THX CERTIFICATION.....Crap or Gotta have IT?

P-Town Polk

THX certification.....Is it necessary?
IS the THX EX surround any better than Dob. EX
IS it a marketing scheme?

hoosier21

nope
two different animals
yes Sir

audiobliss

Totally nothing but marketing, imo. Don't worry about those little labels on equipment.

unc2701

THX is mostly ****. It's a set of minimum standards which companies pay to advertise that they meet. Most gear easily exceedes those standards, so it comes down to who actually want to pay. Case in point: Lucasfilm uses byston amplifiers in their studios, yet they're not THX certified. hmmmmmmm....

Willow

I wouldn't pay extra for it

McLoki

THX is just a set of minimum standards. They are usually used by those selling products to people who choose not to research their purchases. It is a moderate feel good type thing that insures a HT item is at least slightly overpriced (you think to company is paying for that THX symbol they put on their product?) and meets a minimum standard.

Very few high end HT items are THX certified because they have a reputation to stand on. Many mid-fi items are THX certified because they are competing against a rack of similar looking items and want to differentiate themselves to an impulse buyer.

Michael

JcM

THX is marketing pure and simple. I work in a big box electronics store because I make good commission. I am also a university student, so I don't have time for a full time job. I sell THX certified monster cables that cost more than their acoustic research cousins and are not as good a cable. The company pays for the THX certification.

That being said, the two receivers you are considering I would demo with the speakers you want. People may claim bright or soft sounds, but that doesn't matter. What matters is what you think of the sound.

aaharvel

P-Town Polk wrote:

THX certification.....Is it necessary?
IS the THX EX surround any better than Dob. EX
IS it a marketing scheme?

Not even close.
Yes, but it's not necessary. Prologic IIx IS THX EX minus re-eq. D.EX is old hat.
It wasn't then but it is now.

The only thing about THX I like is the re-eq feature and their little DVD trailer intros. Considering where they've been and where they're at now, and thanks to some of the guys on here educating me about THX, I've lost all respect for them.

ward91

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32458

looks like a big NO

PolkThug

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22464&highlight=THX+worth
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19776&highlight=THX+worth
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6755&highlight=THX+worth
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6626&highlight=THX+worth
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4120&highlight=THX+worth

reeltrouble1

IN the beginning in a galaxy far far away, a long time ago, Mr. Lucas made this little film called Star Wars. All the earthlings heard about it and went to theater to see it, including this ole soul. Everyone was pretty much amazed and in awe of things they saw and things they heard. Mr. Lucas was Oh so very smart, he told theaters who wanted to show his marvel and sell popcorn for 3.00 a tub (remember long time ago) and cokes for a 1.00 (sinc) that they must meet his THX standards and so it began and its a looooooooooooong story it has a happy ending though especially for Mr. Lucas. At least that is how this old timer remembers it, but ah it was so grand, and Carrie Fisher so cute!!

And Annikan the mannikan had not even been born yet.

Well, if its yes or no, then no its pretty much bunk now.

RT1

cfrizz

RT, that was brilliant!!!!! And SO True!

reeltrouble1

Why thank you my good lady.

RT1

F1nut

Big Ted's on a roll......

heiney9

reeltrouble1 wrote:

IN the beginning in a galaxy far far away, a long time ago, Mr. Lucas made this little film called Star Wars. All the earthlings heard about it and went to theater to see it, including this ole soul. Everyone was pretty much amazed and in awe of things they saw and things they heard. Mr. Lucas was Oh so very smart, he told theaters who wanted to show his marvel and sell popcorn for 3.00 a tub (remember long time ago) and cokes for a 1.00 (sinc) that they must meet his THX standards and so it began and its a looooooooooooong story it has a happy ending though especially for Mr. Lucas. At least that is how this old timer remembers it, but ah it was so grand, and Carrie Fisher so cute!!

And Annikan the mannikan had not even been born yet.

Well, if its yes or no, then no its pretty much bunk now.

RT1

So true.....too bad Queen Amadala wasn't around back then. That's the only thing that's kept me slightly interested in the new (old) films. I understand the last one is very good, haven't seen it yet. THX is marketing at it's best. Making you feel like you are missing something if you don't purchase components that are certified.

H9

ND13

F1nut wrote:

Big Ted's on a roll......

Our in-house poet laureate has struck agane!!!

reeltrouble1

Well, somebody has to gather folks round the History Rock at story time!!

RT1

heiney9

Uncle Ted's story time...

H9

beardog03

THX is a must...

On faceplate of Parasound it displays, so true it must be...
Gold the lettering is....

If you don`t have THX on your amp`s faceplate, then you have no gold lettering stating this....

ha,ha,you loose...

reeltrouble1

I have some nice upper end mid-fi pieces that are certified but manufacturer chose not to put the logo on, at least I dont recall it being there, going to have to check. Maybe its on the back or something.

