Opinions on ML setup;

[Neo]

New to this forum. I'm planning on the following setup :
Aeon i for front
Cinema i center
Vignette surround
Grotto sub
B&K AVR 507
Denon 2910 DVD player

The idea being I may go for Frescoes as surrounds in future and move vignettes to rear.

Room is 20' x 14' ..
Any opinions .. Am I making a big mistake ?
thanks.

 

[Dominick22]

Personally, I would go with a different sub. I love the ML company, but there are many other subs that will out perform the grotto for the same price. In fact, the only sub they make that is worth its dollar value is the descent in my opinion. I suggest that you really take the time to compare the grotto to other subs and decide which you like the best. You may be surprised and the money you saved could be spent elsewhere. Perhaps higher grade ML fronts.
Cables, or even a surround set.
By the way, what is your store charging for the Grotto?


Dominick

 

[amey01]

I know B&K is not low-end stuff, but ML's are not the easiest drive and as such I'd suggest taking a second look at amplification. Possibly re-jigging your funds to look at a lower-end AVR and using a seperate power amplifier(s).

 

[Taz]

Personally, I would go with a different sub. I love the ML company, but there are many other subs that will out perform the grotto for the same price. In fact, the only sub they make that is worth its dollar value is the descent in my opinion. I suggest that you really take the time to compare the grotto to other subs and decide which you like the best. You may be surprised and the money you saved could be spent elsewhere. Perhaps higher grade ML fronts.
Cables, or even a surround set.
By the way, what is your store charging for the Grotto?
Dominick

Agreed the grotto will not keep up with the system you are putting together. I owned the Grotto and moved to a SVS and it made a huge differance! Much more bang for the buck. Love my ML's but I have tried a couple of their subs and for the $$ they can not compete with some of the sub only companys out there IMHO

 

[rynopr]

I was talking to the ML rep. from FL.. His name is Dennis Churn--probably not spelled right. He personally told me, "You do not want to go below the Depth in the ML sub line up." I agree. He shouldn't have a problem with the power for the aeon i from the 507.

 

[Robin]

Audition gear your own home with your ML speakers...

Neo,

Welcome to the ML Club!

The speakers you have choosen are excellent ML speakers. I would have to agree with others here though, that the, ML Grotto may be, a bit small given your room size. I would highly recommend the, ML Descent. It is a truly powerful servo subwoofer, but if money is an issue, I would recommend the, ML Dept.

IMHO, I did not like the B&K 507 AVR, and I'll tell you why...., IMHO, it was just too bright and brassy, also it was just did not have enough current - ampheres. ML speakers really need lots of power. ML speakers can and do go down to 1 ohm or less, espeically, in HT with loud dynamic effects... I would recommend seporates with a powerful amplifier i. e., Anthem - A2 or P2 and/or A5 or P5, Cary Audio -'Cinima X', Sim Audio's 'Moon Aurora'. I recommend Anthem's D1 or D2 processors. You might try Sunfire (Digital) amps and processors.

Listen first, then try to audition the amp.'s and processor equipment in your HT. The key to finding, what sounds good in your own environment..., is to take it home, and audition it there. Try out the amplifiers and processors first, on your ML speakers, at home, before you lay out a lot of money.

Remember to, "Trust your ears".

Enjoy, and Welcome!

Cheers

-Robin

 

[Dolfin]

SVS makes some really great subwoofers.. and the customer support is stellar as well. Just a suggestion.

 

[attyonline]

The B&K will have no problems driving your speakers. It is an excellent receiver that actually outputs 150 wpc with all channels driven. The Logans you want are not that hard to drive. They do not drop below 3 ohms until you get up well over 10,000 hz, which is no problem for any competently designed solid state amp. That only applies to the Aeons. The other speakers have much more benign impedence curves. I do not agree that the 507 is bright. In my system with Aerius i and Cinema it sounded a little rolled off and a little tubey, which is kind of common with mosfet designs. The notch filter is a great tool and I think the 507 has three different filters now as opposed to the one only on the former model 307. If you go to seven speakers you might want to consider a two channel amp to drive your mains, but you won't have to do so. The Grotto is a nice sub but its output is limited. I would not get the Depth since it is only somewhat better. The Descent is the real deal, but at its price a lot of good subs from SVS, Hsu, AV 123 and Axiom are available with comparable sound and output for a lot less money. Trust your ears and good luck.

 

[rynopr]

I too disagree that the 507 sounds bright on my Aeon's, but that is my opinion.
I would also disagree agree about the Depth. My audiophile friend has VMPS speakers with a huge SVS sub. He envies the musically and combined thump of my Depth. He was over once to watch the Leauge of Extraordinary Gents. and it got to the seen near the beginning with Mr. Hyde where he jumped down, or the bell dropped--somewhere in there. When he hit, we both literally jumped and went, "Wow!" I'm not saying that his can't get lower, and I'm sure the Descent can too. The Depth is more than adequate in music and movies. I had it too close to my laurier entertainment center and it cracked the glass door and I don't even cranck it up to near it's capabilities. It can easily shake my 2000 sq. ft. house. I'm not suggesting that it is the "best" sub, but it is in another league from the Grotto.