiting time begins again. Looks like it's up to 3 weeks for this speaker.

Also paid for and setup up delivery for next Thursday for the other 2 pieces of La-Z-Boy furniture. This completes the 2 love seat and corner piece setup.

Also, will be picking up the 8 x 11 foot rug tonight.

Well here's a couple of pictures of my new rug.
I somehow seem to have lost the whole room one.
But it fills about 85% of room.
I used up 3 cans of Scotch-Guard for Carpets on it.
Now I can spill all the scotch I want without worry.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I used up 3 cans of Scotch-Guard for Carpets on it. Now I can spill all the scotch I want without worry.

I wouldn't say that. If Murph finds out, you'll have some 'splainin' to do!!!

I like it!!!

3 weeks is a long wait for your first pair of QS8's. It's only been 4 days.

For wire placement, I'm thinking about going down wall on inside of wall, coming out of wall behind base board, into indention made into drywall down through hole drilled through hardwood floor into basement. All hidden by baseboard.

The hard part will probably be fishing the wire up, or down through wall. Wall has old blown-in insulation, so going through that won't be a problem. It's all crumbly.

I ordered 60 foot of wire, 30 foot per side, which should be enough. If not I have about 2 pieces of 10 foot laying around I can splice into it for added length.

Found it. Full room view of rug.

But it doesn't match the walls!

Per JohnK, that type of prismatic disharmony is well-researched and known to cause audio signals to develop tiny but audible distortions, adversely affecting audio quality.

I think he recommended 1950s era tube amps to address this properly.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

But it doesn't match the walls!

Matches close enough. Looks much better without the flash to distort everything. Last year I upgraded my camera from my phone to a $50 Insignia POS from Best Buy. Time to upgrade to something better, but I can't afford what I want ATM.

Originally Posted By: medic8r

Per JohnK, that type of prismatic disharmony is well-researched and known to cause audio signals to develop tiny but audible distortions, adversely affecting audio quality.

I think he recommended 1950s era tube amps to address this properly.

But behind the walls, I've coated the speaker wires with vasoline, then wrapped them in tin-foil. This should counter-balance any harmonic abnormalities caused by color imbalances.

And if that fails, I've purchased a large quantity of ear plugs for those people that can't live with it.

Originally Posted By: medic8r

I think he recommended 1950s era tube amps to address this properly.

And vinyl records only. I forgot teh VINYL.

I'm thinking about constructing some temporary adjustable stands for the QS8's, just so I can try different locations and heights, before deciding on the final location for them. Instead of putting holes all over the walls, or just settling for the first location I mount them at.

The 2 obvious locations in my room, would be to mount them as Wides, or close together as Rears (Prolly about 3 feet apart). There isn't a location to mount them as Surrounds. Or use them as Wides and purchase 1 more for a Rear. Not sure what you would call that. A 3.1 + 2 Wides + 1 Rear.

I like that idea best. Forget about the temporary stands. I'll just mount them as Wides, and purchase one for a Rear later.

The rest of my living room furniture is getting delivered tomorrow morning.

Will be total of 1 long and 1 short love seats with a corner piece.

New furniture in place. Looks good. Only have pics on my iPad, though.

Pics are here for all you looking pic lookers looking for pics.

It's the La-Z-Boy Lancer series.

Looks nice and comfy. My seating is from Lazy Boy as well, the Devon series.

Yesterday, I ordered one of these heated cat beds.
I may have to order one of the larger sizes for myself. Ahhhh.

Looks like she is scoping up those arm rests nicely. streeetch

I was getting too many pictures in my photobucket account to keep track of, so I was moving them into new albums I created. I see that this messed up the display here. Since I can't change the location here, I'll have to move them back.

Edit: done moving pics back. Looks like I lost a few of them in the process. Oh well, no big loss, I suppose. I'll see if they are on my home computer and put them back later.

My first pair of QS8 speakers shipped today.

Cat didn't sleep in new cat bed last night (the first night). Upon investigation, the furnace vent I set it up against was closed. I opened it and flipped bed around to put low spot against vent to maximize vent heat into bed, because I know she's a real heat pig. Will check again tonight.

I'm finding that Adele's voice is just too shrill for my ears at higher volume levels. Do others experience this also? I've tried rerunning Audyssey since I've added more furniture, but that just seems to have made it even worse.

When running Audyssey, I turned off all noise makers, except 1. The cat wouldn't quit meowing. When its playtime, she just won't shut it.

I'm not getting nearly enough exercise, so I ordered one of these from Amazon. Should get next week. It's a fold up exercise bike, that I can use while watching movies, then put away in a closet when not using it. Cool, huh?

Just don't let it sit in the closet more than it is out. Good luck with your new quest.

I used to ride an exercise bike and wear headphones while watching Star Trek - TNG, waayyy back when it was new on TV. It was then I realized how much content I was missing while using only the TV speakers.

I used to ride an exercise bike and wear headphones while watching Star Wars. It was then I realized how much of the heavy breathing I was attributing to Darth Vader was actually me.

I used to... wait, I hate exercise bikes. Mark, you can ride for me.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

I used to ride an exercise bike and wear headphones while watching Star Wars. It was then I realized how much of the heavy breathing I was attributing to Darth Vader was actually me.

You should have switched to porn while you exercise bike. Then you could really blame the heavy breathers on the movie. Just be careful which handlebar you grab.

I've got light blue, or grey words on a white background on a low resolution display at work, and I can just barely see it, let alone read it. And just in time for Christmas orders too.

My QS8's arrived at a local Fed-Ex station last night at 11:30pm. It's 9:30am now, and it's still not out for delivery. This is making it hard to believe in the "Cast Away" movie for me.

Yeah, looks like there's a typo in the forum's html or css files.

EDIT: looks like it's being fixed right now.

Sorry everyone - it was supposed to be a '10 minute upgrade' according to the good people of UBB threads . . . We're sorry for the downtime. Almost back to normal now I think! Thank you for your patience!

I kinda liked the new color scheme.

Oooh, an upgrade! I got the nice wide display back (as wide as I set my browser window) when I selected "ubbthreads_stock" from the Style chooser menu at the bottom of the screen.

Thanks!

2 QS8's and 60 foot of speaker wire is "On FedEx vehicle for delivery".

Stuck at work and can't mount speakers today, or tomorrow....
But, at least I have them.

Thanks for such a great photo, gotta just love those cats!

WHAT END OF THE WORLD? I DON'T SEE ANYTHING.

OH, WAIT. NOW I SEE IT COMING.

I THINK I SEE IT TOO.

Driving in Russa.

Click me, he, he.

Frightening and funny all at the same time. The horse at least had the sense to cross at the crosswalk.

These people seem to have great difficulty keeping tires on their vehicles. I have driven in Mexico City which is a real adventure, but when it comes to insane drivers driving vehicles that should never be on any road, I gotta admit Russia tops them all. YIKES!

I feel a lot better about traffic here now.

It must be the vodka!

I drove an Army truck through Seoul South Korea for a couple of years, every now and then. The only instructions we were given before getting behind the wheel was, "Don't stop for anything. When they see an American Army truck coming they'll get out of your way." And guess what, this was true 100% of the time.

But I saw a lot of strange things there.

I finally got the QS8s mounted. I seem to have an overall sound problem before mounting them. It's an over-bright and fatiguing sound. It may be caused either by mounting the 3 M22's over the TV (doubtful), or it's Audysses's inability to process sound from all these speakers properly, or it's some error I'm making. Adding the surrounds only increased the problem.

I've started using the 8 position mic calibration, keeping the mike between the rather narrow mains. This has helped to increase the bass and overall sound. But some upper frequencies, mainly female voice and a bit higher become irritatingly bright. This seems to have started when I finished adding the furniture and rug.

I'm finding myself turning the volume down to avoid any unpleasantries. This never was a problem in the past. I never had this problem with MCACC. My mind keeps drifting towards selling this Denon 3312ci and getting another Pioneer Elite.

Turning Audyssey off doesn't produce better results. It then becomes more of a muted sound that I don't like. Turning Audyssey on opens up the upper end and makes it become alive sounding. Only a little too much. Anyone know a fix for this problem?

I like the Pioneer SC-65 model. $1600 msrp. $1139 Amazon. Don't have funds for it right now, but will watch pricing and snag one when I find it lower.

Another question, or just daydreaming for now.

My couch is 2 feet, puts head at 3 feet, from back wall.

I have a 4 1/2 foot central area I can install back speakers.

I have 2 unused on-wall m22's.

My logical options for back speakers are:
1) mount one of these in the middle for a 6.1 system.
2) mount 2 of these 4 foot apart for a 7.1 system.
3) purchase and mount 1 QS8 in the center for a 6.1 system.

I'm not sure of the effect of using direct radiators this close to the seating area for rear surrounds. Would need to purchase more speaker wire so I can try it out.

Finished running wires on this one. In wall, down and out behind baseboard, down through groove in drywall, through a hole I drilled into basement. Around square corner in basement ceiling, up to receiver.

Haven't run wires on this one yet. Will probably run along bottom of drywall, in a groove behind baseboard to steps. Inside and under steps, left to area under TV, then up to receiver. Can't go to basement, too much ductwork in the way.

Brian, adding the furniture and rug should have the effect of making the room a bit less "alive", so what you observed is puzzling. As far as the Audyssey effect on this, using the "Audyssey" curve rather than the "Flat" curve creates a gentle treble roll-off.

Using a single back surround speaker immediately behind the listener generally isn't a good idea and can make some sounds intended to image in back instead appear to come from the front.

Having two M22s just about three feet behind you sounds too close-up for a good back surround effect. One thing you might experiment with to give a more diffuse sound is to put the M22s flat on the floor behind the couch, separated about four feet and firing up toward the ceiling.

I am using the Audyssey curve instead of flat now for that reason. There is a manual choice for Audyssey, but don't know how to access any manual EQ adjustments. I went back to pointing the upper speakers more straight ahead than I had them to minimize the tweeters a bit. This is how the picture shows them.

Putting the speakers on the floor pointing upward would probably be too tempting for the cat to use them as something to scratch on. Other than that, it might work. I'm thinking a single QS8 might work in that rear position then.

Just watched the train wreck in Super 8. The surrounds added a lot to that. Surrounds at front wide position adds more dimensionality than just the mains, especially with mains as close together as mine. Will try these for a week, then switch to wides to see which has the best overall effects.

No; as mentioned some time ago, there are no manual Audyssey eq adjustments possible. The only manual eq settings aren't part of Audyssey and if Audyssey isn't used, a series of settings at a few specific frequencies can be made, but nothing similar to the many frequency and time adjustments that Audyssey makes.

Edit: if not directly on the floor, maybe in the same position but raised a couple feet on some type of support.

That's making me want a Pioneer even more. With the Elite model I had, I could save up to 6 seating positions. Tweak and save EQ settings for each speaker. Have additional bass boost and cut. Have additional high end curves that is somewhat adjustable.

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1050097/official-denon-avr-1909-789-thread/3180#post_15252779

An old thread of Audyssey vs MCACC.

Since you're already using the "Audyssey" curve, about the only other suggestion would be to turn Dynamic EQ off(no tone control setting is available while it's on)but leave Audyssey on, and in the parameter menu adjust the treble tone control. Vary it over the +/- 6dB range and see if you find any improvement in what you describe.

Thanks. I didn't know that was there.

So far, I like the overall sound with EQ on better than changing the tone controls, except for some of the highs. Maybe my ears need to adjust, i don't know. I'll have to get other's opinions too. I just don't remember having this problem before. Will have to play around with it some more.

One thing that seems to help a bit, is to set dynamic volume to the Day setting, leaving EQ on. Doesn't remove the problem entirely, but tames it a bit. It could be that my ears are just more sensitive to certain frequencies. But then, why didn't I ever notice this with the Pioneer receiver?

Another chalk mark for Pioneer.

This is almost funny. Sounds like I'm claiming Denon to be bright, and Pioneer to be warm and fuzzy sounding.

I just ordered my last Axiom Speaker (yeah right), for a while. It's a QS8 in eggshell white custom vinyl with white grilles, to go on the back wall, plus 40 foot of cable. All other wall mounted speakers are in standard black, but this one would probably look better in white on that particular wall. This will complete my 6.1 setup for the living room. The only other speaker option I might consider in the future would be to upgrade my EP350 to an EP500.

Next upgrades would be from OPPO 93 to 103, and from Denon 3312ci to Pioneer SC-65. Then I can A/B the 2 receivers for a while to see which one I really like the best. (This would basically be Audyssey vs MCACC.)

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I just ordered my last Axiom Speaker (yeah right), for a while. I might consider in the future would be to upgrade my EP350 to an EP500.

Speaking of last speaker... I should order a driver and another amp, so i can have 3 EP-600's that are working speakers......

Oh... Get the 500, or a pair of 600's...

I've tried the QS8's in the wide position as surrounds for a week now. Tonight, I'm going to switch them to wides and recalibrate, then try them this way for up to a week. Then see which way I like them the best.

Originally Posted By: dakkon

Oh... Get the 500, or a pair of 600's...

LOL. The 500 would be more than ample for that room. The 600's would strain my budget a bit too much. I'm waiting for that trade up program. When and if that ever materializes.

I want an EP500 in Sorrel Pear and Burnt Sienna Grill. Cost $1375 before any trade-up discount. My EP350 in Cinnamon Beech and Black Grill was $840 a couple of years ago.

Sometimes, I with I had ordered all of my speakers in Eggshell White. With current room colors, I think that would look really good.

I was watching "The Time Traveler's Wife" movie last night while sitting on the far side of the room, and was just noticing that the 3 M22's across the top of the TV really helped in carrying the quiet scenes to my ears.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I've tried the QS8's in the wide position as surrounds for a week now. Tonight, I'm going to switch them to wides and recalibrate, then try them this way for up to a week. Then see which way I like them the best.

F A I L !

Audyssey won't let me have wides without surrounds. It just gives me an error message to fix the surrounds first, then retry is my only option. So power off, switch speaker connections back to the way they were, and forget about that option.

This is nuts. Uploaded iPad photo to photobucket. Photo was upside down. I rotated it right side up on photobucket and pasted link here. Picture is still upside down.

Took 4 hours total, but got 2nd surround speaker wire hidden in wall.

I TOLD YOU WE SHOULD HAVE ORDERED THAT QS8 IN BLACK INSTEAD OF WHITE. SEE! IT STILL HASN'T ARRIVED YET. AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! NO CATNIP FOR YOU TONIGHT.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I TOLD YOU WE SHOULD HAVE ORDERED THAT QS8 IN BLACK INSTEAD OF WHITE. SEE! IT STILL HASN'T ARRIVED YET. AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! NO CATNIP FOR YOU TONIGHT.

Funnycatsite.com has a rather weird sense of humor in my option.With those very sad looking faces, I only hope they found a good home.

I got sick last night. Not sure why, but I'm feeling a little woozy today and going to just stay home.

I just discovered the manual EQ adjustments in my Denon receiver. You copy the flat curve to manual EQ and adjust from there. Just been playing with it so far to determine which freq my ears are sensitive to. Trying to tame Adele's voice. Not an easy task.

I also thought that turning dynamic EQ off was the same thing as turning the EQ off. Now I understand that dynamic EQ just means that certain lower frequencies are turned up as you turn the volume down.

Brian, as was pointed out before, the Audyssey adjustments can't be "copied" to the manual EQ. The specific frequencies in the manual EQ are the only things that are duplicated; all the other frequency and time adjustments are lost in manual. Dr. Kyriakakis termed this "crude".

Yes, the frequency and time EQ adjustments remain in effect if Dynamic EQ is off. Dynamic EQ(automatically)increases bass and to a lesser extent treble to compensate for the lesser sensitivity of ears to those frequencies as lower volume levels occur during play. The surrounds are also made slightly more prominent at the lower levels. Incidentally, Dynamic EQ was only suggested to be turned off to allow for tone control settings, not permanently.

Ok. Still playing around with it and trying to understand it. So far, I seem to like manual EQ, after flat curve copied to it, and all channels decrease 2k about 2.5 decibels. Seems a bit easier on the ears, but subtle differences when A/B between Audyssey and Manual.

Only problem is it still sounds better overall on Audysey. Better balanced like, only with the approx 2k freq a little grating on the ears.

Audyssey applies a lot of extra volume to the 2k when I check it on the Manual setting after the flat curve copy. This is true for L/C/R. I'm wondering if the v3 speakers have a cross-over somewhere around 2k, probably a bit higher, and Audyssey is boosting that spot to make up for a dip? But with negative results in my particular setup. Not a sign of a particular defective cross-over because it affects all speakers evenly.

If so, then this again is where Pioneer's MCACC would win over Audyssey. Because their manual adjustments doesn't shut everything else off.

I think maybe my next check ought to be running a frequency sweep using my RatShack meter on a tripod. Twice. Once with Audyssey on and once with it off. Writing down the readings for each freq checked. (Need to keep cat busy else where. She's in pain during the higher notes. Glad I don't have a dog.)

Adding the surrounds to the mix just seems to have enhanced the overall problem. Adding more higher frequencies to the mix.

Other than my high frequency problem, the Axiom speakers are great speakers. I just wish I could get my problem solved so I'd have nothing but positive things to say. It seems that swapping out the Denon receiver for a Pioneer would be my logical next step. Since I've never experienced these problems with the Pioneer. But my main speakers then were all v2. That still leaves a slim possibility that the v3 is my problem.

I think one more test I can make is to unplug the bottom 3 L/C/R speakers and do measurements with just the top 3 M22's and see what I get.

Will probably have to wait for this weekend, when I'll have more time.

Sorry for the double entry. Just wanted to note this here too.

Doesn't take long for those home renovations to add up. I'm doing mine a little at a time. Last year I had a basement wall braced (from the outside) and the living room and HT revamped.

This year, I plan on paying someone to tear out all the concrete in the front of the house (stoop, and walkway to garage) and replace it with concrete from house to 1 foot past existing sidewalk for a 2 tiered walk and pattio (meaning there are a few steps down to the lower level). Plus finishing up a bedroom I tore up to re-make it into an office space. Plus payback a loan on my 401k for the living room furniture and rug, in 1 year instead of the 2 I took out.

And try and replace the carpet in the hallway and steps leading down to the living room. Color ideas? Red to match the walls, or curtains, or area rug?

Next year, taking out the downstairs door by concreting up the wall. Then start on the 2 rooms in the downstairs that got destroyed by water from a storm. Water leaked under the door I want to take out. I'm not doing any renovation there until that door is gone.

Looks like I'll be able to order the Pioneer SC-65 a week from today. Currently $1120 on Amazon. I read somewhere that this year Pioneer won't honor warranties if you buy from any on-line sellers. Can anyone verify this one way or the other?

I verified it myself. Amazon.com is an authorized dealer.

I would think/hope that as long as the online dealer is authorized, it should be fine.

I'm going to go for the Pioneer Elite SC-67 instead of the 65 because right now it's only $200 more at $1350. Originally a $2000 receiver. Whereas the 65 is originally a $1600 receiver. A little more bling. I like it.

I'll just have to eat melted snow for the next 2 weeks.

I have spoken too a pioneer customer service rep. about several matters dealing with their Elite line of receivers, and had asked that very same question. Their response was, the Elite's were never meant to be sold on line, only in authorized stores. That these authorized stores enter into an agreement which disallow them from offering them up online even though they are a authorized brick& mortar store. She then went on to say that some of the distributors are the ones who are selling to unauthorized dealers, and this is the reasoning for not warranting the online purchases.

I just recently purchased an Elite Sc-67 (which is now in transit) for my upcoming HT system. I purchased a two year warranty along with my Pioneer. This purchase along with the warranty was still less than buying it at Best Buy paying sales tax.

When I go to well here, it says something rather confusing and conflicting:

1) *Pioneer does NOT authorize any dealers to sell Elite-branded products on the Internet (only in-store sales are permitted). Therefore, any Elite-branded product purchased on the Internet is NOT authorized, which means that it does NOT carry the manufacturer's limited warranty and does not qualify for any manufacturer's rebate.

