Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems Do Large vs Small rears/sides really make a difference?

I didn't and nor did my kids - they love the film. What would you recommend I watch just in case I do come over cheap and stupid at any time?

Anything by the Farrelly brothers.....

But back to the topic in hand....

I guess the processing is sending the deep bass from all "small" channels to the (presumably "large") FL & FR & Sub. When we get surrounded by "large" speakers it is a very noticeable change (and, IMHO, improvement) i.e. it is the distribution rather than the bass itself.

Again I wholeheartedly recommend large rear speakers with matching amplifiers. The result is better than a typical London West-end Cinema where the bass all seems to come from the front.

Hmmh, you got me thinking. If one is running .0 as I am, if I set a speaker small (even with the crossover set fairly low) I wonder if any LFE bass will still be routed their. Certainly feels like it.

Oooh, it's probably easy to check with a test disc that can output LFE only test signal.

I just checked it. All the LFE is only routed to Large (no matter what the crossover) even when there is no sub.

Problem with setting DSP5000's large (given I have other larger speakers) is that some bass would be lost but you would gain better LFE distribution.

You were clearly expecting a documentary about serious electrical devices and were disappointed.

Or expecting a 'step up' from previous films?!

I'll get my coat...

Back to the original question ....

I think the age-old advice to invest more in right, center and left is still sensible, but going full-range across all the surround locations can make a real difference if only (as has been suggested) to better distribute bass in the room by using more transducers. Any source that provides a discreet 5.1 track will benefit (SACD, DVD-A, DTS CD, DVD or BR). Well worth it IMO!

Thanks for checking George.

If I read my D2500 manual correctly (and from experience of Asaposts's previous stereo DSP5000 system), there is no limit to the number of subs which one can add to an all-Meridian DSP setup. One can only add three to a 5.0 or one to a 7.0 system as dedicated LFE channels but it seems that subs can be daisy-chained into DSP pairs either as a mono sub summing the two channels or as a stereo pair supporting each speaker channel. So, for instance, a D1500 placed appropriately could be added to rear channel DSP33s (set to large) so that the full-range bass is reproduced from small speakers.

Imagine 7xDSP8000s each with its own dedicated D2500. Maximum full-range bass correctly positioned all round without the need for a .1 channel.

What really caught me off gaurd was not that it would or wouldn't help better distribute the bass (which I expected it would). But the low frequency steering that exists and can easily be heard. Why is lowering cross over from 80hz (with DSP-33's) to 35hz (with DSP5000) allow me to HEAR the steering when it's not supposed to be localized under 80hz? That is what surprises me the most.

At HH1, Bob spoke of low frequency "informational cues" that are directional (and therefore 7x DSP8000 would be best in a multi-channel setup). I seem to recall (or imagine) that Bob dismissed the suggestion that sub-80Hz was not localizable.

If we could only get hold of the recording of the event...

That's exactly what I was thinking. Just like in an instrument there are secondary frequencies thrown off from the instrument (in this case the speaker).