I'm not sure I love my Stage...

[Feltran]

I checked the power cord, and it is definitely plugged in. Whether or not it's getting power? I'm not sure. It's hanging on the wall so I can't get a good look, but is there any sort of lamp that is supposed to be illuminated to indicate it has power? I don't see one.

Also, when I checked to make sure it was plugged in properly, I noticed that is is hanging upside down. Will this affect audio quality, or do the woofers on each side make the exact same sounds?

 

[JonFo]

I checked the power cord, and it is definitely plugged in. Whether or not it's getting power? I'm not sure. It's hanging on the wall so I can't get a good look, but is there any sort of lamp that is supposed to be illuminated to indicate it has power? I don't see one.

Also, when I checked to make sure it was plugged in properly, I noticed that is is hanging upside down. Will this affect audio quality, or do the woofers on each side make the exact same sounds?

IIRC, there is indeed a light on the back of the speaker itself indicating it has power and is OK. it might only light when the music-sense sees a signal, so play something that uses the CC and check while the sound is playing.

You mean the speaker unit unit itself is inverted?

It really shouldn't have an impact to the woofers, but the tweeter dispersion might be 'shaded' to ensure fewer ceiling reflections. I'd flip it just on principle.

 

[Feltran]

It really shouldn't have an impact to the woofers, but the tweeter dispersion might be 'shaded' to ensure fewer ceiling reflections. I'd flip it just on principle.

I would too, except I can't do it alone, so I'd have to find someone to come over to help me flip it over.

 

[FISH_MAN]

that unit is totally symmetrical aside from the mounting bracket I would not flip it over.

 

[tsmooth]

I know what you mean about the center channel, and I believe it is totally content dependant. Some movies just do not deliver well through the center channel. The sound I get during some movies is comparable to a microphone being turned up to high. It seems to start right before someone speaks, like you are picking up a little of the background static. On the other hand, you can really tell when content is well recorded (just like listening to music). Some movies are dead quiet and prefect. Also, SACD playback is crystal clear for me through the center channel.

All I can stay is that with Blu-ray and technology, hopefully things will only get better.

 

[FatJ]

IIRC, there is indeed a light on the back of the speaker itself indicating it has power and is OK. it might only light when the music-sense sees a signal, so play something that uses the CC and check while the sound is playing.

Yes, indeed. There is a little green light next to the speaker terminals and the power connectors and you want to make sure that this light is on whenever you are using the speaker (and it is wicked hard to see when the thing is mounted on the wall so turn all the lights and your display off and look for the glow). I have seen on more than one occassion (including a store demo, customer piece, and my own personal unit) where the light was not coming on and the panel was not powering up even though everything was plugged in. I think the plug does not seat properly in the back of the stage. I have probably only sold and installed a dozen of them and for 3 to have the same problem is pretty bad...

I could press on the plug and the light would come on and the speaker would sound like $3000 and then as soon as I let go the panel turned off and HELLO $300 speaker!!! Bad deal. Check it out and let us know. Also make sure you are plugged in to the power IN and not the power OUT (had an installer make that mistake once - not sure where's he working now!)

 

[FISH_MAN]

my light is blue you said green are you just calling blue green or have they changed colors?

 

[FatJ]

Heck IDK, I haven't looked at it in a while. I've had far too many to crawl under it right now :cheers: I thought mine was green but it could be blue. Point is there's gotta be some kind of light!!! No light = no majic!

 

[MDSPHOTO]

I totally agree....

I've had speakers i liked immediately and after breaking in, they
just got better. I've also owned a few speakers that were too
bright, thin or aggressive from the start... i hoped break-in
would tame these qualities, but invariably, i remained disappointed
in the speaker (Thiel 1.5, Monitor Audio GS60 come to mind).

This is a question I have always quietly asked myself when I read that any speaker needs to be broken in. Do the speakers actually "break-in" or do we just become accustom to the sound?

To the point above, I either like the sound of a speaker or I don't when listening. I loved my Sequel II's and when I bought my Summits I was disappointed in the lowered height of the sound stage. After listening to them for a while I now don't miss the extended height, but only because I have become accustom to the sound, the speakers did not "break-in" and get taller.

 

[unclemonty]

Hi - I don't know if this is helpful or relevant to your configuration at all, but I had a similar problem with my Stage too - it was sounding pinched, congested and was also prone to distort. I finally figured out that it was the Audyssey processing on my receiver which was messing everything up. Now, with Audyssey disabled the Stage sounds much more 'of a piece' with my Summits.

Paul

 

[FISH_MAN]

Hi - I don't know if this is helpful or relevant to your configuration at all, but I had a similar problem with my Stage too - it was sounding pinched, congested and was also prone to distort. I finally figured out that it was the Audyssey processing on my receiver which was messing everything up. Now, with Audyssey disabled the Stage sounds much more 'of a piece' with my Summits.

Paul

I as well noticed a similar issue with the Audyssey room correction I think it does not totally understand what it is hearing when it comes to our ELS speakers

 

[babydoc]

A while back, I bought a Stage speaker to complement my Spires in a home theater setup. For various reasons, it sat in the box for about six months, and I was doing HT with just my Spires. I was pretty happy this way, I wasn't completely sure why people bothered with center channel speakers at all, but since I had never heard a system with and without a center channel speaker, I had no way to know except to experiment.