2) Peace of mind – Only authorized dealers are able to sell brand-new, non-refurbished, original stock products, complete with accessories and manuals that are made for use in the US.

When in doubt, check our lists and get links directly to authorized sites.

The following dealers are authorized to sell our products:

(included in this rather long list of icons, is Amazon.com)

So, does this mean a warranty comes with purchases of Pioneer goods at Amazon.com, or are they saying that the Elite's are exempt from the warranty.

Also, did you pay more or less than what Amazon is selling for $1350? and how do you get a warranty online?

I guess there is Square Trade. You have to follow Amazon's links to the Square Trade pages to get the warranty price, I see.

Yes Brian that is what I paid for my Pioneer Sc-67. Watch the pricing, as it will bounce back and forth between $1350 and $1380. If it go up to that higher price, it will only generally stay there for a couple of days, before coming back down.

In the order box it will give you the option to purchase the 2 year warranty. Check that smaller box(within the order box) before you enter the Pio into the shopping cart.

I've been to the Square Trade site. I don't have to buy the warranty from Amazon when I purchase the receiver.

I can go to the Square Trade site and purchase it up to 30 days after I buy it from Amazon, which is what I'll have to do.

It's $129.99 for a 3 year warranty. This covers home audio components valued in the $750-999 range. I didn't see a plan for home audio component over $999. Anyway, this means that the plan will pay out up to $999 in repairs on the warrantied component, or what you paid for it, whichever is the lesser amount.

I'd probably go for the 3 year instead of the 2 year, because my last Pioneer broke after the 2 year warranty was up. This will at least guarantee I'll get 3 years of good service out of it before it explodes, or something. My look seems to go that way.

Good deal!

Now I know you have had some past experience with Pioneer receivers, so I have some questions for you, and anybody else who may have knowledge on this matter as well. During the initial set up, what does the Mcacc programming do for dual subs? I know they aren't treated independently, are distances set for each?I read there is no sub Eqing, is there a work around for this and if so what can be done?

So far, my only experience with Pioneer Elite was a model VSX 21 TXH. It only had output for 1 sub, with no special sub measurements.

Been pondering replacing my dining room table and chairs. I've had them since about the year 2001 and seats 6, only 5 chairs though. It's huge and a center piece makes it even huger. Would seat 8 or 10 then. I rarely have that many people over for dinner. Maybe once a year at the most. Has an interesting design in it from patched in wood pieces, with an ultra smooth and shiny surface. Made in Italy. Got it for a steal from a bad salesman from a store that was going out of business for about half price at the time. But, I've grown tired of looking at it, and it just gets in the way.

So, thinking about downsizing with maybe a small table, round or square with a single center support.

Here's an interesting site for dining room tables that I stumbled upon where they are made out of solid wood. I'm not planning on paying that much. Just looking at the moment for ideas.

I ran the frequency sweep with the RadioShack digital meter in the same position as Audyssey's #1 mike position when calibrating. Meter pointed straight ahead. For freq sweep, I used Rives Audio test CD#2, tracks 32 thru 62. Those adjusted for the Ratshack meter.

Look at what Audyssey does at 200 hz. That could be my problem right there. Cutting certain bass might have the same effect as boosting certain treble. I'm going to listen with Audyssey off for a while.

I'm listing decibels with Audyssey on, decibels with Audyssey off, frequency tone in HZ.

83 73 20
84 75 25
87 79 31.5
82 74 40
87 80 50
88 89 63
77 78 80
76 70 100
83 83 125
81 81 160
64 76 200
80 82 250
81 83 315
84 81 400
65 69 500
79 81 630
69 71 800
81 81 1000
78 75 1250
81 78 1600
79 76 2000
82 83 2500
85 81 3150
87 84 4000
81 70 5000
95 89 6300
86 84 8000
82 82 10000
74 74 12500
63 70 16000
57 55 20000

Couldn't take it long with Audyssey off. Just didn't have the same pizazz. Oh well.

Boy I'm getting tired of dealing with the bosses problems, which then become my problems. Can I retire yet? Noooooooo.

Any one know of a good personal hidden voice recorder. Hidden and good for small meeting groups.

I got an inexpensive digital voice recorder from Frys and it works. I didn't use it the way you are intending though... you should be able to get one for 20-30$

Something like this might work, if it'll record good while in a pocket.

The reviews on the flash drive recorders said the mic wasn't powerful enough to get anything but your own voice. The cheaper units like I pointed out, didn't have a USB port.

Cat, I've been noting that you post a question, and then answer your own post, all in a self-titled thread.

Doc, is there a name for this?

That was me answering the questions?

Oh, I guess it must have been me.

Just use a smartphone everyone has one in their hand these days. The other person would not even be the wiser. I take pictures of shitty drivers as I go by them. Makes em paranoid LOL

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Just use a smartphone everyone has one in their hand these days. The other person would not even be the wiser. I take pictures of shitty drivers as I go by them. Makes em paranoid LOL

Be another year before I can get one because of stupid contracts.

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Just use a smartphone everyone has one in their hand these days. The other person would not even be the wiser. I take pictures of shitty drivers as I go by them. Makes em paranoid LOL

A fellow here took a picture of somebody tailgating him with just inches to spare. He sent it to the police and they wrote him a warning ticket for using his cellular device while driving. Proving once again, the idiots always win.

If you're really going to do this, I would check the legality of recording someone without their permission.

Why not the MLB, Major League Baseball, records everything....

Note: Only veteran Simpsons fans should expect to get this.

Looks like in Missouri it's a Felony offense to record a private conversation without the other person's permission. That makes it difficult to prove that the person you're working for is verbally abusing his employees.

There's a lot more happening in a conversation, tone of voice, etc, that just doesn't come across without the use of a recording device. If someone is committing a crime against you in this manner, then how do you prove it?

I guess I would categorize it as Verbal or Oral Assault.

I'm wondering what a difference it would make to put an EP600 or EP800 behind my couch. There's room for one there. And just leave the EP350 where it is. I've noticed since I've gotten a living room full of fluffy furniture that the bass has changed. It's more localized coming from the sub for one thing, and I don't have that bassy spot near the corner.

I probably ought to do another sub crawl, but my placement options are rather limited.

I wonder what the difference between the EP600 and EP800 would make in my living room environment? Or, would the differences be unnoticeable. I'm not into pipe organ music. Maybe even a 500 would work there.

Brian, why not try your EP350 in that spot 1st to see if it is a 'bass friendly' spot?

FWIW, I have my EP500 behind my couch and aside from being one of the good spots when doing the sub crawl, it has the tangible benefit of real tactile bass through the couch. We can literally feel the dinosaur steps and the like through the cushions.

For my preference's I have 2 small subs,they are in opposing corners of the room. I run them together when calibrating with auddysey and it works out really well. It was a real improvement adding the second sub. I had to search quite a while to find one that matched ,though im not sure just how important that is.

I'm not averse to using a non-Axiom sub, as long as it's much cheaper and relatively flat response.

As far as trying the sub in that spot. I can after I purchase a cable with the RCA ends that's long enough.

I bought a second sub that was the exact same as the one i already had. I found it on craigslist in florida. Not sureit was important that it was the same but at the time i was on a mission lol. I ended up replacing the woofer in the sub with a driver from parts express and they sound identical to my ears, so as i say im not so sure you would really need a matching sub.
See if yo can borrow a second sub from a freind or buyone and return it if you dont like.

CatBrat, I'd meet with your HR department before taking any action. If they're worth their paychecks, they should at least start a file on the offender. If the person is harassing multiple people, encourage them to file complaints, as well.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

CatBrat, I'd meet with your HR department before taking any action. If they're worth their paychecks, they should at least start a file on the offender. If the person is harassing multiple people, encourage them to file complaints, as well.

Small company. No HR department..... I'm not sure if I can classify it as harassment. That's why I was wanting someone in the know, to listen to a choice conversation that I had secretly recorded. But laws kind of blow that out of the water. Everybody knows we don't get along. Make that everbody knows he doesn't get along with almost anybody, except his pets.

Originally Posted By: Socketman

See if yo can borrow a second sub from a freind or buyone and return it if you dont like.

All my friends are too cheap to even consider buying a sub. They either don't have a sound system, or it's a cheap HTIB. I keep trying to make new friends, but alas.....

I like the looks of those tall round black ones I see on occasion, but I don't know how good they are, or the brand name.

Give me enough time and I'll probably find it.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

.....

I like the looks of those tall round black ones I see on occasion, but I don't know how good they are, or the brand name.

Give me enough time and I'll probably find it.

You mean SVS subs? I really like them - my in-laws have the PC13 and it can deliver. I find my Axiom EP500 more 'textured', but the SVS can deliver in a big way. Of course that is purely subjective as they are at different houses so no back to back listening sessions.

SVS, that's it.

PC12-NSD. 400 watt, 800 peak, for $750.
PC12-PLUS. 800 watt, 2300 peak, for $1200.
PC13-Ultra, with dsp. 1000 watt, 3600 peak, for $1700.
Legato, with dsp. 800 watt, 2300 peak for $2300.

That PC12-PLUS looks like it might work. I'm sure the EP800 would probably be better sonically. But at the price of an EP400 / EP500, it's tempting.

I want an EP800 too but after Andrew was taking info about what everyone uses, I think something new is in the works. So I think I will keep my two PS1000s for awhile longer.

Paradigm Reference Sub 2 , 9000 watts, 9000 Dollars, runs on 240v . This is the sub I want. Paradigm Sub

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Paradigm Reference Sub 2 , 9000 watts, 9000 Dollars, runs on 240v . This is the sub I want. Paradigm Sub

Yeah, I saw that. But when I saw the price was $9000, all I could think was turn the page, turn the page.

If my doc ever says the C word im goin for it LOL

Not sure what the C word is. But Crazy comes to mind. LoL. Just kidding, of course.

Been thinking what car I'd buy if I got a windfall from my retirement funds from trading. It happened last week, but I didn't sell in time to profit from it. When I saw that happen, I'm left thinking, damn, that could have been put towards a new car instead of letting it slip through my fingers. I'm nearing retirement age, and a new car that's paid for sounds like a good option. It happened again this week and I sold it for a profit, but it was only half as much.

So far, it comes up Chevy Volt. That would be my choice. In the premium white color, with black and red interior.

Or, I could buy that $9000 subwoofer..... Nah.

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Paradigm Reference Sub 2 , 9000 watts, 9000 Dollars, runs on 240v . This is the sub I want. Paradigm Sub

+1 That is my dream sub just because it exists! Even though I'd have to tear out a wall to run a 240v line to it - cuz what's the point of running it on 120v?

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Not sure what the C word is. But Crazy comes to mind. LoL. Just kidding, of course.

Already been diagnosed crazy, but you dont die from that LOL.

What, exactly, is "pacing" when describing a sub?

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

What, exactly, is "pacing" when describing a sub?

It's about the only means of exercise left, because there's just not enough room in one to walk very far.

Peter, possibly the music that he was playing had great "pacing"(and "rhythm", too!), since it's obviously ridiculous to apply those terms to a sub itself.

After living with the QS8 surround speakers in a 5.1 setup, only with the QS8's in the Wide position instead of the Surround position, I can officially say I am underwhelmed. Not due to the speakers, but due to the position of the speakers.

I would say it's marginally better with them there than without them there. If I sit in my old seating position of right in front of the tv, only about 7-8 feet back, I get the best use of the surrounds. That places them halfway between me and the TV.

But if I just sit somewhere on the L shaped sectional, it's a very rare thing when I actually notice anything coming out of them. I have turned the volume on them up 1 db. to help overcome this a bit. It does help in some situations to give me a wider sound stage. With concerts, mostly all I notice are applauding and shouting coming from them.

Now I'm waiting on the shipment of my 3rd QS8 speaker that's white and going on the back wall. The 10 business day wait puts the proposed ship date on Monday the 14th. My anticipation is this single speaker to complete my 6.1 setup is probably going to make the biggest surround difference.

Edit: I don't know if the original on-wall M22's will fit on the new clips for the QS8's or not. But I'd kind of like to try one of my M22's on the back wall instead of the QS8, just to see what I think about it.

I'm thinking my next car is going to be a Chevy Volt, paid for by funds from my retirement account, before the summer is over. That's my short term goal. It's either that or car payments, and I'm averse to car payments. Especially after going without paying any or 10 years. If it happens, it happens. If it don't, I'll probably still be driving the same old Chrysler I've had since 1998.

Cat, you DO know this is a public forum and not a diary, right?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Cat, you DO know this is a public forum and not a diary, right?

No, no, no. It's a public diary.

Dear diary, what a day it's been
Dear diary, it's been just like a dream
Woke up too late, wasn't where I should've been
For goodness sake what's happening to me?
Write lightly, yours truly, dear diary

It was cold outside my door
So many people by the score
Rushing around so senselessly
They don't notice there's people like me
Write lightly, yours truly, dear diary

They don't know what they're playing?
No they've no way of knowing what the game is
Still they carry on doing what they can
Outside me, yours politely, dear diary

It's over, will tomorrow be the same?
I know that they're really not to blame
If they weren't so blind then surely they'd see
There's a much better way for them to be
Inside me, yours truly, dear diary

This is how cat tweets.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'm thinking my next car is going to be a Chevy Volt, paid for by funds from my retirement account, before the summer is over. That's my short term goal. It's either that or car payments, and I'm averse to car payments. Especially after going without paying any or 10 years. If it happens, it happens. If it don't, I'll probably still be driving the same old Chrysler I've had since 1998.

[FORUM POLICE]

I'm not seeing a question, here. Please include at least one question in your post unless your post is a direct response to someone else's question. In this manner, we can all enjoy a trouble-free stay here in Axiomville.

[/FORUM POLICE]

But, this is the Water Cooler.

If what you say is The Law, then almost all of the forum posts would have to be deleted.
Make that almost all of the Water Cooler posts would have to be deleted.

I'm not feeling a lot of love at this site anyway.. Maybe I should go to avsforum and start bashing Axiom. LOL.

Naaa.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

[FORUM POLICE]

I'm not seeing a question, here. Please include at least one question in your post unless your post is a direct response to someone else's question. In this manner, we can all enjoy a trouble-free stay here in Axiomville.

[/FORUM POLICE]

[FORUM POLICE POLICE]
I'm not seeing a question, here am I? Please include at least one question in your post unless your post is a direct response to someone else's question. In this manner, we can all enjoy a troublepolice police-free stay here in Axiomville.
[/FORUM POLICE POLICE]

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

[FORUM POLICE]

I'm not seeing a question, here. Please include at least one question in your post unless your post is a direct response to someone else's question. In this manner, we can all enjoy a trouble-free stay here in Axiomville.

[/FORUM POLICE]

Andropause.....?

I ordered the Pioneer SC-67 this morning. Expected delivery is Friday the 18th. Now I'm broke again.

Yeah but its a good kinda broke

Are you going to keep both receivers or is this merely a test.
Something I was goin to mention brian, I have some axioms in my bedroom on shelves about 4 ft off the ground and I found that turning them upside down really improved how they sounded.

After testing with both receivers, I'm not sure yet what to do with the loser. I may keep it or decide to sell it. If I still like it, I'll probably keep it, because I'll be working on a dedicated, but smallish theater room downstairs.

Turning your speakers upside down probably put the tweeters closer to ear level while sitting. I have too many speakers to have all the tweeters pointing at my ears. I like the sound better the way I have it with the upper speakers pointing down a little, but towards the rear sitting position.

Today's the 10th business day since my white QS8 order..... Should ship today, I hope. Who me? patiently waiting? NEVER!

This one lonely speaker will be the only non-frontal speaker I'll have.

Ten business days and no speaker shipment yet. Must be approx 10 business days then.

I keep grunting trying to mentally force the price of CTIX stock up so I can order my Chevy Volt (or whatever I decide on at the time).

I test drove a Volt yesterday, and I wasn't too impressed with it. Going to check out Ford's version of Hybrid next.

On paper, I'm up $15k. Getting a little closer.

I was hoping to hear that someone would say they'd eat their hat if I raised $40k in a short period of time. We need a new comedy video.

Forget the Volt. For the same price, I can get a fully loaded 2013 Lincoln MKZ Hybrid. Woohoo.

<--- Do you like the new me?

That depends. Has more than your avatar changed?

Yeah, but it's going "the other" direction.

So, if you was to buy any car you wanted for up to $50 grand USD (Top Limit), what would you buy?

It would have to be your Primary mode of transportation.

Mazda Miata MX-5.

For my present situation, I would be looking at a new truck, quad cab, short box, tow package etc. or a BMW X5 for my wife.

Just received shipment of a Pioneer SC-67 receiver. Going to set it up tonight.

Originally Posted By: jakewash

For my present situation, I would be looking at a new truck, quad cab, short box, tow package etc. or a BMW X5 for my wife.

I often think about the same kind of truck that you have in mind as a possibility, only without the tow package. It has to be able to fit into a garage that's 226 inches long. That limit's me to just a few of them.

Personally, I don't want a small 2 seater car. Been there, done that.

Ahhh. A thing of beauty...

Ooooohhh, amp porn! I want to touch those buttons.

Very nice, I hope you enjoy the new purchase Brian.

Cheers,

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

So, if you was to buy any car you wanted for up to $50 grand USD (Top Limit), what would you buy?

It would have to be your Primary mode of transportation.

Infiniti G37 convertible. Just squeaks in under the price limit. Would you throw in a few extra thou for options?

Congrats on the new amp toy.

By the time I add on the options I want with the Infinity M Hybrid, the price comes to a little over $68,000.

Takes forever to set receivers up. Here it is 7:00pm and haven't even run MCACC yet.

Modified the shelf by shortening the plastic vertical supports so it'll hold more shelves. Then had to find a usable USB stick, download the firmware files and update. Now the oven is making too much noise cooking salmon. Maybe by 8:00 I'll have MCACC run.

Here's pictures of what's behind the wall where the TV is. My cheap plastic shelves. Plenty sturdy for what I need.

FRONT SIDE ACCESS.

BACK SIDE ACCESS.

While i agree you have a lot of access... i don't think that would fit well for someone who's shelving is visible... Would be awkward explaining to someone why a 10k$ amp is sitting on a 5$ shelving unit...... i guess one could aways just use the "i ran out of cash" line...

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

BACK SIDE ACCESS.

I just wanted to be the first to take this out of context!

Well, I didn't find audio nirvana like I was hoping for. The 2 amps, after running their audio software, each have a distinctive sound all their own. The Denon may actually sound marginally better. Unfortunately, no night and day difference. Both play too bright for my ears at upper volume levels, around the 80-90 db range. Turning MCACC off didn't sound bad at all, except there was too much bass.

I moved the upper speakers, over the Tv to a straight ahead position, so the teeters are no longer pointing to the seating area with little change in results.

System actually sounded the best with the smaller TV, with the on walls mounted above the bookshelfs. I'm not going back there, so will have to keep tweaking.

Pioneer, I set mains to small with cross over at 80.

A couple of things that have helped a bit, is turning the lower mains upside down so the tweeters are further from the ears, and change Pioneer's X-curve to -1 db, to curve off the high end.

So the only tweeters that are fairly close to the ears are the lower center and the surrounds. The tweeter dispersion on the rest is enough that they are audible.

Sure would be nice to have a room big enough and the right size for a good pair of floor standers. Right now, it would difficult to add a pair of M50. Have to raise TV and speakers 5 inches. Don't know if replacing the 2 lower M22 with M50 would help or not.

Guess I could try it without raising stuff, then send them back if I don't get much improvement.

before you do all that, why not just disconnect the tweeters within some of the cabnets.? If i was in your situation, i thinks thats what i would do...

Originally Posted By: dakkon

before you do all that, why not just disconnect the tweeters within some of the cabnets.? If i was in your situation, i thinks thats what i would do...

You know, I thought about that last night. Didn't know if that was a good idea or not.

I'm going to install an older pair of M22 v2 on the wall under the TV for lower L/R channels. If this sounds ok to me, then at least it'll be more in-line with the in-cabinet VP160. May not change the sound, but may at least look a bit better, and who knows, maybe sound better too.

