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ARCHIVED FORUM -- April 2007 to March 2012
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This is the first Archived Forum which was active between 17th April 2007 and 1st March February 2012

 

Latest post 05-10-2011 7:38 AM by elephant. 33 replies.
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  • 12-04-2007 6:23 PM

    • Rubicon
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    • N. Island NZ
    • Posts 45
    • Founder

    New House, New System........????????????

    Hi All,

    I'd like some opinion on where to go in terms of changing, adding to, or replacing my audio system. We're in the lucky position of building a new house around March next year and I'm very keen to achieve single remote nirvana and a multiple room system. So here are the questions, and I'll probably have to ask more because, as I browse the forums even more issues spring to mind!

    Firstly, I have a Beosound 2300 with a pair of Lab 6000's, and I'm hoping to add another pair of active speakers for the Master Bedroom upstairs, with a Lab3500 as a link speaker in the dining/kitchen area. The house is contemporary in design which is great, but does raise a few issues with regard to speaker choice (single link or pair with control unit), and also placement. I hasten to add that I'm not an  audiophile but love the quality of sound that B&O produces.

    Audio is definitely a priority, and due to budget constraints we will definitely go for a generic flat screen with some sort of Lintronic control system, but I'm open to suggestions. My main priority is to be able to access a largish CD collection WITHOUT changing them all the time. I LOVE the 2300 for reasons others have posted but really need to save and store the discs. A prominent member has suggested Beosound 4, but I'm a little concerned about the quality even though I'm not an "audiophile". I'm not a technocrat and my only experience of this was to record a wma file from my Laptop to a disc which I then played on the 2300 and found it to be very "thin", for want of a better description! I probably used the wrong format or bit rate or something so again I'd welcome advice.

    The initial questions are:

    1  Wireless or Hard-Wired?

    2  Beosound 4, Beosound 3200, BeoCenter 2 or other?

    3  Speaker suggestions?

    Many thanks in advance

    Peter

    edit - just added the BeoCenter 2 option as this may also be a solution

  • 12-04-2007 6:32 PM In reply to

    • ScottMc
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    • Ayrshire
    • Posts 37
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    as a cheap solution you could get an apple ipod and use one of Ridax's link cables or docking stations to connect it to your 2300 - this would allow you to control it via the Beo4 and access it from other rooms. I am planning on doing this with my Beocentre 8500 and MCL system.

    As far as encoding digital media goes, i would not advise using anything less than 192kbps MP3 or AAC files - itunes/ipod would take care of this for you anyway.

  • 12-04-2007 6:48 PM In reply to

    • Rubicon
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    • N. Island NZ
    • Posts 45
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Thanks guys, so if I use this 192kbps rate, how many albums can you get on to a 2Gb SD card? Also, will the sound be more like a standard CD? I just looked at the wma settings and they were on 128kbps as a standard I guess. Maybe I should re-record something at the higher bit rate and listen. The only problem is that I'd be doing it on windows media player software...mmm

    Cheers for now

  • 12-04-2007 7:06 PM In reply to

    • benjnz
    • Top 150 Contributor
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    • Joined on 04-16-2007
    • Auckland NZ
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Errrr OK my 2c =

    1 = I'd go hard wired, but hey get the fellas in Auckland to do it, I tried myself and spat the dummy out - LOL. Just use Wireless for your PC home network, depends on yout Telecom or Woosh set-up.

    2 = I'm biased, I've got a 3200, love it, very timeless so go with it. Hard Disk isn't too much of a worry. I generally know whats it what colour - I actually have it my users - all 2 of us and then genre - have one for Classical only. If you're going to fully load it you'd be better off thinking BeoPC black box, a mac and iTunes Big Smile

     3 = Most people say BL8000 for speakers and a BL2, if you can afford it I'd not dissagree. BL3500 are nice Big Smile

     Files wise I use ACC and 192kbp thingy for playing out of iTunes over BeoPC

  • 12-05-2007 2:45 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Your main unit and speakers will of course depend upon your budget, therefore I have made to rough ideas, but these are of course my personal preference:

    BeoCenter 2 and BeoLab 9 ... rears whatever you like!

    Or BeoSound 4 and BeoLab 3.

  • 12-05-2007 4:06 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Hello Peter,

    My thoughts on the subject:

    1. I have no experience with the wireless system, but hardwired is probably better
    2. I would keep the Beosound 2300 and use the Ipod option suggested by ScottMc. Possible future upgrade could be the Beosound 5 that will be on sale next year.
    3. Beolab 9's as front speakers and Beolab 3's as rears.

    Beoworld's twenty-eighth ninth prize winner and fifty-first second prize winner. Best £30 I've ever spent!

  • 12-05-2007 5:00 AM In reply to

    • kallasr
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    • Willich, NRW, Germany
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Peter,

    go for hardwired ML-Ethernet-Cabling this is futureproof: look at the Mastlink Handbook.

