Speaker and Headphone Rigs Picture Thread

I have a larger listening area with an L shaped kitchen on one side. Listening area has a high ceiling with glass also and a lower ceiling.
Behind the wood in ceilings had insulation installed a while back. It made a huge difference to the room acoustics. I wasn't expecting a single thing at the time (didn't cross my mind to be frank!) and was astounded turning on the system after the workers had finished.
Much more depth, more resolution in high end and everything had improved in spacing and clarity remarkably. It was almost like a new system!

Will be looking further into this if I end up going to 800Ds or Nautilus and more monoblocks eventually, would love to DIY room solution. But first A/B the new and old system. A blind test would be amazing actually - can you actually hear your new investment or not!? Then with proper room treatment.

And again, as B00nie said (this seems to be a common occurence in audio threads)... its more the knowledge that's needed than the products. I have a friend who is a professional who does that as a job and have had some very interesting chats. There are many ways to solve and reduce issues in buildings discreetly without going 'recording studio' traps..

That said, don't be discouraged to build your own traps and experiment with placement. But it's best to know what you're working with and measure it.
 
All that cool gear and a tiny screen? WTF?
That was my old 27" 120hz Samsung. I'm now on a 144hz 34" 1ms Ultrawide :)

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For gaming and music:

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GTX 1080 HDMI -> Denon AVR-3806
Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty (rarely-used) analog -> Denon AVR-3806
Klipsch R-26F front
Klipsch R-25C center
Dayton Audio B652-AIR surounds (had to mount rears to a goofy rigging since rear wall is too far back)
Dayton Audio SUB-120 subwoofer
Logitech G633 headphones for comparing headphones to surround speakers
 
A hint: The foam absorbers you have on the wall are too thin, they will absorb only highest frequencies. Sometimes this will make the sound muddy instead of improving it. Although your amounts are small. If you really want to improve the room it needs heavier and thicker materials.
 
A hint: The foam absorbers you have on the wall are too thin, they will absorb only highest frequencies. Sometimes this will make the sound muddy instead of improving it. Although your amounts are small. If you really want to improve the room it needs heavier and thicker materials.
Yeah, I'm aware that the foam isn't optimal (it was free!), but the diference was noticeable. I made those panels three years ago out of shipping materials (foam glued to cardboard backing), I couldn't find inexpensive sound dampening foam at the time, but it seems like reasonably-priced 2"-thick panels have popped up around the internet since then; I'll eventually upgrade, maybe when I make some furniture changes. I'd like to replace the carpet with solid flooring, but then I'd really need to get serious about dampening and those corner foam pieces are ridiculous $$$.
 
Yeah, I'm aware that the foam isn't optimal (it was free!), but the diference was noticeable. I made those panels three years ago out of shipping materials (foam glued to cardboard backing), I couldn't find inexpensive sound dampening foam at the time, but it seems like reasonably-priced 2"-thick panels have popped up around the internet since then; I'll eventually upgrade, maybe when I make some furniture changes. I'd like to replace the carpet with solid flooring, but then I'd really need to get serious about dampening and those corner foam pieces are ridiculous $$$.
You can make corner absorbers from regular building insulation wool. Won't be 100% as effective as proper foam but still works and costs a fraction of the cost of foam.
 
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LS50s, Parasound IA with internal crossover, SVS 12" sealed sub.

I took down the Monolith THX Headphone amp because the Parasound does such a good job.
 
Swapped my IsoAcoustics stands, 2 posts above, with a pair of K&M stands. I wanted to wall mount my speakers, but couldn't find anything that looked strong/solid enough to hold them securely. These K&Ms work very well and I daresay my LS50s seem to sound better. (y)

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Those speakers are really close. Do you get a good soundstage? I have mine 6' apart and 3' away from my sitting position. I know. You are in a corner. I have an entire room with my desk in the middle. Bit easier that way.
 
Those speakers are really close. Do you get a good soundstage? I have mine 6' apart and 3' away from my sitting position. I know. You are in a corner. I have an entire room with my desk in the middle. Bit easier that way.
My set up is a bit unconventional, but it works. The speakers are about 3.5 feet apart. LS50s (wireless and passive) do very well in nearfield. I'm looking for a different desk that could give me more room to add a second monitor. Ideally, I'd like a little more space between the speakers, too.
 
Don't like the DAC included in the YU4's? Z seemed to like Kanto's DACs, so I haven't bothered switching off the USB input for my YU2 set.
 
Don't like the DAC included in the YU4's? Z seemed to like Kanto's DACs, so I haven't bothered switching off the USB input for my YU2 set.
I'd like to use the YU4's dac, but don't have an optical port on my laptop. The YU4 doesn't have USB, so it's RCA, Aux or Bluetooth. I got an RCA Y-splitter cable and have it connected to the Fulla 3 which runs USB into the laptop.
 
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Sure, i'll share some. I have 3 setups - and before you comment, I do recognize that I have a problem :D and I am unashamed.

In all seriousness, I review AV equipment, so I have multiple systems as a reference point also.

