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Home Theater Done Right: Millercarbon's System

Dual use, should probably be the title. Oh well. Finally posted my system. Someone’s always asking about how to do a dual use system. Well, here’s how its done.
Cinephile or audiophile, movies and music are the two things I have loved for as long as I can remember. I want my music to sound as good as possible, and I want my movies to look and sound as good as possible. Everything is a compromise and yet when it comes to these two the compromises are remarkably few. If any. At least that is what my system shows. Because it is a first-rate audiophile sound system, AND a top level home theater.
Whether music or movies an immersive experience is the goal. To lose yourself in the experience. To be carried away.
Studies show viewers consistently rate video quality higher when sound quality is high. Unfortunately the Home Theater industry has chosen to pursue quantity over quality. Which cannot ever work. No amount of surround speakers will ever make up for poor quality. Everyone knows this perfectly well. Being able to convince anyone otherwise is a testament to marketing.
But that’s not my main point here. Rather it is that everything matters. Seemingly minor little things like cryogenic treatment, HFT, ECT, Total Contact, fuses, cable elevators, etc when added together actually make so much difference it is almost impossible to build a truly good system without them.

Removing those tweaks from my system would lower it down to merely average.

Anyway, the system is posted. Enjoy the pics. I am not that good a photographer but Steve Clarke was busy. Tried to get the tubes go glow- how’d I do?

The system evolves. Here for reference are some pics from 16 years ago. https://www.theanalogdept.com/c_miller.htm
Comments welcome. Enjoy!


128x128millercarbon
glupson
7,842 posts
 
auxinput said:
Also, while the equipment was purposely chosen to be poor sounding equipment with hiss and ground humm, it actually sounded better with all that other Synergistic equipment "turned off".
millercarbon said (regarding tweaks vs. equipment upgrades and not in obvious response to auxinput's post):

"No one who's ever sat and listened would say that. Quite the opposite."


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millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon OP
12,531 posts
 
shkong78
Nice system OP

It would be nice to have a chance to visit your listening room.

Thomas

Thanks, and you're welcome any time. Its on Rose Hill in Redmond, just east off the 405, Kirkland-Redmond Exit 18. Tonight we are into 30 days since the first Total Contact, it really does open up, just exceptionally good tonight. I know its a good 90 minutes but PM for details if you can. 

Chuck
ozzy62's avatar
ozzy62
3,097 posts
 
All of these posts are making my point. I never said the OP's system couldn't sound good with movies and music. I'm sure it does. All I said is that when you combine the two, there are compromises to be made. Anyone who thinks otherwise is delusional.

So you accept which aspect of the system you want to focus on and let the chips fall where they may for the other aspect.

Years ago I had a a home theater/two channel room. It started off mainly as HT, but as time went on I tuned it to be more geared to two channel listening. I still watched movies, but I had separate preamps for each task. And I removed the screen and center channel completely away from the system when not in use. I realized I could get it to sound better for movies only, but I didn't care about that. I accepted the compromise.

Oz



mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,540 posts
 
Yes, mc I am kidding in one way but serious in another. We all have different perceptions of how our systems should be and this is on display. I find it interesting in the variety of solutions. You have your way and I have mine. In no way am I saying one is better than the other. Theoretically it should make no difference whether your equipment is visible or not (other than the lights:) as far as sound quality is concerned but it does! Whatever makes you happiest sounds better. None of us can separate our emotions from our perception of sound. Why does music make us happy?!
Mahgistar, I am not saying that there are not meaningful improvements you can make in a system and some of them can be dirt cheap. I once had a pair of loudspeakers that I could not get to image (Allison One's.)
One day out of frustration I turned them sideways and darn if the image did't snap into focus.  Placebo is really not the right term in this case. Placebo infers a false effect. Sound affects our emotions and emotions affect what we hear. We hear what we hear. Nothing false about it. It is just that what affects what we hear is a complicated issue and hard to fathom. Adding just one dB to the volume, a barely noticeable amount can make things sound surprisingly different. I believe you have to appreciate this when evaluating equipment especially when dealing with minor differences. 

mahgister's avatar
mahgister
12,964 posts
 
mijostyn

I get your point and you are right for sure...Minor physical changes can affect astoundingly the perception of sound...Same experience here...

But the changes affecting my system in the last 2 years were a cumulative increasing transformation in minors and not so minors improvement, one at a time, that culminate in a final S.Q. without any comparison with the original S.Q from the same electronic components...

One of my great discovery is contrary to most audiophiles I know for sure that the relative quality of electronic components is not the first and most important factor in audio, but the controls in the triple embeddings, acoustical, mechanical and electrical, are... :)

The rule is simple: Buy good electronic components and after that forget any upgrade, but look for the right controls of the 3 embeddings... And you will lived a peak audio experience on all counts even at a very low cost...This is my experience....And you will forget to upgrade for a very long time indeed even if you have the money... :)

I apologize for repeating this mantra and i know that you know that already i think but no so much people know that....My best to you...

"God smoke cigars and listen to music, why not? " -Groucho Marx


" Harmonics of sitar cannot lie" - Ravi Shankar


"Truth manifest itself musically " - myself
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