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  #21  
Old 08-13-2020, 04:07 PM
James Tanner - Bryston James Tanner - Bryston is offline
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Originally Posted by 70sMac View Post
James T..... Do you think it would be a good idea to call Bryston and talk to someone in sales about what I [seem to] know as a preamp/processor to fit our needs?
HI

Yes you are certainly welcome to call but are you looking at a Surround Processor or a Stereo preamplifier?

james
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  #22  
Old 08-13-2020, 04:18 PM
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Originally Posted by James Tanner - Bryston View Post
HI

Yes you are certainly welcome to call but are you looking at a Surround Processor or a Stereo preamplifier?

james
I have to admit, James, that trying to catch up -- after more than a decade in a "quiet" condo complex -- is kind of confusing. That's why I thought that I might try speaking to someone about our goals and, essentially, get some help...
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OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections
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  #23  
Old 08-13-2020, 05:05 PM
James Tanner - Bryston James Tanner - Bryston is offline
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I have to admit, James, that trying to catch up -- after more than a decade in a "quiet" condo complex -- is kind of confusing. That's why I thought that I might try speaking to someone about our goals and, essentially, get some help...
Sure - feel free to call Mike at the factory as he is a fountain of info.

james
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  #24  
Old 08-13-2020, 05:14 PM
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Originally Posted by James Tanner - Bryston View Post
Sure - feel free to call Mike at the factory as he is a fountain of info.

james
James..... Yes, I spoke to Mike and he was most helpful. I didn't realize, at the time that I called, that Bryston made loud speakers. Oops, during part of the conversation, I was talking about getting a center that works with our red cherry B&W N802s and N805s, when, perhaps, I should've been asking if he thinks that a Bryston center might be suitable combined with our B&W speakers?
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OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections
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  #25  
Old 08-13-2020, 06:20 PM
James Tanner - Bryston James Tanner - Bryston is offline
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Originally Posted by 70sMac View Post
James..... Yes, I spoke to Mike and he was most helpful. I didn't realize, at the time that I called, that Bryston made loud speakers. Oops, during part of the conversation, I was talking about getting a center that works with our red cherry B&W N802s and N805s, when, perhaps, I should've been asking if he thinks that a Bryston center might be suitable combined with our B&W speakers?
Hi

Generally you want to keep to the same manufacture for the front 3 speakers especially to give the system a cohesive soundstage.

james
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  #26  
Old 08-13-2020, 06:53 PM
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Smile Matching Fronts

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Originally Posted by James Tanner - Bryston View Post
Hi

Generally you want to keep to the same manufacture for the front 3 speakers especially to give the system a cohesive soundstage.

james
James..... Having never owned a center speaker, I appreciate your thoughts on what may constitute a "mismatch."
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OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections
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  #27  
Old 08-17-2020, 02:38 PM
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Question More questions about our goal

Quote:
Originally Posted by James Tanner - Bryston View Post
Hi

Generally you want to keep to the same manufacture for the front 3 speakers especially to give the system a cohesive soundstage.

james
James..... I never thought it would get quite this complicated, but when one is looking for information about "preamp/processors," "centers" and "woofers, you end up crossing the boundaries of these forum boards.

Pre/Pro: It has come to my attention that, in order to utilize the new center [the one we're presently looking for], we will need more amplification. Putting the Bryston 9B aside, which two-channel amps would you recommend for our project?

Centers: I really don't know what you mean by "soundstage." Does that mean that a mismatched center speaker will stand out like a sore thumb when placed between two front speakers from a different manufacturer?

Woofers: Do woofers for a home theater setup present the same challenges as finding a good center speaker? In other words, should we be looking for a woofer that "matches" the B&W Nautilus speakers we already enjoy?

As a reminder, we're working with a pair of B&W 802Ns (fronts) that are driven by a Mac MC300. The B&W 805Ns (rears) are driven by a MAC4200, and both pairs are presently "controlled" by a Mac MX-130. I've also learned that the MX-130 won't really suit our new entertainment room, which we hope to equip with a 5.1 surround setup (for now); hence, the questions about newer pre/pros.

I hope that I haven't muddied the water too much, and I really do appreciate your time.
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OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections
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  #28  
Old 08-17-2020, 06:10 PM
James Tanner - Bryston James Tanner - Bryston is offline
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Originally Posted by 70sMac View Post
James..... I never thought it would get quite this complicated, but when one is looking for information about "preamp/processors," "centers" and "woofers, you end up crossing the boundaries of these forum boards.

Pre/Pro: It has come to my attention that, in order to utilize the new center [the one we're presently looking for], we will need more amplification. Putting the Bryston 9B aside, which two-channel amps would you recommend for our project?

Centers: I really don't know what you mean by "soundstage." Does that mean that a mismatched center speaker will stand out like a sore thumb when placed between two front speakers from a different manufacturer?

Woofers: Do woofers for a home theater setup present the same challenges as finding a good center speaker? In other words, should we be looking for a woofer that "matches" the B&W Nautilus speakers we already enjoy?

