Urei Theater

[hjames]

Its been ages since the last post in this thread (Nearly 6 years?)

I'm just wonder how this system has been since it was built,
how its held up. Anything you've upgraded since ...?

Do you have any lessons-learned, things you might do different?

[DerekTheGreat]

Yeah, and now another age has passed since your comment.

What a phenomenal set-up though. Would love to know how it's doing today.

[UreiCollector]

Yeah, and now another age has passed since your comment. What a phenomenal set-up though. Would love to know how it's doing today.

Hi there!So this is my old theater, I have since moved a couple of times, and remarried. Lots have changed! I did rebuild the theater, and during COVID I built my own speakers and replaced the UREI's (which have been sold).The new speakers use JBL 2385A horns with Eminence N314X compression drivers (which have the Textreme carbon fiber diaphragms), a pair of Morel CAW938 midrange drivers, and 5 JBL subwoofers (2x 2242H, 1x 2042H, and 2x 2215H).Still using mostly Hafler amplifiers (a mix of DH220 and DH500's), along with some QSC amplifiers. I have dropped the Behringer digital crossovers and moved to the QSC 110f DSP for all of my audio processing.

[UreiCollector]

Some photos of the new theater....

[grumpy]

Nice system evolution & hands-on effort! Good to see you back.

[UreiCollector]

Nice system evolution & hands-on effort! Good to see you back.

Thank you Grumpy!It was a fun project building new speakers. I tried some new techniques with the design, using flexible plywood and some complicated shapes. They look plain on the front, but there's a lot going on behind the scenes.

[Mr. Widget]

Awesome, thanks for sharing... it is always fun to see different approaches.

How did you arrive at those unusual box shapes... ie. what was the reasoning and what determined the radii and dimensions?


Widget

[UreiCollector]

Awesome, thanks for sharing... it is always fun to see different approaches.How did you arrive at those unusual box shapes... ie. what was the reasoning and what determined the radii and dimensions?Widget

Many years back I had built some speaker cabinets for my father's set of 604E's using sonotube for the cabinet walls, the curved surface was surprisingly strong, so this new design was an evolution on that. I wanted to get away form the partial cylinder, where the distance from the drivers to the cabinet walls would be relatively constant. I like to keep things symmetrical, hence the mirror image of the shape. I chose the curvature to keep the internal volume up, while trying to maximize the change in distance from the drivers to the walls. I did find the area where I straighten out (along the "sides") were too straight, and did move more than I liked, so I doubled up the walls there and then covered with a mass loaded butyl (for automotive damping). That helped quite a bit. The internal volume is divided into two tiers, and while they are parallel to each other, it's in the minor axis with the highest resonant frequency, i treated that with fiberglass to deaden that resonance. Overall it works very well, they are the best sounding cabinets I have built to date.

[DerekTheGreat]

Hi there!So this is my old theater, I have since moved a couple of times, and remarried. Lots have changed! I did rebuild the theater, and during COVID I built my own speakers and replaced the UREI's (which have been sold).The new speakers use JBL 2385A horns with Eminence N314X compression drivers (which have the Textreme carbon fiber diaphragms), a pair of Morel CAW938 midrange drivers, and 5 JBL subwoofers (2x 2242H, 1x 2042H, and 2x 2215H).Still using mostly Hafler amplifiers (a mix of DH220 and DH500's), along with some QSC amplifiers. I have dropped the Behringer digital crossovers and moved to the QSC 110f DSP for all of my audio processing.

Thank you for the update! Lots have changed. Was it hard to sell the UREI's? Or did you sell them with the house? I think if I went through the effort you did with integrating them as seamlessly as you had, I would've let them go with the house. Hell, if I had been in the market for a house and saw that set-up, I'd have to make it happen, just too cool. I'm new to the UREI scene, but a full-blown addict who started with 813C's+JBL 2245's and bought 811C's to use for the home theater. I absolutely dig 'em. I'll also be looking into that QSC deal you're using to process audio. I'm currently using a BX63A to manage the signal between the 813C's and my B460 clones, along with old Crown amplifiers and preamp. I'm very pleased with the results, but plan to go modern once funds allow.

How does the new custom setup compare? Impressive handiwork by the way! Hopefully your spouse appreciates the music and theater more than the previous. If it wasn't for my fiancée, I'd have never gotten into the UREI scene....

[UreiCollector]

So I had packed up everything and rebuilt at the new house, with the UREI's as part of the system. When I built new speakers during COVID, I designed them to fit the same openings, you'll notice the right and left are the same size as an 813, while the center is the same size as an 815. Selling the UREI's took some time, the commitment of such large speakers turns away a lot of people. I did have a single buyer purchase all 6 of the 811's that I had, he had them crated and shipped out to him in California.When the Eminence N314X driver was reviewed by Vance Dickason, it caught my attention, so I picked up a single unit to test. I was so impressed I quickly bought a 2nd unit and built some stands to place the horns in front of the UREI's. I tested them for a couple months substituting the N314X with JBL 2385A horn for the horns of the UREI's....so still using the woofer of the 604. The high frequency extension was much better, the imaging was substantially better, and overall I found them to be a big improvement, and I decided then to build new speakers from the ground up. Absolutely no regrets. The Textreme diaphragm of the N314X is outstanding...it has the HF extension of a beryllium diaphragm without the breakup modes in the upper octaves. The 2385 is a constant directivity horn, compared to the exponential horn of the UREI, and the narrower beam width of this horn keeps HF energy off of the side walls, but still gives me the coverage I need in the room.Re: the QSC 110f, I'm using that for bass management, driver correction, time delay (time alignment), and all crossovers. I'm currently running 14 amplifier channels, likely to go up to 17 if I ever get off my butt. I've spent a lot of time doing measurements with CLIO and fine tuning each driver in the room.Have you posted about your setup? I'm curious to see what you've put together. I still have a special place in my heart for the Altec 604, and all things UREI. I grew up listening to 604E's, and purchased my first set of UREI's around 2000, it was a set of 811A's, and I used 813A's right up until 3 years ago.

