Urei Theater

[UreiCollector]

I have made some progress on the basement, and thought I would share with everyone who has posted on this thread. I'm anticipating late April to complete the theater. I hope you all enjoy the picture. :D
The front right and left are 56deg apart, and the rear channels will be at 105deg to each side. All horns are centered at 48 inches above the subfloor, and the screen will be perforated.

[QwertyAccess]

Wow:jawdrop:

[glen]

That's an awesome picture man!

And it's going to be an awesome room!
Please keep us informed of your progress,
preferably with lots of pictures!

[John]

You might want to make sure all of your duct work is damped??? Or you will regret it later.:(

[4313B]

You might want to make sure all of your duct work is dampedCoat it with aquaplas.

[Oldmics]

A woofer with bite.

Nice doggie !!!

Oldmics

[UreiCollector]

Things are moving along everyone! I hope to be finished by end of May. Enjoy the pic, and I'll post more soon!:D

[glen]

Enjoy the pic, and I'll post more soon!:D

Take some pics with the grills off too, you know we like to see them speakers nekkid!

[UreiCollector]

I'll do that for sure. I'm ashamed of myself for posting the previous pics with the grilles on. :banghead:

I won't make the same mistake twice.

:barf: :barf: :barf:

See you soon!

[UreiCollector]

Everyone,

I have been negligent in posting, and I'm sure many want to see the results of my effort. I'm not quite finished yet, but the Urei's have been moved to their new home, and I couldn't wait to share. Enjoy!

I'll be cutting the wood for the 2242H's this week, so hopefully the bottom holes will be filled before long.

Things will look better once the holes are filled, and the trim is up. More to come......


Frederick:bouncy:

[Mr. Widget]

This looks like a fantastic project... you'll have to invite us all over once it is finished!


Widget

[mikebake]

Most attractive and nicely done. We'll be right over.

[Bob Womack]

Geez, you make me look like an amateur... :D

Bob

[boputnam]

What happened to my little buddy - "he" has not featured in the update photos...:(

[doodlebug]

Now that I've gotten my 813s up and running, I can imagine what that's going to sound like. What are you running for power to them?

Cheers,

David

[UreiCollector]

Amps:
L, R, C, pair of Hafler DH220
R, L Surround Hafler XL280
2242H's Hafler DH500

Sources:
Sony TA-E9000ES Processor
Sony DVP 9000ES
Outlaw ICBM Bass Manager
Home Brew subsonic filter using Burr-Brown op amps (to protect my 2242's)
DVDO iSCAN HD+ for Video Scaling

:) Frederick

[UreiCollector]

Now that I've gotten my 813s up and running, I can imagine what that's going to sound like. What are you running for power to them?

Cheers,

David

David,

I would like to add, soffit mounting the Urei's made a HUGE differance in the transient response. The system has much more "punch" to it now, and the low end is incredibly smooth (no boomy bass). If it is an option, I would highly recommend mounting your Urei's in soffits, I was not prepared for the improvement, absolutely amazing! :)

Frederick

[doodlebug]

Understand about the soffits, Fredrick. They were clearly designed with that assumption/requirement.

I've just moved back into a house where I'll end up setting up the garage for use as a 'romper room'. Right now, the UREI's are on furniture mover's wheels and will stay like that for a while. Yes, there's a bit of booming in the bass but the midrange presentation is all there. I posted a picture of the current setup the other day somewhere on these forums.

I *could* almost set up a smaller version of your theater in there, using the 809s for rear speakers and the set of JBL 4425s for a middle, I suppose. Nah.....I'm just into 2-channel right now. Maybe someday.:blah:

The other problem I have here in Santa Cruz is that the houses are on 40' x 80' lots. Houses are close together as a result and I can already hear the 813s out on the street through the garage door. Can't imagine what a full theater setup would do for the neighbors' entertainment.

One interesting thing I discovered re: light bulbs in the UREI's. The tweeter bulbs in the crossover are GE-81s. They're the same bulbs as found in old Volkswagen dashboard lights - the old 6V versions from the 60s, that is. Was able to locate them at a local VW restoration outfit. The other 6V bulbs for the woofers I found at a local lighting fixture company after digging around in their old boxes. They had *lots* of them.

