Our New HB-1/HC-1/VTF-3 MK-3 5.1 System

[mitchman]

So after purchasing a new Pioneer Elite PRO-110FD plasma and a Denon AVR-3808CI a/v receiver, everything looked so good it really made us wonder if we would "hear" an improvement with new speakers and sub.

I read a bunch of reviews on the new HSU HB-1/HC-1 speaker systems and they all were good. I was worried about the horns sounding too harsh but the reviews said they weren't. One guy actually said that they didn't have enough high end to match his Klipsch horn speakers. I thought this was a good thing as I don't like speakers that have too much sizzle. I like a nice warm sounding speaker.

We unboxed them Thursday night and hooked them up. We were impressed at the quality of the speakers compared to their price. But when we first started listening to them, I wasn't very impressed. The worst part was that I WANTED to be impressed, after all we had just spent a bunch of money on them and I felt I had done a ton of research. My wife listened to them all day Friday and said she liked them, but I still wasn't impressed. The HB-1/HC-1 sounded dull. They had NO high end and the VTF-3 MK-3 sounded really boomy. Not the thump or earthquake rumble I was hoping for.

But then it dawned on my, we hadn't ran the Denon Audessy auto setup (with microphone) since we installed the HSU's. 15 minutes later all we can say is WOW!!!

The high end is crystal clear! The center channel voices are very intelligible, but everything still sounds nice and warm, but with MUCH more dynamic response. I hadn't had much experience with speakers yielding MORE dynamic response....but these really seem to have a lot of punch.

Then I started playing with the subwoofer speaker level...... WOW! It really sneaks up on you! You can turn the volume up and up and it just keeps getting louder and louder. The only tell-tail signs that you have that the bass is really loud is the stuff ratteling on the walls. The sub never complains, it just keeps on pumping out the bass! AMAZING!

We stayed up past midnight listening to a variety of sources and everything sounds AWESOME! Although we haven't dialed in a sub level that works for everything, it's pretty easy to change the level with the Denon remote.

Anyone have some advice for some good 5.1 demo discs? Something that really shows off the surround sound and the major bass the 3.3 puts out?

Thanks HSU!! So far, we're very happy!

Mitch & Sherry
Eastern Washington State

[mojave]

Anyone have some advice for some good 5.1 demo discs? Something that really shows off the surround sound and the major bass the 3.3 puts out?

Of all the bass scenes I have listened to, my favorite is the crash in "Flight of the Phoenix". It is a fairly long scene and it has some bass that goes down to about 10Hz. You feel like you are actually in the airplane as it is been torn apart by the sandstorm. The sustained vibrations and rumblings are incredible. I have used this many times to demo my VTF 2.3 and MBM-12 and everyone that hears it is extremely impressed.

[cacihome]

You have to hear: War of the Worlds and Master and Commander!!!

[Pete_Hsu]

Thanks for sharing Mitch and Sherry! I'm really pleased that you are enjoying the system!

Pretty much any action movie would do a great job showing off the system :)

[mitchman]

Thanks for all the great recommendations! (I had forgotten to check this thread......oops!)

We're getting Flight of the Phoenix and U571 via a free movie deal we got with our Blu-Ray and HD DVD players. I'll look into War of the Worlds (great movie, great idea!) but Master and Commander wasn't one of our favorites. Maybe we can borrow it from someone to try it out first. :)

Thanks again everyone! :)

[cacihome]

Thanks for all the great recommendations! (I had forgotten to check this thread......oops!)

We're getting Flight of the Phoenix and U571 via a free movie deal we got with our Blu-Ray and HD DVD players. I'll look into War of the Worlds (great movie, great idea!) but Master and Commander wasn't one of our favorites. Maybe we can borrow it from someone to try it out first. :)

Thanks again everyone! :)

Put War of the Worlds when the aliens emerge from the street...
... LOTR DTS soundtrack Bridge of Kazzah-dum
... Master and commander the first ship battle!!!!
Superman Returns also...

[Picture_Shooter]

Thanks 4 this review.

I am really honestly a Rocket fan, but since my budget is not much since I sold all of my old HT stuff, I am looking and the same setup as you got, minus I own a Yamaha HTR5960 receiver.

So here is what I am looking at:

1 - STF 2 sub
2-pair of the HB-1
1 - HC-1

How do you think this combo would sound in a full size 13'x14' room, but the listening / viewing area will only be 10'x8'

Would these horn type bookshelfs be over kill?

[cacihome]

Thanks 4 this review.

I am really honestly a Rocket fan, but since my budget is not much since I sold all of my old HT stuff, I am looking and the same setup as you got, minus I own a Yamaha HTR5960 receiver.

So here is what I am looking at:

1 - STF 2 sub
2-pair of the HB-1
1 - HC-1

How do you think this combo would sound in a full size 13'x14' room, but the listening / viewing area will only be 10'x8'

Would these horn type bookshelfs be over kill?
Actually there is thing as overkill...

The better the equipment you can have in a room, the more headroom you will obtain by not having to push to the limits the equipment...
You will gain lower distortion numbers too...