Home Theater setup:
Dolby Atmos 7.2.4 System
Legacy Audio Focus SE Left & Right Channels
Legacy Audio Marquis HD Center Channel
Legacy Audio Silhouette PRO L&R Surrounds
Legacy Audio Phantom HD Rear Surrounds
KEF CI200RR Atmos Overheads (x4)
Seaton Sound SubMersive HP+ and F2+ Subwoofers (4000W per sub)
Anthem AVM-60 Preamp/Processor
Oppo UDP-203 UHD Blu-ray player
D-Sonic M3a-6100-7 Class D Amplifier (1500W for L,C,R, 400W for surrounds and rears)
D-Sonic M3a-2000-5 Class D Amplifier (Atmos Channels)
Sony VPL-VW675ES 4K Projector
110" Monoprice 1.0 gain screen
Fractal Design Node202 based HTPC running Kodi & Roon
MSR & GIK Acoustic Treatments

Here's a shot of the front channels/screen (with image from a dark room pasted on):
theater-view.JPG

Here's a shot with the lights off:
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Here's my projector on a ghetto rigged tile shelf - since I didn't want to build a hushbox given how often I swap gear. You can see the Phantom HD rear surrounds and one of the Atmos channels, as well as the top of my 2nd sub in this shot:
reartheater.JPG


Living Room Setup:
Pure Audio Project Trio 15 TB Open Baffle Speakers
Anthem MCA225 Amplifier
Raspberry Pi4 w/ Pi2AES feeding Soekris DAC1541 DAC (Roon Endpoint)
SurgeX XR-315
Oppo UDP-205 Disc Player
LG OLED65E7
LRsetup.jpg



Office Setup:
XTZ 99.26mkII Speakers
Dual SVS SB2000 Subwoofers
MiniDSP DDRC-2x4 (Dirac Live) for Room Correction/Sub Integration
Schiit Modius DAC
SoTM sMS-200 USB Network Streamer (Roon Endpoint)
Schiit Freya S Pre-Amp
D-Sonic M3a-3000S Amplifier

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This is the most I've ever spent on headphones, almost $300 with Apple Care and Tax,

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Pure Audio Project Trio 15 TB Open Baffle Speakers

I would love to hear those. They sure look like my kind of speakers. I have always wanted some open baffles. May have to build some soon.
 
Pure Audio Project Trio 15 TB Open Baffle Speakers

I would love to hear those. They sure look like my kind of speakers. I have always wanted some open baffles. May have to build some soon.
They're very good for the money - especially in smaller rooms where they can reproduce bass as they are capable of. You can also look at other DIY OB speakers that are quite good. Here is a design i'm really fond of:

http://gr-research.com/nx-otica.aspx
 
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Gym: Fearless S8F Pro + TRN BT20RS + LG G8 with AptX HD

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Travel: Campfire Audio Andromeda (OG Green) + Fiio M11 Pro

Sold/traded full size setup since I never was at my desk...then COVID kept me at my desk a bunch! Oh well, Andromeda are dreamy.
 
a little late night city pop with my MDR-V6's (removable cable modded) and a Yamaha CX-630 and a chromecast audio
 

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My LS50 wireless had a failure in the left channel amps about a month ago. Warranty covered the repair, but that was it for me. Sold them and went back to passives, the new LS50 Meta. They sound great and I recommend them highly to anyone in the market for new speakers. My new audio setup (specs in sig).

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My LS50 wireless had a failure in the left channel amps about a month ago. Warranty covered the repair, but that was it for me. Sold them and went back to passives, the new LS50 Meta. They sound great and I recommend them highly to anyone in the market for new speakers. My new audio setup (specs in sig).

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they probably sound awesome, but they aren't that pleasing to my eyes.
 
This is the most I've ever spent on headphones, almost $300 with Apple Care and Tax,

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Just got a set for Christmas, love them. I got a one piece case that clasps closed and attaches to my keychain (in my case I use a Keysmart which also helps a lot). I can use these at a moments notice - their convenience has been unparalleled. That fact that they're so small and "charge themselves" is such a small simple thing that is just so convenient. Whenever I want them or need to throw them in, I always have them with me.
I also got knockoff Comply foam ear-tips and those helped immensely. The regular tips hurt my ears with physical pressure. The foam tips fit perfectly and don't cause that pressure for me. Now the experience is great in every aspect.

I was originally also considering the Beats Pro (especially because they cost so much less and have similar sound quality with better battery life). The ANC, transparency, and size sold me on the Airpod Pros and I'm glad I went this way. The fact that they're so tiny is such an advantage that can't be overstated.


Oof. To think what kind of amazing sound you can get for $300 without an Apple logo involved
Apple logo or no Apple logo there isn't another set of headphones that has this set of features. The ANC and Transparency modes alone (which I might add are both class leading) are worth it for me since I have a pretty active life and either need to ignore surroundings or pay attention to them obviously depending on the situation. The ANC can basically drown out everything inside of a shopping center. All of the talking, and terrible PA speaker music just fades away. And when I need to hear everything the transparency mode sounds natural with zero echo or other weirdness.

The sound quality I would say is decidedly mid-level, but in comparison with a lot of IEM's in general their sound is 'pleasant' out of the box - and while they may not have the most amount of detail (as an example), for a daily driver that for me is used for 2-5 hours a day, having a sound that isn't fatiguing is really high up on the priority and importance list. There is more to a set of headphones than just sound quality - however you define it (which I might add varies greatly from person to person). This isn't even counting Apple integration with the H1 chip which also just makes these headphones again decidedly more convenient than anything else.

If I want to sit and listen to music that's an entirely different setup. We could talk about using FLAC, a nice DAC/AMP, and driving a set of open back cans. That's an entirely different listening experience and serves an entirely different purpose - again for dailies, this feature set, and purpose there isn't much else you can buy.
 
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