LuSh

There are alot of misinformed people leading the blind on this forum. While it is true that THX standards are met and surpassed by many of todays high end HT receivers I'd like to clear a few things. The actual chip set in processors have to meet a criteria in their overall design.

Secondly I'd like to add that for all the bashing Mr. Lucas gets nobody sees the whole picture. Almost all his budget on the first Star Wars was tied up in BUILDING technology. The fact is Star Wars "sound" was WAAAAAY ahead of its time. They spent a TON of money trying to develop song for a total Cinema experience. The fact that Luca's has made a ton of money later on in life means nothing. Good for him, he deserves it. What rings true is that he built technology to further the movie goer's experience at a time when people didn't have the balls to do so. He created a THX standard because alot of theatres didn't want to upgrade their existing speaker/PA systems in order to maximize the movie experience. Remember, Star Wars was projected to make $2-10million during its release. Mr. Luca's wasn't a facist dictator when he made THX standards. He was doing it out of frustration, because an entire industry didn't give a sh$t about how pictures sounded or looked when they showcased them.

So next time, just be aware that your current home theatre systems had to do alot more with Mr. Lucas then you might think. Sci-fi and better sound was something of an after thought in the 1970's when the industry was focused on edge and grain like Dog Day afternoon, and Taxi Driver.

aaharvel

Look I can appreciate the whole standard for movie theater thing, re-eq, 80hz crossover, etc. They changed the industry and have an impact on how we watch movies today. But when you start "THXizing" computer speakers and Kenwood receivers (crammed full with ribbon wire) the glory days are over.

http://www.smr-home-theatre.org/blowing/kenwood-x9992d/index.html

notice the Kenwood has been certified as "Ultra" which means their highest possible standards. What a crock.

heiney9

THX means nothing to me as I'm a strictly 2-ch guy. Even when the HT get built THX will mean nothing. It's marketing plain and simple. At one time it meant something, now it's basically a money generating licensing agreement. Can anybody say "buzz word/phrase/acronym" ? Give me a couple old Adcom GFA-565 mono's to run my HT, I don't need not stinkin' THX.

Actually "THX" now stands for Thanks for the money.

H9

aaharvel

edited for redundancy.

heiney9

aaharvel wrote:

Look I can appreciate the whole standard for movie theater thing, re-eq, 80hz crossover, etc. They changed the industry and have an impact on how we watch movies today. But when you start "THXizing" computer speakers and Kenwood receivers (crammed full with ribbon wire) the glory days are over.

http://www.smr-home-theatre.org/blowing/kenwood-x9992d/index.html

notice the Kenwood has been certified as "Ultra" which means their highest possible standards. What a crock.

Wow, I wasn't disappointed a bit . That's exactly what I expect from today's manufacturers of flagship HT receivers. I bet more are just like this Kenwood design. It's what I like to call a "clusterf**k". If I paid top $$$ for that I'd be very angry. Of course I know better :eek: .

H9

Edit: There are more discrete power sections in my old Nakamichi CDP. Five to be exact

reeltrouble1

No I wont, and yes Lush it once meant something but now its becoming or become a bunch of marketing crap. Yes it is a standard.

Lush you can be a great asset to the board lets not start with the slamming.

I think Mr. Lucas is a smart guy who made a group of Sci-fi flicks unlike anything before them. That was what my little story that most seemed to have enjoyed was about. That is also why I originally told this poster he needed to go read all about THX. But he wanted an opinion poll and the polled people who cared to posted.

RT1

aaharvel

if you go to the "click back" button while viewing the Kenwood you'll notice the Integra, Denon and H/K are not designed that way~ in fact the editors went on to say that for a budget receiver the H/K was a pristine example of how a receiver should be designed and the Integra's power supply was borderline separate quality.

That link and my ears was what determined my buying decision when it came time to upgrading receivers 1year ago. It just goes to show that quality and price/wattage don't necessarily go hand in hand. Not in today's market.

reeltrouble1

Well I checked my gear, yep, the THX ultra is there, just never really noticed, wow, I feel much better now.

heiney9

reeltrouble1 wrote:

Well I checked my gear, yep, the THX ultra is there, just never really noticed, wow, I feel much better now.

Wow, dodged a bullit on that one . You'll be able to sleep tonight :rolleyes: . Anybody know where I can get some authentic THX stencils .

H9

TroyD

THX for theater applications may be all well and good but I think the issue is HT gear to which I will turn my nose up....

BDT

Tour2ma

I would neither choose one piece over another just because it was THX certified, nor would I not choose a piece because it was certified.

My Ref 50 is certified, and I'm keeping it...