So, about a month ago I finally got around to setting up my Stage. Within minutes, I had decided that having a center channel speaker really did help. It made the sound in movies much more dynamic, and overall produced a pretty great effect. I definitely like having a center channel speaker.

However, it's the Stage itself that I'm not sold on. I don't think it's an attractive looking speaker, and not only am I not sure that it pairs very well with the Spires, I'm not sure the sound quality is very good at all. Now, I have no center channel speakers to compare it to, but here are my complaints:
It sounds a little bit... I don't know if tinny is the word, but a type of sound that I would expect from a much less expensive speaker. Not bad, just not good.
The sound seems to come about 15% from the side woofers, 5% from the panel, and 80% from the tiny little cone in the middle. Almost makes it seem like a Bose Jewel Cube would have the same effect.
I can't tell if it's the recording of the voice tracks or the speaker, but voices often don't sound lifelike to me.


Am I just ignorant of center channel speakers? Have other people had similar experiences with the Stage? Is there another center channel speaker that might have better sound without being a total eyesore? Might my Stage be damaged?

I have visited your system so I see what you are using for processing and power. You should give the Stage some time. I have had one for 3 years with Summits in the front and now CLXs. It has mated well with both but better with the CLXs which are more transparent. Since the Spire technology shares some elements with the CLXs you should get good integration. You might need to play with your processors speaker equalization and balance program either by trial and error or using an SPL meter (which is what I did). Also placement can help as I see your Spires are very close to the rear wall.

 

[Feltran]

I'm a little worried that the unit is somehow defective, I'm still not convinced that there is really any noticeable sound coming from the panel, but I'll give it some more time and see what happens. It's definitely getting power, and I'm pretty sure everything is hooked up properly etc.

Also placement can help as I see your Spires are very close to the rear wall.

The photo is perhaps a bit deceiving, the panels are 28'' from the wall, which may not be ideal but should be adequate, no?

 

[FISH_MAN]

put your hand over the tweeter and put your ear next to the panel to be sure its still working

 

[JMAUSGP]

First pick a good 5 channel or 7 channel source, whichever is appropriate.

Then one by one unplug your other speakers. Once you get down to the center channel you should easily be able to tell what is working and what is not working. Just put your ear right up to the panel and the woofers.

You will either have :music: or

 

[iove]

Feltran,

You can always take it to your dealer and hook it up next to a working demo and compare. I have the ML Vantage and I don't think my Stage matches well either. Running test tones through the fronts and there is definitely a noticeably different voicing from Stage. But that is to be expected as the Stage is a different beast from the Spires.

In my quest for center channel several years ago, I auditioned every center ML had and none sounded like the Vantage (that's because the Vantage doesn't have a soft dome speaker) but I have found that the Stage is the only one that can keep up with the Vantage in my above average sized media room.

Also, this may sound obvious but make sure that Stage is beamed directly toward your ears. The small panel is extremely directional as noted in a review of its predecessor by hometheaterhifi.

 

[JonFo]

I as well noticed a similar issue with the Audyssey room correction I think it does not totally understand what it is hearing when it comes to our ELS speakers

I find Audyssey works marvelously well with ML's.

matter of fact, since it is the only process to mitigate temoral issues (early reflections and resonances), it can result in trully magical results.

However, and it's a big however, how you run your measurement process has everything to do with how good a result you get.

I don't doubt for a moment that you guys have had bad experiences so far.

But blaming the tech is like hooking up the bass drivers only and not the ESL and saying ML's have crappy highs

Specifically, center channels, and ML centers in general are very, very tricky to measure right.
For one, because often they are poorly placed. Secondly, they are not measured well due to a combination of where the microphones are placed, and where the speaker is.

Since this is a lengthy topic, I'll start another thread to specifically discuss details of measurement processes on ML's and the CC setup and we'll go into the gory issues of CC setup.

 

[FISH_MAN]

I find Audyssey works marvelously well with ML's.

matter of fact, since it is the only process to mitigate temoral issues (early reflections and resonances), it can result in trully magical results.

However, and it's a big however, how you run your measurement process has everything to do with how good a result you get.

I don't doubt for a moment that you guys have had bad experiences so far.

But blaming the tech is like hooking up the bass drivers only and not the ESL and saying ML's have crappy highs

Specifically, center channels, and ML centers in general are very, very tricky to measure right.
For one, because often they are poorly placed. Secondly, they are not measured well due to a combination of where the microphones are placed, and where the speaker is.

Since this is a lengthy topic, I'll start another thread to specifically discuss details of measurement processes on ML's and the CC setup and we'll go into the gory issues of CC setup.

well like any tool it takes some time to learn how to use it perhaps I just have not put in that time. some of the results where nice and some where better without the room correction perhaps with a few tricks and tips these issues could be hammered out

 

[urskog]

Specifically, center channels, and ML centers in general are very, very tricky to measure right.
For one, because often they are poorly placed. Secondly, they are not measured well due to a combination of where the microphones are placed, and where the speaker is.

Since this is a lengthy topic, I'll start another thread to specifically discuss details of measurement processes on ML's and the CC setup and we'll go into the gory issues of CC setup.

Looking forward to enjoying that thread while sipping on a nice cold one
(Sierra Nevada Torpedo perhaps?)

 

[Mantana]

Logans have such good center fill, why bother trying to integrate
a center channel. Why not just the fronts and sides (or backs) ?