Micky's custom "honey" oak SongTowers and SongCenter

jsalk · « **on:** 18 Nov 2007, 04:39 pm »

Micky wanted a pair of SongTowers and a SongCenter to match his existing oak furniture.

Here's what we came up with...

Here's a close up of the SongTowers...

And a closer shot of the center channel...

Happy listening Micky!

- Jim

MickyR · « **Reply #1 on:** 18 Nov 2007, 07:12 pm »

I just checked the DHL site. They are scheduled to arrive in Humble, TX on Wednesday. It will be a very long 3 days.

Micky

satfrat · « **Reply #2 on:** 18 Nov 2007, 08:32 pm »

I LOVE the look of oak and that setup is some sharp.

My rooms are also oak oriented so this set definitely caught my eye.

Cheers,
Robin

MickyR · « **Reply #3 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 12:35 am »

My SongTower Speakers arrived! Although I haven't had much time with them, here are my thoughts so far.

They were well packed. (Very well packed.)

The overall workmanship is excellent. I can confirm that the WAF is very high.

They really do look impressive. They are heavier than I expected. Extremely strong construction.

I don't own an expensive amp or CD player, and I've not listened to a lot of expensive gear. So please forgive my lack of experience and vocabulary as I try to explain what I'm hearing.

The difference between my old Bose and new SongTowers was immediately evident. The high frequencies are beautiful. Absolutely gorgeous. The mid range and bass are present, even and clear. (Nothing exaggerated, nothing lacking.) At medium to loud volumes they perform better than I had expected. They remain extremely clean. In fact, they are so clean that I've found myself running them at volumes so loud that I can't even speak to others in the room while they're on (and I have a fairly large listening area that's open on one end).

I'm a fan of brass music, so I've been listening to "The Capitol Bones Big Band, A Stan Kenton Christmas" directed by Mark Taylor. This is a very decent recording and the speakers do justice to some excellent brass playing. The trumpet and trombone tones are awesome, -especially the trombones. If you've ever been a serious brass player then you understand my obsession with the tone. These speakers reproduce brass VERY well.

My son, who is home from college for the holidays, said "it sounds like the band is sitting in our living room." I have to agree. At moderate to high volumes, it really does. My wife also commented on how good they sound. It's a striking difference from what we had before.

I'm looking forward to listening to a variety of music, then watching some movies and dialing in my SongCenter.

Would I buy them again? Yes, without a second thought. It was a great investment. My thanks to F. Robert Simms on the Audio Asylum Forum who introduced me to Jim and his SongTowers.

Jim, thanks for your great work. I couldn't be happier.

Micky

DMurphy · « **Reply #4 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 01:03 am »

"These speakers reproduce brass VERY well."

Hi--I couldn't be happier that these landed in the home of a brass lover. That's my primary source for testing a crossover. No other instruments have more midrange energy and as rich a overtone signature near the normal crossover region (2-3 kH). If the brass are clear, detailed, and neutral, everything is probably OK.

satfrat · « **Reply #5 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 01:19 am »

What model Bose did you have? I had 10.2 and 8.2 in a mid-fi surround sound system for 20 years before I made the move up to the bigtime audio.

Cheers,
Robin

MickyR · « **Reply #6 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 01:48 am »

It was an old pair of Bose 301 Series IV speakers that I bought many years ago at Sears.
It really wasn't fair to compare them.

MickyR · « **Reply #7 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 01:57 am »

Regarding brass, I'm a former band director and was a brass major in college. Having taught many young brass players, I'm a little over sensitive to poor tone. I was stunned by quality coming out of the SongTowers. It's really pretty amazing.

Dennis, I think you nailed it.

jsalk · « **Reply #8 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 04:32 am »

Micky -

Glad to hear your SongTowers are working out for you.

I apprecaite your comments since, in my younger days, I performed in many recording sessions as a trumpet player (in addition to a few other instruments). I no longer have the lips for it, but do have an appreciation for recordings of great brass players.

- Jim

fsimms · « **Reply #9 on:** 24 Nov 2007, 04:29 pm »

Quote

My thanks to F. Robert Simms on the Audio Asylum Forum who introduced me to Jim and his SongTowers.