Another think I need to look at is some sound treatments for the room. I had thought that the new drapes, rug and furniture was enough, but maybe not. Does anybody know of something "cheap" I could try to see if this helps fix the problem? Then later I could replace the cheap stuff with something a bit more visually appealing. Something that actually works. Not the egg carton stuff.

The tweeters from the lower L/R seems to be one of the main culprits. Turning them upside down helped. Disconnecting them would probably look and sound better. Unplugging them helped a lot from a rear seating position, but up close was too distracting without them on.

I chose the Adele concert on BD as the first test for the Pioneer AVR. It was way too bright. The cat that was sitting beside me looked up at me and made a wincing look with her face. Priceless.

Cat, maybe you should verify that each of the woofers in your 74 speakers are working?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Cat, maybe you should verify that each of the woofers in your 74 speakers are working?

You forgot the sixteen in the ceiling and the ten in the floor. I think it rounds to an even 100 now.

Yeah, yeah.

I may have to enlist the help of the guy that calibrated my TV. He does the whole theater gamut of stuff. Just have to wait until later this year when I can afford him.

At least I have 2 good AVR's. One for a backup, and later can use downstairs in my "wish I had time and money to work on it" theater room. For now, it gives me something to play with an compare.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

The tweeters .... Unplugging them helped a lot from a rear seating position, but up close was too distracting without them on.

Unplugging the entire speaker, not just the tweeters.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

You know, I thought about that last night. Didn't know if that was a good idea or not.

Just make sure to insulate the leads, cover them with electrical tape, to make sure that they will not come in contact.. Heat shrink would be the best, if you ever needed to remove it, you could cut it off.

I watched 2012 movie last night after recalibrating the Pioneer sc-67, and all I can say is the sound was awesome. One thing I did different was raise the mike up a foot higher that I had it, which places it about 14 inches above the backs of the couch. Even with almost none of the tweeters pointed at my ears, there was still plenty of the highs and it sounded more natural than I've heard it in a while.

There was plenty of bass, more than I've heard from the Denon. I understand now that this is basically uncontrolled bass from the Pioneer, but it us what I've grown accustomed to with my other Pioneer amp.

It's too bad Pioneer doesn't make a high end Processor.. like the Integra DHC80.3

We watched '2012' as well last night on my newly re-calibrated Audyssey system on my Denon. At -10 Db, the sound track was very good & mercifully not overdone in the LFE department that was most welcome for a change. Given the myriad of massive catastrophic destruction scenes, the sound guys could have gone over the top, but thankfully they restrained themselves.

Overall an OK movie although somewhat long due to a convoluted plot. Unfortunately, the never ending life & death sub-plots throughout made it fatiguing for me to sit through. Visual special effects of the earth's crust self-destructing were quite spectacular & mostly very realistic looking.

This BD was worth the 3 bucks that I paid during the close out of our last local video store.

TAM

Fed-ex seems to be having computer difficulties. I get nothing but error messages when I try to access tracking info for my speaker shipment.

Problem fixed, working now. Maybe it was on my end. Speaker out for delivery next business day. Tuesday in this case.

I converted my 5.1 to a 6.1 setup last night with wires hidden. I picked the wrong movie to test it with though. Star Trek is a 5.1 movie. The THX extended mode it ran in supplied output to the speaker, but about the only time you could hear anything coming out of it was when you put your head near it.

Will have to find a better one tonight.

I have to say, I'm loving the sound coming out of the Pioneer now. It sounds like my old system sounded. Mucho bass. Seems raising the mic to be about a foot higher than the backs of the high back couch made all the difference. Also no shrill noises coming out of the speakers to hurt my ears.

Later when I replace some of my banana plugs, I'll try the same with the Denon and see it that makes a difference with it.

What did the sock monkey think of it? They can be hard to please.

Sock monkey has no opinion of the rear surround. He's too busy bouncing around under the right surround and being sniffed by the cat.

So far, I've been lucky that the cat hasn't tried to jump on top of one of the surrounds. (knock, knock)

Looks like blu-ray.com has a filter that helps me find all the 6.1 and 7.1 movie listings. Of those that I have in 6.1, looks like.

Crash, Dirty Dancing, 1st 2 Harry Potter movies, Lord of the Rings, All Star Wars, Stargate, Total Recall, X-Men Last Stand.

7.1 many more.

http://www.blu-raystats.com/Stats/Stats.php

Watched Transformers, Dark of the Moon tonight. Rear surround got a good first workout. Turning it up 1/2 decibel helped a bit also.

That speaker looks lonly back there, I think in needs another to keep it company.

Originally Posted By: duckman

That speaker looks lonly back there, I think in needs another to keep it company.

Nah. They would be too close together. One does the job well here.

Mmmmm. Popin Fresh.

Obi Wan researches cat light sabers. The force is strong with that one.

I ordered one of these today.

Hot Link Pro Remote Control Booster System

Otherwise known as an IR Repeater (or extender). This will allow me to use the original remotes and a good universal without the RF capability. (NOTE: Components are behind the wall TV is mounted on.)

I was looking at the universal remotes on amazon. While reading the revews I'm finding the following recent comments to be a theme with these remotes.

Don't buy from Amazon. Not an authorized seller. No warranty.

Buggy remote. Keeps losing it's programmed functions.

Requires special software that doesn't come with remote and you can't buy it.

The software that used to come with it doesn't come with it anymore.

Missing or inadequate instructions.

Anyone considering a URC (Universal Remote Control) remote should check the prices at Surf Remote Control. Just give them them a call and ask what the current discount price is for the remote in which you are interested. They are authorized dealers, have great prices, and are super nice folks to deal with.

It may be possible to find a better price, but you should definitely check with them before buying.

Originally Posted By: Ajax

Anyone considering a URC (Universal Remote Control) remote should check the prices at Surf Remote Control. Just give them them a call and ask what the current discount price is for the remote in which you are interested. They are authorized dealers, have great prices, and are super nice folks to deal with.

It may be possible to find a better price, but you should definitely check with them before buying.

+1. In my case the price was roughly half msrp.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I'm thinking my next car is going to be a Chevy Volt, paid for by funds from my retirement account, before the summer is over. That's my short term goal. It's either that or car payments, and I'm averse to car payments. Especially after going without paying any or 10 years. If it happens, it happens. If it don't, I'll probably still be driving the same old Chrysler I've had since 1998.

Old post from earlier this month.

Of course, I've decided against Chevy Volt after test driving one. But still plan on buying a new car with what ever funds my retirement account has over the balance as of 01/01/13 at the end of March 2013.

So far, 1 of 3 months into this plan, I'm 1/3 of the way to $50 grand. Hopefully, I can keep it up. (That's actual dollars after selling stock, not just an amount on paper).

Let's see.. How much is a 2014 Corvette?

The IR repeater I installed last night, works fine with the old remotes. I do have to point the remote to the top of the TV, where the sensor is located, stuck to the back of the TV at the upper top.

I haven't tried it yet with 3D turned on. It should be ok, since my active 3D glasses uses RF and not IR signals.

The blue light that it comes with, I ran through the hole I made for the upper right speaker wire. It's a bit on the bright side, but it informs me when it receives the IR signal from the remote. Without this, it'd be harder to determine if I was aiming the remote properly. Sometimes during the playback of the movie, the blue light will dimly illuminate during brighter scenes. I may have to either live with this, or see if moving the sensor helps any.

I was pretty lucky, the power center I recieved Christmas2011 came with an IR repeater and a pile of cables.
I'll be installing it soon, I had to install my satelite DVR behind a cabinet door when I installed my new amp.
I should have installed it then. I have to aim around my center channel to turn on the TV. It bugs the wife so its all good.

My car knows I want a different one.

I lost the map light this weekend.

Yesterday my car wouldn't start when trying to go home from work. Battery good. Put extra gallon of gas in it, just in case the gauge was broke. Had it towed to my favorite repair shop. Still waiting on results. Probably the ignition electronic module, or whatever it's called.

The Life of Pie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUB6MxT2eMc

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

My car knows I want a different one.

I lost the map light this weekend.

Yesterday my car wouldn't start when trying to go home from work. Battery good. Put extra gallon of gas in it, just in case the gauge was broke. Had it towed to my favorite repair shop. Still waiting on results. Probably the ignition electronic module, or whatever it's called.

Tomorrow my car gets new distributer, plugs and wires. Cost around $700. This car costs around $1000 a year in maintenance, so it was due. It's a 1998 Chrysler Cirrus with 210,000 miles.

Anybody have any experience or opinions with an AWD Subaru? Here's a picture of a 2013 Outback, I've been thinking about.

I've been looking at cars and looking for a decent all weather vehicle to buy first, before any necessary frivolous auto down the road (sic).

I bought a 1987 Subaru DL hatchback new and drove it 100,000 miles until selling it in 1997. It was a great car for me. It was FWD, so my experience isn't that relevant to a new Subie with 4WD, but I do think highly of Subaru overall as far as quality goes. A solid if quirky Japanese make.

One of my wife's uncles has had two Subaru Foresters so far. He and his wife also have an Acura TL. If it were strictly up to the Mrs. she'd sell the Acura in a heartbeat and stick to the Subaru.

Seems every time I find a car I like, then do the online Build A Car, it always ends up around $35-40 grand.

Subaru's are not the cheapest, but are a good quality vehicle. Once you add all the bells and whistles to a car in the same category no matter which manufacturer they all end up to be the same price, give or take a couple thousand.

FWIW, I thought our baseline AWD Rav4 (4cyl) was a pretty good deal for what it comes with, it was under $30,000(even less down there). I know it isn't exactly what you would be looking for, but once you start adding the little extra's the price climbed up pretty quickly.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Seems every time I find a car I like, then do the online Build A Car, it always ends up around $35-40 grand.

You gots spensive taste!

Take a Corolla/Civic... buy a set of snow tires and you have a good all weather vehicle that will get you from A to B just fine.

Your right. I'd gots expensive tastes. Somehow a cheap car isn't going to satisfy me.

I made 3 times more money trading stocks in the month of January, than what my company paid me for the month. Cool, huh?

At this rate, I should have about 6 million by the end of the year. Maybe I'll put off buying that car for a few to put compounding into action. I might be able to retire quicker than I thought.

Did you know that you can double your money every 2 months by making 2 percent every working day? The stocks I trade move up and down about 5 to 30% at a time. Have to catch a portion of those upward moves with a fraction of the account every day to make that happen.

Car still broke since Wednesday. Still waiting on repairs.

Originally Posted By: medic8r

I bought a 1987 Subaru DL hatchback new and drove it 100,000 miles until selling it in 1997. It was a great car for me. It was FWD, so my experience isn't that relevant to a new Subie with 4WD, but I do think highly of Subaru overall as far as quality goes. A solid if quirky Japanese make.

I thought all Subaru's were AWD

They are now, but back in their early days they offered FW and AW drive.

Actually, they're not again. They've got that FWD sports car that they built with Toyota.

That's rear drive.

Now it's going to be tomorrow before I get my car out of the repair shop. Needs a new alternator. Bearings are shot. The car I want to get rid of is going to cost me about $1400 in repair. Then it'll still have a bad head gasket that's leaking oil. Also had a leaking transmission line that had to be replaced.

If it has tits ,tracks ,tires or transistors its gonna cost ya money.

Here it is almost superbowl time and still no car to drive. At least I've got a new friend who's willing to give me a ride when it's ready. He said it would be done today. The man does good work, takes his time and does a job right. I'm so thankful that he doesn't charge by the hour. It's been 4 days now.

I've been toying about maybe a used Hummer H3 as a muddier car for winter driving. Anybody have experience or advice with one of these. . Costs of used ones seem fairly reasonable.

Car in shop since Wed evening. Bill for almost $1400, paid half, picked up car, then before I get it home, a transmission line springs another leak and I had it towed back to the shop. Sheesh. Now without money and a car.

If you bought an H3, you'd be one of *those* guys.

You know what I'm talking about.

I've probably been one of "those" guys all my life and just didn't realize it until now.

That reminds me. In high school, I was a scrawny little twerp, and near the first of the school year, I was talking to a good looking female class mate, when one of the bullies turned around and said to her, "Don't talk to him. He's one of 'Those Guys'". She never talked to me again....

Got my car back

The throttle sticks

Seems as tho that mechanic loves repeat customers. I think you better hurry on that new car. If you want some big service bills, get the Hummer.

He warned me about. The cable was frayed, so he cut off the lose ends, now the non lose ends get stuck in the cable housing. Said he'd get one out of a junk yard and replace it. I may have to remind him.

Hope you have good brakes.lol

Letting you leave the shop knowing that there is a chance your accelerator could stick is not good for business. Dead customers don't tend to be repeat customers. I'd be thinking hard about how loyal you are to him.

That thought has crossed my mind. He does have a lot of good qualities. Price (usually). Thoroughness (usually). Fixes things he finds along the way (this is what has caused my throttle problem.) I'm going back there Friday, and I'm going to insist that he fixes the throttle problem then. Will call today, to make sure he's going to have the part available. I can't pay him for that one until about 3 weeks down the road, but he did cause the problem.

I'll be on the lookout for a different mechanic, if I can find better.

You'll need a reliable car to get to Atlanta to get those 7 Axiom speakers for $150. I know you've thought about it.

TheListener's loss will be your gain, and then your back wall can look like your front wall.

GO! FIGHT! WIN!!!

WooHoo.

Will this be a gun or a knife fight?

Ran out of money for movie additions. If you click on my signature link, you'll see only 4 movies listed under Latest Additions at the top. That list has been as high as 30 movies in the past. It's the last 3 weeks of movie purchases I've made.

Did you get the new Mortal Kombat movie?

I knew there was a reason I didn't like ice skating. Those little girls are murder.

Does this fit in with Charles's new fixation on "Korean boys pursue violent girls" movie theme?

Anybody know what those small Hummers I keep seeing on the street are?

I see 2010 as the last year that Hummers were made that are for sale on the web. I see H1, H2, H3, H3T and some off the wall ones, but there are no pictures of what seems to be a half sized H3. Not talking about the electric one. Yikes! That thing is so tiny. Nor talking about the little kids models.

I saw one yesterday and it seems the back 2 windows are taller than they are wide.

And no, I'm not seeing pink elephants, either.

Maybe it's not a Hummer. Just something that looks like one.

Those are cinder blocks on end. You should move them out of the street.

Not Sure Cat. I thought the H3 (or was it the H3X) was thier smallest model.

Also, I'm not sure why (in my personal opinion only) why anyone would want a Hummer these days.

The original demands respect for it's off road capabilities & crazy huge size but now they are not much more than a cosmetically refined memory of the Hummer body shape on a Chevy Colorado frame.

They still have very good clearance (except the reduction of the once famous approach and departure angles) but otherwise have lost much of the off-road capability and ruggedness of the original. A stock Jeep, Landrover or even the older VW Touaregs will kick it's butt off-road. Others as well.

If off-road capabilities are not an issue anyways, then there are still many more SUVs that beat it in value for things like ride, mileage, comfort, etc.

Still, if you like it, you like it. I always say, it's what makes you happy that counts. Don't let me discourage you. I was just discussing my personal opinion for the sake of discussion and on the super slim chance you even care for my personal advice. No offense taken if you do not.

I thought they killed the Hummer brand.

The last Hummer was made in 2010 as far as I can find info on it.

Yes, there are better cars out there than the Hummer, but I always wanted one, and I don't care to go off road. One of those with the wheels/tires that are the low profile variety would be ok too, if it didn't cut down in gas mileage. Definitely won't be going off road with those.

I'm looking for a winter mudder: Hummer (maybe not low profile tires then)
and a Summer sport: Corvette

So far, everyone I've talked to that has a friend or relative with a Hummer H3 has this to say about it:
1) Smooth ride.
2) Better gas mileage than some vans, pickups and SUV's.
3) A good vehicle.
4) Not difficult to work on. Unlike Chrysler.
5) Quiet ride.

FYI: The Consumer Reports book for 2012-2013 only has this to say about Hummers: Don't buy a 2006 H3.

2006 was the first year for the H3. It had a 3.5-liter engine, which was later upgraded to a 3.7-liter for better overall performance. 2008 was first year for rear backup camera, with improvements for it in 2009.

I'd prefer to buy a 2009 or 2010 for under $25,000. I'd prefer one that has most of the creature amenities, like heated seats, premium sound, key-less start. New looking inside and out. Prefer black.

I found a white 2009 locally on Craig's List. It was white with 22,000 something miles. Garaged, for around the $25k price. I sent an e-mail, but never was contacted. White though for a winter car seems like it would be harder to see in the snow.

Sometime this year, I might want to buy one of the new game systems PS4 or XBox. Not sure which one to get. I don't care for first person shooter games, at all. The last machine I had was the Super-Nintendo. Played a lot of Super Mario, Car racing, Final Fantasy, Zelda. Later played stuff like Sonic with my son when I bought other game systems for him. I'd probably hate sports games because I'm not a sports fan.

Also, don't know how hard it would be to have the game machines in the room behind the TV where all of the other equipment is. Some sort of wireless controllers may work for me there.

The wireless controllers for both systems are pretty powerful. Unless the console is really isolated, they should work fine.

Re. the H3. If you like them, go for it. My "If it makes you happy..." overrules my other advice.

We have a 2010 3.7L V5 for sale in our work parking lot. Although I'm know it's too far a drive for you, I asked Buddy a few questions on it in case it helps you decide on one in your own area.

He really likes it. Comfortable & smooth. Good in snow once he changed to decent tires, dealer tires were crappy in snow. He didn't like the lack of window view space in the rear but that seems to be a trend with a lot of vehicles these days. I've rented cars that were worse. He had his auto-transmission replaced under warranty but he did some research and he seemed to be a "one-of." This wasn't a trend.

He moved to the city so he feels he doesn't need an SUV anymore and wants better mileage. He gets about 16 - 18 Mpg on highway and 12-14 in town. (did the conversion for ya from those kilo-thingies.)

He says 2006-2010 need to go back in to get the hood inspected as a recall. Apparently, the clips that secure them down were coming loose and they were opening up in peoples faces.

He is asking 32,000 for his, fully loaded and in good condition. I'd say excellent condition but the carpets look like everyone's carpets around here, damaged by the salt they put on the roads and sidewalks in the winter. There is also a few food stains from his kids.

I hope that helps. I was a little harsh on them in my first post but that's only because I spent years winching Hn idiots off the trails who had no clue what they were doing but thought they could impress thier friends/girlfriends with thier 'not-so-invincible' trucks.

But if I can just ask one thing...... Please, please please, don't put low profile tires on it!!! I'm begging you!

Hummer with low profile tires. Cool, huh?

Not unless your transporting hookers.

I bet you can put 117 speakers in one of them things.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Hummer with low profile tires. Cool, huh?

Originally Posted By: Murph

Not unless you're transporting hookers.

Or are a 14 year old boy from 2002.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Hummer with low profile tires. Cool, huh?

Absolutely hideous. I would try my hardest to prevent a friend from making the mistake of purchasing that. Since you're only an online acquaintance, all I can say is at least paint it yellow and put this on the back.

Because he can pick up stray cats?

It would of looked good in the Escape from New York movie.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Because he can pick up stray cats?

OMG, that was good.

That seems to be about the only pussy I've been getting lately.

Simon's cat Feed Me

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Anybody know what those small Hummers I keep seeing on the street are?

I see 2010 as the last year that Hummers were made that are for sale on the web. I see H1, H2, H3, H3T and some off the wall ones, but there are no pictures of what seems to be a half sized H3. Not talking about the electric one. Yikes! That thing is so tiny. Nor talking about the little kids models.

I saw one yesterday and it seems the back 2 windows are taller than they are wide.

And no, I'm not seeing pink elephants, either.

Maybe it's not a Hummer. Just something that looks like one.

You can buy body kits for jeeps that look every bit the part just smaller.
Bring back the H1, independent suspension and all...Its what made a Hummer a Hummer.
Side note; I just seen an add for a front wheel drive Jeep. Shame on them.

