[Desmosedici]

I checked out the below today.

Yamaha YHT 3072 - Approx 70k
Very very mediocre. Sound wasn’t clear. Yamaha speakers aren’t great.

Yamaha Amp 3072 with Magnat speakers - Slightly better. Clarity is improved. - Just the speakers are around 50k approx.

I tried their demo video of some action flick and Hotel California video. Later I connected my phone via BT and spent a good 30 minutes playing my choice of songs via Amazon Music. Demo video sounded good but BT Music, I didn’t like.

This place didn’t have Taga. Apparently it is difficult to audition Taga as several dealers mentioned that it isn’t available for a demo.

Had seen an another shop closeby so walked over to discover that they had Taga.

Taga 507 with Denon x250BT
Taga 507 with Marantz NR 1510

Since i was looking for a Tower setup, requested for only the 2 towers to be switched on. No center, surround and woofer.

The speakers are amazing. So much better than those Yamahas. The Taga with Marantz was crispier and sweeter to the ears compared to the Denon.

Taga 507 5 speaker set - 2 Towers, 1 Center and 2 Rear Bookshelves - Rs 42000
Taga 807 - 2 Towers - Rs 48000

Denon x250BT - Rs 35000
Marantz NR1510 - Rs 50000

I’m planning to pair the Taga 507 with Marantz and add a sub later, if required.


Many Thanks to all of you for your suggestions. Really appreciate it. This setup should keep me happy for the next few years I believe.

Cheers,
Raj

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by Desmosedici

I checked out the below today.

Yamaha YHT 3072 - Approx 70k
Very very mediocre. Sound wasn’t clear. Yamaha speakers aren’t great

My recommendation is to check out the SONOS system.

Sonos ARC Soundbar
Sonos Speakers (Pair)
Sonos Sub Gen 3

Best part is it's all wireless so the room is uncluttered. The sound they deliver for music and movies is phenomenal.

I have been using this system for about 1.5 years and every time someone comes home, they don't leave without complimenting the sound.

It's clear even at highest volumes, sub has solid punch and rear speakers deliver fine nuances of movie scenes (Planes taking off, Gunshots). Besides this they also can be tuned (via. their app but, only on iPhone) so the sound stage is encompassed into the area that you want. It kind of creates a boundary where you sit and listen to music or watch movies.

Super happy with this system. I plan to add more speakers to this system to create an even more immersive listening experience.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by Desmosedici

I checked out the below today.

Before you put down money on a Taga loudspeaker, see if you can listen to the Polk Audio XT60 and T50. The former is a bit expensive but should be really good.

I was not surprised by your experience with the Yamaha setup. Those little speakers with full range drivers can only do so much.

[for_cars1]

Here is what I've come to realize about audio systems.
As far as the electronics (amplifiers) are concerned, there is nothing better than Japanese ones.
At the same time, Japanese speakers suck because of the type of high pitched music Japanese listen to, they are not good at making speakers as good as for example ones from Denmark which are more tuned to punchy music.

Home theater systems with the extra 5.x, 7.x speakers and jargons such as dolby atmos and all are fine in the lower end. Most of these systems are class D amplifier based and generate digitally synthesized audio which mostly sounds artificial.

If the intent is to get a pure audiophilic sound experience, it can be better achieved by a class AB integrated amplifier (typically 100W rms per channel network receiver with a hdmi TV connect) and a pair of impedance matching passive floor standing speakers.
Since we have a pair of ears, 2 channels are more than sufficient for a full dynamic experience across the sound spectrum. Not even a 2.1 ie., subwoofer is needed. In fact a subwoofer spoils the auditory experience if it is not properly matched.

The thing with bass is that our ears being sensitive can only take a small fraction of what a good pair of floorstanders can generate even at moderate volume. It becomes quite unbearable to listen at higher bass for long, so a pair of higher end floor standers is good enough to generate all the bass our delicate ears can handle.

