New theater room project

[Geoffcin]

Well, I went and did it;

In wall speakers!

Usually I have no problem with the size and placement of my speakers, but my new HT room posed a bit of a problem with the rear surround placement. I had intended to mount a pair of Cambridge Soundworks S300's on the rear wall, but my better half pointed out that since there's going to be a pass through behind my furniture now, it would be very easy to bump, or damage the speakers. After some serious thought on the matter (and some single malt) I decided to go with the CSW IW300MC in wall speakers. I was interested to see how they would perform, and they came yesterday so I hooked them up in place of my mains. I was very pleased upon opening up the boxes, the build appears of a very high quality, and the drivers and crossovers are first rate. The sound quality was even better than the build quality! They sound a lot like my CSW T500 mains without the woofers powered up. Maybe a bit brighter, but they were in free air. I'm sure once I mount them in the wall there's going to be a bit more warmth, and bass enhancement.

I'll post more updates and PICS as the project moves toward completion.

[Geoffcin]

Well, I went and did it;

In wall speakers!

I'm sure once I mount them in the wall there's going to be a bit more warmth, and bass enhancement.

I'll post more updates and PICS as the project moves toward completion.

Here's some pics of the progress of the room. Finally moved the maggies in, and the surrounds are hooked up.

[Geoffcin]

[Geoffcin]

[Geoffcin]

[Geoffcin]

[uncooked]

that looks really good, great job.

arent you going to have to take the plates, and speakers out of the wall when you paint though? or just paint around them carefully?

[Geoffcin]

that looks really good, great job.

arent you going to have to take the plates, and speakers out of the wall when you paint though? or just paint around them carefully?

Thanks!

Yes, you can do it either way. Th speakers came with a cardboard mask so you can paint the bezel the same color as the walls. I think that's what I'll do, and then re-install them. The binding post plates I'm just going to mask and paint around.

[uncooked]

o thats cool you can paint it. that will work great then.

thoughs wall speaker conectors are awsome. i was looking for some like that when i finished my basement but couldnt find any that nice, and had to get some spring style ones. they handle thick gauge so it worked out ok, but i think yours look better, all metal like that. mines just cheap plastic.

and thoughs handle 150 watts? thats alot.

[Geoffcin]

o thats cool you can paint it. that will work great then.

thoughs wall speaker conectors are awsome. i was looking for some like that when i finished my basement but couldnt find any that nice, and had to get some spring style ones. they handle thick gauge so it worked out ok, but i think yours look better, all metal like that. mines just cheap plastic.

and thoughs handle 150 watts? thats alot.

Yes, the rear surrounds are really great, much better than I ever expected, and can easily take 150 watts, With an 89Db watt efficiency that's pretty darn loud! Here's a clip of a post of mine about them;

They are the top-of-the-line Cambridge Soundworks IW300's with dual 4" woofers and a silk soft dome tweeter. These are set in the back wall 36" up from the floor. I have them set about 6' apart.

First impression when hooking them up to the front amps on my receiver was "WTF?!" where's all this sound coming from! These are little in wall speakers, the're not supposed to have bass output, the're not supposed to sound like mains! It was really astonishing. I put on a CD with really powerful bass, the RH Chili Peppers BSSM, and Flea bass sounded hard, fast, and tight. Honest output from these little speakers way into the 30's! My wife started laughing when she saw my face, and said "you can get rid of all your speakers now!". Well, that just ain't going to happen, but I will say that I would now definitely recommend in wall speakers for HT applications, especially where space is at a premium.

The sad part is that these speakers will probably never do more than whisper in my HT application, as they would work excellent as mains. Oh well, at least the're "timber matched" to my system.

[topspeed]

Looks like it'll be a great retreat when you're done. The plates look like the same Niles plates that I use and they are very clean. You might want to put some banana plugs or spades on those bare wires to ease any switching and slow corrosion of the wire.

I've got the CSW table radio in my kitchen and bought my dad a CSW HT rig a while back. Great bang for the buck and as you noted, very good quality of both sound and construction. You think ol' Henry knew a thing or two about speakers ?

Enjoy the new room!

[Geoffcin]

Looks like it'll be a great retreat when you're done. The plates look like the same Niles plates that I use and they are very clean. You might want to put some banana plugs or spades on those bare wires to ease any switching and slow corrosion of the wire.

I've got the CSW table radio in my kitchen and bought my dad a CSW HT rig a while back. Great bang for the buck and as you noted, very good quality of both sound and construction. You think ol' Henry knew a thing or two about speakers ?

Enjoy the new room!

Thanks Topspeed!

Had another WTF!? moment yesterday. Am using the Musical Fidelity amp on the 3.6's, so I decided to hook up the PS Audio amp to the CSW T500's. Talk about a change of amps making a difference! You'ld swear it was a different speaker altogether!