Speakers and the art of home decor

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jonbee

Speakers and the art of home decor
« on: 11 Apr 2014, 06:04 pm »
My wife and I had been planning a facelift to our condo for some time, but we didn't have an idea about what direction we wanted to go in.
As I mentioned often here, I've owned ~250 pairs of quality speakers over the last 46 years or so. My long suffering audio widow liked the looks of some, hated others, but when I unpacked my DA-RMAs she fell in love with the looks and sound instantly, as I did.
Here is the view from my chair (Seattle skyline reflected in TV):

Here's one of the speakers, in solid walnut. The flash pushed the color to the red tones. The actual color is a more neutral walnut.

After a couple of months, she turned to me one day, pointed to the speakers and said "That's what I want the house to look like".
And so we went on a 6 month project to get the design and materials together to achieve the warm, natural look of wood and stone, which has always been a feature in our decorating style and which Lou's speakers totally nail.
We started with the countertop materials for the kitchen and bathrooms and when we saw this granite slab, we knew we had the central element in the scheme:

We already had custom made maple cabinets in place, so we kept them, tore out most of 2 walls, and added the backsplash, flooring, appliances, plumbing fixtures and accents.
Finally, here's the kitchen:



 
Entry hallway:

First bath:


Second bath:


All in all, we're very pleased, even though with the home renovation costs, these turned out to be the most expensive pair of speakers I've bought by far, and I'm really married to these now!
I've heard of people buying speakers to match their décor, but this is the first time I've heard of someone changing décor to match their speakers. In some strange way it all seems to fit in with my history.
Thanks again to Lou for his artistry. Those who have seen and heard his work understand.
« Last Edit: 16 Apr 2015, 11:37 pm by jonbee »

loving_it

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Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #1 on: 11 Apr 2014, 06:13 pm »
Just awesome John you have very good taste

Charles Xavier

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #2 on: 11 Apr 2014, 07:24 pm »
What name do they call that Granite ? It looks awesome

jonbee

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #3 on: 11 Apr 2014, 07:31 pm »
What name do they call that Granite ? It looks awesome
It is called Tremendal Brown. Needless to say, very pricey stuff, nearly $100/sq. ft., but for our purposes worth every cent.

http://whittingtontileandstone.com/?attachment_id=434

Nick77

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #4 on: 11 Apr 2014, 08:07 pm »
Very cool, next upgrade you will have to drag your speaker into the architect and tell him to design a house around it. :)

jonbee

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #5 on: 14 Apr 2014, 04:03 pm »
Very cool, next upgrade you will have to drag your speaker into the architect and tell him to design a house around it. :)
Hmm... yes that would work; but after 6 months of disruption already, I think it might end up being a bachelor pad!

dodgealum

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Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #6 on: 15 Apr 2014, 06:35 pm »
The best thing about Lou's speakers is that they look as good as they sound. I asked Lou to build my DA-1.1's out of quartersawn oak so that the grain structure would match our Stickley reproduction furniture. He also matched the stain with a piece I sent him from our little magazine rack--though I think he may regret having said "yes" to this request! The result? The speakers disappear in the room (both visually and sonically) so both my wife and I are equally thrilled! I don't have photos on this computer but my system is up on the Audiogon here:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?vdone&1203877316&view

You can't see the rest of the furniture with this shot (except the magazine rack which I use to hold LP's) but you can see the gorgeous cabinets.

rodge827

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #7 on: 15 Apr 2014, 07:16 pm »
Very nice jonbee! :thumb:

I'm a pro paperhanger and spend a lot of time in other peoples bathrooms.   :eyebrows:
Love the stone you picked and the undermount sinks are way cool too!  8)
Money well spent for sure.  :D

Good thing my smarter half could care less about AC, cuz there would be some serious stone work in my future.  :wink:

Chris

FireGuy

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #8 on: 15 Apr 2014, 07:47 pm »
Very nice jonbee! :thumb:

I'm a pro paperhanger and spend a lot of time in other peoples bathrooms.   :eyebrows:
Love the stone you picked and the undermount sinks are way cool too!  8)
Money well spent for sure.  :D

Good thing my smarter half could care less about AC, cuz there would be some serious stone work in my future.  :wink:

Chris

There are two vocations I'm very poor at.  One is paperhanging, the other...plumbing.   Any mistakes in these types of work can't be hidden with smoke and mirrors or duct tape.  I applaud your ability on the former. 


jonbee

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #9 on: 15 Apr 2014, 10:29 pm »
... but you can see the gorgeous cabinets.
I can indeed. They are beautiful, as are all Lou's speakers.
Now that my system is dialed in around these speakers the way I like it, the sound is absolutely stunning in every way, letting the beauty of the music flow in a most delicious fashion.
I was watching the American Hustle DVD the other day, and I was shocked by the presentation. The soundtrack uses a lot of great classic music and is very well recorded, and it was all there, right in my room, as if I could reach out and touch the musicians and actors.
I've come to the conclusion that Lou's speakers have a real shot at becoming classics- all made by hand by one guy, amazingly enough.

Daedalus Audio

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Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #10 on: 4 May 2014, 07:00 pm »
very cool, love that marble!!!

thanks much!

vinyl_lady

Re: Speakers and the art of home decor
« Reply #11 on: 4 May 2014, 07:31 pm »
Very cool, next upgrade you will have to drag your speaker into the architect and tell him to design a house around it. :)

That is pretty much what I did when I added a 25 x 18 music room/family room to my house. In working with my interior designer and builder, a drew two circles on their floor plan about 5' from the front wall and 3-4' from the side walls and said "design around those." They asked "what are those" and I responded "the approximate location of my speakers."

Laura