Piega speakers, Innersound amplification, Meridian digital, Runco video
 

There was also a hardness to the sound, and greater than average compression, especially in the midrange. The toe-tapping PRaT was pretty good though.

Maybe they did not push the THX button, and the problems here go beyond that associated with THX, but this standard has wrought havok with home theater and has had an real impact on what equipment and content manufacturers think they are supposed to sound like.

Someone needs to come up with a frequency balance that is listenable outside a heavily dampened theater environment. Or not. Why do we need an officially sanctioned frequency curve? Not sure why THX exists at all except as a way for the people in the video component supply chain to charge more money and to waste the consumers time talking about something that is more an anti-feature than anything else.

But anyway. Just an opinion.

If you are going to push that THX button make sure your system is very, very good and each aspect of the system from cables to vibration control is tended to, or make sure your system is very, very warm to cover up the THX 'effect'.

As mentioned in the official report, they played music videos in this room consisting of duos and trios playing light jazz and folk music. At least that's what they played the times we visited.

Oh, and the reason we are suspecting the source is because we have auditioned the amps here at Audio Federation and they are actually pretty good, so that leaves the likely suspects exposed with just very few clothes on...

Piega speakers, Innersound amplification

Piega speakers, Innersound amplification

Piega speakers in a surround sound configuration

Piega C10 speaker