As a reminder, we're working with a pair of B&W 802Ns (fronts) that are driven by a Mac MC300. The B&W 805Ns (rears) are driven by a MAC4200, and both pairs are presently "controlled" by a Mac MX-130. I've also learned that the MX-130 won't really suit our new entertainment room, which we hope to equip with a 5.1 surround setup (for now); hence, the questions about newer pre/pros.

I hope that I haven't muddied the water too much, and I really do appreciate your time.
Hi

1. Not sure why you would want a Stereo amp for the Center as it only requires 1 mono amplifier? That being said the amp you would choose would be one that matches the capability of the Center speaker you choose. So if you are matching the left and right speakers try and get similar power for the center speaker assuming the Center can handle similar power.

2. Soundstage is a term that describes the ability of your system to present a cohesive even energy spread between the speakers. Width and depth to the music or movie stage. So if a car drives by from left to right on the screen you should be able to follow that car from left to right without loosing the sound image. So there are no acoustic holes from left to right and center speakers.

Think of it as if you had 3 flashlights (instead of 3 speakers) and you want to make sure the light from each individual flashlight intersects with each of the 3 so you get a nice even light across the front. No areas too bright or too dark just a nice coherent light across the front of your room. So when you mix different manufactures speakers there is the possibility of having one of those flashlights being too strong or too weak when it comes to light output. The reason for this is that each manufacturer will have a specific 'dispersion pattern' for their speakers and it is not recommended to mix one manufacturer with another.

3. Woofers are not that critical as they only handle the Point 1 channel (low bass) from your processor. So you can pretty well choose a sub that meets your requirements from any manufacturer.

Hope this helps.

james

PS - Check out this theater -

https://wircmedia.com/wp-content/upl...uFfLm7rO-4BuJg

Last edited by James Tanner - Bryston; 08-17-2020 at 06:13 PM.
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  #29  
Old 08-17-2020, 06:34 PM
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Smile Very lucid post

Quote:
Originally Posted by James Tanner - Bryston View Post
Hi

1. Not sure why you would want a Stereo amp for the Center as it only requires 1 mono amplifier? That being said the amp you would choose would be one that matches the capability of the Center speaker you choose. So if you are matching the left and right speakers try and get similar power for the center speaker assuming the Center can handle similar power.

2. Soundstage is a term that describes the ability of your system to present a cohesive even energy spread between the speakers. Width and depth to the music or movie stage. So if a car drives by from left to right on the screen you should be able to follow that car from left to right without loosing the sound image. So there are no acoustic holes from left to right and center speakers.

Think of it as if you had 3 flashlights (instead of 3 speakers) and you want to make sure the light from each individual flashlight intersects with each of the 3 so you get a nice even light across the front. No areas too bright or too dark just a nice coherent light across the front of your room. So when you mix different manufactures speakers there is the possibility of having one of those flashlights being too strong or too weak when it comes to light output. The reason for this is that each manufacturer will have a specific 'dispersion pattern' for their speakers and it is not recommended to mix one manufacturer with another.

3. Woofers are not that critical as they only handle the Point 1 channel (low bass) from your processor. So you can pretty well choose a sub that meets your requirements from any manufacturer.

Hope this helps.

james
Every time I read a lucid post like this, I learn a lot.

Your words about soundstage, for example, cut through all the subjectivity and get to the actual definition -- and I really appreciate that. The same thing goes for your simple statement about using a mono amp. We've never used a mono amplifier, so it's very good to know that you can drive a center with one, providing that it's not too far off of our stereo amps (for our front and rear speaker pairs).

I think what threw me off a bit about amplification was what I've read about "multi-channel" amps. Somehow, I was under the impression that we could use the a stereo amplifier in this way: (1) side for the center speaker and (1) side for a passive subwoofer. Perhaps that's really sophomoric to the learned who are reading this, but that's the impression I got from [someone] ... and I honestly don't remember who it was.
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Bill in the Hills

OUR VINTAGE MAC: MAC4100, MAC4200 | AMPS: MC452, MC300 | MAC PRE/PROS: MX151, MX130, MX121 | B&W SPEAKERS: (2) N802s, (2) N805s, (1) HTM3S | NEWER EQUIPMENT: Oppo 203 & 105D, Sony X800M2, Denon CDR-W1500 | VIDEO DISPLAY: 65" LG OLED | IMPORTANT NOTE: Zero High-speed internet connections
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  #30  
Old 08-17-2020, 07:37 PM
James Tanner - Bryston James Tanner - Bryston is offline
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Originally Posted by 70sMac View Post
Every time I read a lucid post like this, I learn a lot.

Your words about soundstage, for example, cut through all the subjectivity and get to the actual definition -- and I really appreciate that. The same thing goes for your simple statement about using a mono amp. We've never used a mono amplifier, so it's very good to know that you can drive a center with one, providing that it's not too far off of our stereo amps (for our front and rear speaker pairs).

I think what threw me off a bit about amplification was what I've read about "multi-channel" amps. Somehow, I was under the impression that we could use the a stereo amplifier in this way: (1) side for the center speaker and (1) side for a passive subwoofer. Perhaps that's really sophomoric to the learned who are reading this, but that's the impression I got from [someone] ... and I honestly don't remember who it was.
Hi,

Most subs these days have internal amplifiers so you generally would not buy a passive sub.

james
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