Jeep hit a 'Jeep culture' high note when they built the Rubicon. The change to a long wheel base wrangler style has proven a popular compromise for the urban market but otherwise, new models have been tumbling further and further down the hill of metro-sexuality.

To quote folk singer Malvina Reynolds' song, now made famous by the show Weeds...

"Now they are all made out of ticky-tacky and they all look just the same."

Suprise! lol

HERE'S LOOKING AT YA!

And hoping XOOM will zoom.

That's the best thing you ever posted.

Peter, did you know that CatBrat once took Britney Spears to a Brewers game?

I was visiting a Fiat dealer over the weekend, just to be doing. There was one close to where I live. The Abarath, their top of the line Fiat was fitted with what they call their top of the line audio system. When I tried it out, it was one of the worst audio system's I had ever heard. Also fiddled with the tone settings. All bass, muddled mid range, and the high end was missing entirely. They call this high end? Their lower end was a Bose setup. It probably sounded better. I wish now I had listened to it too. The Bose system in the Chevy Volt actually sounded decent.

I now have $23,500 set aside for a new car. Up from Zero dollars as of January 1, this year. Can't wait to get one. Currently thinking about an SUV cross-over of some sort maybe, with AWD, heated seats, premium sound, etc.

When the ladies see you roll up in it, you can play it cool, like this cat:

Helloooooooo, ladies.

Amiright?!

LOL. Well I doubt if a cross-over will elicit a good response. But, a Ferrari? Maybe. Then once they get a look at the old geezer behind the wheel, it would be a different story altogether. But, still. I love the cat video.

Maybe I better start saving up for the Ferrari.

Answer: The big brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.

i didn't even see it .

My list of Best Movie nominations and winners since the beginning of the Academy Awards.

My God! It's full of stars.

Now that cat could use some meds.

I want that cat.

I can't stop laughing every time I watch this.

That evil leg MUST be stopped!

Originally Posted By: SBrown

Now that cat could use some meds.

I don't know. The first thing that came to mind when I saw that was the lsd experiments with cats in the 60s.

I was just minding my own business when this leg thing came along and beat me up.

My plan is to take the increase from trading my retirement funds in the 1st quarter of 2013 and turn that into a new car. Throwing in my tax return money also.

Now that 2 months are over, here's the result.

January: $16,878.24
February: $1,557.46
March: $0.00
Tax Return: $2,950.00

Total: $21,385.70

January was decent, but February sucked. At least I didn't lose any. Just wasn't the opportunity I found in January. Difficult trying to find stocks to trade and work full time at the same time.

You shouldn't use your work to trade stocks anyway!

Originally Posted By: SBrown

You shouldn't use your work to trade stocks anyway!

Why not? If I didn't, I'd never have the 10 years experience I have today. Starting out new and trading your retirement funds is a sure road to disaster. I didn't start any kind of savings plan until I turned 50. I would have to rely only on what I got in social security if I did't trade stocks from work.

HAhaha, I was talking about wasting time at work(you know,the bosses time) surfing the net. It was suppose to be a joke, maybe too dry. sorry

Ah. No I didn't see the joke. I should have because I do the same kind of dry jokes here too. I thought maybe you were an employer that's tired of seeing his employees waste time on the Internet.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

employees waste time on the Internet.

Employees do that? They must need more work.

I test drove a 2013 Nissan Murano LE Platenum. Seems like what I'me looking for, except the price I was quoted was $41,791. Anyone have an opinion of this cross-over? Or think they know of a better one for same price or cheaper? Must haves are: "real" premium sound. Heated seats and steering wheel. GPS, AWD. Remote start. Leather seats.

This one has BOSE for sound and I'm having a hard time finding better sound than that. BOSE may be poor for home use, but car audio seems to be a different story.

The GPS screen seemed to be hard to see. Don't know if it was this car, or all of them like that. Maybe the brightness level was set too low. Same with speedometer, hard to see during the day. Too dim.

http://www.nissanusa.com/crossovers/murano/colors-photos.html

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I test drove a 2013 Nissan Murano LE Platenum. Seems like what I'me looking for, except the price I was quoted was $41,791. Anyone have an opinion of this cross-over? Or think they know of a better one for same price or cheaper? Must haves are: "real" premium sound. Heated seats and steering wheel. GPS, AWD. Remote start. Leather seats.

This one has BOSE for sound and I'm having a hard time finding better sound than that. BOSE may be poor for home use, but car audio seems to be a different story.

The GPS screen seemed to be hard to see. Don't know if it was this car, or all of them like that. Maybe the brightness level was set too low. Same with speedometer, hard to see during the day. Too dim.

http://www.nissanusa.com/crossovers/murano/colors-photos.html

Check out the Hyundai Santa Fe. 2013 is a complete redesign year. I just built one on their site and it has all of the options that you requested for about 38,600. Saves a few dollars and a better warranty. The Hyundai also gets the same fuel economy even with AWD and does so with 30 more HP. Plus the Murano uses a CVT Transmission, which, IMO is not one for driving pleasure. The Hyundai also used a 12 speaker 550W Dimension Surround sound. My son used to have a 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe and his had the 10 speaker Infinity sound in his and it sounded BOSS, in his car at least.

The seats look thinner and cheaper. The warranty is better. I'll have to compare them at car show this week. I did a build and cost came to $39,100.

Honda Crosstour - not sure on pricing.

Honda cross tour. I didn't see heated seats nor heated steering wheel, nor backup camera (forgot to mention that). Price right at $40,000.

Also lacking a great deal on horsepower. 170 as opposed to 260-290 on the other ones. Same gas mileage.

I think you missed something...

http://automobiles.honda.com/crosstour/price.aspx?Model=TF2H5DJNW

Ok. I see heated front seats and 278 hp. No heated steering wheel. Seems all online info not the same. I'll relook for the info I found yesterday.

It was on the compare vehicles page on Honda. I must have been tired when I did it yesterday. I see the correct info now.

Looks like the Honda Crosstour and the Acura RDX have the same motor. The Honda is 4 wheel drive while the Acura is AWD. Is one any better than the other?

Not really, they are both Honda products, Acura calls it AWD because it sounds more sophisticated, Honda calls it realtime 4WD. Pretty much same vehicles with the same drivetrain just a different shell surrounding it.

A heated steering wheel is really a make or break feature for you? You can get some nice insulated, non-bulky gloves for driving. You can even pre warm them with a blast from a hair dryer before you get into your car.

Not exactly make/break, but want pretty bad. Enough cars have this feature today so shouldn't have to settle for without, unless there's a super good reason to get the vehicle without.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xxn3o5_world-s-most-adorable-frog_fun#.UTQmtYy9KK0

Went to the auto show in Kansas City today. One car I liked was Subaru outback. So afterward, I stopped at a Subaru dealer and test drove 2 of them. A 4 banger and a 6 banger. 4 banger didn't have enough oomph, and the 6 was about right. The premium sound system was lacking in bass and overall clarity. It has a small subwoofer built in.

A smaller model had speaker upgrades with a larger subwoofer installed, due to an upgrade done by the customer that hadn't picked up the car yet, so I listened to it. Better clarity, but a one note bass system with no volume control. You gotta be kidding me. Horrible overall sound. The best sound I can hope for is to retain the small subwoofer with a tweeter upgrade.

Cost of vehicle with upgraded packages is $38,500. Gas mileage 25 highway. So-so sound.

A lot of cars at the auto show were decent, then you go to listen to the audio and oops, deal breaker. Can't upgrade audio system like you can in the past. Have to settle for what comes with the car. Bummer.

Probably the best audio I heard from the cars i listened to was the Toyota Pilot.

You can upgrade the audio systems but it now costs a lot more, you have to be willing to make or pay for some custom pieces etc.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Probably the best audio I heard from the cars i listened to was the Toyota Pilot.

Oops. That's a Honda Pilot.

I think I'm in love. I test drove a Toyota FJ Cruiser today.

What was the saleslady's name?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

What was the saleslady's name?

Uh, unfortunately it was Mohammad.

That IS unfortunate! She likely is frequently mistaken for a man!

2nd trip to auto show today. Still like the Toyota FJ Cruiser. 3 more pricey vehicles of same type I liked better. Honda Pilot, Toyota 4Runner, Buick Enclave.

I have always like the FJ Cruiser since it was first introduced, it isn't quite as upscale compared to what you were looking at previously, changed your must haves?

My must haves seem to be pricing me out of a vehicle. I was hoping for more from trading my retirement funds the 1st 3 months of 2013. So far only around $20k, was hoping for around $60k. But the month isn't over yet.

Now the question of the day is, do I get better, or worse gas mileage with the super charger installed. I've talked to 3 people and gotten 3 different answers. My salsman, my mechanic, and the Toyota representative at the auto show.

Salesman: will get worse gas mileage.

Mechanic: only gets used when you push the gas pedal to the floor for an extra boost, otherwise not used.

Toyota representative: should get better gas mileage while cruising at highway speeds. Otherwise less if your always gunning the engine.

More. If you have it you will use it.

Compressed natural gas Civic.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Now the question of the day is, do I get better, or worse gas mileage with the super charger installed. I've talked to 3 people and gotten 3 different answers. My salsman, my mechanic, and the Toyota representative at the auto show.

Salesman: will get worse gas mileage.

Mechanic: only gets used when you push the gas pedal to the floor for an extra boost, otherwise not used.

Toyota representative: should get better gas mileage while cruising at highway speeds. Otherwise less if your always gunning the engine.

The mechanic and salesman are correct.

Did a quick search to try I couldn't see if it is a "positive displacement" supercharger or other. I "think" (and JakeWash can certainly correct me as I am going from memory and limited knowledge) but I think the answer to that could effect the answer of mileage.

In short, "positive displacement" types are 'always on' so to speak and are less efficient in the long term as they steal a good bit of the eventual crank shaft power but provide a better airflow ratio across all RPMs.

The best way I've heard it described is that "Basically, other types give you a satisfying boost when you ask for it but with a PD supercharger, it always feels like you have a bigger motor than you do."

The other types (is "dynamic" the word I am looking for) only engage when you nail it. There are several types of these as well, in how they work. Generally, there is a bit of a lag as they spin up but then you feel it. They are the norm for after market units as they are smaller and require a lot less rejigging to install if no system was there before.

I believe a lot of factory systems are of the positive displacement type so that's why I mention it. Someone can correct me but I think the 'PD' systems effect your mileage greater in the long run as they are always engaged. Perhaps modern engines and more complex chips make it more negligible though.

I only recall some of this from listening in to several arguments in my old Jeep Club where one type was pitted over the other because rock crawling is a different thing altogether. You definitely need lots of power but you also often need it at very low RPMs. Gearing is often extremely low and much of the technique is about slow & controlled vs hitting the gas, not that hitting the gas never happens either.

Jason?
Let me know if I'm wrong. I don't want to give him a wrong idea.

I'll probably be skipping that option now anyway, since I see the price for it is around $4,000. I thought it was much less. It's what's called a root type, whatever that means.

All of the vehicles I've been looking at get around 17-18 MPG. The only other negative that I've been able to muster up seems to be the windshield and blind spots.

The windshield is almost at a 90 degree angle which is both a bug collector and breaks and chips easily when it gets hit by small pebbles. The earlier models seem to have this problem more than the newer ones did. Maybe an improvement in the glass. Would probably pay to get insurance with zero deductible. Definitely want the bug deflector installed.

The blind spots can be helped with conical mirror attachments to the existing mirrors. This would be one vehicle that would benefit from blind spot warning detectors. I don't understand why they don't come with one as an option.

To help in gas mileage, I won't order one with the top railings. I don't see myself using them anyway. Also, lighter aluminum wheels, and bigger wheels to eliminate as much rubber as possible to lessen weight would also help with gas mileage. (Pimp my FJ, have to get something that still looks decent). Will be used 100% of the time on highways anyway. But at the same time, don't want to lose it's ability to get around in snow covered roads. Would rather error on tires that are bigger.

ARRGGHHH! Another exceptionally capable off-road vehicle that will be pimped out for city bling.

Sorry, pet peeve of mine.

Seriously though.... Winter tires generally are not made in low profile formats because they require softer rubber compounds and generally flex a bit more to allow more rubber contact to the road surface. If winter is a concern, I would recommend finding out what winter tire sizes are available in a chosen brand and not going with a larger wheel than that. That way you can maintain as much light/bling as you can but still be able to fit a decent snow tire.

It looks like 18 is the largest. The wheels that come with the FJ Cruiser are 16 or 17.

What I had originally said, is that when using M22's and a sub, there was a hole in the upper bass region. And after I installed a VP160, I could now hear this upper bass region. The primary source material used for this determination was the Police concert on blu-ray called Certifiable.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

What I can do is disconnect my two lower M22' mains. (I have 2 m22 mains. Upper and Lower.) Then connect the center channel output from the receiver to one of the Lower M22 mains. If I no longer hear the upper bass, then I will have proved my point. If I do hear the upper bass, I'll never mention it again. Fair?

Also, I'll try and test this using a frequency sweep that does one freq at a time and see if I can measure a difference. This might not tell me anything since there is a gap between each frequency.

Actually, all I have to do, is listen and measure with, and without, the VP160 being plugged into the mix. There is still an M80 plugged into the center channel. The front wall consists of 3 M22's over the TV as (Left Main) (Center) (Right Main). It also consists of 2 M22's under the TV as (Left Main) (Right Main), and a VP160 under the TV as (Center).

Moving this discussion over to the Water Cooler, CatBrat thread.

If possible, I'll try and get other's opion also, so it's not just my ears. But I do have to tell them what it is they are listening for. If I'm wrong, I'll readily admit it.

Brian, the M22 has been designed with an enclosure tuned to about 59Hz(shown by the low point in the bass impedance valley)and the Axiom spec shows good response down to at least 60Hz. My personal use over about 25,000 hours has always confirmed this and the Audyssey measurements for calibration resulted in a 60Hz setting(which I raised to 80Hz to give the EP500 more work), indicating a measured -3dB point somewhere below 60hz.

I just now repeated a test I did long ago with my Stryke test tone disc. It includes a 1Hz to 100Hz continuous sweep band which takes 5 minutes to complete. Setting my M22s to full band and no sub, the sweep began to be audible a bit under 40Hz, and the 60Hz-100Hz frequencies were continuously strong and certainly had no "hole". Whatever you're experiencing isn't typical to say the least. Both the measured and audible results confirm the competence of the Axiom design and the accuracy of their specs.

Getting into superchargers etc. is a specialty all their own. I work with a guy that runs a couple cars with blowers as a hobby on the drag strips around here. From what I rememeber Murph has it pretty well but the FJ's charger is too small to really mess much with the fuel economy except when your foot is into it.

I basically see the fj's supercharger as a waste of money. Would perhaps consider it if it somehow increased mileage, but that's apparently not the case.

I haven't run my frequency tests yet. Will do that in the next few days when I have the time to devote to it. I just remember what differences I heard and my past comments on it. I'd be more than happy to say that I don't hear those differences now. I don't have any reason to be anti-axiom. I'm just reporting what it is I've experienced. Whether good, or bad. It sounded good with the hole I noticed, but sounds much better without it. That's my memory on the subject. If by adding the Vp160 cured that problem, then the problem would logically be the M22's.

Another anomaly I've experienced is what I believe to be comb filtering. I don't know what to attribute this to. It's only noticeable when I'm listening to the cd that produces the tones for frequency measurement. When a tone is playing and I slowly walk across the room, the volume of the tone will waver up and down. The meter proves this out also. Anytime I become stationary the wavering stops. Back when I had both on wall and bookshelf speakers both playing, I disconnected the bookshelf ones so that only the on wall were playing and I'd get the comb filtering. When I reversed the procedure and played only the bookshelf ones, the comb filtering stopped. Today, before adding the QS8's, with only the bookshelf speakers playing, I got the comb filtering. Seems odd that nobody else has reported this. It could affect how the sound is picked up at the mic, especially with Audyssey when using multiple mic positions, if in one spot the volume is higher than other spots, due to a null created by comb filtering. I'm not saying it's a fault with the speaker. It's probably some strange interaction with my room.

If you're going to get that Toyota and you're concerned about the snowability(new word?)of the tires, note that the original equipment Bridgestone D684 IIs don't look very impressive in the Tire Rack reviews here , especially in winter weather.

Originally Posted By: JohnK

If you're going to get that Toyota and you're concerned about the snowability(new word?)of the tires, note that the original equipment Bridgestone D684 IIs don't look very impressive in the Tire Rack reviews here , especially in winter weather.

Thanks John. I guess they'll get me through the summer until I can afford to replace them. Here's one person's comment on them that I found.

"They suck off road. They are tires, so yeah they'll work, but if you get into anything, sand, mud, piles of dead chickens, you'll lose traction."

The Goodyear Triple Treads were always my favorite. Here they are 3rd from the top. These tires don't look like all terrain tires though. I'd probably go with the #1 Firestone Destination LE 2.

None of the tire manufacturer's said their tires were good in a blizzard. They would either say good in light snow, or not even mention snow.

Since you don't plan to leave the pavement too often, I wouldn't be too concerned about an all-terrain tire. They are definitely not a winter tire. They are not really even good off-road tires and they will not be of any benefit to you in the rest of the year. Thier only purpose, IMHO, is to make your truck look like a truck.

A good winter tire will stop on ice better by very surprising multiples and the difference in moderate snow is similarly dramatic. Some are designed more for ice and others more for clearing snow from the treads. You generally trade a bit one way for the other.

You are correct in that most winter tires are not designed for silly amounts of snow and despite advertisements of them tunneling through the alps, you won't hear any true verbal claims about being able to master real deep snow. However, they will still be an huge improvement over all-seasons or all-terrain.

Want to really play in the serious snow? You need an expensive off-road tire that won't self destruct or fly off your wheel when you purposely deflate them to 10-12 PSI or less. Because, seriously, that's what you need to float over the snow and/or spread your weight over enough tire surface that it gets really hard to get stuck. Even then, once you get high centered (the weight of your vehicle is sitting on the snow by it's belly instead of the tires) you're screwed. Clearance beats all but the worst tires, every time, in snow.

My last thought,
The FJ is a pretty heavy rig. Keep in mind that whatever type of tires you invest in, they will need to be a light truck tire at minimum.

This info is probably here somewhere, but I'm going to ask it anyway.

If I want to convert my 100 cd's into files and store them on a flash drive to playback in new car this way.

1) what file format do I convert them to?
2) what software should I use?
3) will I be able to organization and play them back identified by the Cd they came from, or will it all be like 1 big cd?

1. MP3 as that is likely the only format your car deck supports. Many support iPads plugged into them as well but since you are talking an USB stick, it will be MP3 you most likely need.

When I burn any CD, I make a FLAC copy as well so I have a lossless versions for home listening but I also make an MP3 for my iPod and my car. I use 320 Kb/sec when I rip to MP3, just so I'm not subconsciously paranoid, but you could go smaller and still be good. Bigger number = less compression used but bigger file sizes so you fit less on your stick.

2. I use EAC as I have it all set up for automatically making MP3 and FLAC copies at the same time. However, I don't actually recommend it as it has a much steeper learning curve. I will let others chime in on much more convenient solutions.

3. Yes. Use folders to organize your artists and CDs. I start with a folder for an artist then have a sub-folder for each album. Some car decks simply use the folders for on-screen browsing.

Also, MP3, Flac, etc. all use a system called "Tags". When you rip the CD you will have an opportunity to fill in the artist, album name, track names, genre, etc. More complex car decks will use this tagging information to let you browse in an organized fashion. Either way, you should be good.

Also, most ripping programs have the ability to go out to sources on the Internet and automatically add all the tag information as soon as you pop the CD in the computer. You just have to be careful it actually picks out the correct album. I usually end up tweaking this information a just bit in order to keep my entire library consistent.

That you for the information!

I'm still planning on a Toyota FJ Cruiser with premium audio. Here's some information from their on-line owner's manual, page 267.