    I will try to insert a picture....

    Ralf

     

     


    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-05-2007 5:01 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    In any case, I would master link the house. And also put RF cables from a central point to all rooms where you may want a TV in the future.

    The RF cable will serve even in a non B&O setup, if you want to distribute a set top box or a video signal.

    p.

     

  • 12-05-2007 5:20 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Hello

    We have recently been through all of these issues ourselves and have come up with a system that works (for now)

    Beocentre 2
    Becentre 6  26 (wanted a smaller sized tv)
    beolab 9's (we love!!!!!!!!!!!!)

    For serious music listening we listen to CD's, itunes cannot match the quality of a CD. I seriously wouldn't waste my time downloading at anything less than a 320 bit rate in mp3 or AAC etc- you will be disappointed with the result. I'd buy more memory on your computer rather than sacrifice the sound quality. Presently we are streaming from our mac computer via airport express to our beocentre 2. It works ok but im sure the sound would be better if it were hardwired. (plugging an ipod directly into beocentre 2 improves sound slightly)

    We had considered the beomedia 1 as an option, but already having spent 24,000 AUD on the above couldn't justisfy the cost,,,,

    The beocentre 2 is great, sounds great, looks great,,,, occassionally has a tantrum and wont open or close and is often slow to do so. Most of the time it is well behaved and is forgiven as it  sounds and looks so great. My one gripe is having to manually enter the names of cd's!!!!! What is this about- all that would be required is a simple reading chip???? Why when you pay $7,000 do you have to do this yourself!!!!!!

    I hope that is of some assistance.. Email me back if you like further details or like to have a chat... We spent months trying to make these decisions!

    Good Luck

    David Coyne
    Sydney, NSW

    BV8-40, BC6-26, BC2, Beolab 9's, Beogram 7000, Beogram 9500, Beoport, Beotalk 1200, Beocom 6000, Beolit 1000, 800, 700, 600, 400

  • 12-05-2007 2:01 PM In reply to

    • Rubicon
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    • Joined on 06-21-2007
    • N. Island NZ
    • Posts 45
    • Founder

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Thanks everyone - plenty of food for thought, especially the new Beosound 5, and the idea of hard wiring ethernet at the same time along with RF. I'll use this thread to reference the above and maybe even ask more questions........

    Many many thanks for the input so far. I'm actually trying to source a pair of Lab 5000's for the main room, with my 6000's going into the bedroom on the new wall mounts if they exist yet, and a Lab 3500 for the link room. I'll probably keep the 2300 for the bedroom so I shouldn't need an IR link then hopefully!?

    I just can't decide on the main audio control unit, which I guess comes down to CD or SD, as a decision and then design, size etc etc. The beoCenter 2 might be a good idea and I may well email you David, it'd be good to talk to someone who's had the same issues!

    Cheers

    Peter

  • 12-05-2007 2:17 PM In reply to

    • Alex
    • Top 25 Contributor
    • Joined on 04-16-2007
    • Bath & Cardiff, UK
    • Posts 2,990
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    I agree with others about the BeoLab 9s! Move the 6000s to the link room, and get the BL9s as 'main' speakers. They really are the best speakers B&O have produced (with the exception of the 5s).

    As for the BeoSound 4, IMO it's a considerable step up from the BeoSound 3000/similar in terms of build quality/sound quality. Call me a hifi enthusiast, but when I first heard the BeoSound 4, I thought it sounded better than the BeoSound 3200 I compared it to (for radio reception at least).

    Honestly, in terms of quality, the BeoSound 4 is stunning. The radio in particular seemed very impressive (for FM). SD cards and DAB sound dreadful as you'd expect them to (although SD cards are acceptable to listen to when listening to music ripped with the BeoSound 4, or at higher bitrates). It's also wonderful to use. The look & feel of it is next to perfect. My personal favourite from the B&O range at the moment.

    As for TVs, the BeoCenter 6 and BeoVision 7 are all great TVs, although if you're wanting something you can connect everything to (Xbox, sky boxes, PS3, media centre etc...), your best bet will be the new BeoVision 7-40, it's got more connections than a local tourist office and performance /design to boot.

     Weekly top artists:                   

  • 12-05-2007 3:10 PM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    I would rip all my music to hard disc using a lossless format, and use a Mac Mini as a music server. I would have a iPod Touch as an additional remote which will give you two way wireless remote control of all your tracks. Pretty cheap and the only thing you will need is a system which accepts N.Music.
  • 12-05-2007 3:15 PM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    kallasr:

    Peter,

    go for hardwired ML-Ethernet-Cabling this is futureproof: look at the Mastlink Handbook.

    I will try to insert a picture...

    Ralf

     So is this a cable that converts ML to Ethernet?
     

