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- Preamp, Processor or Receiver
- StormAudio ISP.24 MK2
- Main Amp
- Emotiva XPA-5
- Additional Amp
- Emotiva XPA Gen3 2.8 multichannel amp
- DAC
- THX ONYX
- Computer Audio
- AudioEngine A2+
- Other Amp
- Denon X8500H
- Universal / Blu-ray / CD Player
- Kaleidescape TERRA, OPPO UDP-203, Panasonic UB9000
- Front Speakers
- GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R
- Center Channel Speaker
- GoldenEar Technology SuperCenter Reference
- Surround Speakers
- SVS Ultra Surround
- Surround Back Speakers
- SVS Ultra Bookshelf
- Front Height Speakers
- SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Front, Top Mid-Front)
- Subwoofers
- dual SVS SB16s + dual PSA XS30s
- Rear Height Speakers
- SVS Prime Elevation x4 (Top Middle, Top Rear)
- Other Speakers or Equipment
- Behringer 1124p; Aura Bass Shaker Pros; SuperSub X
- Screen
- Seymour Screen Excellence, Enlightor NEO AT Screen
- Video Display Device
- JVC NX7
- Streaming Equipment
- iFi Audio Zen Blue
- Streaming Subscriptions
- Qobuz, TIDAL, Spotify, ROON
- Other Equipment
- LG Electronics 65-inch B6 OLED, Sony 65-inch X900F, ZeroSurge 8R15W x 2, ZeroSurge 2R15W x 2
@JStewart hinted that he'd like to start a conversation about this, so let's do it!
Recently, I integrated Ascendo's 32" infrasonic sub into an array that includes four SVS SB16 Ultra Subs. You can see the rest of my speakers in my equipment drop-down. Matt Trinklein of Storm and Geoffrey Heinzel of Ascendo helped remotely integrate the system. It was quite an interesting process that took about 7 or 8 hours. Full disclosure: Matt and Geoffrey's realtime conversation was a bit above my paygrade at times, so I won't waste anyone's time attempting to discuss all of the issues we dealt with. But, the 2-cent topline breakdown is that we had phase issues to tackle with all 5 subs before diving into the world of Dirac. Weirdly, nearfield measurements had two SVS subs notably out of phase as compared to two of the other SVS subs... which was a real head-scratcher... but Geoffrey stepped in and worked some magic and got everything aligned as best he could... the DSP controls on the 32" blow away what's available on the SVS subs and much of the work he performed was through remote operation of the 32".
Matt setup a bunch of different Dirac presets for me to play with, including 3 or 4 ART profiles and several Bass Control profiles. I then created more profiles on my own time, validating results with REW measurements. Like a bonehead, I've deleted my final day's worth of REW measurements. At least, I can't find them.
The end results of my room look something like this... with the low end not quite as hot as you're seeing:
That's with Dirac Live + Bass Control, 1/6 smoothing
Now, just to step back for a moment. I've heard ART in action in 3 different settings. I've always been very impressed with the results. The best way to describe it is: you still have the bass punch, but it's tighter. Essentially, it uses other speakers in the room to acoustically control decay time. Matt Trinklein tells me that 98% of storm customers end up choosing ART as their preferred bass management system, with a few outliers preferring bass control.
For whatever reason (and it could be that the ART presets I was using needed more tweaking), but ART presets I measured introduced some significant nulls into the equation and they were definitely audible to the ear. Decay times were definitely improved... but the resulting playback wasn't nearly as smooth and full-breadth as what Bass Control gives me.
At this point, I've heard lots of amazing home theater systems set up by industry pros, and I'm super happy with the results in my room. So, I'm not complaining. But I am a bit surprised that ART didn't yield better results for me. I wish I had the measurement files... but, at this point I can't fathom digging all of the gear out and running them again. Perhaps when I free up some time this fall.
@Sonnie, what's been your experience? @JStewart, are you running Bass Control?
Recently, I integrated Ascendo's 32" infrasonic sub into an array that includes four SVS SB16 Ultra Subs. You can see the rest of my speakers in my equipment drop-down. Matt Trinklein of Storm and Geoffrey Heinzel of Ascendo helped remotely integrate the system. It was quite an interesting process that took about 7 or 8 hours. Full disclosure: Matt and Geoffrey's realtime conversation was a bit above my paygrade at times, so I won't waste anyone's time attempting to discuss all of the issues we dealt with. But, the 2-cent topline breakdown is that we had phase issues to tackle with all 5 subs before diving into the world of Dirac. Weirdly, nearfield measurements had two SVS subs notably out of phase as compared to two of the other SVS subs... which was a real head-scratcher... but Geoffrey stepped in and worked some magic and got everything aligned as best he could... the DSP controls on the 32" blow away what's available on the SVS subs and much of the work he performed was through remote operation of the 32".
Matt setup a bunch of different Dirac presets for me to play with, including 3 or 4 ART profiles and several Bass Control profiles. I then created more profiles on my own time, validating results with REW measurements. Like a bonehead, I've deleted my final day's worth of REW measurements. At least, I can't find them.
The end results of my room look something like this... with the low end not quite as hot as you're seeing:
That's with Dirac Live + Bass Control, 1/6 smoothing
Now, just to step back for a moment. I've heard ART in action in 3 different settings. I've always been very impressed with the results. The best way to describe it is: you still have the bass punch, but it's tighter. Essentially, it uses other speakers in the room to acoustically control decay time. Matt Trinklein tells me that 98% of storm customers end up choosing ART as their preferred bass management system, with a few outliers preferring bass control.
For whatever reason (and it could be that the ART presets I was using needed more tweaking), but ART presets I measured introduced some significant nulls into the equation and they were definitely audible to the ear. Decay times were definitely improved... but the resulting playback wasn't nearly as smooth and full-breadth as what Bass Control gives me.
At this point, I've heard lots of amazing home theater systems set up by industry pros, and I'm super happy with the results in my room. So, I'm not complaining. But I am a bit surprised that ART didn't yield better results for me. I wish I had the measurement files... but, at this point I can't fathom digging all of the gear out and running them again. Perhaps when I free up some time this fall.
@Sonnie, what's been your experience? @JStewart, are you running Bass Control?