For the large spade connectors on the back, I used Thomas and Betts L35-B2 copper terminal lugs, available at Home Depot. These allowed me to use its clamping system while making a solid connection to the speaker.

Cheers,

David

[Ken Pachkowsky]

David,

I would like to add, soffit mounting the Urei's made a HUGE differance in the transient response. The system has much more "punch" to it now, and the low end is incredibly smooth (no boomy bass). If it is an option, I would highly recommend mounting your Urei's in soffits, I was not prepared for the improvement, absolutely amazing! :)

Frederick

Nice to hear.....I'm told by Westlake I can expect the same when I get into the new house......:applaud:

Ken

[UreiCollector]

I *could* almost set up a smaller version of your theater in there, using the 809s for rear speakers and the set of JBL 4425s for a middle, I suppose. Nah.....I'm just into 2-channel right now. Maybe someday.:blah:

Nothing wrong with 2 channel....most can't get that right, and going multi-ch without getting 2 channel right, is just wrong. ;)

The room may look bigger than it really is. It's only 19.5 ft deep, and 14 ft wide. You may have more room than you think.

I did see the pics of your Urei's. Definately nice.

I have the wood cut now for the 2242's, hopefully I'll get them somewhat together this weekend.

Frederick

[Bob Womack]

Here's a pic of my 811Cs when I first got 'em home and hooked them up for a test drive. I love my UREIs. I was first exposed to them at the '83 Audio Engineering Society Convention in NY. I'm doing up a page to describe how and why I managed to bring home these old friends after mixing on 813Cs for twenty years and this particular pair of 811Cs for ten years. I've also started a page showing the pics of UreiCollector's rig, just to show that I'm not exactly batty in loving these things, at least by comparison... :D I could point you to the pages if you are interested.

By the way, UreiCollector, I'd love to hear your observations comparing the 811As to the 811Cs, as well as comparisons of the 813A and B series. :)

Bob

PS, Interestingly, my 811Cs replaced a pair of Audio Techniques Big Reds in '92 and our 813Cs replaced a pair of Altec 19s in '86.

[UreiCollector]

Gee those look nice! I like the sound of the C's a lot....my impression is that they have more attack in the midrange, but I have not listened to them in the same room as the A's (or B's) for that matter. So it could be all room effect.

I sure hope you found some nice soffits for those 811's to live in. :)

[Bob Womack]

Actually, they are living against a wall. The bass response of our soffitted 813s is smoother than the subwoofed 811Cs, but I think the subwoofers actually extend the low end a little further on my home set.


Bob

[JBL 4645]

WOW! Awesomely speechless! Out of this world!:applaud:

The Baffle wall is the way to do it!

Like the THX professional baffle wall, the front of the wall is covered with sound absorbent material to stop the high frequencies bouncing of the perforated screen, otherwise, the result will be a very bright sound, this also helps for intelligible dialogue.

[northwood]

great fisheye pic

[UreiCollector]

Still making progress, but still a way to go.......:D

Everyone seems to like the fisheye shots, so here you go. :)

[UreiCollector]

Wanted to post pics of the subwoofers, they are almost finished! They will be outfitted with 2242H's.

Hopefully I don't break the house.

[grumpy]

Great setup. Those sub cabs look nicely finished. Can't see bracing details, but
it's hard to over do it in a large sub box. -grumpy

[spkrman57]

I'll bet the sound will be dynamic as hell once completed!

Thanks for sharing with us!

Ron

[UreiCollector]

Just wanted to share another photo! These subs sure do make some incredible low end....now I just need to finish them.....oh, and put some trim around those Urei's. :)

[mikebake]

What are the speakers behind the Ureis?Here's a pic of my 811Cs when I first got 'em home and hooked them up for a test drive. I love my UREIs. I was first exposed to them at the '83 Audio Engineering Society Convention in NY. I'm doing up a page to describe how and why I managed to bring home these old friends after mixing on 813Cs for twenty years and this particular pair of 811Cs for ten years. I've also started a page showing the pics of UreiCollector's rig, just to show that I'm not exactly batty in loving these things, at least by comparison... :D I could point you to the pages if you are interested.