MP3 and WMA files:

MP3 (MPEG Audio LAYER3) is a standard audio compression format.
Files can be compressed to approximately 1/10 of their original size by using
MP3 compression.
WMA (Windows Media Audio) is a Microsoft audio compression format.
This format compresses audio data to a size smaller than that of the MP3
format.
There is a limit to the MP3 and WMA file standards and to the media/formats
recorded by them that can be used.

MP3 file compatibility:

• Compatible standards
MP3 (MPEG1 LAYER3, MPEG2 LSF LAYER3)
• Compatible sampling frequencies
MPEG1 LAYER3: 32, 44.1, 48 (kHz)
MPEG2 LSF LAYER3: 16, 22.05, 24 (kHz)
• Compatible bit rates (compatible with VBR)
MPEG1 LAYER3: 64, 80, 96, 112, 128, 160, 192, 224, 256, 320 (kbps)
MPEG2 LSF LAYER3: 64, 80, 96, 112, 128, 144, 160 (kbps)
• Compatible channel modes: stereo, joint stereo, dual channel and
monaural

WMA file compatibility:

• Compatible standards
WMA Ver. 7, 8, 9
• Compatible sampling frequencies
32, 44.1, 48 (kHz)
• Compatible bit rates (only compatible with 2-channel playback)
Ver. 7, 8: CBR 48, 64, 80, 96, 128, 160, 192 (kbps)
Ver. 9: CBR 48, 64, 80, 96, 128, 160, 192, 256, 320 (kbps)

I guess I'll have to put some MP3 files in a folder withing a folder and see if it'll play properly on the audio system.

EAC = Exact Audio Copy. Found it. I'll download this sometime soon at home and play around with it for a while. I've got most of 1T disc storage, so hopefully that will be enough.

Does EAC do the rip too? If not, is there a good free or inexpensive software that'll do the rip for me? At work, I just use Window's Media to rip a CD for my computer there. Is Window's Media a good one to use for this purpose?

320 Kb/sec

The copy of EAC that I downloaded only goes as high as 256.

Looks like I may not even need EAC. So far, iTunes is doing everything for me and at 640 Kb/sec.

Wow. Forget EAC. iTunes Rips my CD's into the same MP3 setup I did last time, creates the folders, supplies all the track and artist info. All I have to do is insert a CD, wait for the rip to complete, then copy the directories to my flash drive. Couldn't be easier.

It doesn't create flac files, but I'm not in the market for flac files ATM.

Well, that project has been put on hold for a while. My 5 year old DVD burner broke while reading CD's. 621 songs, so far.

I ordered a new DVD burner from Amazon for 23.80. Get next week.

It looks like I can get about 50-60 CD's ripped to MP3's at 640 rate on an 8 gig flash drive. I'll need about 32 gig to hold my collection. 64 gig for expansion would be better. Have to check the prices.

Will a 3.0 flash drive work in a 2.0 player? Or should I get 2.0 flash drive just to be on the safe side?

Amazing what a little search can do... Hmmm. 3.0 drives will work with 2.0 devides. 3.0 was created for enhanced speed.

Ha! I warned you that I did not recommend EAC. It works awesome once you have it set up but it's far, far from user friendly.

It will rip and it will encode at higher than 256 but you also need to download and install a copy of LAME, which is the MP3 compression engine.

Anyways, ignore EAC. As you have discovered, there are much easier methods.

I"be been thinking about clear bras.

For my next car, that is.

Personally, I think you'll be quite disappointed with the FJ's fuel economy if you do a lot of driving...just my opinion of course.

If I had $25k sitting around for a vehicle purchase I would option out a Dodge Dart.
The 300hp AWD version would be pretty nice. I would expect it to add another $10k to the price though.

Yeah, bout same price as an FJ.

The Darts of today may be ok. The name rhymes with trash in my mind from memories of the past.

My car gets 25mpg hwy that I've driven past 14 years. FJ gets 20. I spend around $35 a week in gas average. I'll be spending around $50 instead.

This is my winter mudder car. What I really want is one of the new 2014 or later model corvettes. But it'll have to be my daily driver for at least the next 2 years.

Got all my CDs converted to MP3 files. Wore out my old DVD burner, and bought a new one to finish the job. Total of 1,702 MP3 files taking 15.1 GB. Will order a 36 GB flash drive that's so short it will just barely be visible sticking out of the dash. Want some room for expansion for more files.

I've had a big static elec. problem at home. Today I touched the alarm clock to turn alarm on and ZAP. Had to buy new alarm clock. Also got a small 1gal humidifier to see if this will help. Have to fill it 2 or 3 times a day. Cat probably tired of getting zapped too. Whole house humidifier attached to furnace just doesn't work very good.

My stock trading sure could use a supercharger. End of Feb had $21,300 gain toward new car. Today it's only $1,000 more than that. Bad month for me, so far.

What I need now is a good looking woman to go along with my audio visual system.

Found one for ya:

I don't mind short, but that's a little too short.

Besides. The cat might take offense.

Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of....

Here's the flash drive I have in mind for putting my MP3's on and plugging into the dash of new car.

File layout will like the following:

(Dir 1) Diana Krall
...(Dir 1 in Dir 1) When I look In You Eyes
......(File 1) 01 Let's Face The Music and Dance.mp3
......(File 2) 02 Devil May Care.mp3
......(etc)
(Dir 2) Gipsy Kings
...(Dir 1 in Dir 2) Compas
......(File 1) 01 Ami Wa Wa (Solo Por Ti).mp3
......(File 2) 02 Que Si Que No (Funiculi Funicula).mp3
......(etc)
...(Dir 2 in Dir 2) Este Mundo
......(File 1) 01 Baila Me.mp3
......(File 2) 02 Sin Ella.mp3
......(etc)

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Actually, I was thinking more along the lines of....

Taller and skinnier. I think the cat would be more offended.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

...

File layout will like the following:

(Dir 1) Diana Krall
...(Dir 1 in Dir 1) When I look In You Eyes
......(File 1) 01 Let's Face The Music and Dance.mp3
......(File 2) 02 Devil May Care.mp3
......(etc)
(Dir 2) Gipsy Kings
...

Just a suggestion to add the year of the album into the directory name. I use pretty much the same directory structure with my music, and while the media servers will read all of your ID3 tags where that info is anyway, I still find value in having as much information in the folder & file name to make it easy for those times when you need to browse by simple file structure. Enjoy your digitized library!

Been home sick with the flu Wednesday. Today staying home again because of weakened condition. Not much fun watching stomach contents over and over again.

Don't forget to post in the "things I just watched" thread!

Hope you're feeling better!

I tried to laugh only discovered that my body hurts too much to do that.

Happy Birthday!

Well. When I was sick, my Zinga (ZNGA) stock took a nose dive, for a few grand loss. But, I'm not worried. I plunged almost my entire savings into more shares at the discount. I think it'll see a major upward swing in the near future. And maybe THEN, I can finally buy the elusive FJ Cruser I've had my eye on the past few weeks.

Cat, I've been waiting for someone to point this out but I guess I have to.
You ripped all that music at 640 kbps? You already posted the specs that your car player accepts a maximum of 320...
I speak from experience - an aftermarket Clarion head unit in my Subaru, and the factory unit in my new Kia. Plug in a stick with files higher than the rated bitrate and you'll get silence. Yes, I tried it.
I have about 1900 files on a 16gb stick, about 3gb free.
It's disappointing that none of the car systems seem to play wavs or flacs. But against road noise, engine noise and wind noise, adequate quality really is adequate.

Originally Posted By: Stilljoe

Cat, I've been waiting for someone to point this out but I guess I have to.
You ripped all that music at 640 kbps? You already posted the specs that your car player accepts a maximum of 320...
I speak from experience - an aftermarket Clarion head unit in my Subaru, and the factory unit in my new Kia. Plug in a stick with files higher than the rated bitrate and you'll get silence. Yes, I tried it.
I have about 1900 files on a 16gb stick, about 3gb free.
It's disappointing that none of the car systems seem to play wavs or flacs. But against road noise, engine noise and wind noise, adequate quality really is adequate.

Sorry, nobody spotted my boo-boo so, I didn't point it out either. I ripped them at 320. 640 was a typo.

I ordered the 32 GB mini flash drive today. Should have it by Monday. Then I can copy my MP3's to it. Run by a dealer with an FJ Cruiser with prime sound system, and try it out.

Hmmmm. Or just copy a few cd's worth to one of my smaller ones. Doh!

Cat spoooon

Going to watch the fist disc of the 2 disc 3D version of The Hobbit tonight.

Does anyone know if each disc contains 1/2 of the movie, or is most of the movie on the 1st disk with a small portion left over on the 2nd?

I haven't seen the movie yet, btw.

I watched my copy but I can't recall.
Either way, it's a longgg movie.

Originally Posted By: Murph

I watched my copy but I can't recall.
Either way, it's a longgg movie.

Sounds like you can't wait for the extended version to come out.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Going to watch the fist disc of the 2 disc 3D version of The Hobbit tonight.

Does anyone know if each disc contains 1/2 of the movie, or is most of the movie on the 1st disk with a small portion left over on the 2nd?

I haven't seen the movie yet, btw.

I watched the entire movie in 3D last night. A little under 2/3 of movie is on Disc 1, with the last 1/3 plus, or 1 hour 15 min. on disc 2.

I found The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey to be a very enjoyable experience. Can't wait to watch it again.

Some joggers passing by my house stopped and told me they smell gas in the street near my home. I went out and sure enough, could smell gas in front of my house. Called gas company, they came out and marked up several places that gas was seeping out of the ground. At least it's out near the street and either under or near the sidewalk. It should get fixed sometime today.

And no, I haven't been eating too many burritos.

I emailed the man that calibrated 3 THX modes on my Panasonic 65VT50 plasma last June. I'm going to have him calibrate 4 isf modes on it now. I don't like the motion problems that THX modes have. I can use motion enhancers with the isf modes for a much more enjoyable picture. The THX is just too blurry a picture in action movies.

1) Cinema
2) Bright room cinema
3) 3D Cinema
4) 3D Bright room cinema

Time for EASTER CAT!!!!!!

Just finished replacing the screen on my iPad. Easy once the old screen is off. Don't really care to do that again. Think I'll buy an iPad protector that's applied to the edges.

I replaced the screen on one of our old iPhones that the kids are using as a gaming device about a year ago. It would have been easier to softer glue with a proper heat gun rather than the hair dryer I was forced to use. I don't want to have to do that again.

If Zynga (ZNGA) stock ever reaches $4.50+, my Toyota FJ Cruiser is in the bag. It popped up last night on news of starting on-line gambling for real money in the UK, and is heading in that direction. Don't know if it'll make it that far this time.

You should have bought some bitcoins a year ago. You'd be up more than 200%

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

You should have bought some bitcoins a year ago. You'd be up more than 200%

Yeah, but how many bitcoins does it take to buy a new FJ Cruiser?

I bought one of these at Lowes last night.

It's an all wheel drive Husqvarna push mower with a Honda engine.

Nice! I've been trying to ignore the fact that I didn't properly drain my mower before winter and that I need to mow soon. Which means I need to change the oil, etc and get more gas for it. Hopefully it'll still work right.

This replaces a 10 year old Snapper Ninja mower that I have. I can probably still sell it for $150. Still works good, but motor smokes a bit.

Has anyone noticed these yet?

Ken, I think you need to buy one and install a B-D player in it.

17 mph?! I'd finish my yards in about 5 minutes.

Speaking of mowers and winter, I started up my mower successfully the other day after filling its tank. I somehow remembered to run it dry last fall. I also discovered that the right front tire of my riding mower is completely flat. So flat that I can't pump it up while there's any weight on the tire since it has separated from the hub. Looks like I'll be using a car jack on the damn thing so I can get the wheel off.

Grrr! I still have snowbanks on the edges of my property!

I had a bunch of windows open overnight. It was wonderful. Maybe a touch too warm for this time of year.

Just a touch. Hoping tomorrow's not really in the high 80s.

I accidentally left a window open last night. But woke up to comfortable temperature in the house.

My Zinga ZNGA stock has gone to sleep the past few days. Zzzzzz.

I have to tell myself that you guys had some pretty bad storms this past winter while I put up with below freezing temperatures and the ever present threat of spring snow. We had 70 degrees 2 weeks ago for one day(what tease that was)and been in snow and cold ever since, had minus 10c over the weekend, finally went above freezing(barely) the last 2 days

Originally Posted By: jakewash

I have to tell myself that you guys had some pretty bad storms this past winter while I put up with below freezing temperatures and the ever present threat of spring snow. We had 70 degrees 2 weeks ago for one day(what tease that was)and been in snow and cold ever since, had minus 10c over the weekend, finally went above freezing(barely) the last 2 days

I live way north of you LOL and I just put on my summer tires. This is the earliest in 15 years I have been able to do that. We have been having the weirdest weather ever this year. More Global Weirding .

Richard

This is just typical prairie weather close to the Rockies. I was going to change the tires over on the wife's car last weekend but with the snow and ice on the roads decided to wait till perhaps this weekend.

Sorry for the derail Cat.

This is Biden describing the size of his penis.

Going out on limb here but I am thinking you not a fan?

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Going out on limb here but I am thinking you not a fan?

Not a fan of .... what exactly?

Small penises?

A micropenis joke about the VP.

Cute, Brian.

I can't help it if I think of politicians as the lowest life form on the earth.

Our government is too important to be run by politicians.

I meant joe biden,

I'm not a fan of pretty much anyone who runs for office.

Kind of like the old lawyer joke. How can you tell if a politician is lying? You can see their mouth moving.

I certainly don't envy your world view.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

I certainly don't envy your world view.

Of course you don't. My world view is everything will continue to go from bad to worse.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I can't help it if I think of politicians as the lowest life form on the earth.

Our government is too important to be run by politicians.

For some time now, politicians have never been in control of running the US government. Clearly, they are just the "lackeys" of corporations and their lobbyists.

Hello, plutocracy.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

I certainly don't envy your world view.

Of course you don't. My world view is everything will continue to go from bad to worse.

Is this a lead in to a post about all the stocks you are shorting this week?

Unfortunately, you can't short stocks in an IRA account.

Thinking about replacing this Monster power conditioner/Surge Protector HDP-1800 8-outlet

with this APC j16blk J-Type power conditioner/Surge Protector 12-outlet, with 865 watt battery backup.

Can someone explain what a J type is? (see above) When I look it up, all I see is a special J type electrical outlet plug, and I don't think that is what this is.

From APC's web sight....

"The J Type has noise filter banks, which reduce electromagnetic interference to ensure the best picture and sound quality."

mmmmk.

Anyone buy a home security and/or camera surveillance system that they really like, and wasn't a pain to install. Hopefully it stores something in the cloud somewhere, or similar, so that the thief just doesn't have to make off with all of your electronics, including what has the video data of him ripping you off.

And so we have strangers attacking us with bombs now, and the government wants to take away our guns? I don't see the logic in that.

Cat drops a bomb of a post.....

Logic was never your strong suit, was it?

Logic was take away our guns and let the criminals overrun us. The honest person would comply, but not the criminal. We would be overrun by over confident criminals. And the government wants to help them. End result would be 1000 times worse than an occasional nut job random shooting.

Total power by governments breeds Excessive corruption and control. Removal of guns will help promote that also. Unfortunately, our society breeds an unlimited number of immoral nut jobs. Therefore the government thinks it has to step in and save us from ourselves.

The sky is falling, right?

Nope, but someone keeps shooting it full of holes.

"Scared AND holding a gun. 's a good combination; do you wanna risk it?"

~Martha Jones

I wouldn't personally own a gun, but I'd hate to take the option away from others. How about if we were all required to serve in the military, giving us all adequate training with them as well as basic self-defense so a gun would be a less likely first resort? While I'm not sure how the next world war will manifest itself, and whether guns in the hands of civilians will make a difference, I think we can all agree it's only a matter of time before one happens, and I do think there's plenty of potential for a truly oppressive government. Again, I'm not convinced guns in the hands of civilians by itself is going to make the difference, but it's also hard for me to see a lack of familiarity as proper preparation. But I'm just rambling. I've never given it serious consideration, because as I've said, I'm in no rush to own one.

"Hello everyone! Guess who? Please, point a gun at me if it helps you relax. You're only human."

-The Doctor

I don't own a gun. I've served 4 years in the military, but I wouldn't let that qualify as responsible ownership. All they did when I was in was drill "Kill Kill Kill them bastards" into my brain. Not a good thing.

But for those to own a gun, need a good class, and psychological evaluation, that's got a time limit on it, where you have to take it again after so many years. Also, all guns should be kept locked up, so psycho family members can't gain access to them. Not a key lock, or a combo key and combination lock.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

And so we have strangers attacking us with bombs now, and the government wants to take away our guns? I don't see the logic in that.

Crazy people shoot innocent people, government solution? Take away guns from innocent people.

Crazy people blow people up with pressure cookers, government solution? Close down all KFCs...

Just go to 2:12 in this video about KFC Pressure Cookers

You don't think so? Just wait and see. The government can do some pretty stupid things.

No wonder I don't like KFC anymore. They stopped using the pressure cookers.

Want fewer gun deaths? get rid of as many guns as possible. The statistics back this up time and time again.

Switzerland requires all its citizens to spend time in the military. They have lots of guns and a high rate of gun deaths. England has very few guns and very few gun deaths per capita. The Economist has published a list of countries, guns per capita and gun deaths per capita. Its easy to look this up for yourself.

There are exceptions to the rule, but I don't think anybody here would consider Somalia a normal place or one to measure ourselves against.

Originally Posted By: fredk

Want fewer gun deaths? get rid of as many guns as possible. The statistics back this up time and time again.

I don't doubt this in any way. I'm not sure, however, that singling out specific statistics tells the whole story. There are always trade-offs.

There's only one way to solve this for now. Pick out the best looking and healthiest man and woman. Call Captain Kirk and get him to send the Genesis machine to Earth. Then put the Adam/Eve pair back on the rebuilt Earth.

Or... Populate a big unsinkable boat with 8 people and all the animals, then throw a big beer bash and have everyone get out and urinate. This time lets swat all the flys on the boat.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

There's only one way to solve this for now. Pick out the best looking and healthiest man and woman. Call Captain Kirk and get him to send the Genesis machine to Earth. Then put the Adam/Eve pair back on the rebuilt Earth.

Or even better, choose 100 or so people as your starting point so that your repopulation scenarios don't require first degree relatives to have sex with each other.

Ah, good point. Just leave the guns at home, before boarding the boat.

(I started to take a crack at "that's what all the animals are for" joke, but thought better of it.)

I'm glad that's settled.

In case you get really bored, I'm starting a compilation of photos of movie scenes at 365project.org/bgreen999. I'll take a picture of an interesting movie scene, once a day, when I'm able to with my iPhone 4s. Then upload it to this 365 project website a co-worker told me about today. So far, the number of photos is Zero. Might do the first one tonight. Then try to guess what the movie is.

Anyone see why this doesn't work? [url=365project.org/bgreen999]click here[/url].

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

In case you get really bored, I'm starting a compilation of photos of movie scenes at 365project.org/bgreen999. I'll take a picture of an interesting movie scene, once a day, when I'm able to with my iPhone 4s. Then upload it to this 365 project website a co-worker told me about today. So far, the number of photos is Zero. Might do the first one tonight. Then try to guess what the movie is.

Anyone see why this doesn't work? [url=365project.org/bgreen999]click here[/url].

your link isn't working.

365project.org/bgreen999 link does work. I just tried it.

Works now, Seems the http://www. Is required.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

So far, the number of photos is Zero.

Then so far, my level of interest is zero. <Insert sarcastic smiley emote of your choice here.>

Originally Posted By: Murph

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

So far, the number of photos is Zero.

Then so far, my level of interest is zero. <Insert sarcastic smiley emote of your choice here.>

That was then, now there's 2 photos, but someone else has already guessed what they are. It's one photo per day.