Thanks for the comment. I am glad you found my comments helpful.

R Swerdlow · « **Reply #10 on:** 29 Nov 2007, 08:46 pm »

Micky, it's always fun to read about another happy SongTower owner

. Your speakers in honey oak look very nice.

Since I've gotten mine, I've been on a small music buying binge. I'd always heard that the Empire Brass were good, and I suspected that well-recorded brass instruments might sound great on the SongTowers, I recently got this:

You might like them.

MickyR · « **Reply #11 on:** 30 Nov 2007, 12:00 am »

Thanks. I've not heard them, but have heard of them. I'll more than likely have to buy one of their recordings now.

I have to say, I'm really enjoying the Capitol Bones Big Band (Stan Kenton Christmas) CD. Man, those guys can play.

Any more suggestions?

brj · « **Reply #12 on:** 30 Nov 2007, 05:01 pm »

The Empire Brass and Summit Brass are both fantastic. I've never heard the Empire Brass live, but I have a couple of their CDs, including the one shown above, which is my favorite of theirs. I was lucky enough to see the Summit Brass perform on my campus when I was in college, and they were truly impressive. I grabbed several of their CDs at the time and have enjoyed them ever since.

All of this is making me wish my own trumpet wasn't packed in storage at the moment.

Shoot! The Summit Brass were just here in Denver this summer for their yearly master class! I would have enjoyed hearing them perform again...

MickyR · « **Reply #13 on:** 24 Dec 2007, 03:01 pm »

A quick update on my SongTowers and Song Center:

I can't tell you how much I'm still enjoying these speakers. Everyone that has listened to them leaves in awe. I had a bunch of my son's college friends over here the other day watching movies and they were blown away. (I'm listening to Jim's demo CD now.)

I saw some posts asking about the SongCenter, so I wanted to comment. This was my first exposure to surround sound. I needed to experiment with the setup for a while. My thoughts are that it does a great job of isolating the vocals. They are very clear and intelligible. I have not had the problem that I've read about w/ some systems where the voices get drowned out by the background noise and music.

Anyway, I'm very proud to be a SongTower owner. I wouldn't change a thing.

Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah to all!

Micky

texas steve · « **Reply #14 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 03:27 am »

Quote from: MickyR on 24 Nov 2007, 12:35 am

My SongTower Speakers arrived! Although I haven't had much time with them, here are my thoughts so far.

They were well packed. (Very well packed.)

The overall workmanship is excellent. I can confirm that the WAF is very high. They really do look impressive. They are heavier than I expected. Extremely strong construction.

I don't own an expensive amp or CD player, and I've not listened to a lot of expensive gear. So please forgive my lack of experience and vocabulary as I try to explain what I'm hearing.

The difference between my old Bose and new SongTowers was immediately evident. The high frequencies are beautiful. Absolutely gorgeous. The mid range and bass are present, even and clear. (Nothing exaggerated, nothing lacking.) At medium to loud volumes they perform better than I had expected. They remain extremely clean. In fact, they are so clean that I've found myself running them at volumes so loud that I can't even speak to others in the room while they're on (and I have a fairly large listening area that's open on one end).

I'm a fan of brass music, so I've been listening to "The Capitol Bones Big Band, A Stan Kenton Christmas" directed by Mark Taylor. This is a very decent recording and the speakers do justice to some excellent brass playing. The trumpet and trombone tones are awesome, -especially the trombones. If you've ever been a serious brass player then you understand my obsession with the tone. These speakers reproduce brass VERY well.

My son, who is home from college for the holidays, said "it sounds like the band is sitting in our living room." I have to agree. At moderate to high volumes, it really does. My wife also commented on how good they sound. It's a striking difference from what we had before.

I'm looking forward to listening to a variety of music, then watching some movies and dialing in my SongCenter.

Would I buy them again? Yes, without a second thought. It was a great investment. My thanks to F. Robert Simms on the Audio Asylum Forum who introduced me to Jim and his SongTowers.

Jim, thanks for your great work. I couldn't be happier.

