Father-in-law sliced through my component cable with a sawzall

dpowell

Yep, while I was at work, my father-in-law in trying to be helpful was putting the last of my HT cables in wall prior to drywalling the garage. While cutting a notch in the top stud he sawed through 2 of the 3 component cables that head to my projector. He told my wife he thought he nicked a cable but it wasn't until I turned on the HD TV receiver a few days later that I suddenly had that sinking feeling in my stomach. Fortunately he did not saw through the HDMI cable.

This is a long cable and runs the length of my (formerly open beam ceiling) to the projector. Not an easy re-pull now that the drywall is up and everything painted. I'd rather not try to re-pull a new cable as everything is all nice and tidy and it would probably be nearly impossible to do.

I need some guidance on how to terminate both ends where the break occured (fortunately I have reasonable access to that area). Where can I source good connectors? I'm thinking male on one side, female on the other?

My other option is to buy a Pioneer SC-07 and run everything via HDMI.:D

thanks in advance.

Rocco1

Get the Pioneer and get rid of that nice adcom......
Why dont you just update your pre

ben62670

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=090-352
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=091-452
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=090-413
and join them with one of these.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=091-455
The twist on connectors are very easy to work with in tight places, and connection is much better than the crimps. I used them exclusively when I was an electrician and today.
I am assuming the wire is RG59, or RG6.
Take care.
Ben

Rocco1 wrote: »

Get the Pioneer and get rid of that nice adcom......
Why dont you just update your pre

Obviously you have no experience with Adcom's.

dpowell

ben62670 wrote: »

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=090-352
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=091-452
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=090-413
and join them with one of these.
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=091-455
The twist on connectors are very easy to work with in tight places, and connection is much better than the crimps. I used them exclusively when I was an electrician and today.
I am assuming the wire is RG59, or RG6.
Take care.
Ben


Obviously you have no experience with Adcom's.

Thanks Ben! I will look into those. That sounds MUCH easier than soldering which I am not a pro at........

Re your comment to Rocco on the Adcom, Please elaborate. I see these threads where members are falling in love with ICE amps and forgoing their pre/pro setups. Would an Outlaw 950 or 990 (or the new 997 they're releasing soon) be a better solution (of course adding another adcom 2 channel for the 7.2 surrounds) than going with the Pioneer? I want the new HD audio formats.

I truly love how the Adcom sounds. Had it CRANKED today while the wife and kid were out of the house. It's scary good.

ben62670

I had one of those 7500's teamed with an Outlaw 990. It was an excellent match. The problem with the Older Outlaw's Pre's is they do not have HDMI. That was no biggie for me, but can be a pain for others. I have also heard some EMO gear. I know when a newer company comes along you get a lot of fan boys, but the EMO gear does sound very good, and he has had no issues.

dpowell

Never heard of EMO but will look into it. With a pre like the Outlaw 990 which does not support the new HD audio formats, where does a person get a Blu Ray player that does a good job of decoding the signal without loss of quality? My understanding at least with the Pioneer is that is is using the Wolfson or Burr Brown DACs to do the decoding where standard consumer grade BDP's probably use crap.

Maybe that is why the SC07 is so popular right now. It's filling an interim need for exactly that problem until adequate Pre amps can deliver the same feature set? Kind of wondering if the Outlaw 997 will.....

I seem to remember you sold the 7500 awhile back as well. What are you using now?

dpowell

BTW, Ben, If I were to buy a new 7.1 pre amp, what would be a good 2-Channel Adcom to pair with the 7500? Would you run two separate Pro amps vs. buying a 7 channel amp?

ben62670

I am 2 channel now. To pair up with a 2 channel amp I would consider a 555 up front, or if you can afford it a 5800, or 5802. I had the 5800 and it is a serious piece of equipment. The 5800 can be had for around $600 now, and the 5802 isn't much more if you take your time. Also you could use a 545($150-$200) on the back speakers and keep the 7500 on the mains If you are happy with the 7500 on the mains.
http://emotiva.com/umc1.shtm
The EMO is much better than it should be especially for its price. They can not keep them in stock. My buddy has one, and it is very solid. You can knock someone out with that remote. I would not hesitate to have on in my system.
As for BR players I know hardly anything.

dpowell

That's an interesting thought. I hadn't thought to up the mains to a 2 channel with more headroom for music listening. What differences might I notice putting the RT3000's on a 5800 vs keeping them on the 7500?

