I was strategizing how will be putting my audio crap in my new listening room. The room is being remodeled now and here is an interesting subject. The room has 4 wall-installed loudspeakers mounted on the cathedral ceiling.

They are 6” in infinite baffle configuration.  I am planning do not remove them and perhaps to use them as some sort of MiniMe substitute.  I did connect them and they do surprisingly fine.  I would say that they do fine with NPR news and they less suitable for Music. Still, can such speaker in such position to be used for anything.  This week I still have a full control over the room walls and then it will be re-finished. I can even mount a 18 driver into the wall in infinite baffle configuration, of course not for Macondo but for MiniMe’s needs…

Anyhow, I am still thinking how hard I will use those ceiling mounted speakers. They do produce a very freaky sound. I think partially it is because the drivers might be not in phase. I have no time to investigate all of this now but I will keep the ceiling-speakers on the ceiling for how and will see how it goes.

decoud wrote:

Perhaps you should use the cathedral configuration to make a synergy horn of the entire ceiling: tweeter at the apex, mf a little further down each wall, and bass at the base. Were it steeper it could actually work.

A good idea but I do not think that I would go for this level of complexity for Pilot Channels.  I think a regular monitor that are able to play a typical monitor bass (down to 60Hz would say) would be perfects sufficient. They juts need to have a lot of power handling to power the whole room and to be small size. I might add some kind of consumer grade sub to it if I need to. The way how I envision it will be mostly used with internet feeds, that are 192kbit/s - 320 kbit/s, or essentially the data feed compromised by digital compression anyhow, so quality is very tolerable in there and demands are very flexible…

Paul S wrote:

I confess I have let my mind wander in this direction: http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=a5+audioengine&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=7287412101&hvpos=1t3&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=18735131591406127421&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&ref=pd_sl_8iss7548pl_b There are others along these lines, of course, but I'm not sure one is so much "better" than another.  As for "normal" box speakers, I normally recommend the nearly-impossible-to-find-now original Harbeth Monitor 40s as "all day" speakers that do not spawn suicidal thoughts.  Although the 40s do need some power, it could probably be integrated MOSFET amps, or something like this, maybe a soft version of the new "All-In-One" source/pre/amps.

Actually, I was also thinking about some kind of pro active monitors. I would like it to be small and not complicated but I also would like it to be easy to use. It would be nice to have one button that turns both monitors. I think if I power them from the same radio control power switch then it will be fine. I would like Amy be able to have “one button approach” to the playback if she want to listen something. I would like also to have a full blown pilot functionally for myself.

decoud wrote:

The only advantage your pilot could have over Macondo is omnidirectionality...

Last night I put a few small monitors that I had in basement and basement and just dumped them atop of Macondo ULF towers. None of the monitors were able to create some kind of filling sound in the room with exception of Celestion SL600. The SL600 slightly made nice and very balanced sound (in context) that would not require any complementary subwoofer, something that I did not expect from 6” driver. Hey also look fine atop of ULF and this is what I will leave for now. I just need to power them with a proper amp. The consumer 60W amp that I have now I think has not enough power.  I do not hear any clipping but I do hear that the SL600’s tweeter turns yellow at some passages – very first evidence on this type of tweeter that there is not enough power to drive this thing. I need to find some kind of 120-150W and I will be all set.

I need to say that it was very liberating to listen radio via the Pilot channel last night. I was listening the programs from NRK, Oslo, Norway, it was 384kbps48khz and it was some live event from northern Germany. The librating part is that it was just one button on a cheap SS and and the while room was “active” with music I wanted to be. When I left for supper I did not even care to shut the thing off. Amy was staying in Portsmouth last nig and she did not see my new “invention” but I am sure she will be very welcoming to it and I do not think that she would acknowledge the difference.

Usually the way how it works: I listen some of broadcast and I typically have my background recorder is running. If I find anything worthy then I save the background file and just extract the kbps file from the cue-sheet of the saved file. I do not listen anything lover then 128kbps. The 128-192kbps still not good but the opportunity to hear “interesting” music is too tempting for me.

I do very welcome the revival of my Pilot system and Mini-Me configuration. It was too stupid to run while Macondo for hours juts to listen kbps feeds. Not to mention that it will same some electricity cost and tubes life but it certainly will be a huge benefit during summer time.