I also had to subject KShep to the multi-channel.
We also listened to Seal - Best 1991-2004, disc 3 in this set is a DVD recorded in "Advanced Resolution Surround Sound". I am very familiar with Crazy Acoustic and hearing the song in great 5.1 was a pleasure. Bob has the best sounding surround setup I have heard, the Epik Phoenix subwoofer helps in the bass region, that thing is about 24" tall aa. Bob has done a wonderful job with the bass management in his room. With the bass traps and the crossover of his sub. Forgive my ignorance I have room to learn in this department, but what I do know is I love the low end in his listening space, bass is not an issue.
When comparing my room to Bob's I have approx 10 feet behind my speakers, which delivers depth to the sound stage in my room. So to Bob's point I think speaker placement up against a wall/between a TV is critical in relation to the ability to get the best sound stage available. Bob is adding a new piece of furniture to his room, that will move his listening position further away from the speakers and open up the room. At that point he will be able to fine tune the speaker location and find the best placement. Thinking about the speakers reminds me what I miss about the Salk product, the clarity of vocals and string instruments.
Bob powers his front 3 speakers with an AVA Insight Double 240/3 amp. I believe in head room and I noticed while pushing the amp in 2 channel that the volume knob on his preamp was at about 33%, obviously alot left in the reserves and I could hear it in the low frequency range.
I was skeptical regarding the sound quality of an Airport Express using the
optical digital sound5 connection. However, Bob's Apple Airport Express/AVA Insight DAC combo proved to sound great playing his iTunes library. The Insight DAC turned his Panasonic CD player into a solid transport while playing my CD demo list. The Roy Orbison Black & White Night Bob played on DVD on his Oppo through his Pioneer receiver, there is sure a difference in sound clarity, separation and imaging compared to the AVA gear. But that is 5.1 surround through the Pioneer and 2 channel through the AVA setup. Bob asked my opinion regarding the addition of tubes to his system, I beleive he has considered an AVA tube amp for his front 2 channels,
correct me if I'm wrong Bob, what will that due to the sound when listening in 5.1? I love the idea of tubes in any system, I did hear a slight edge while listening to a Alanis Morissette track from her acoustic album, one of my demo songs. I believe tubes would soften the edge a bit. Please know I am comparing what I hear in my system, tube preamp, and my preference.
Bob played Norah Jones on vinyl, his TT was a freebie from a friend, he added a cartridge and to his surprise the unit sounded good. What a wonderful addition to his system, Bob could see I was enjoying the record and remarked I may be next to try the vinyl thing. Perhaps.
