System #521 (Ethos and StageX)

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jsetliff

Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2016
Messages
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Location
Tampa, FL
1. Member Name: Jay

2. Location: Tampa, FL USA

3. ML Model(s): Ethos x 4 (L R Ls Rs), StageX (C)

4. Year Purchased: 2016

5. Mods/Changes: power cords

6. Associated Electronics: Krell Foundation 4K processor, Parasound A51 Amp, Velodyne DD18+ Sub, Oppo 103D, Plex on WD4100 for FLACs (44.1, 96, and 192), and .MKVs for DVDs.

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Sweet setup! Yet another Tampa ML lover! You might want to check out our local Suncoast Audiophile Society (link below).
 
How does the stage present itself being cubed in? I guess for HT its ok but 2 channel seems a bit cramped ! Albeit a well designed set up and pleasing top the eyes !
 
How does the stage present itself being cubed in? I guess for HT its ok but 2 channel seems a bit cramped ! Albeit a well designed set up and pleasing top the eyes !

The stage is fine as long as I keep it as far as possible from the back wall. It is the Ethos that are the most problematic with this room layout. The panels had to be at least three feet from the back wall before they sounded right, which is why you see them sticking out so far in the room.

I originally started with a Motif-X center, but I did not like it. The Motif-X has is own built in acoustic absorption behind the panel. To me it sounded like it was inside a box. After about two weeks with it I switched to the Stage-X and what a difference! So open. Sounds just like the Ethos. The Motif-X did not blend with my Ethos in my room. The Stage-X blends perfectly, and it does not need to be as far from the walls as the Ethos to sound right either. Maybe because the panel is smaller in area than the Ethos panels...not sure, but I am completely happy with the Stage-X.

Obviously, the Stage-X is not used with 2-channel music, but certainly with 5.1 music and movies. The side walls of this opening are not having much affect on my Ethos or the Stage-X, but the back wall certainly does affect the Ethos. Maybe because the Ethos panels are out more than a foot from where the tv open side walls end, the side walls are less of an issue. But that backwall is a problem. The Ethos had to be at least three feet or the back wave makes it muddy, and the bass gets exaggerated with peaks and dips. Where they are now is fine though and I am happy. I suppose if I could bring them another 2 feet out in to the room they might be even better, but this is my living room and it is only so large and it still has to look like a living room. The back of the living room which you cannot see in this picture completely open to other rooms in the house and there are two more Ethos for Left Surround and Right Surround. They are probably 30 feet from the nearest back wall and both at least 15 feet from side walls. But right now, if I stand in the center of the four Ethos and turn 360 degrees, I do not hear the rear Ethos sounding any more open than the front Ethos, so I am happy for now. Believe me though, if I move those front Ethos even a couple inches closer to the back wall, it is very noticeable and sound just not as open and pleasing.

The opening for the TV was build many years ago when we had large rear projection TVs and of course I did not have dipole speakers back then so it was not such an issue. Now though it is really not ideal for the Martin Logans, but I have them out far enough to mitigate most of the issues. I probably will change it in the future so that I can have more open area behind the speakers.

By the way, I have all four Ethos crossed to the sub at 40hz and the Stage-X crossed at 60hz. The Velodyne DD+ software really flattens the peaks and dips in bass response in my room very well. (At least in the main seating position.) Maybe I should have bought the new models that can use Anthem Room Correction and fix any peaks and dips above 40hz.

Update: 01/02/2018
After 1 year with these speakers and various placement and crossover setting, I have finally settled on crossover at 50hz for all four Ethos, and 60hz for the Stage-X. I have the bass knob set at -1db on all four speakers. Previous attempts with crossover at 80hz with all below going to my Velodyne DD18+ gave very strong bass for movies but music sounds more natural to me with Ethos going down to 50hz. Taking Ethos below 50hz sounds a little box like to me in my room.
 
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How does the stage present itself being cubed in? I guess for HT its ok but 2 channel seems a bit cramped ! Albeit a well designed set up and pleasing top the eyes !

I moved the carpet and tv stand with center channel about six more inches away from the back wall. This puts the center channel in the same plain as the Left and Right speakers. Now all three panels are 36 inches from the back wall. This did make a small improvement with the center blending with left and right, and panning across the front stage is better. I think this is the best I can do for now without doing room demolition. Thanks for the tips and suggestions.

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Hey Jay! Love the setup - I am currently in search of a new power amp for my Ethos, though I only have 2 (fronts). I have been looking at Parasound, as everyone really speaks highly of them. I was torn between Athem, Rotel, and Parasound...I currently run everything through a Marantz AVR (the 7011), so looking to take some strain off of it. However, I like the warm sound I get from Ethos/Marantz combo - how would you describe the sound from the Halo's? And lastly, how are you running them? A21 for fronts, 51 for others? TIA
 
Jay. I also have the Ethos (and Stage X). I read on one of the other threads of a suggestion that it's beneficial to remove the rake from the speakers. I've had my Ethos for a couple years and have been beyond happy with them. I set them to vertical about 2 weeks ago and am blown away by the change. The imaging and detail in the sound is spooky great. I know that some others didn't care for it but in my experience, in my room, the change is profound. It's an easy change to try.
 
Hey Jay! Love the setup - I am currently in search of a new power amp for my Ethos, though I only have 2 (fronts). I have been looking at Parasound, as everyone really speaks highly of them. I was torn between Athem, Rotel, and Parasound...I currently run everything through a Marantz AVR (the 7011), so looking to take some strain off of it. However, I like the warm sound I get from Ethos/Marantz combo - how would you describe the sound from the Halo's? And lastly, how are you running them? A21 for fronts, 51 for others? TIA

A21 for fronts, A51 for center, and surrounds. I cannot truly give you a good comparison of other amps, as I started with the A51 twelve years ago, then added A21. I have no experience with the sound of other amps other than a B&K Components amp I also used. I think the sound of the A21 and A51 is more neutral than bright or warm. Also keep in mind that I only run the Ethos down to 80hz. Below 80hz is handled exclusively by my Velodyne DD18+. In my room I could never get sufficient bass from the Ethos without them sounding a bit boomy. Plus I really missed that bottom octave in some music and movies. Plus I like the ease of simply increasing/decreasing the sub volume when switching between 2-channel and multi-channel sources. I can tell you that the A51 has been in my system for over 12 years and have never had a problem. Something to keep in mind...with the A21 it is easy to get spades connected for each speaker. With the A51, the 5 speaker connectors are so close together that it is difficult to get them connected. That is the only design issue I have with the A51. I don't imagine you would have any issue with the output of these amps with the Ethos. They are strong enough. Also the A21 has input adjustment for each channel, this could be helpful if you try to run surround speakers from your Marantz. You would be able to match volume level of the Parasound amps to the Marantz amps.
 
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Jay. I also have the Ethos (and Stage X). I read on one of the other threads of a suggestion that it's beneficial to remove the rake from the speakers. I've had my Ethos for a couple years and have been beyond happy with them. I set them to vertical about 2 weeks ago and am blown away by the change. The imaging and detail in the sound is spooky great. I know that some others didn't care for it but in my experience, in my room, the change is profound. It's an easy change to try.

Thanks for pointing this out. I too have decreased the rake of the Ethos to nearly vertical, but not quite. This makes for a very good experience while seated. However, when standing you lose the treble. But 90% of my listening is while seated. Like you, though I prefer near vertical in my room and from my seating position. The pictures above were from before I reduced the rake. I have only had these speakers less than 3 months. I have found that the volume output of the Stage X is lower than the Ethos, and I have had to increase the center channel speaker level output in the Krell processor +5db to compensate.
 
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