Trying to find a scene that's gives a clue as to what the movie is, but not too easy or too hard. A scene of just a tree, for instance would probably be too hard.

I'd be surprised if anybody can guess what today's movie pic is. April, 25 in case it's no longer today.

Click on my signature link.

The Thomas Crown Affair????

Originally Posted By: Ajax

The Thomas Crown Affair????

Nope. Sorry.

Hmmmm a light touch. Classic furniture. It can only be
Alien vs. Predator
.
.
.
.
.

Seriously though, my only guess is "Searching for Bobby Fisher". I don't recall a scene that dark in it but since the whole freakin movie seems to be nothing but a kid playing chess, I'll play the odds.

I also recall a dark chess scene in Blade Runner but hey had funkier pieces, so no.

I also was initially thinking Lucky Number Slevin but ruled it out after comparing the images via Google.

2nd photo is up for the same movie.

Guess movie at this location

Guess movie at this location [/quote]

Just finished mowing my yard with my new Husqvarna AWD push mower. Works like a charm. Will go over just about any terrain and hilly area exceptionally well. A little harder to maneuver and turn than my other ones is only con, so far. Also is much faster than my others at highest speed, so I run it slower. Don't care to run after it while mowing.

Well, no more guess the movie at 365project.org. They thought it best to not include movie photos. Their goal is to show original photos only.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Guess movie at this location

[/quote]

"Behind the Green Door!"

No, but that reminds me. There isn't a more beautiful phrase in the English language as "cellar door".

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

No, but that reminds me. There isn't a more beautiful phrase in the English language as "cellar door".

Sure there is. "Yes."

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

No, but that reminds me. There isn't a more beautiful phrase in the English language as "cellar door".

Sure there is. "Yes."

There's that too.

I take it you missed the movie Donnie Darko.

Going to continue the guess the movie theme a little while longer at 365project.org. If my photos aren't getting many views and no one is attempting to guess, I'll discontinue it then.

<---- glutton for punishment.

I've seen it, but only once.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?...amp;usp=sharing

Mi Cine

118 characters.

Was Les Misérables worth purchasing?

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

No, but that reminds me. There isn't a more beautiful phrase in the English language as "cellar door".

Sure there is. "Yes."

"Yes" isn't a phrase.

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

Was Les Misérables worth purchasing?

Short answer: No

Here's my review of the Pioneer Elite SC-67 I did today on Amazon.com. I'm including it here because of my mention of Axion Audio in it.

The best receiver I've owned, so far., May 5, 2013

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Pioneer Elite SC-67 9.2 Channel THX® Select 2 Plus A/V Receiver (Electronics)

I love Pioneer receivers. I had a low end Pioneer Elite before that developed a problem that was going to cost too much to fix, so I replaced it with a medium priced Denon. I always heard good things about Denon so gave it a try. I couldn't get it to sound right in my living room setup. Lows were weak, and highs were grating on the ears. After much adjusting and advice, I gave up, and ordered this upper range priced Pioneer and I'm glad I did. The only con is it's inability to equalize the lower bass, like the Denon's can. But I prefer too much bass as opposed to not enough. I can always turn the gain down on the subwoofer. I also like that it has multiple saves for MCACC, so I can drag a loveseat up close and just switch to a different preset sound calibration.

I've had this unit for 5 months now and I'm still loving it more every day. I'm running a 6.1 system in my living room, using Axiom Audio speakers, and a calibrated 65 inch Panasonic Plasma VT50. I'm in A/V heaven. Using an Oppo blu-ray player, without any video enhancements from the receiver.

I haven't mentioned my stock trading recently, because I stopped day trading, bought Zynga, and have just been waiting for it to go up. I was up 20k, but now am only up $10k. Instead of just holding, decided to sell the smaller pops and buy back on the dips. I still think this company is going places. Just not as fast as I had hoped it would. The Toyota FJ Cruiser I plan to buy with profits is going to have to wait a little longer, it seems.

This is why I don't actively trade. My stomach couldn't take watching 10k dwindle away, even if I was confident it would return and grow.

I can jump out of an airplane with a big grin on my face but I admit I couldn't handle the trade game.

Originally Posted By: Murph

This is why I don't actively trade. My stomach couldn't take watching 10k dwindle away, even if I was confident it would return and grow.

I can jump out of an airplane with a big grin on my face but I admit I couldn't handle the trade game.

I'm just the opposite. There's no way I could jump out of an airplane that's not going to crash anytime soon. Losing $10k after just making $20k isn't nearly as bad as just losing $10k. I try to keep things in perspective.

How many speakers do you current have up front?

Why do you think Zynga is going places? I ask this in an honest, non-snarky way.

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

How many speakers do you current have up front?

6 speakers on front wall. Double mains and center. One set above and one set below the Tv. A pair of QS8s near the front that give more a wide effect than a surround, with a single QS8 on the back wall.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Why do you think Zynga is going places? I ask this in an honest, non-snarky way.

RMG, or real money gamboling, which they are currently running live in UK beginning in April this year. Just a matter of time before the Fed removes online gamboling restrictions in the USA. Some states have either already passed laws, or in the process of passing them.

Zero debt with 1 billion cash on hand. Eliminating things that are broke, and starting new games. Hiring people with experience in the areas they want to expand into.

There'll be plenty of competition but Zynga is a prominent, well established company in the mobile gaming area. Soon you will be able to play poker, etc from your cell phone, or tablet, risking real money.

Zynga is still considered a speculative play, based on it's share price of $3.21. But to me and others, that's a bargain basement price for something that could gain some serious momentum in the not too distant future. I've currently got 20,000 shares in the company. Will sell the pops and buy the dips, in order to increase the number of shares.

But if the time comes to pull out, for whatever reason, I'll take my loss, lick my wounds and move on.

Gamboling doesn't mean what you think it means.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Gamboling doesn't mean what you think it means.

Oh. But, it'll probably save you bundles of money.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Gamboling doesn't mean what you think it means.

Oh. But, it'll probably save you bundles of money.

Depends upon with whom you are doing your gamboling.

Oh God, Oh God....
Now I'm stuck with an image of Brian Gamboling around his living room.

FurthaluvofGod Make it Stop!!

gangnam style lol

Fully clothed, I hope. Brian dancing Gangnam style without drawers is not an image I care to have.

Branson, Missouri's newest roller coaster. Scroll down for video.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/dispatches...keeper/2145331/

I would ride that.

I'm switching from Scottrade to TD Ameritrade next week. With most brokers, there's a 3 day settlement period with the funds you trade with. Using the same funds, in the same day, you can buy, then sell, then buy again, but that's all for the next 3-4 days. So it was always safest to wait 3 days after selling any stock before buying using the funds again. If you did happen to sell the stock within this 3 day period, it's considered a free ride. First time you get a warning call. 2nd time, they place restrictions on your account.

If you are trading in a cash account, and you have margin, this restriction doesn't apply. Also you can leverage up to 100% with margin.

Now comes me. I'm trading out of a traditional IRA account. You can't run margin in an IRA account because the government doesn't allow you to put up the IRA balance as collateral.

Along comes TD Ameritrade. They allow you to ignore the settlement rules in your IRA account. You can buy and sell using the same funds all day long, by using their money, as long as the value of the securities you purchase is never more than the funds in your account, and you have a minimum of 25k in the account at the beginning of the day. The only fee differences is you pay 9.99 per trade instead of 7.00. And the first 60 days comes with no trading fees.

That was strange.

My power went out in a storm for several hours, so I decided to make use of the battery backup unit I bought for the home theater, and run my fan off of it for a while. I ran it for about 20 minutes until I noticed it was cool enough to turn it off.

Later, when power was restored, I plugged fan back into regular wall receptacle and nothing. Fan wouldn't run. Checked wall outlet and it had power. Seems odd that running a fan on battery backup power would burn out the motor.

Ordered a new fan from Amazon.

One other thing. I bought a new hair brush thingie-ma-bob, do-hinkie, thingie, from Walmart called SHEDMONSTER. This thing really works. It's designed to remove the loose inner layer of cat fur. I never seen so much hair come off that cat. She seems to be a lot cooler now too.

We've been using a Furminator for several years with amazing results.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

We've been using a Furminator for several years with amazing results.

I tried the Furminator. Never liked it. Maybe the cat's hair is too long for it. She always tried to run away and always ended up with her hair balling up around her neck that had to be cut out. Never could get much hair off of her. It has a blade on it and seems to just cut away at the hair a little at a time.

With the Shedmonster, she loves it. Even lets me brush away at her tender belly that she hates it when I even touch it. Tons of hair comes off. Definitely not the same instrument. There's no cutting blades or sharp tines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iuWyzV0hkU

We just put them out during a good Nor'Easter.
It's important to make them stand backwards to the wind so it blows against the grain.

Do you crazy glue them down so they don't blow away?

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

We've been using a Furminator for several years with amazing results.

Considering that neither Buddy nor Tedy is several years old yet, what were you using it for when you first got it?

I was told that hairy chests were no longer "in".

I stopped paying attention to whether that was "in" or "out" years ago. It really matters to NO ONE once all of it turns white!

For those in love with Japanese Anime, the 2 movies "Howle's Moving Castle" and "My Neighbor Totoro" are now available in blu-ray.

I ordered these 2 today from Amazon with 1 day shipping, so I can watch them this weekend. I have the dvd's, but I replace the movies I really like with blu-ray when I can.

I've been wanting the series Lost, but been waiting for the prices to go down. I've only had my eye on the complete series in blu-ray and not the individual series.

Here's today's prices on Amazon.

Total of the 6 individual series = $142.89 (all new, all blu-ray)

Price of the complete series = $440 thru $795 for new.

LOL. I'll just buy the individual series 1 or 2 at a time. (My next mini-Amazon project)

I'm waiting for TNG to come down in price.
$80 a season is too much.
Its pretty obvious it will be on SPACE in HD eventually. TOS already is.
Might have to wait it out and not purchase them at all.

It's time to play WHACK A KITTY.

Well, well, well.

I noticed a bunch of birds gathered around the only tree in my back yard today. Upon closer inspection, I noticed what looks like thousands of bugs flying out of a hole in the tree that I've never noticed before.

So, I googled flying bugs coming out of a tree, and came up with either flying ants, or termites. Studied the pictures to know the difference. Flying ants have the typical ant shaped bodies and termites don't have the body segments that ants do. Just long and slender bodies.

After watching for a while, and letting the cat entertain herself by watching the fluttering birdies, I got a small clear tupperware container and captured one. Long un-antlike body, straight antenna, equal length wings. Oh no. TERMITES.

Termite inspection revealed no recent damage, but since termites live in such close proximity to my home and I live in an old neighborhood with lots of big old trees, I decided to have it treated. Expensive though, but worth it knowing home won't be destroyed my them.

Also was able to audition speaker system at the same time, and he's in the market for some.

Termite treatment is never a waste of money, as far as I'm concerned, especially if you know they're around.

LASER LIGHT CAT BOWLING

I've been checking out the 2013 Panasonic 65 inch ZT60 model TV on line. I currently have the 2012 Panasonic 65 inch VT50 model. I'm pleased with this TV in most all areas, except motion handling. I'd love to be able to view mine and this one side by side, in the same calibrated ISF mode and see what, if any, differences there are. A video I watched says the new 2013 is able to present the moving image quicker than the 2012 model, enhancing motion resolution, especially noticeable in fast action scenes.

I may have to bite the bullet and make the switch later this year, IF, I can sell my 1 year old fully calibrated (with extended warranty/3 years left) 65 inch VT50 for around $1000.00 less than the cost of the ZT60 model. So far the ZT60 isn't for sale, and to be listed around $4100, about $4500 after tax, and with price drop after a few months. You can buy a new, uncalibrated with 1 year warranty 65 VT50 for $2900 from Amazon. So, I'd be asking about $3500 now and less later, as the price of the ZT60 starts to drop.

The 65 inch VT60 is around $3600 (full price) and may be a better way to go, but don't know about the motion improvements to it yet. That puts it at about $4000 after tax, unless I buy from Amazon. Never bought a $3500 tv from Amazon before. Maybe worth while, just to get the newer model a little easier. I probably could sell my old one for around $3000 this way. Probably easier to find a buyer, plus I'd be paying less.

After checking, the VT60 also has the improved motion quality. It's called 3000 Focused Field Drive.

Here's the video. 3000 FFD starts at the 6 minute mark.

One improvement of the ZT60 over the VT60 is bonding of the glass cover with the glass of the panel. The VT50 and VT60 have a thin air pocket between the 2 layers of glass. This can create some reflections between the 2, causing some blurring at extreme off angles.

Zynga (ZNGA) stock not looking so fluffy anymore. Glad I was out of it when they took their recent big loss. Jumped in and out of it today thinking it was going to re-coop some loss, but it never did.

Liking my new trading account. I switched from Scottrade to TD Ameritrade. I can trade as much as I want to now, without worrying whether I'm using unsettled funds. Only problem, in today's market, I'm not finding anything to trade. Scottrade had a better tool for that, which I've reported to TDA and waiting to hear back to see if they have any equivalent. May have to reopen a minimum funded Scot account to use their tools.

It's a crapshoot, but I really did have a feeling you were barking up the wrong tree with Zynga when I asked you about it a while back. Maybe I should get into stocks.

Nah. I like my current very casual method that relies on time to do the work for me much better.

That works if you have the time to work with. In my case, I wish I had retired 5 years ago.

I'm not looking for any long term investment. Just some momentum on a daily basis, I can jump in and out of, at will.

It's when you break your own rules, you lose money.

Zynga stock has gone down so much in the last 4 days, that any good news makes it ripe for a big increase. With them, any good news normally happens after hours. So, my new technique with this stock which I started today, is to buy it on the close and sell in on the open. As long as it's not still going up. Most cases, I should be able to sell it at the open for about the same as I bought it. Sometimes more, sometimes less.

So, basically, you have no reason to believe this will ever make you any real money. Might as well play lotto scratchers.

LoL. Today, I couldn't find anything that will make real money. Stocks are so fickle. You either hold them and lose money, get lucky, or you find ways to trade them.

First Millions the hardest.

Sky diving cats

A CATNIP HIGH CAN BE A SCARY THING

My big Tuxedo cat grabs the catnip pillows in his front paws & rubs them all over his face & head - great dexterity.

Hilarious to watch...

TAM

No such luck with my cat. She will literally SHRED whatever comes in contact with catnip. I have to keep it well hidden from her.

If you use a maid, I need to find out who she is and pay her $500 to put catnip in your underwear drawer.

You can send me $500 and I'll video my cat shredding my underwear.

I'll throw in another $500 if you guarantee that you will not be wearing it at the time.

Deal!

I ordered a new OPPO BD-103 blu-ray player today. To replace the OPP BD-93 I've had for a year. I tend to wear players out quite fast. The 93 is starting to play jerkily sometimes and I have to reset the player to get it going again if I hit pause and let it set for more than a few seconds.

Furballs.

The cat's not allowed in the closet where the equipment is. She tends to snack on cords.

Remotely-deployed furballs.

You know it's gonna end up being furballs no matter how many objections you throw up (sic).

Yum! I'd like to gnaw on those with my ears.

I just got my first pair of computer glasses. Wow! What a difference that makes.

Does your computer have improved vision now?

You would be suprized what electronics attract, especially with cooling fans.

Drinking out of a computer does not seem advisable to me.

Making some homemade peppermint ice cream.

2 more days before the weekend.

23 more days before ordering an ADA-1250 3 channel amp.

152 more days before Christmas.

519 more days before I retire.

But who's counting?

Cat I'm a day late reading your post.
Can you please update it with today's numbers.

1 more day before the weekend.

22 more days before ordering an ADA-1250 3 channel amp.

151 more days before Christmas.

518 more days before I retire.

Loving Face Book stock (FB) right now.

Sell it now. It won't last.
My Mom just figured out how to post pictures. Servers are going to be so severely overwhelmed they will go in smoke any time now.

Octopussy...haha

3 more days before the weekend.

17 more days before ordering an ADA-1250 3 channel amp.

146 more days before Christmas.

513 more days before I retire.

The ADA-1250 is going to be a snug fit in my plastic equipment rack. I measured it yesterday and 18" is the maximum width. The ADA-1250 is 17.75" wide.

There is only a pole in each corner, so there will be plenty of ventilation. The whole thing is in a closet with sliding doors shut with a 1 inch gap, to keep the cat out.

Probably ought to start thinking about a ventilation fan.

Here's a possible suitable exhaust fan and thermostat for my closet. I like it, because it has the ability to close the hole when it's not running. Instead of exhausting to the room, I can exhaust to the chamber that contains the flu from the water heater. As long as not too noisy, should work out quite well.

I probably ought to put a thermometer in that closet to see if I even need to vent it.

Why would you vent a thermometer?

Facebook (FB) stock is starting to get hit by gravity.

1 more day before the weekend.

15 more days before ordering an ADA-1250 3 channel amp.

144 more days before Christmas.

511 more days before I retire.

Shoulda bought Tesla.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Shoulda bought Tesla.

No thanks. I've learned the hard way that it's too risky to hold a stock through earnings announcements.

I wonder what the chances are that I'll be returning the ADA-1250 amp within the 30 day trial period because I can't hear a difference between that and my Pioneer receiver?

Concerning trading stocks, my buy and hope strategies haven't worked out too well so far, so have decided to switch to the daily 1 percent strategy.

My goal will be to sell after approximately 1 percent gain, from any day trade purchase(s), instead of getting greedy and waiting for more. It's this waiting for more during day trades that can quickly go bad, sometimes turning what was supposed to be a quick day trade, into a multiple week hold for break-even, wasting valuable time.

One quick 1 percent trade, then out. Makes money (potential for a lot of money), then the rest of the day is freed up for other things instead. In order for this strategy to work, must immediately sell any trades that turn against me before they have had time to lose money. (That's one of the simplest, yet hardest things to do.) Using nearly 100 percent of capital per trade. Safe, as long as trading high volume stocks.

Today was first day. Worked fine, so far. Bought a stock at 12.30, sold at 12.44. Not a big move, but gained my goal for the day.

CAT SMELLING CHEESE.

I wonder what would give the most improvement in sound?

1) add an ADA-1250 for L/C/R, or

2) replace my EP350 with an EP500 or

3) replace my EP350 with an SVS PB13-Ultra.

I seem to have plenty of bass for most everything, but may not know what I'm missing.

Well, I decided to pay off Orkin termite treatment of $1700 instead of buying a power amp, for now. Probably better decision. I can get an amp and a new subwoofer some other time.

Today was the 2nd day for my 1 percent stock market strategy. It only took me 10 minutes to locate, buy and sell a stock for my 1 percent. Not bad. Could of gotten more, but decided not to get greedy. That 1 percent gain could just as easily been turned into a 1 percent loss if I had waited.

Doing this consistently for 1 year every day the market is open, theoretically would result in a 1100 percent gain. Not bad.

Brian, that's correct mathematically(1127 percent for 252 trading days), but maybe you shouldn't get too enthusiastic until another 250 or so.

Originally Posted By: JohnK

Brian, that's correct mathematically(1127 percent for 252 trading days), but maybe you shouldn't get too enthusiastic until another 250 or so.

I think enthusiastic for now will suffice. Not time to get euphoric just yet.

Day 3 of my 1% stock market strategy. I made 3.1 percent. Blackberry was on a run. Was my 3rd trade for the day. Lost 1%, then lost a very small amount, then hit BBRY for a total of 3.1 percent in trading account overall.

Could have stopped for the day with a loss. Glad I didn't.

I'll stop reporting on this soon, but just so's you know's that it's working for me. Today is day 4.

Day 1 = 1%
Day 2 = 1.2%
Day 3 = 3.2%
Day 4 = 1.8%

That's on 90-100% of money in Trading account, per trade. Not every first trade was a winner. Had to look for more. But Day 2 and Day 4 were 1 trade, 10 minute, or less, ordeals.

Also, the 1st 15 minutes of the day is ideal for stocks going up. After the first 15 minutes, most of those going up, have turned around and headed back down.