[sandeepmohan]

Anyone stumbled across VU Sound bars? Are they any good (I know their TV's are decent for the money)? My Dad wants to buy one. We found 3 models at the Ship yard store in Cochin. They look legit. The strange thing is that you can find any of the models at any VU direct online store (Not even a third party online store). 40SX, 80SX and 100SX are the models. The most expensive being Rs. ~6,000. The goal here is to improve TV audio. No music is going to be played through this. The latter two have HDMI ARC, among other connectivity options.

[sandeepmohan]

My dad went ahead and picked up the VU 100SX sound bar. Quite pleased with it. Its basically New Old stock that was being sold. Manufactured October 2022. Got it for Rs. 6,100 (Printed mrp is Rs. 15,000). Its a single unit with the low frequency driver built into the main unit (No external sub woofer). Dialog is a lot more clear and audible, compared to the TV speakers wherein you had to crank up the volume quite to bit. Took a couple of steps within the TV Settings to get HDMI to hand shake with the unit, post which audio was output.

One minor design fault is the exposed low frequency driver. Its below the unit and there is no grill covering it. In the rare event you lift the unit and if hold it in the wrong place, you could punch a hole in the driver.

[BombayDragon]

Hi Everybody, I stay in Bangalore and am planning to work on a project and I just wanted to check if there is anybody else in Bangalore who would be interested in joining me because they have similar requirements (I have already found one interested person outside this forum and was looking for more people). Basically one of the issues that we face in India is to keep our a/v equipment in a dust free enclosure. There are various server rack manufacturers or metal workshops who can build an enclosure customised as per our requirements, the project is for us to collectively create individual requirements based on our specific needs find somebody who can make cad drawings for this and then find a metal working shop who can create these racks for us. We can collectively negotiate a good price with the people we hire. I thought about doing this on my own but it's just way too much work for one person and I thought I would check if there is anybody else in Bangalore who was also looking for something similar and then we can combine our efforts. Please let me know if anyone is interested I have given a link below of a YouTube video for the kind of rack that I am interested in the only differences I also want one which can open from the top as well as as the front so that I can access my turntable Plus I need to make it more aesthetic with a good colour I am sure everyone will have their own specific requirements and we can always ask the vendor to customise as per individual requirement. Its similar to a server rack but want to make something more aesthetic. Please let me know if anyone is interested in joining in here's a link of what I'm trying to build.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OefT...ture=emb_title

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by BombayDragon

Its similar to a server rack but want to make something more aesthetic. Please let me know if anyone is interested in joining in here's a link of what I'm trying to build.

I am not a potential customer for this project.

Don't get me wrong. I think a server rack is the ugliest thing you could use for your prized stereo equipment. If this is going to be hidden equipment, then thats fine. However, dust reduction is a matter of sealing your room and air conditioning the space. Dust will still fall and collect on the equipment. Little you can do about that. I would rather design it in such a way that I can use my Dyson to suck out the dust. Once you place it in a rack, you're looking at unwiring and pulling everything out to clean it up. Not that you need to do this often. Besides, a turn table needs a sound, stable, vibration free platform. A server rack or "kind of design" is not one of them.

I also feel it is hard to build something that will work for everyone, especially Hi Fi and Home Theater equipment racks. The other person may not have the same equipment choice as yours.

If you have not seen what Sound Foundations do, I highly recommend checking them out. Ali will sort you out with some excellent ideas and will customize for your needs.

[BombayDragon]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

I am not a potential customer for this project.

Don't get me wrong. I think a server rack is the ugliest thing you could use for your prized stereo equipment. If this is going to be hidden equipment, then thats fine. However, dust reduction is a matter of sealing your room and air conditioning the space. Dust will still fall and collect on the equipment. Little you can do about that. I would rather design it in such a way that I can use my Dyson to suck out the dust. Once you place it in a rack, you're looking at unwiring and pulling everything out to clean it up. Not that you need to do this often. Besides, a turn table needs a sound, stable, vibration free platform. A server rack or "kind of design" is not one of them.