That Emotiva looks great, especially at that price point! How is it that they can't keep them in stock if they have a release date of June of this year? Of course, June isn't too far off to wait.

I'll post the BRP question in another forum.

thanks for your time Ben.

pacificoastbear

Rocco1 wrote: »

Get the Pioneer and get rid of that nice adcom......
Why dont you just update your pre

Rocco is right on. I took this advice to heart, minus the father-in-law cutting through my walls, and the SC-07 is due to arrive on Friday!

dpowell

After thinking another sec about Rocco's comment, I believe he maybe should have put a question mark at the end of his ....'s as it appears he was questioning the logic of getting rid of the Adcom and suggesting I merely upgrade my Pre amp and keep it paired with the Adcom.

dpowell

BTW, congrats on the SC purchase! I'm so torn......

ben62670

pacificoastbear wrote: »

Rocco is right on. I took this advice to heart, minus the father-in-law cutting through my walls, and the SC-07 is due to arrive on Friday!

OK you don't even have the SC-07 and you know it is better than a good Pre, and amp combo?

No offense Rocco, but how much experience have you had with Pre's and amps? Ever heard an older Adcom?

The Problem with spending a lot of coin on a receiver is that they get outdated fairly quickly. Where if you have a solid Pre/Amp you only need to replace the Pre;)

BTW a watt is not a watt. That 150wpc rating on the Adcom is way more than nearly any 150wpc receiver is capable, and receivers are typically not very good at driving difficult speakers.

Ben

pacificoastbear

Adcom makes a great amp. I don't blame you a bit for wanting separates. 2 channel separates I have today, the HT setup I'm still in the AVR world but one of these years I'll probably separate. I personally always get lured into a great buy with nice power and features in the AVR world.

ben62670

Well I just did some research on the SC-07. The features are nice, but the amp section isn't real beefy. I am sure that it is fine for 8 ohm speakers, but the ratings at 6ohms start getting pretty weak and there is no mention from what I saw at 4ohms anywhere. I know it may be 4 ohm compatible, but it would just be currant limiting. Also the unit maxes out at 330watts of input power at 120vac. People keep getting this notion that you can get more watts out of something than is going in. It is simply just not the case. You can have more efficiency, but you can't exceed the amount of power that is being feed to it.
Ben

dpowell

ben62670 wrote: »

Well I just did some research on the SC-07. The features are nice, but the amp section isn't real beefy. I am sure that it is fine for 8 ohm speakers, but the ratings at 6ohms start getting pretty weak and there is no mention from what I saw at 4ohms anywhere. I know it may be 4 ohm compatible, but it would just be currant limiting. Also the unit maxes out at 330watts of input power at 120vac. People keep getting this notion that you can get more watts out of something than is going in. It is simply just not the case. You can have more efficiency, but you can't exceed the amount of power that is being feed to it.
Ben

I would have never even known to look for that information! I have read where the SC07 is not really designed or adequate for 4ohm speaker loads. I assume that would only affect me if I were to switch to the LSi series or other 4ohm speakers? or does the fact that the amp can't handle a 4ohm load indicate a weakness in overall output?

One of the things keeping from pulling the trigger on the SC07 was that I KNOW the difference I heard when I put the Adcom into service and my Sony ES AVR while not the highest end is still a high current amp. I just can't imagine that going back to an AVR only would be as satisfying; even if ICE is all that and a bag of chips.

ben62670

I wish I could be a little more help, but I have not had an ICE powered receiver in the house. You are correct that with an easy to drive speaker a receiver can be decent, but like you after running an amp I can't see myself going back. Also the 330 watts of input power is puny. The HK unit that produces "only" 75wpc clean uses almost 3 times the juice at 890 watts 120vac.

http://www.harmankardon.com/specifications.aspx?Region=USA&Country=US&Language=ENG&cat=REC&ser=&prod=AVR%20354&sType=C

I certainly am not knocking Class D amps,but some of the claims made about receivers has me a bit concerned.