Micky

Yep Jim builds great speakers. Welcome from another Texas (I live in Tomball) and have HT3s and HTC. Jim is now building me two surrounds to match my HT3s. Enjoy the NEW sound in your room!!

Texas Steve

DMurphy · « **Reply #15 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 04:06 am »

Hey Tex Steve--which surrounds did you order? HT1's? dipoles? Something else?

texas steve · « **Reply #16 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 01:30 pm »

Quote from: DMurphy on 29 Dec 2007, 04:06 am

Hey Tex Steve--which surrounds did you order? HT1's? dipoles? Something else?

I ordered a pair of HT1s ported and angled down (they will be mounted to the each side and about 4' down from the 10' ceiling). Jim and I both believe in the more direct sound vs the dipoles. I have had dipoles (not Jim's) for the last 5 years and am looking forward to the cleaner and less diffused surround. Below is a picture of my set up (with 106" screen down) and my HT3s. (note center sub is now gone - dont need it, and the "5.1 sub" is used ONLY for LFE)

Hope yall had a Merry Xmas!
Texas steve

zybar · « **Reply #17 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 01:32 pm »

Quote from: texas steve on 29 Dec 2007, 01:30 pm

Quote from: DMurphy on 29 Dec 2007, 04:06 am
Hey Tex Steve--which surrounds did you order? HT1's? dipoles? Something else?

I ordered a pair of HT1s ported and angled down (they will be mounted to the each side and about 4' down from the 10' ceiling). Jim and I both believe in the more direct sound vs the dipoles. I have had dipoles (not Jim's) for the last 5 years and am looking forward to the cleaner and less diffused surround. Below is a picture of my set up (with 106" screen down) and my HT3s. (note center sub is now gone - dont need it, and the "5.1 sub" is used ONLY for LFE)

Hope yall had a Merry Xmas!
Texas steve

Steve,

What screen/pj are you using?

I have my SongTowers behind a SmX screen fed by a Panny AE900 (for now) and I love it!

George

texas steve · « **Reply #18 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 01:41 pm »

Quote from: zybar on 29 Dec 2007, 01:32 pm

Quote from: texas steve on 29 Dec 2007, 01:30 pm
Quote from: DMurphy on 29 Dec 2007, 04:06 am
Hey Tex Steve--which surrounds did you order? HT1's? dipoles? Something else?

I ordered a pair of HT1s ported and angled down (they will be mounted to the each side and about 4' down from the 10' ceiling). Jim and I both believe in the more direct sound vs the dipoles. I have had dipoles (not Jim's) for the last 5 years and am looking forward to the cleaner and less diffused surround. Below is a picture of my set up (with 106" screen down) and my HT3s. (note center sub is now gone - dint need it, and the "5.1 sub" is used ONLY for LFE)

Hope yall had a Merry Xmas!
Texas Steve

Steve,
What screen/pj are you using?
I have my SongTowers behind a SmX screen fed by a Panny AE900 (for now) and I love it!
George

George - The screen is a 106 Daylite (grey something, dint recall the model number but its gain is 1.1) its powered and comes out of the ceiling. The top "black" portion is sound perf so the HTC can be heard. The projector is a Optoma HD79 (720P) going through a DVDO processor with the projector ceiling mounted. I'm in the market for a new 1080P projector, but want one with some good light power. Note the windows beside the screen, there are electric blinds that come down all the way and block out the light when needed, but with the projector 14' from the screen I need some luminance!! Any suggestions?

zybar · « **Reply #19 on:** 29 Dec 2007, 01:50 pm »

Quote from: texas steve on 29 Dec 2007, 01:41 pm

George - The screen is a 106 Daylite (grey something, dint recall the model number but its gain is 1.1) its powered and comes out of the ceiling. The top "black" portion is sound perf so the HTC can be heard. The projector is a Optoma HD79 (720P) going through a DVDO processor with the projector ceiling mounted. I'm in the market for a new 1080P projector, but want one with some good light power. Note the windows beside the screen, there are electric blinds that come down all the way and block out the light when needed, but with the projector 14' from the screen I need some luminance!! Any suggestions?

Shot you a PM rather than hijacking the thread.

George