  • 12-05-2007 3:29 PM In reply to

    • Rubicon
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    • Joined on 06-21-2007
    • N. Island NZ
    • Posts 45
    • Founder

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Very interesting Peter as I'd given this some thought over the last few months, especially as BIG memory is now sooo cheap relatively speaking. So can my 2300 accept an input from a mac-mini or suchlike? If so how do I go about that? Otherwise I'd get a Beasound4 as Alex suggests as I do like the design etc. Either way I need to consider the computer linkage to the music system location.

    I need to look at some of these i-pod thingys too as a lot of people are suggesting them. If I can achieve three room music and control with my existing 2300 plus a few computer/i-pod bits that will keep the system very minimal but also very functional and user friendly too! I like the idea of the i-pod remotes working the unit too. Perhaps my lovely lady will find that remote a bit easier to use, not that I've ever understood her difficulty with the Beo4 anyway! [LOL]

     

    Cheers

  • 12-05-2007 3:35 PM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Actually you can if you use the Mac way as all you will need to do is attach the output to Aux on the 2300 and use the iPod to select the tracks/playlists. Have a look at Soundproof's thread - the system will also be future proof to a degree as you music will be lossless and you will be able to change the hardware as required. An external HDD is best so that you can upgrade the processor if necessary - I now have a 1 TB model!
  • 12-05-2007 3:44 PM In reply to

    • kallasr
    • Top 75 Contributor
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    • Joined on 04-19-2007
    • Willich, NRW, Germany
    • Posts 1,077
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    beo-ap:
    kallasr:

    Peter,

    go for hardwired ML-Ethernet-Cabling this is futureproof: look at the Masterlink Handbook.

    I will try to insert a picture...

    Ralf

     So is this a cable that converts ML to Ethernet?
     

     

    Well, actually it just uses the cabling. You cannot use hubs or switches (active components), but a passive patch panel.

    See photos.

    Ralf

    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-05-2007 3:44 PM In reply to

    • kallasr
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    • Joined on 04-19-2007
    • Willich, NRW, Germany
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Sorry, double post - can't get the pictures online.... I will try a different way...

    EDIT: ok, here we go, the whole scenario (incl. pictures of our living room/dining area) will be posted once there will be a better photo section ;-)

    Beovision 3-32 Video Master 

    Ouverture Audio Master

    Beolab 3500 Link Speaker

    ML Distribution Box

     

    Patchpanel

    EDIT:

    As you can see, there are network cables as well, all my sat receivers are integrated in the lan, I got a buffalo terastation to store my media, everything can be accessed from everywhere... Now trying to integrate a Playstation Portable as a wifi remote for the x-box - with album cover flow etc. (just like apple). I wish Beo 5 had this feature....

    Ralf

     

     

    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-05-2007 4:07 PM In reply to

    • kallasr
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    • Joined on 04-19-2007
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Having seen the post, I just put the other ones online as well, it just look horrible seeing all the cables and not the nice B&O Stuff...

    Ralf

    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-05-2007 5:09 PM In reply to

    • Rubicon
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    • N. Island NZ
    • Posts 45
    • Founder

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Really great stuff here - thanks everyone for all the posting, hopefully others will also benefit from all these little gems!Big Smile
  • 12-06-2007 5:21 AM In reply to

    • kallasr
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Strange - the second bunch of photos post had to be approved by a moderator - and as time stamp there is the time of the creation - not of the approval. So if you don't want to miss the photos... here's a little "push" of this thread...

    Ralf

    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-06-2007 8:04 AM In reply to

    • Dave
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    • Brisbane, Australia
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Lovely placement of your Beovision, BL3500 and Ouverture. Beautiful! Smile

    “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent effort.”

    Your health and well-being comes first and fore-most.

     

     

  • 12-06-2007 9:19 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    Nice setup Ralf Cool
  • 12-20-2007 4:59 PM In reply to

    • kallasr
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    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    By the way: thanks for your kind comments!

    Still trying to improve though...

    Now playing with the home office room (BM 4500, BD CD 4500 and Wharfedale speakers - not linked yet, but...).

    Once addicted to B&O, there's no cure, I am always looking at new stuff, new setups, even though I cannot afford the latest series of products I have even more fun in buying (and selling) some of the older things and playing with different configurations... It is just a hobby, don't you think so....?

    Ralf

    My Beo: Beosound 3000, Beolab 4000, Beo 4 DVD,  Beolab 5000/Beomaster 5000, Beovox S45.2 with Stands, Beosystem 7000 black with Beolink 7000, Beolink 1000, F1000 (3 cubes), Beovox 5000, Beovox 3000, Attyca 1.

  • 12-21-2007 4:33 AM In reply to

    Re: New House, New System........????????????

    I do something similar. I try out different B&O in different rooms. I have used BV7, BV8, BS3000, BL6000, BL3, and BL2500 in my bedroom. The dangerous bit is moving them around the place!
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