ViperZ

dpowell wrote: »

Yep, while I was at work, my father-in-law in trying to be helpful was putting the last of my HT cables in wall prior to drywalling the garage. While cutting a notch in the top stud he sawed through 2 of the 3 component cables that head to my projector. He told my wife he thought he nicked a cable but it wasn't until I turned on the HD TV receiver a few days later that I suddenly had that sinking feeling in my stomach. Fortunately he did not saw through the HDMI cable.

This is a long cable and runs the length of my (formerly open beam ceiling) to the projector. Not an easy re-pull now that the drywall is up and everything painted. I'd rather not try to re-pull a new cable as everything is all nice and tidy and it would probably be nearly impossible to do.

I need some guidance on how to terminate both ends where the break occured (fortunately I have reasonable access to that area). Where can I source good connectors? I'm thinking male on one side, female on the other?

My other option is to buy a Pioneer SC-07 and run everything via HDMI.:D

thanks in advance.

With all the nice suggestions... I used to have STR-DA333ES... I could never get good highs out of that receiver, even when it was used with separate amps. Get the SC-07 if you can.

dpowell

No worries. It seems to me that many have made the jump very quickly; possibly on impulse. I'm wondering if the true power shortcomings will start to come out over time. If nothing else the SC07 would probably make a great preamp given its quality DACs and great selection of A/V inputs.

dpowell

ViperZ wrote: »

With all the nice suggestions... I used to have STR-DA333ES... I could never get good highs out of that receiver, even when it was used with separate amps. Get the SC-07 if you can.

I would agree. The highs from the Sony can be a bit shrill. I managed to tame them some by making some changes; the most noticeable believe it or not was using the Magic Power cord on my DVD player.

What makes you recommend getting the SC07 over staying with separates and replacing the Sony with a solid Pre?

......and why are you receiverless? Are you getting the SC07?

ben62670

I had an HK that I used as a pre for a while, and it did work very nice, but was lacking Dynamics. When I went to the Outlaw-990 I got my dynamics back. A dedicated Pre I think would be better. The EMO pre is only $700 and it is fairly solid. If you are not in a hurry I would hold out for a little while till people get a little more experience. Myself I would get the Pre and another amp for less than the SC-07.
Ben

Sherardp

All good suggestions from all. Instead of dropping that much coin for the SC 07, consider the SC-05 as a pre and use your power amps( Adcom) to power your speakers. This will give the OP the exact same features as the SC-07, the good sound he's after and all the latest and greatest out there on the market. The SC-05 will pass HDMI untouched to your PJ as well. For 699 it is definitely being sold at a heck of a price. I run the SC-07 myself, paired with D-Sonic Magnum 1000S/Sunfire TGA 5200 and as a pre it performs very well and exceeds my expectations.

ben62670

Well it is very nice to get an opinion from an owner using one as a pre. I would consider using the receiver's amps to drive the rear speakers and stay with the Adcom as an amp. With a light load on the receiver the rears will not run out of gas.
Thanks Sherardp
Ben

Rocco1

ben62670 wrote: »

OK you don't even have the SC-07 and you know it is better than a good Pre, and amp combo?

No offense Rocco, but how much experience have you had with Pre's and amps? Ever heard an older Adcom?

The Problem with spending a lot of coin on a receiver is that they get outdated fairly quickly. Where if you have a solid Pre/Amp you only need to replace the Pre;)

BTW a watt is not a watt. That 150wpc rating on the Adcom is way more than nearly any 150wpc receiver is capable, and receivers are typically not very good at driving difficult speakers.

Ben

Ben,
I am guessing you think since i dont have 10000 post i must not know what i am talking about. Well I must say your wrong. I didnt have much experience with amps until recently (3mths ago). But my job affords me more than enough free time to get out and listen to everything. Since joining the site I have listened to amps from EMO, Adcom, Outlaw, and Rotel of all different ages. All with varies pres from h/k, onk, pioneer and some others. I must say the ADCOM just sounded the best to me.

I am obsessive complusive. Now that I am into amps, my brain just wants all the info and knowledge it can get.