By the way, UreiCollector, I'd love to hear your observations comparing the 811As to the 811Cs, as well as comparisons of the 813A and B series. :)

Bob

PS, Interestingly, my 811Cs replaced a pair of Audio Techniques Big Reds in '92 and our 813Cs replaced a pair of Altec 19s in '86.

[Bob Womack]

They are Boston Acoustics A150s, great acoustic suspension stereo speakers.

[Guido]

This is just unbelievable!
AWESOME!

[UreiCollector]

The 2242H's rock the house! Literally. I'll be adding trim to the Urei's soon. Enjoy the pics!

I'd be interested in seeing photos of any other HT systems using the Urei's.

[John]

What screen and projecter are you using???:bouncy:

[UreiCollector]

Screen is a motorized Da-Lite High Contrast Cinema Perf 106"
Projector is a Panasonic PT-AE900U, driven by a DVDO iScan HD+ scalar

[clmrt]

How about EQ for the center to counter the screen effect, and maybe some absorbing material for killing the...whaddya call it...echo between the screen and the wall?

[Ken Pachkowsky]

Once again....thats a great looking room. I would love to hear it.

Ken

[UreiCollector]

How about EQ for the center to counter the screen effect, and maybe some absorbing material for killing the...whaddya call it...echo between the screen and the wall?

I havn't done anything special for the center. I am considering some acoustic foam on the front wall between the speakers, but am undecided.

To my supprise, the screen is remarkably transparent. I wouldn't say it's acousticly "invisible", but I have to admit I was pleasantly supprised with how little it seemed to have colored the sound.

The moire effect on the picture is far more distracting than the minor (in my opinion) acoustic affects of the screen. I can see "ghost" images due to reflections of the image off of the wall behind the perforated screen.

[clmrt]

Bummer. What's the solution for that I wonder. Black felt?

Edit - Oh yeah - awesome theater by the way. I'd do the same thing in a heartbeat. Except I'm a sucker for black / dark walls and carpet. Maybe black carpeted walls with reflective surfaces added to taste.

Like I even know what I'm talking about.

[UreiCollector]

Thanks for the kind comments.

I thought about black felt, but I'm not sure I'd like the apperance (lights on). I'm torn, as always. I'm going to start with a darker shade of the wall color in flat paint, and see what kind of results I get. If i'm still not happy, then I'll try something else. Perhaps a carpet of sorts on the front wall....but I don't if I'll be happy with the apperance.

It's a tough situation, but compromise is the name of the game. Having the center channel directly behind the screen is well worth this trouble though, I wouldn't do it differently.

Considering I use this room for listening 90% of the time, and movies 10%, it hasn't been bothering me much. :) The lack of trim around the Urei's is more irritating at this point.

Cheers! Frederick

[Zilch]

Tapestry, maybe?

[Mr. Widget]

I thought about black felt, but I'm not sure I'd like the apperance (lights on)...Could you have a pull down black felt curtain behind the screen? Maybe gang it to your screen?


Widget

[UreiCollector]

Hi everyone,

I've finally gotten around to hanging the trim on the Urei's. Enjoy!

Frederick

[grumpy]

Thanks for the picture. I'm sure it sounds every bit as good as it looks! :)

[Bob Womack]

Fredrick leads the way...

[UreiCollector]

Thank you Gentlemen!

[stephane RAME]

Hello,
Congratulations, really a very good job, for a very coherent.
Regards
Stéphane :applaud:

[Mr. Widget]

Hello,
Congratulations, really a very good job, for a very coherent.
Regards
Stéphane :applaud:Yes, that is a very nice project. Well done!

I bet it even makes bad movies a little more fun to sit through. :D


Widget

[UreiCollector]

If by bad movie you mean "chick flick" then yes, it certainly helps. Though my wifey is always telling me to turn it down......I told her it's called "dynamic range" and it would be a sin to use a compressor to make her happy. :applaud:

[JBLRaiser]

Could you do a YouTube of your system in operation? I'd love to hear/see the outcome.:applaud: