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This is the second Archived Forum which was active between 1st March 2012 and 23rd February 2022

 

Looking for smallest surround processor to get 5.1 with my beolabs

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tuttivini
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tuttivini Posted: Tue, Jun 23 2020 9:52 AM

Hi Guys,

At this moment I have an 55" LG C9 oled connected to a B&O Playmaker, Playmaker connected to two Beolab 8000's and a B&W ASW610 subwoofer (sold my Beolab 2 and bought the mentioned B&W, because it integrates/sounds better and is fully adjustable, crossovers, levels, etc. unlike the BL 2).

I made a 'wall' myself with a small white floating shelf. All components are invisibly mounted underneath the shelf (Playmaker, Playstation 4, utp switch, etc. don't mind the rubber caps on the corners. I have a crawling baby son).

I control the volume with a Beo 4 and all the rest with my stock LG Oled remote.

Stereo sound is good. Looks are excellent (I designed the entire piece of furniture around the BeoLab 8000's), 

BUT: I want a dedicated center channel, for clear voices in movies, etc.

I want to buy a Beolab 7.1 or Beolab 7.2 for this purpose.
And, in future, two Beolab 3's or 6000's (which I have in another room) as rear speakers.

Because I want to hide everything onder the shelf (see photo), I'm looking for a SMALL SURROUND PROCESSOR with HDMI-ARC. So normal big av-receivers with pre-outs are not an option...

What are my options?

I found the Almando Multiply Surround Decoder, but pricey and only adjustable with an amateurishly designed app. Not knowing if this app still works on Android in a couple of years...
But it's small and easy to connect. No extra cables involved. All Powerlink.
Who has experience?


I found the Canton Smart Connect 5.1 av-preamplifier. Looks good, is small, has all the modern streaming bells and whistles.
Any experiences?

What are other options to get 3.1/5.1 surround, keeping my C9 Oled and 8000's?

(click photo for larger image)

 

Millemissen
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The Canton Smart Connect 5.1 av-preamplifier looks like a very smart solution.

However, there is not much ‘B&O’ to such a setup.

I’d call it a good way to reuse your old B&O speakers....better than most other similar solutions.

Thanks for the tip.

MM

There is a tv - and there is a BV

Jaffrey2230
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Beautiful set up!

B&O in my life 😊: 

 

  • Beolab 8002 + Beolab 2 + Beosound Core with Essence Remote (Office)
  • Beolab 6000 + Beolab 11 + Beosound Core with Essence Remote (Bedroom)
  • Beoplay A9 Mk2 (Living Room)
  • Beosound 1 with wireless dock (Portable)
  • Beosound Balance (Dining)
  • Beoplay H95 (Focused listening, travel)
  • Beoplay H9 (3rd gen) (retired)
  • Beoplay P6 (Portable)
  • Beotime wall clock (hallway entrance)
  • BMW X5 50i with B&O Audio Package (Commute/drive)

 

 

 

Jaffrey2230
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I don't think there is a B&O option for 5.1 without a B&O TV is there?

B&O in my life 😊: 

 

  • Beolab 8002 + Beolab 2 + Beosound Core with Essence Remote (Office)
  • Beolab 6000 + Beolab 11 + Beosound Core with Essence Remote (Bedroom)
  • Beoplay A9 Mk2 (Living Room)
  • Beosound 1 with wireless dock (Portable)
  • Beosound Balance (Dining)
  • Beoplay H95 (Focused listening, travel)
  • Beoplay H9 (3rd gen) (retired)
  • Beoplay P6 (Portable)
  • Beotime wall clock (hallway entrance)
  • BMW X5 50i with B&O Audio Package (Commute/drive)

 

 

 

Millemissen
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Jaffrey2230:

I don't think there is a B&O option for 5.1 without a B&O TV is there?

There is: a Beosystem 3 or 4.

MM

There is a tv - and there is a BV

RichardIII
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That Canton looks nice. A shame it doesn’t use WISA.

Curly
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Curly replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 1:40 PM

Perhaps the half sized Marantz NR1710. I will likely be buying one of these to use as a surround processor.

Currently: BeoLab 17, BeoLab 18, BeoSound Core, Beosound Level, Beosound A1 2nd Gen, BeoPlay S8 Connection Hub, Halo, Essence Remote

Previously: BeoSound 1 non-GVA

depe
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depe replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 5:30 PM

Hi, 

it may not meet your expectation, but the Emotiva processor MC-700 is pretty small, at least when compared to other offerings. I use the predecessor model UMC-200 in combination with BL8000s (front/left), two BL4000 (center) and two more BL4000 as rear speakers. 

The Canton Smart Connect looks nice. I, however, miss the trigger output to turn on the BL. The Emotiva has those, turning on the BL when the system is up. I think this is mandatory in a surround setup where most of the time the rear speakers get no signal, which would cause the speaker to turn off randomly unless is it is properly controlled by a PL cable. That seems not possible with the Canton.

There are a bunch of really small and cheap 'surround decoders', google it. I suspect that the audio quality is inadequate, but you could give it a try and cut your loss if the quality is bad. 

I like the Emotiva. Its does exactly what I was hoping for. 

 

tuttivini
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tuttivini replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 5:49 PM

@depe, good point about the triggering. I had this experience in the past when I had a Marantz NR surround receiver, connected to beolabs with rca cables. In some situations (movies with long scenes where only voices where needed from centre speaker, without any extra sounds) the front or rear speakers switched off because they didn't receive a signal for more than 2 minutes.

tuttivini
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tuttivini replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 5:51 PM

Curly:

Perhaps the half sized Marantz NR1710. I will likely be buying one of these to use as a surround processor.

 

Those models only have pre outs for the fronts.. I had a NR receiver in the past, with 2 beolab 6000s en 3 passive other brand speakers... 

depe
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depe replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 5:59 PM

it is very easy to convert 12V triggers provided by most AVR's and pre/pro's to 5V level required by the BLs. The RCA connection is a very bad idea, in my opinion, at least in a 5.1 setup

depe
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depe replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 5:59 PM

it is very easy to convert 12V triggers provided by most AVR's and pre/pro's to 5V level required by the BLs. The RCA connection is a very bad idea, in my opinion, at least in a 5.1 setup

tuttivini
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tuttivini replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 6:14 PM

depe:

it is very easy to convert 12V triggers provided by most AVR's and pre/pro's to 5V level required by the BLs. The RCA connection is a very bad idea, in my opinion, at least in a 5.1 setup

 

Indeed. 

For my dad's setup, a Marantz av receiver with beolab 3vs, 7. 2 and 6000's I used powerlink with trigger cables from Soundsheavenly. 220v to 5v adapters all connected to a auto sensing power strip. So when he turns on his Marantz or non-b&o TV, all speakers go on and stay on, until you switch or the receiver or TV. Works excellent. 

 

 

 

depe
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depe replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 6:30 PM

It is even simpler than that. There is no need to introduce a 220V to 5V adapter. 

Instead, the 12V trigger output of the Marantz (3.5mm mono) can be connected to the PL connector, after level conversion from 12V to 5V. A zener diode and a resistor do the trick. I think there is a member on this forum (Peter Pan) who came up with this. It works without a problem. 

With this setup, you can turn on the AVR and the AVR will turn on the BLs. Or you let the TV turn on the AVR (HDMI CEC), the AVR turn on the BLs.

Essentially, you use the TV remote to turn on/off everything, including the BL. 

Curly
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Curly replied on Wed, Jun 24 2020 10:19 PM

Good call. Yes, you're right. At most, this Marantz would support a 2.2 setup. (Front left, front right and two subs.)

 

Also a good call to another poster on the Emotiva. The only thing I wished their products had was support for Airplay. The only option for streaming content if you need to do so in a pinch or if you have a friend over who wants to provide music is Bluetooth with a dongle.

Currently: BeoLab 17, BeoLab 18, BeoSound Core, Beosound Level, Beosound A1 2nd Gen, BeoPlay S8 Connection Hub, Halo, Essence Remote

Previously: BeoSound 1 non-GVA

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