Don't remember if I mentioned it, or not. But in order to find these stocks. I just monitor the streams on stocktwits.com. It's like twitter for stocks. Free and don't even need to register, if you don't want to. Just watch what stocks they are talking about, then view their charts. I use a 1 minute bar intraday, and a 1 day bar monthly, along with volume, time/sales, Level II screens. Don't need any other indicators or analysis.

Just make sure the stock is trading over 1 million shares a day. The more, the better. On my screen I can mouse over the bars on the daily bars and it'll give me the volume for each day. If you happen to notice that a buy order is slowly fulfilling, it might be best to cancel that order before it has completed it's mission. You might find yourself unable to unload your shares, at a decent rate and for a decent price.

There. Follow this advice and you might find yourself making millions in no time. (Myself or Axiomaudio will not be held responsible if you discover financial ruin instead.)

Can I do a case study on you after you retire and compare your retirement portfolio's performance to people who "set it and forgot it" years ago?

It wouldn't be very informative, considering I waited until I was late 40's before I started saving money, and am going to take an early retirement. Now if you could find the same scenario, then that would help. Oh yeah, must also be a high school drop out, with no college.

What I have at retirement isn't an end deal. I plan to continue a working trading formula until I can't trade profitably anymore. Therefore, I should have continued growth for many years after retirement. Maybe I'll end my retirement on a yacht. Here's an Ocean Emerald for only $7,900,000

Oh yeah. Another goal is to end up in Jack Swager's next Stock Market Wizard"s book

I'd call that some darn good dreaming after 4 days of good results!

With any luck, you'll not be dreaming this kind of dream.

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

With any luck, you'll not be dreaming this kind of dream.

Yeah. I hope none of us do. I've got that movie, but only watched it once, so far.

Day 1: 1%
Day 2: 1.2%
Day 3: 3.1%
Day 4: 1.8%
Day 5: 1.5%

Worked 5 days in a row, so far. Roughly 8.1% gain in a week.
(That's percent gain in trading account, not any percent per trade. Like today I bought 2 stocks. One was a winner, the other a loser. Total time spent trading: 10 minutes)

TD Ameritrade is averaging around $60 a day in fees from my trading. It's been anywhere from $20 to $170. Day 3 where I made 3.1% was the $170 fee day. I kept showing a loss, and wanted to turn it into a gain instead. Also took about 1.5 hours that day. This is proof that more gain comes with more risk. Better to stick with %1 trades.

Was that 7,900,000 dollars or Euros for the Ocean Emerald?

Originally Posted By: Strider53

Was that 7,900,000 dollars or Euros for the Ocean Emerald?

The web site is reporting 7,900,00 in USD and Euros. Or 6,793,410 in British Pounds.

What are the best sounding speakers out there today? Must keep the price under $50,000 for a single speaker. Don't want million dollar speakers showing up here.

Is it ok if they look like an FJ Cruiser on end?

Originally Posted By: pmbuko

Is it ok if they look like an FJ Cruiser on end?

No

Well, the Wilsons are right out. So are the Revels.

So... I guess everyone is saying that there are no other, or better speakers than Axiom? Surely...

Here you go......dream on!

http://www.higherfi.com/spkrlist/speakerlist.htm

People are voting for the best speaker...like they've ever heard ANY of them! Not to mention hearing ALL of them A/B'd to make an informed decision about them.

The people that are voting for a best speaker there are no better than those who trash Axiom without having heard them. They're just snobbier.

I donno, most of those high end speakers are fugly to my eye. I don't care how good they may sound. If I can't live with their appearance they aren't for me.

Easy for me to say while living on a pension, ha!

TAM

Those are all over $50,000, except the first one in the list. This is probably the wrong forum to post this question. Too small a sampling of people.

Plus, we're all rationale and stuff.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Those are all over $50,000, except the first one in the list. This is probably the wrong forum to post this question. Too small a sampling of people.

Page 9 is all $50k per speaker - there's a whole list to chose from. But back on page 1 are the CAT brand speakers. Move the decimal over one place to the right and your all set! Come on - they even have a cat in the logo - you gotta get 'em.

Bought a 2006 Lexus ES 330 this weekend. My Chrysler broke down in rush hour traffic Friday. I decided that was the last time I was going to go through a breakdown with that car.

Black, with beige interrior, with yellowish brown wood trim. Nice looking car. Drives good. Only complaint mechanically, so far, is the cruise control. It isn't as smooth operating as the Chrysler was. Operates a little jerkily. You can feel the acceleration and deacceleration as it operates.

Congrats on the new, err, used car, Brian!

How many miles does the Lexus have on it?

Just seen your post showing your VP160 and M22's.
Did adding the 160 make a big difference over your previous center?

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

Just seen your post showing your VP160 and M22's.
Did adding the 160 make a big difference over your previous center?

Yes, very much so. I went from a VP100 to a VP150 to a VP160 over time. The VP160 provides more lower end support than what I was hearing before.

Renaissance festival 2013 at Bonner Springs, KS.

"Please don't make me watch you take the 60 Viagra pills again!"

I wish knew a great hacker who could install that image as your desktop wallpaper!

Face swap time!

Wow! Good job with this.

WHOAH. The dogs must of done that! I'm just the cat.

Thats messed up

Whomever controls the spice controls the crosswalk!!!!

Click Me. Contains the written F word.

It looked printed to me.

It has not been a good week. First i had a buyer for mr Denon 3312ci receiver and i accidentally fried the right channel amp during a demo setup. Next my ipad 2 quit working.

I blew the right channel amp by not making sure no wires were touching. I read up that i can choose a bi-amping option. This allows the tweeters to be attached to the surround backs. I'm assuming you can also just set to bi-amp and mount the mains to the back surrounds also, and forgo 7.1 and 2nd zone. Does this sound like it would work?

Its not my main receiver, but one I'm trying to sell.

I don't see why it wouldn't work that way. Worth a try, certainly.

Sure, Brian; although that feature isn't actually "bi-amping", the channels usually used for back surround information can instead be fed front channel material. Then by connecting the right back channel to the right front speaker(both the high and low frequency sections)the apparently damaged right front channel output transistors can be bypassed.

Did I mention I bought a Lexus a couple of months ago?

You did but I don't remember seeing any pictures.

Nice Ride !!!

My cats would luv to perch on that, ha!

If one mistakenly gets trapped in the garage, their paw marks are readily apparent on the windshield...

TAM

I like that one, I caught it on TV a while ago.

Here you go, Cat.

I probably would have attacked the woman too.

My home built computer is having a problem now.

Every time I boot it, all I get is a black screen with a movable mouse pointer. That's all. Any ideas?

Before this happened, I booted and got a blue screen that said that it couldn't boot and suggested I choose the option that would scan for errors. Afterwards, I got another screen that suggested I choose the option to restore from a previously saved position, which I choose. It was up and running for that session only.

I'm running an OEM Windows 7 professional version with all the updates applied.

you like cats? watch this funny vid...
The cat came back

I get a kick out of this one. It's obviously been an ongoing war for some time as the cat was waiting for him in the window.

Cat verses Postman.

Originally Posted By: Murph

I get a kick out of this one. It's obviously been an ongoing war for some time as the cat was waiting for him in the window.

Cat verses Postman.

Oh no! This one really made me laugh.

What the heck? I've ignored this thread all this time and it is chocked full of cat and picture awesomeness. Must start at the beginning....

I had to watch it a few times...

I wonder if he landed on his feet, ha!

TAM

Funny......

My little 'Jasmine' cat is up on my desk & intently watching these clips, ha!

TAM

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

I don't know why that is so funny, 'cause I know it's mean.
If it were done to a person, I wouldn't feel as guilty, unless it's like, a three year old, who's already in therapy.

Is it because we know there is no threat, no danger, and the cat won't get hurt? Is that what I was thinking when I had 4 dogs and mail-ordered a 7', inflatable T-Rex? They fell for it every time, for days. We went through packages of patch kits before they caught on and lost all interest.

Is a dog/cat being toyed with using a laser pointer so OK these days, that you can get 'em in pet stores? Isn't it kinda like "punking" a dog or cat, and isn't that mean?

OK, I'm right back where I started. Never mind.

Something about it makes me think if Bob...

Ha!

Sausage Cat says: "Is time for new sub-woofer. Ya?"

Because this old one not comfy anymore.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8jBR7Wq6oY

Kitten #1: "I don't see any sub-wooper here. I thought you said it was arriving today."

Kitten #2: "No I said it was suppose to mail tomorrow.".

Kitten #1: "How can you mail a sub-wooper?"

Kitten #2: "I don know. Maybe the envelope is really big."

Has anybody here used the OPPO Darbee Edition Player? And if so, did this make a good enhancement to the image quality, or is it over-hyped?

http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-103/blu-ray-BDP-103D-Overview.aspx

Hi,

I have a friend who added a Darbee to his OPPO BDP93 and it does make big difference. It is very obvious on still images. Once things move the difference is not as striking. I'm sold when I will replace my OPPO it will be with a built-in Darbee. The combinaison of the Darbee and OPPO is quite a saving as well.

Amazing one really very funny....

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Has anybody here used the OPPO Darbee Edition Player? And if so, did this make a good enhancement to the image quality, or is it over-hyped?

http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-103/blu-ray-BDP-103D-Overview.aspx

I have a Darbee Darblet added into my system and really REALLY like it. It was a little strange at first as you do have options to tweak it and there is a fine line between getting maximum improvement and it being too artificial looking. I have mine on all the time and never adjust it at this point. Sure, there are some movies where they have a lot of film grain (added by the studios to make things more "gritty") like The Grey with Liam Nieson and a bunch of wolves. That was really grainy already and the Darbee system will "enhance" the grain too. For films with less grain added to them than in The Grey, they are just fine.

I just wanted to mention that no system is perfect, but this technology is pretty darn cool. Cool enough to buy an Oppo with it if you already have an Oppo without? Not sure. You could just buy the add-on box that works with anything. I have it set between my receiver and my projector. Then EVERY source gets enhanced and not just the blu-ray player. Then again, it currently costs around $300 or a little more. I got mine for just $165 back as a pre-order special.

EDIT: WOW. I just saw that the Darblet is running $320 at Amazon and the Oppo 103D is selling for $600. Crazy that the Darbee technology is that much vs. the Oppo with the tech inside it.

I've had Axiom speakers for years. I'm waiting for notification of shipping the new EP500 V4 and I still get excited. Still waiting. 10 business days from order date should be around May 6th.

I have seen that before but still gives me a great belly laugh.

10 business days is a long time to wait for a speaker order. Tomorrow maybe I'll get the email.

You should have pre-ordered the LFRs, LOL. It will be worth it,in the end.

I had a parcel notification in my mailbox yesterday and I'm not sure what it's for.

Looks like my subliminal messages to Cat with my home delivery address worked after all! Muuhuuuhahahahahah

Originally Posted By: SBrown

You should have pre-ordered the LFRs, LOL. It will be worth it,in the end.

Problem is, I'd have to sit between them.

Originally Posted By: Murph

I had a parcel notification in my mailbox yesterday and I'm not sure what it's for.

Looks like my subliminal messages to Cat with my home delivery address worked after all! Muuhuuuhahahahahah

To Murph: Send all your money to Catbrat. Send all your money to Catbrat.

11 business days, and no shipping notification yet for the EP500 order. Must be a busy time for them.

Dude the waiting is the hardest part.

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Dude, The Waiting is the hardest part.

The Waiting!

Hell! Forget this waiting. I'm going after it.

Urk! I always knew the zombie apocalypse would start with cats.

Still waiting on EP500 order. 14 business days today.

Called Axiom Audio today about the EP500 order. They were out of power supplies and waiting on a shipment. Should be ready to ship by Friday.

Looks like it was shipped yesterday. Got tracking number and arrived in USA at 9:47 this morning. Due to arrive next Monday.

I love that picture, are those 3 yours?

Dave

Originally Posted By: dberthe

I love that picture, are those 3 yours?

Dave

Nope, I just use pics off the internet.

Here's 2 recent pics of mine.

Cute! That is such a cat maneuver in the puzzle box!

I'll have to figure out how to post a picture on here, I have four of the furry beasts.

Dave

Sitting at home waiting for EP500 to arrive. They changed the delivery date on me from the 19th to the 16th. No complaints there.

Got EP350 boxed up and ready to go. Being delivered by UPS this time. Going to see if driver will also pick up my old one at the same time.

I was surprised when I opened up the EP350 box last night when I went to pack it. First off I noticed a lot of cat hair stuck to the edges of the flaps. A look inside revealed what looked like a rat's nest. I had discovered my cat's secret hideout. She had gone into the box secretly and ripped up cardboard and styrophom into tiny pieces. Fortunately, the box itself was not damaged, and there was enough of the remaining pieces to complete the packing process without weakening the integrety for shipping purposes.

P

EP500 in Vermont Maple.

Cat seems satisfied. I guess that's all that matters.

That's a REALLY good looking subwoofer. I have a serious case of sub envy.

:: Must resist...ummm..."cat" envy joke..... ::

No grill for the Subwoofer yet. I guess they are still behind at making these. I put some plastic drawers against the front when not in use to keep curious little cat paws/claws away from the speaker for now.

What do you think of it, Brian?

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Cat seems satisfied. I guess that's all that matters.

"Look at this! The cheap bastard bought me a USED scratching post with all of the carpet already worn off! He's gonna pay for this, oh, he's gonna pay.

Originally Posted By: SBrown

What do you think of it, Brian?

Too early to make a judgement, since I've been too busy with other things (like moving my sister to a Nursing home), to do it justice.

1) It's loud.
2) It's bass.

That's about all I've been able to determine, so far.

I watched "Super 8" last night with the sound turned up a bit more than I normally would. Fantastic is a word that comes to mind. The EP500 was no slouch with this movie at all.

Yesterday morning my 3 white 'rescued' cats decided that it was nicer inside with me in 'My Cave' than outside in the spring showers. I was surrounded with felines. Our big tom cat 'Tuxedo' was outside patrolling I guess.

Flurry:

Lucy:

Jasmine:

TAM

I'm wanting to try adding a trigger cable from my receiver to my EP500. It's a 3.5mm cable. But everytime I search for one of these, it looks like this:

It has 3 connectors on each one, like a stereo cable. Is this the right cable?

Update: I'm assuming it is, since when I pull up the EP500 manual, it gives a picture of some cables, and one that looks like this is in the picture.

Normally a mono tr cable is used but a trs stereo will work fine.

It's been 3 weeks since my EP500 was shipped without the grill. I was wondering how much longer this might take?

Can't you just glue a few cats to the front?

Originally Posted By: Murph

Can't you just glue a few cats to the front?

Live ones, or dead ones?

If live, that can get real messy, real fast.
If dead, would have to hand out gas masks to visitors.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

It's been 3 weeks since my EP500 was shipped without the grill. I was wondering how much longer this might take?

Tis quite odd since they make them on site. Hopefully soon

Yes. I know.. you don't say. U-hu.

http://www.dose.com/lists/2884/23-Cats-Who-Probably-Just-Lost-1-Of-Their-9-Lives-4-Is-PRICELESS

Those were pretty funny.

Is everyone still waiting for the grills to their V4 speakers?

Tomorrow makes 4 weeks since I've received the new EP500 and still no grill. Wonder why the long wait?

Everyone in Dwight is watching cat videos.

It has been about a month for me too; still waiting for EP350 grille.

All my v.4 speakers that I ordered came with grills. Perhaps it is just the subwoofers that don't have them yet.

All your grill belong to us.

Remember. If it squeeks, don't eat it.

Link to my gmail document where I keep a list of all the movies that have ever been nominated for an oscar for best picture.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?...amp;usp=sharing

Cause wikipedia is not doing a good enough job on that ???

Originally Posted By: Murph

Cause wikipedia is not doing a good enough job on that ???

Nah. Something I started a few years ago for my own benefit. The X by the name means I have a copy of it.

Last night, I watched the movie The Wolf of Wall Street. Good movie, btw, but not a family movie. The reason I'm mentioning it here is because of the new EP500 v4. This sub-woofer definitely outdoes the EP350 v3 in over all bass quality sound. I'm much pleased with my decision to upgrade. The difference isn't always noticeable, but when it is, you really notice it. I spent a good 2-4 years (I forgot which) with the old one, so my ears are accustomed to it's sound.

Grill for my new EP500 v4 just shipped.

I grilled corn last night.
Mmmmmmh Mexican Lime Grilled Corn.............

Sorry, you were saying?

Originally Posted By: Murph

I grilled corn last night.
Mmmmmmh Mexican Lime Grilled Corn.............

Sorry, you were saying?

If it squeeks? Don't eat it.

Just received delivery notice email that the grill for my EP500 is in my front door.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Just received delivery notice email that the grill for my EP500 is in my front door.

I finally called Brent on the 18th, and my EP350 Grille shipped the next day. He said they had been available for a while, so I guess they were a low priority in the shipping department.

The "burnt sienna" grill is a much lighter shade than what the picture shows. I would have preferred a darker shade of this color with the dark Vermont Maple EP500.

Not bad looking, but darker would have been better.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

The "burnt sienna" grill is a much lighter shade than what the picture shows. I would have preferred a darker shade of this color with the dark Vermont Maple EP500.

Not bad looking, but darker would have been better.

I wonder how much just a replacement grille costs; just in case you wanted to change the color.

Dave

One of my cats brought a live, large mouse (or small rat) into the house yesterday. I rescued it from its tormentor but the ungrateful little bugger bit me on the hand before I was able to set it free across the street on the seashore.

Then, out came liberal quantities of 99% Isopropyl Alcohol & so far I haven't come down with the Bubonic Plague or whatever, ha!...

TAM

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

One of my cats brought a live, large mouse (or small rat) into the house yesterday. I rescued it from its tormentor but the ungrateful little bugger bit me on the hand before I was able to set it free across the street on the seashore.

Then, out came liberal quantities of 99% Isopropyl Alcohol & so far I haven't come down with the Bubonic Plague or whatever, ha!...

TAM

My cats insist bringing in live rodents AND birds all the time and then letting them loose. They get distracted easily. I have rescued numerous birds. I have less sympathy for the mice or rats. Fortunately, I have one "diligent" cat (not the ones that bring them in) who will find them.

Dave

I just rescued another snake from him - intercepted before he brought it inside.

Thankfully there are no venomous ones here....

TAM

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

I just rescued another snake from him - intercepted before he brought it inside.

Thankfully there are no venomous ones here....

TAM

I'm glad mine is a house cat.

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

I just rescued another snake from him - intercepted before he brought it inside.

Thankfully there are no venomous ones here....

TAM

Or unfortunately there aren't.... I wish there were here. I get the neighbours cat on my property daily. Luckily for it I can't use a slingshot or pellet gun. ALL pet owners (with neighbours or high traffic roads nearby) should be responsible and tie their cats/dogs up if they're outside. More often than not, cat owners are lazy and incompetent.

You really can't tie a cat up and put it outside. I just finished reading about this a bit on the internet. Everyone says it's not a good idea. Too many things can go wrong.

Gimp:

And a good morning to you too. I must admit that I got up this morning feeling lazy & incompetent.

Perhaps I should whack or shoot the beautiful deer that frequent our properties here & chew on my garden. Or how about I take a baseball bat to the occasional dog that violates the sanctity of my cat friendly yard? Live & let live I say.

One of the reasons that the Plague took out so much of the European population in medieval times was because of the cruel, superstitious & misguided practices of attempting to annihilate domestic cats. Plague carrying rodents flourished with disastrous results.

My cats seem to help control the rodent population here & rarely, if ever, get birds. My well-fed cats don't have the same drive to hunt that always hungry feral cats do. I'm presently feeding one here, is thriving & he now seems to be not interested in birds either...

TAM

Up here , we have a bylaws that no cat or dog can be loose. I do not see any cats outdoors here what so ever. FYI, they are 10 times worse for getting in the garbage than even raccoons or dogs. I have lost a couple cats that insisted on making a jailbreak, the fox's and coyotes make a meal of them in short order. My sister in Kelowna lost quite a few pets to the wild animals. Best to keep them indoors lest you annoy your neighbors.