I guess as far as years go i havent been listening to deticated amps for 20 or 30 years, but who can remember that far back any way.

ben62670

My comments were made because a lot of people(even people with 10,00 posts;)) comment on gear they have never heard. Then add synergy into the mix and things get tough. The older Adcom's sound better than the newer Adcom's with the exception of the 5802 IMHO. Watch out in this hobby. It can get real expensive real quick.
Ben

NotaSuv

Sherardp wrote: »

All good suggestions from all. Instead of dropping that much coin for the SC 07, consider the SC-05 as a pre and use your power amps( Adcom) to power your speakers. This will give the OP the exact same features as the SC-07, the good sound he's after and all the latest and greatest out there on the market. The SC-05 will pass HDMI untouched to your PJ as well. For 699 it is definitely being sold at a heck of a price. I run the SC-07 myself, paired with D-Sonic Magnum 1000S/Sunfire TGA 5200 and as a pre it performs very well and exceeds my expectations.

I too am using it the same way...fronts powered by a Proceed HPA2 but the rest by the SC 07, which has plenty of power for the rears and surrounds at least in my sized room....I was using a Rotel 3 channel amp for center and rears, but the SC 07 drives them just fine..so sold the amp....

Rocco1

ben62670 wrote: »

My comments were made because a lot of people(even people with 10,00 posts;)) comment on gear they have never heard. Then add synergy into the mix and things get tough. The older Adcom's sound better than the newer Adcom's with the exception of the 5802 IMHO. Watch out in this hobby. It can get real expensive real quick.
Ben

I know the money has been coming out of my pockets for 15 years from this stuff. But if you love something, you just cant help your self...That is what I tell my wife.

dpowell

Sherardp wrote: »

Instead of dropping that much coin for the SC 07, consider the SC-05 as a pre and use your power amps( Adcom) to power your speakers. ........I run the SC-07 myself, paired with D-Sonic Magnum 1000S/Sunfire TGA 5200 and as a pre it performs very well and exceeds my expectations.

I believe I read in MANTIS's review on the SC's that the 07 has better DAC's than the 05. Can someone confirm? I'm going to go look for that information shortly. The 07 can still be had pretty reasonably and I'm wondering if it's worth the extra coin to get the better DAC's? This way I don't have to drop as much coin for a Blu Ray player.

Sherardp

From AVS it has been confirmed both the SC05 and SC07 have Wolfson DACS and are associated using same part numbers. Go with the 05, use your amp to power your speakers and let the 05 power the rears as Ben suggested. This will give you all the latest in HD audio and allow you to run a single HDMI cable to your PJ. You cant go wrong with either but if you want to save some coin the 05 is more than enough.

ViperZ

dpowell wrote: »

I would agree. The highs from the Sony can be a bit shrill. I managed to tame them some by making some changes; the most noticeable believe it or not was using the Magic Power cord on my DVD player.

What makes you recommend getting the SC07 over staying with separates and replacing the Sony with a solid Pre?

......and why are you receiverless? Are you getting the SC07?

I am upgrading from HK AVR520 (which is already sold and gone) to Pioneer Elite VSX-92TXH, which is coming from one of the CP members who is upgrading to SC series .

If you can get a good pre/pro and keep your amp, that would obviously be another option.

I simply was not satisfied with the quality of 333ES receiver, even when I was using it with stand-alone amplifiers (I tried Adcom GFA-5400, HK Citation 24 and Carver TFM-24). I could not get those real nice highs from cymbals other instruments like that. Switching to HK made a huge difference at that time.

dpowell

I'm leaning in the direction of the SC05 or 07. I like the idea of a separate pre but I'd need another amp. Seems to me that the SC07 can still be had for around the $1,000 price point where something like the new Outlaw 997 and another Adcom would be in the neighborhood of $1,500 if I went with a minimal rear-only amp. Going the SC07 route would also give me the ability to bi-amp the mains if I used the 7500 for the fronts and Center and that's probably a whole nother thread topic.

BTW, anyone know what a Sampling Rate Converter is? The 07 has it and the 05 does not. also noticed the 05 has a Phono input and the 07 doesn't. doesn't matter too much but seems strange they would have eliminated it.