Robert-The-Rambler
12-03-2003, 08:24 AM
I apologize if I seem to be stringing the fine folks at PCGR along when it comes to offering visual evidence of having one of the most ridiculous gaming setups on this Earth of ours.
My gaming PC is on life support right now but I can assure you that an amazing piece of hardware has come into my grip and the audio situation has just gotten better by leaps and bounds involving some THX certified equipment.
I'll leave the specs of my actual PC out for now because I'm still in the process of setting up a wireless broadband network which will enable me to patch all I need to and actually be able to play all the latest stuff with features like 6.1 digital surround sound.(I have an Audigy 2 and a GeForce FX 5600 256 meg which I know is not that great) Right now my gaming PC is not even connected to the web. (Gasp) I'm on my broadband enabled backup PC which is more suited for writing messages.
Anyhow, I just wanted, for my own sake as well, post a list of what is actually connected to my gaming rig that puts the icing on the cake.
Video: Seeing is believing.
I have a MAG innovision 19" CRT Monitor and an Infocus X1 DLP projector with a 6' * 8' screen from Dalite. I can game at either up to 1600 * 1200 on the monitor or 1024 * 768, 720p or 1080i on the projector. For more info in the X1 follow the link.
http://store.infocus.com/escalate/store/DetailPage?pls=infocus&bc=infocus&pc=X1&clist=017080322b5b:017080322b5f&ret=Projectors-Business&pls5catname=Projectors-Business&tab=spec
Sound: An auditory experience worth needing underwear as a stocking stuffer.
The heart and soul of my gaming experience has been the Yamaha RXV-795a for years. Alas it has been retired and the new kid on the block is the Kenwood VR-7070. It offers full digital surround capabilities at 96khz among other things. For more info follow the link.
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/product/product.jsp?productTypeId=55&sortBy=price&productId=2532
When buying into a using the home theater setup for your PC you need to make sure you get a receiver with at least enough digital inputs and make sure it also has at least 5.1 inputs and 5.1 preouts. You want the inputs for external decoders like DVD-Audio players or wacky PC sound formats that can't be processed by your Dolby Digital Decoder or DTS decoder. The beauty of analog inputs is that they are not limited in frequency so they go all the way to 192khz for DVD-Audio or whatever else. You want at least 5.1 preouts(the 7070 has 7.1) because it allows you to connect separate amps for much greater volume and sound quality. WIthout pre-outs you are stuck with the onboard amp and that can be unsatisfying.
Connected to the Kenwood VR-7070 I have for separate amps and 11 total speakers.
Main Channels: (front l/r) Gemini XPM 1200 powering four speakers including 2 DCM KX-12 Series Two 12" floorstanders and two KX-6 Series Two bookshelf speakers. The XPM 1200 is a two channel amp so I wound the speaker wire together so 1 12" and 1 6" are connected to the same channel on the amp. The 6s are above the 12s on a shelf. What that does is drop the ohms leading to more power per channel. So each speaker is driven with 265 watts RMS at 4 ohms. (Total of 1060 watts) At 8 ohms stereo the amp is 360 * 2 watts per channel.
Subs: Two Gemini XG-2001 amps driving two Gemini GSW-15N Bandpass subs at 500 watts RMS each at 8 ohms bridged. The connection is easy. Connect one Y-splitter to the single sub pre-out and each line to a separate amp and you've got two subs.
Center and Back-Center or Back-Surround or Back Surround l/r depending on sound source: I use the onboard digital amp for the VR-7070 at 120 watts for both the center and surround. The center speaker is the KX Center Series Two and the surround is a pair of cheap Jensen bookshelf speakers. (Back Surround etc.. goes right behind you encase you are wondering)
The rear left and rear right: Gemini XG-3001 amp powering two cheap Jensen bookshelf speakers at 200 watts per channel RMS.
Well, there you have it for now. So what games are worthy of trying on this setup that will use Dolby Digital or even DTS?
My gaming PC is on life support right now but I can assure you that an amazing piece of hardware has come into my grip and the audio situation has just gotten better by leaps and bounds involving some THX certified equipment.
I'll leave the specs of my actual PC out for now because I'm still in the process of setting up a wireless broadband network which will enable me to patch all I need to and actually be able to play all the latest stuff with features like 6.1 digital surround sound.(I have an Audigy 2 and a GeForce FX 5600 256 meg which I know is not that great) Right now my gaming PC is not even connected to the web. (Gasp) I'm on my broadband enabled backup PC which is more suited for writing messages.
Anyhow, I just wanted, for my own sake as well, post a list of what is actually connected to my gaming rig that puts the icing on the cake.
Video: Seeing is believing.
I have a MAG innovision 19" CRT Monitor and an Infocus X1 DLP projector with a 6' * 8' screen from Dalite. I can game at either up to 1600 * 1200 on the monitor or 1024 * 768, 720p or 1080i on the projector. For more info in the X1 follow the link.
http://store.infocus.com/escalate/store/DetailPage?pls=infocus&bc=infocus&pc=X1&clist=017080322b5b:017080322b5f&ret=Projectors-Business&pls5catname=Projectors-Business&tab=spec
Sound: An auditory experience worth needing underwear as a stocking stuffer.
The heart and soul of my gaming experience has been the Yamaha RXV-795a for years. Alas it has been retired and the new kid on the block is the Kenwood VR-7070. It offers full digital surround capabilities at 96khz among other things. For more info follow the link.
http://www.kenwoodusa.com/product/product.jsp?productTypeId=55&sortBy=price&productId=2532
When buying into a using the home theater setup for your PC you need to make sure you get a receiver with at least enough digital inputs and make sure it also has at least 5.1 inputs and 5.1 preouts. You want the inputs for external decoders like DVD-Audio players or wacky PC sound formats that can't be processed by your Dolby Digital Decoder or DTS decoder. The beauty of analog inputs is that they are not limited in frequency so they go all the way to 192khz for DVD-Audio or whatever else. You want at least 5.1 preouts(the 7070 has 7.1) because it allows you to connect separate amps for much greater volume and sound quality. WIthout pre-outs you are stuck with the onboard amp and that can be unsatisfying.
Connected to the Kenwood VR-7070 I have for separate amps and 11 total speakers.
Main Channels: (front l/r) Gemini XPM 1200 powering four speakers including 2 DCM KX-12 Series Two 12" floorstanders and two KX-6 Series Two bookshelf speakers. The XPM 1200 is a two channel amp so I wound the speaker wire together so 1 12" and 1 6" are connected to the same channel on the amp. The 6s are above the 12s on a shelf. What that does is drop the ohms leading to more power per channel. So each speaker is driven with 265 watts RMS at 4 ohms. (Total of 1060 watts) At 8 ohms stereo the amp is 360 * 2 watts per channel.
Subs: Two Gemini XG-2001 amps driving two Gemini GSW-15N Bandpass subs at 500 watts RMS each at 8 ohms bridged. The connection is easy. Connect one Y-splitter to the single sub pre-out and each line to a separate amp and you've got two subs.
Center and Back-Center or Back-Surround or Back Surround l/r depending on sound source: I use the onboard digital amp for the VR-7070 at 120 watts for both the center and surround. The center speaker is the KX Center Series Two and the surround is a pair of cheap Jensen bookshelf speakers. (Back Surround etc.. goes right behind you encase you are wondering)
The rear left and rear right: Gemini XG-3001 amp powering two cheap Jensen bookshelf speakers at 200 watts per channel RMS.
Well, there you have it for now. So what games are worthy of trying on this setup that will use Dolby Digital or even DTS?