Oh and Chilliwack has a cat and dog bylaw as well, my parents neighbors have mess and netting all over the yard trying to contain their cats. Hilarious

Some cats can be taught to stay in an enclosed back yard. It worked for me the one and only time I tried it. Back in the days I could easily hop over a chain link fence, that is.

It only took 2 times. The cat jumped the fence, and I jumped the fence, caught the cat and threw her back into the yard. After that, the cat never left the yard.

My 4 cats - all rescued - spend 80%+ of their time indoors voluntarily - mainly sleeping the day away & eating. They are never out after supper so are not on the loose at night. They seem to coexist happily with both coons, the munching deer & the dog across the street that comes over daily for his 'Cat Treats'.

I've never had issues with any of our neighbours in the 18 years that we've lived here - nice neighbourhood I guess. I have read complaints in the paper about cats dumping in people's flower gardens; however, believe you me, mine save it up & come home to use their litter boxes in our house...

TAM

I'd be careful about the fleas coming off the racoons. I had one in my house once, and about a month later, had a big flea problem in the house.

I don't like kitty's in me yard, nor on me boat. Arrrr!

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

You really can't tie a cat up and put it outside. I just finished reading about this a bit on the internet. Everyone says it's not a good idea. Too many things can go wrong.

I know two people that tie their cat(s) up whenever they are outside, and one also walks it on a leash. They've never had any problems.

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

Gimp: LOL...

And a good morning to you too. I must admit that I got up this morning feeling lazy & incompetent.

Perhaps I should whack or shoot the beautiful deer that frequent our properties here & chew on my garden.
TAM

Unfortunately we do that regularly.

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

Or how about I take a baseball bat to the occasional dog that violates the sanctity of my cat friendly yard? Live & let live I say.TAM

If it was attacking you, you'd just say "meh, live and let live"? There's reasons we have bylaws in place for dogs. Cats can be extremely vicious, too. My caregiver was attacked by her neighbours cat that was roaming on her front yard. This happened last summer and the scars down her forearm haven't healed yet.

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

One of the reasons that the Plague took out so much of the European population in medieval times was because of the cruel, superstitious & misguided practices of attempting to annihilate domestic cats. Plague carrying rodents flourished with disastrous results.

My cats seem to help control the rodent population here & rarely, if ever, get birds.

Well heck, that's as good a reason as any to abstain from spaying and neutering

. What about "live and let live"?

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Up here , we have a bylaws that no cat or dog can be loose. I do not see any cats outdoors here what so ever. FYI, they are 10 times worse for getting in the garbage than even raccoons or dogs. I have lost a couple cats that insisted on making a jailbreak, the fox's and coyotes make a meal of them in short order. My sister in Kelowna lost quite a few pets to the wild animals. Best to keep them indoors lest you annoy your neighbors.

Oh and Chilliwack has a cat and dog bylaw as well, my parents neighbors have mess and netting all over the yard trying to contain their cats. Hilarious

I think Toronto has the same bylaw.

And just to clarify (because some don't understand jesting, hyperbolic statements,) I most certainly don't think cats should be harmed in any shape or form because they're meandering on someone's property.

One often overlooked concern about loose domestic pets is that they pose a threat to driver safety.

Sorry, I guess that your humour & mine didn't jive or it certainly did not come across that way to me when I read it. Perhaps I'm over sensitive due to the cruelty cases that have gained notoriety in our province in the past couple of years. They have caused great embarrassment & shame here & thankfully has resulted in tougher laws. Our century old federal laws are in dire need of updating as well.

BTW, there are no such bylaws where I live.

Enuff said from me on this...

TAM

If you are having cat problems , call bylaw and they will place some traps. I am sure there are plenty of feral cats givin the way they reproduce much like rabbits. Unfortunately many pets are abandoned .

By a paint ball gun.
Enjoy.

I like having my big feral Tom (we call him Tommy) coming around every day. I certainly don't try to run him off as they have a rough life out there. Several years ago I befriended one for a couple of years & we became great buddies. Unfortunately he lost his life to an idiot driver who didn't even stop to check. It was a very sad couple of weeks for me.

On my way to the pub tonight, I had a beautiful Border Collie dart right in front of my car. I panic braked & swerved hard right & just managed to miss him. I was surprised that my reaction time is still pretty good. Whew...

TAM

I can see how cats in the city would be more of a concern but I live in the country and our outdoor cat is treated like a superhero around here. Most of my neighbors are summer cottages which tend to not be built as tight as a full time house. If it were not for my cat, they would be infested with chipmunks who love to nest in them in the winter.

He wanders around all the neighbors on his 'patrol' getting treats, cheese, bowls of milk, etc. from all of them. Quiet a life for a cat.

When I accidentally ran over his leg one time and he had to recover for months indoors, neighbors actually kept coming down to check on him, bringing him bags of treats and saying that they were having mice and chipmunk problems again since he went on "sick leave".

I only wish I was as popular in my neighborhood as my cat!

Try running over your own leg and gauge the level of concern?

My mother lived in the country and kept feral cats outside in the barn as pets. To me they were no good as pets and should be euthanized.

Edit: This was before I read the last page here. I do see now how they can be useful in keeping pest population down, but the females probably should be caught and spayed.

IMO, feral cats have their place, especially on farms or rural properties where they help keep rodents in check. They are part of nature & have been around as long as we have been walking upright.

Besides the SPCA here, we have an excellent volunteer group in concert with local Pet Food Stores & some kind Vets - Kitty Cat Pals - that traps feral cats, pays to have them neutered &/or takes kittens & puts them out for adoption. They 'rescue' unwanted cats as well. It has a great track record in adopting out kittens & adults by displaying them in local pet food stores - 6 feral kittens went in a couple of days this week in our local 'Woofy's' store. Kudos to all involved.

Two of my most recent cats came from this worthwhile project...

TAM

I got an older male Siamese cat from a similar group once from a pet store. Kept him for a week, until I discovered he had 1) litter box problems and 2) a biting problem. Back he went and I was around $75 poorer.

Originally Posted By: MarkSJohnson

Try running over your own leg and gauge the level of concern?

Siamese are lovely to look at, but can be uncommonly nasty. My daughter has two.

The male is great but the little female is a witch & is one of the few cats that hasn't taken to me or anyone else...

TAM

Just heard on the radio news - it's happening again!!! Bring on the felines, especially ferals:

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/349290/Invasion-of-the-killer-mutant-rats

TAM

Originally Posted By: exlabdriver

Just heard on the radio news - it's happening again!!! Bring on the felines, especially ferals:

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/latest-news/349290/Invasion-of-the-killer-mutant-rats

TAM

I can certainly believe they came from France LOL

I think my parents have them in their back yard as they don't seem to be effected by rat poison.. but the article says nothing on how to actually get rid of them.

Originally Posted By: Murph

I only wish I was as popular in my neighborhood as my cat!

I'd run that by Sharon, then get back to us.

Originally Posted By: oakvillematt

I think my parents have them in their back yard as they don't seem to be effected by rat poison.. but the article says nothing on how to actually get rid of them.

Matt:
Seeing your post on the first page with absolutely no context, I thought you were talking about your parents' neighbors.

I decided to try and sell my blu-ray players, OPPO BDP-93 and my OPPO BDP-103 to raise enough money to easily afford the OPPO BDP-103D. I keep waiting for a new version to be released first, but no news there.

Trying Craigslist first, but not expecting a sale there. May have to sell it off of Amazon. The prices there are ridiculously high for used OPPO's. I really doubt if those are selling.

Not trying to sell here, just putting my thoughts here is all.

Yeah, I've found the problem with Craigslist is nobody is willing to pay what the product is actually worth. They want a great deal (translation: a steal).

Originally Posted By: Ajax

Yeah, I've found the problem with Craigslist is nobody is willing to pay what the product is actually worth. They want a great deal (translation: a steal).

I think that's perfectly reasonable seeing that everything we purchase new is actually more than the product is worth (translation: planned obsolescence capitalistic anal probing).

Why not try Ebay. I got 45 US for a AGP video card LOL.

I had a buyer for both players OPPO 93 and 103, but he would only pay using Paypal, and not cash. I have very little experience with Paypal. Have never used it to receive money, only pay for things, and very little of that. So, I'm skeptical of this procedure and there may be ways I'd get cheated if I'm ignorant of how it works.

FWIW , I only use paypal and most on Ebay will only accept it.I just sold the video card, and I have to wait a bit before I get the money, probably until the buyer receives the goods.I have never had trouble with paypal in any way , though they gouge a bit on the currency conversion, the rate is always a bit off and they have a fee as well. Paypal protects the buyer and seller and is good at being the intermediary . I bought my antimode off canuck audiomart and used paypal , I took comfort knowing if I didn't get what I was expecting paypal was there for me.

That was fast

He finally agreed to a cash purchase for the OPPO 103 only. Supposed to meet him about 3 hours from now in a public place. My GF going with me for moral support. Wrote out a sales receipt, 2 copies, that states in excellent condition, with no implied warranty, other than purchaser is satisfied within the first 48 hours. Serial number included on invoice and I have pictures.

Now need to sell the OPPO 93.

Well, sold both OPPO blu ray players and got the BDP-103D ordered from Amazon. Arrival date is late this week thru early next week.

I just realized that in stocks, I own Kandi Apple.

KNDI
AAPL

Got new Anime catalog in the mail. Never heard of it before.

rightstuf.com

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Got new Anime catalog in the mail. Never heard of it before.

rightstuf.com

I hadn't bought anything from them until the new Ranma 1/2 Blu-rays started coming out. Better initial prices than Amazon.com, although I probably should have just been patient.

Just ordered a URC R40 remote. I already have an IR extender installed on the wall my TV is on with emitters attached to the IR receivers in a closet. This works well when using the original remotes. I'm on my 2nd or 3rd (forgot which) Logitech 1100 RF remote and it's getting close for time to replace it. Instead of spending another $400 or so on an RF remote, I spent $100 for the IR remote. I read through the AVS Form about this remote and now know to make sure the firmware is at least 1.19, or send it back for a replacement. The programming for it sounds a bit formidable though.

After weekend playing with OPPO BDP-103D and URC R-40 remote.

First the remote: Seems like a good idea with a possible failed product. Have to wait until I have more experience programming it. I can execute single commands on any one device. I can turn off all devices with one push of a button (that doesn't work everytime). I've programmed, by learning, the physical buttons for how I want them to function. A few of them worked once, some of them never worked, and those that did work soon failed to work. You know, I never had these problems even once with a Logitech remote.

Now the Blu-Ray player: Works excellent, seems the newer the model, the quicker the mechanical parts respond. It asked to update the firmware as soon as I turned it on the first time and all went well (I use ethernet cable whenever I can). The darbee, I'm still playing with the adjustment. So far, I've only used it on a blu-ray edition of Lost. It goes from 0% to 120%. I originally set it to 30% because that seems to be the happy point on the AVS forums. Putting it in demo mode where left side of display is with darbee and right side is without darbee, I couldn't tell that it was even working. So I set it to 120%. Working! Slowly turned it down over many watching sessions, then back up to 68% seems to be the happy place for myself. Using Hi-Def mode.

First off, it seems to make skin texture look much more real than before. Skin is where I've noticed the differences the most. The more Darbee you have, the greasier the skin looks. (No, I haven't watched the movie Grease yet.) So turning it down a bit there helps. The real kicker is pausing it on a screen with faces and turning Darbee on and off, comparing the difference. There is a big difference at around the 70% setting without going overboard. Around 60% setting is were I start to notice there isn't much of a difference. Overall, I'm happy with Darbee and probably won't be turning it off anytime soon.

Siamese are charming to look at, but can be uncommonly unpleasant. My little girl has two. The men is excellent but the little women is a wizard & is one of the few kitties that has not taken to me or anyone else......

Firmware version on my URC R40 remote is 1.20, so I shouldn't have a firmware issue. Haven't had time to reprogram it. I reset it to factory defaults and my memory is still 49% full. I hope that's normal.

Any one else have any problem logging into the forums here using Windows 8.1?

I couldn't do it yesterday. Haven't started trying different things yet. It would keep taking me back to the Log in screen, without displaying any sort of message first. If I entered an incorrect password, I'd get the message for that. If I entered a correct password, the screen would flash then right back to the login screen.

I've had this problem for years with a variety of Windows systems, presumably IE related but experienced on Win7 as well. Basically same symptoms -- every time I select a thread (possibly a forum too) I get logged out.

In my case my work focus shifted from Windows to Linux so the problem kinda took care of itself (everything works fine on my Linux systems with Mozilla). Are you using IE or something different on Win 8.1 ? Wondering if we should try another browser on Windows to localize the problem.

I was having a similar problem to Bridgman, I would log in and then go into a thread and be logged out then I would have to log in a gain. I messed with the privacy settings to allow all cookies. MMMMMMMMM cookies

OK, I added axiomaudio.com to my trusted site list and now the login seems to hold. Posting from Windows for the first time in... well, a long time.

I had to turn off the "require https on all sites in this zone" option (IE wouldn't add http://www.axiomaudio.com otherwise) which I didn't like, but IE did let me turn the option back on again and I could still access the Axiom site via http... which makes no sense.

Just in case I removed axiomaudio.com from the trusted sites list and went back to my Linux boxes.

CAT ELEVATOR

saw this real cool sig on a game. Reminded me of you

=^.^=

My weekend project. Central air broke and can't be fixed. Installed window air and installed a dedicated 110 volt circuit for it.

I miss my AC.
2 houses,naturally we gotta live in the poorly insulated one without the central air.

That .gif definitely deserves a comment, but it's so strange I don't know what comment to make.

Originally Posted By: bridgman

That .gif definitely deserves a comment, but it's so strange I don't know what comment to make.

I find these on the catriddit site. This one did have a comment attached to it.

"Now you've really pissed me off!"

My comment is this:

The saddest day in any cat household is when the cat learns to use its paw to dislodge anything you put over its face. It's amazing how long it takes some cats to get there, though.

Time for another funny, or perhaps disturbing, cat picture. It's been a while.

It has been a while. Whatcha been up to?

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

It has been a while. Whatcha been up to?

You know, the usual.

Getting sister into a nursing home, dealing with the death of my brother, trying to find his lost son.

Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, about the time I joined Axiomaudio forums, I was trying to just find the name of a movie by describing what I could remember here, and someone suggested "The Time Travelers". I'm pretty sure that was it, but I never could find a copy of it. Sci-Fi Classics in a version called Movies 4 You, are combining 4 movies into 1 package, and I located the movie in one of those last night and ordered it.

Yippie.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

It has been a while. Whatcha been up to?

You know, the usual.

Getting sister into a nursing home, dealing with the death of my brother, trying to find his lost son.

That's tough, sorry to hear that.

[/quote]

Good ole find...

I'm sorry to hear of your loss, Brian.

Originally Posted By: CatBrat

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

It has been a while. Whatcha been up to?

You know, the usual.

Getting sister into a nursing home, dealing with the death of my brother, trying to find his lost son.

Brain, I'm so sorry to hear of your family situations. I hope you can keep your own things together under the gravity of it all.

A few, old "B" Sci-fi flixs can't hurt. Hope you enjoy them.

Brian, sorry to hear of the family problems that you're experiencing. Hope that you're able to get some enjoyment out of those Sci-Fi Classics.

Sorry to hear about your troubles Brian. Sounds like some stressful times. All my best to you.

Thanks guys. A lot of things going on at the same time in my life makes for a stressful time. Been this way almost all year, only getting worse lately.

That's pretty horrible. In oh so many ways.

Yes, but the product seems effective. I mean, look how happy the cats are at the end. You can't even tell they've got the tampons in.

Today, I finally got the last piece of the new computer I'm building, the 1000 Watt power supply. Don't have the 6 monitors and stand yet, but at least I'll have the box with new keyboard and mouse.

Can't wait to finish setting it up this weekend and trying it out. Went with a mini case that takes mini MB, but full sized components of everything else. i5 processor, and a video card with 6 mini USB ports, 16 meg mem, 256 gig SSD, and a 16x BD writer.

Should make an excellent stock market trading station. Overkill actually.

For $297 a quarter (now $497 for new members), the Jason Bond Picks dot com site can't be beat. Lots of good training and a chat room that has audio with a successful day trader. My account was up 14% today just on an overnight gapper suggestion that the day trader suggested. I'm hoping on continued success with this setup. (Sorry, didn't mean to make this look like a sales pitch, just wanted to express my thoughts for today.)

Sounds like a great machine Cat. You didn't give part numbers so I'm wondering, what in the world is a 1000W power supply for?

I can't talk, my gaming rig has a 900 watt but that was to support a pair of SLI linked, power hogging 3-d cards at the time.

Originally Posted By: Murph

Sounds like a great machine Cat. You didn't give part numbers so I'm wondering, what in the world is a 1000W power supply for?

I can't talk, my gaming rig has a 900 watt but that was to support a pair of SLI linked, power hogging 3-d cards at the time.

It's mostly just to insure the video card for 6 monitors will have power to spare.

VisionTek AMD Radion HD7870 Eyefinity 6 ED Graphic Card 900548

System Requirements:

500W (or greater) power supply with one 75W 6-pin PCI Express power connector recommended 600W power supply (or greater) with two 75W 6-pin PCI Express power connectors recommended for AMD CrossFire™ technology.

Brian, how does the price of 6 screens and stand compare to a equivalent sized good quality 4K screen?

Originally Posted By: brwsaw

Brian, how does the price of 6 screens and stand compare to a equivalent sized good quality 4K screen?

6 Acer V226WL bd 22-Inch Screen LED-Lit Monitor (Amazon)

$126.19 x 6 = $754.14

Ergotech Hex 3 Over 3 LCD Monitor Desk Stand (100-D28-B33) (Amazon)

$323.43 + $754.14 (monitors) = $1,080.57

This would be equivalent to a 70 inch monitor.

Sharp Aquos 4K LC-70UD1U = $3,499.99 (Amazon)

With 6 monitors running at once, I would be treating them as 6 individual monitors, not just a 70 inch with lines running through it. At least that's my goal. Like a dual monitor windows system, except with 3 across bottom, and 3 across top.

I love those sales pictures of 4K. They make the FULL HD side look like a DVD and the 4K side like a blu-ray. In reality, I doubt that it would be that big of a difference.

Tell me you are into flight sims too. ... That rig could be a space flight trainer!! Super cool.

That's going to be pretty awesome.
War Thunder calls...just saying.

Wow. Impressive, but you are not a Jedi yet!

Actually, that's a Jedi Master setup. I just like saying that.

A good reason to invest in a tablet with Gorilla Glass.

I think we've had too much coffee.

Latest computer build is working. No OP System yet. But it's fast and quiet. Nice.

Had to push power button on/off about 8 times before I could read the lower left of the screen where it says DEL for Bios Setup. It was just a flash then it was gone.

Many mobo SBIOSes will let you set a splash screen delay of a few seconds. Default is usually 0 but I configure all my systems with a delay, makes life a lot simpler.

Nurse!
We're losing him!
Quick!
The box of kittens!

I want one

Cat are you still using the Oppo 103D ? Do you still feel it is worth the extra money??/

Originally Posted By: Socketman

Cat are you still using the Oppo 103D ? Do you still feel it is worth the extra money??/

Yes I am, and yes I do.

If you already got a decent player, just buy the Darbee box.

http://www.darbeevision.com/products/

Cat, I am just considering my options since this audio drop out issue has started to crop up with the BDP-93. I can get a great deal on a 103 but the 103d is 200 more. I am going to wait and see how my Xbox-1 handles the next disc that has audio issues. I know you watch a lot of movies so I trust your opinion on this more than a online review.

The only audio drop I've had was cured by changing the order I turn on the components. It's worth a shot.

This is a well known and highly discussed issue to do with Lions Gate releases that use seamless branching and dolby true . Some have it worse than others and it is minor on my machine.Oppo says they can not fix with firmware as it is a hardware related issue, the chip is not powerfull enough.