[DerekTheGreat]

So I had packed up everything and rebuilt at the new house, with the UREI's as part of the system. When I built new speakers during COVID, I designed them to fit the same openings, you'll notice the right and left are the same size as an 813, while the center is the same size as an 815. Selling the UREI's took some time, the commitment of such large speakers turns away a lot of people. I did have a single buyer purchase all 6 of the 811's that I had, he had them crated and shipped out to him in California.When the Eminence N314X driver was reviewed by Vance Dickason, it caught my attention, so I picked up a single unit to test. I was so impressed I quickly bought a 2nd unit and built some stands to place the horns in front of the UREI's. I tested them for a couple months substituting the N314X with JBL 2385A horn for the horns of the UREI's....so still using the woofer of the 604. The high frequency extension was much better, the imaging was substantially better, and overall I found them to be a big improvement, and I decided then to build new speakers from the ground up. Absolutely no regrets. The Textreme diaphragm of the N314X is outstanding...it has the HF extension of a beryllium diaphragm without the breakup modes in the upper octaves. The 2385 is a constant directivity horn, compared to the exponential horn of the UREI, and the narrower beam width of this horn keeps HF energy off of the side walls, but still gives me the coverage I need in the room.Re: the QSC 110f, I'm using that for bass management, driver correction, time delay (time alignment), and all crossovers. I'm currently running 14 amplifier channels, likely to go up to 17 if I ever get off my butt. I've spent a lot of time doing measurements with CLIO and fine tuning each driver in the room.Have you posted about your setup? I'm curious to see what you've put together. I still have a special place in my heart for the Altec 604, and all things UREI. I grew up listening to 604E's, and purchased my first set of UREI's around 2000, it was a set of 811A's, and I used 813A's right up until 3 years ago.

Oh yeah, now I notice the walls can accommodate the 813 and 815 cabinet! I'd love to hear that setup sometime! I've yet to hear anything with a beryllium diaphragm, but am told they are leaps and bounds ahead of the 813ABC and it's compromised 1" driver... Breaks my heart a bit to hear that, as the UREI's have taken the top spot after all the systems I've had/listened to. Although I was initially unhappy with how the 813C's sounded, I learned they can't just be plopped into a room and cranked to 11 like most of the other speakers I've had. Like you mentioned, I noticed the HF rolls off considerably right around 14khz, so once I boosted that, pulled a considerable amount of 2khz out and turned the knobs on the cabinets full CW, it came down to amplifier selection. Now they make up the most enjoyable system I've ever had the good fortune to listen to, let alone own. Before the UREI's came along, I discovered I was an SPL junkie and just couldn't get my systems loud enough. Not a problem anymore.

"...Get off my butt." Haha! Compared to me, you're a whirlwind of talent and action. I've never thought about modifying the house around speakers. Matter of fact, I tend not to modify things too much in case I later change my mind or am forced to move. Plus I saw the house I'm currently in as temporary, permanent if it has to be and it's looking like it's going to be permanent, at least until retirement. So I've slowly cozied up to the idea of modifying things.

I have posted pics before, forget the threads so I'll just post 'em again. I'm a little embarrassed though, as the visual appeal is quite lacking by comparison and the system is essentially plopped into position. I recall reading your comments about how much tighter things got by soffit mounting the 813's and now I'm really curious.. The "theater" wasn't able to accommodate the 811C as I had originally hoped, (Intended to put it between the two entertainment centers under the TV) so now I'm on the hunt for a lone 809. Already have two 809's enroute for use as surround duty. Couldn't imagine 17 drivers!!! I've also always wondered how the A/B UREI variants compare against the C...

[UreiCollector]

You have an impressive stock of UREI's on hand! Thanks for sharing! At my peak I had 15 of them if memory serves, maybe more...ha ha ha. I had used the A series in the theater, my father had used the C series (which eventually became part of my collection). The A's were always my favorite, I think having gown up with the Altec 604's set me that way. There was a quality to the C's that I did like a lot, I think I felt like they were a little more "forward" or "assertive". Really they all are fantastic speakers!So yeah, the soffit mounting does go a long way in making them perform...i fought doing it for a long time, but after hearing my father's in soffits, I eventually followed suit. It's definitely a commitment! My wife is very understanding though, and she loves movies, so she does reap the benefits of the system too

[rusty jefferson]

UreiCollector, I love the fact you're still in so deep almost 20 years after starting this thread. It's aspirational for folks coming up in the hobby as well as old timers. Good on ya! :-)

[UreiCollector]

UreiCollector, I love the fact you're still in so deep almost 20 years after starting this thread. It's aspirational for folks coming up in the hobby as well as old timers. Good on ya! :-)

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words! It's been a lifelong passion, and I have to thank my father for that...he sparked my interest as a child . It's great to be in touch with people who share the same passion for HiFi too, thanks for speaking up!

[rusty jefferson]

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words! It's been a lifelong passion, and I have to thank my father for that...he sparked my interest as a child . It's great to be in touch with people who share the same passion for HiFi too, thanks for speaking up!

You're very welcome. I think several of us here got started on the JBL path because of our fathers. Was your father a studio engineer? I was introduced to UREI by a friend who worked at a studio in Philadelphia.