Home Theatre
I finally built my home theatre.
This will be a work-in-progress hobby, but it is definitely a great start!
The investigation began for different Home Theatre setups and I finally decided upon a Mitsubishi 1080p projector with a 106"screen over a Pioneer 50" Plasma television.
For the sound I went to 'classic amplifiers' by David Hafler.
Front Speakers are powered by (2) Hafler DH500 rated at 500 watts each.
Center Speaker is powered by (1) Hafler DH220 rated at 460 watts.
Two Side Surround Speakers are powered by (1) Hafler DH200 rated at 200 watts.
Two Rear Surround Speakers are powered by (1) Hafler DH200 rated at 200 watts.
The speakers currently are:
Fronts: Infinity Kappa 8.1
Center: B&W HTM-1
Rear Surround: B&W DS-6 THX
Subwoofer: Earthquake SuperNova MKV-10 rated at 600 watts
The future speaker 'wish list' is:
Fronts: B&W Nautilus 802
Center: B&W HTM-1
Side Surround: B&W SCM-1
Rear Surround: B&W SCM-1
Subwoofer: B&W AWS850 rated at 1100 watts
Misc.
Home Theatre MX-900 Remote Control
Sony Playstation 3 60GB
Pioneer PDP-5070 HD 50" 1080p HD Plasma TV
Pioneer PDP-5070 HD 50" 1080p HD Plasma TV
Mitsubishi HC5000 1080p Projector
(2) B&W DS-6 THX Rear Surround Speakers
Elite 106" CineTension Screen
Elite 106" CineTension Screen
Elite 106" CineTension Screen
Elite 106" CineTension Screen
Elite 106" CineTension Screen
Anthem AVM 20 PreAmplifier
Monster AVS 2000 Power Condition
DirecTV Tivo HR10-250 HD 1080i 900GB
Hafler DH-500 Amplifier
OPPO DV 981-HD DVD Upconvert 1080p
Monster HTS 5100 Surge Protector
Monster AVS 2000 Power Condition
*ButtKicker LFE 1100 watts with (2) LFE Shakers
Hafler DH-500 Amplifier
Hafler DH-200 Amplifier
Hafler DH-200 Amplifier
Hafler DH-220 Amplifier
B&W HTM-1
Infinity Kappa 8.1
Infinity Kappa 8.1
Earthquake SuperNova MKV-10
I also have the bed shake when the subwoofer 'lows' kick in. The Buttkicker was installed with two shakers which make the bed rumble when the explosions happen. This is additional information about the ButtKicker.
An Overview of the ButtKicker
The ButtKicker is a small, linear motor, which reacts to an audio signal sent by an amplifier. It is similar to a loudspeaker, but instead of moving a cone, and transferring sound waves through the air, it attaches to seats and floors, and sends low frequency sound directly into the listener's body. The effect is amazing.
It takes two senses to perceive full range sound. We hear sound, but we also feel sound, especially low frequency. Traditionally, it takes big speakers, moving tremendous amounts of air, to feel the low frequency of sound. People like loud concerts because they want to feel the sound pressure in their bodies.
The ButtKicker reproduces the feeling range of audio in a more direct way than through air. The perception is actually better and sound pressure disappears. When using headphones, for example, with a ButtKicker, the listener perceives powerful, musically accurate, concert-level audio, but no one else hears anything. The sound is completely isolated to the listener.
This becomes very interesting for music monitoring and recording studios. We have several dozen of the top touring bands this summer using ButtKickers for stage monitoring. The ButtKicker gives them complete control over their mix and sound level, without sacrificing any quality. Most musicians tell us immediately that they hear better and play better with the ButtKicker.
In a recording studio, the ButtKicker allows for low volume, incredible isolation.. and, because the ButtKicker was designed to be musically accurate, to fractions of frequencies, studio engineers are finding that their mixes are coming out tighter, cleaner and better balanced.
For example: I am a music writer/producer and studio musician. I do soundtrack work for various commercial companies and stage show producers, in my own little home studio, using computer with Cubase, Sonar, etc. I always use the ButtKicker to check my mixes.
Ken McCaw
Founder, The Guitammer Company Inc