I also feel it is hard to build something that will work for everyone, especially Hi Fi and Home Theater equipment racks. The other person may not have the same equipment choice as yours.

If you have not seen what Sound Foundations do, I highly recommend checking them out. Ali will sort you out with some excellent ideas and will customize for your needs.

I have seen the sound foundations stands and they would be great if we were in a country where dust wasn’t such a big issue, which is why I am looking for an enclosed solution which we can hopefully make aesthetic and unobtrusive. I agree with the turntable not being kept inside and I am looking for a different option like making an acrylic base for keeping the turntable. With regards to different sized equipment, we all have different requirements in terms of size so our objective is to first figure out the design and then we will ask the vendor to build it in different sizes for each of us.

[sandeepmohan]

Originally Posted by BombayDragon

I have seen the sound foundations stands and they would be great if we were in a country where dust wasn’t such a big issue, which is why I am looking for an enclosed solution which we can hopefully make aesthetic and unobtrusive.

The point I was trying to drive was, don't hone in on the dust bit. Thats unavoidable. I live abroad and dust is an issue here too (albeit less of it). Hi Fi equipment can take some amount of abuse. More than dust, moisture is the bigger issue. Off course, dust and records don't play nice.

An enclosed design will trap heat. Then you'll need to run a bunch of fans to keep things cool. That will generate some noise in your listening space.

You can speak to Ali and tell him what you're after. His designs are not fixed. He is more than happy to customize an existing design for you.

Good luck.

[Guite]

Originally Posted by BombayDragon

Basically one of the issues that we face in India is to keep our a/v equipment in a dust free enclosure.

In my opinion it's in a way akin to a PC case. You need to ventilate the heat generated by the amplifier. The amplification circuit generates a lot of heat. That's why there is a huge heat sink inside the cover and there are ventilation slots provided in the cover. You can make it air tight to prevent dust from going in, but you will still need holes for intake and exhaust air. If you put fine dust filter on the vents, you will also have to install powerful fans to move air through those filters. Powerful fans also means more noise.

A simple alternative would be to have removable sides and leave it open when the equipment are operating.

[sagpatel]

I have a Bose lifestyle v35 home theatre system. Now its not working. I got it repaired twice in last 3 years and am fed up of repairing it again.
We quite liked the neutral sound from it and are very satisfied.
I have Lg OLED C9 TV (2020 model).
This time I was thinking of getting a soundbar with rear speakers and subwoofer.
How about Samsung Q990C?
Has anyone tried LG S95qr?
How are JBL sound bars 1000 pro or 800 pro.
Ideally would have loved to go for sonos system or a Bose system but they are expensive and I have capped my budget to 1L.
What do you guys think?
Any other suggestions?

[AdhikR]

Originally Posted by sagpatel

Ideally would have loved to go for sonos system or a Bose system but they are expensive and I have capped my budget to 1L.
What do you guys think?
Any other suggestions?

I'd recommend going with Sonos.

If you're buying it in India, and have a smaller room you can start with the Beam soundbar and two Era 100 surrounds. Would set you back about Rs. 1 lakh. You can add a Sub Mini later on.

If you're buying from the U.S., you should get the whole set for a little over Rs. 1L.

If it's a larger room, get the Arc soundbar first and then expand as you feel the need to.

[SilverSmoke]

Originally Posted by sagpatel

Any other suggestions?

Bose Soundbar 900 with rear surrounds & sub was almost booked from my end but I read on some forums about reliability issues with Bose. Then I went ahead with Sony A9 with SW5 sub for 1.3L with some cooperate discount. It's a great replacement & I recommend you the same.

[blahman]

Originally Posted by SilverSmoke

Bose Soundbar 900 with rear surrounds & sub was almost booked from my end but I read on some forums about reliability issues with Bose.

What reliability issues? I've had the Soundbar 900 + BassModule 700 combo since they launched the 900 here and I've had zero issues so far. Just need to add the surrounds but dont feel the need for it yet