My theater is a 7.2.4 setup, and the dimensions are 18.5 feet wide by 18 feet deep with 9.5-foot ceilings. I watch movies and TV shows about 70% of the time while playing music and video games the other 30%.
What was your goal when looking for new speakers and subwoofers?
I like to listen loud and while my previous speakers could do that they were very bright and became fatiguing after prolonged listening. I was looking for a speaker that could handle high SPL while not being too bright and wearing my ears out. While I mostly watch movies in my theater I did want a neutral speaker that sounded good while listening to music and was aesthetically pleasing.
WHERE DID YOU HEAR ABOUT US?
I heard about Arendal Sound at least 5-6 years ago from Audioholics on YouTube. I was always impressed by how much reviewers raved about the build quality and performance for the price.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE ARENDAL SOUND?
After doing a ton of research, I decided to buy a pair of 1723 THX Towers for my living room, and they were awesome. Over the years, I pieced together a pretty solid setup in my theater, but I’ve had the itch to upgrade my audio in there for some time. I went down the rabbit hole of YouTube and reading reviews online. Every review I watched or read stated the 1528 series was exceptional, and I already loved the 1723 towers, so I pulled the trigger on upgrading my theater speakers. I also like the look of all the Arendal speakers, and they are built like tanks.
YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH THE PRODUCTS?
So far, my experience has far exceeded my expectations. It has been a night and day improvement in detail, dynamics, and just raw power. With movies and music, I’ve watched/heard dozens of times I’m hearing details that I’ve never heard before. With Atmos content, the panning is seamless, and the bass is articulate, fast, and extremely punchy. While I will always be upgrading equipment, these speakers are my end game.
WHAT ELSE DOES YOUR SYSTEM CONSIST OF?
My loudspeakers are:
Front Speakers 1528 Monitor 8
Center Speaker 1528 Center 8
Back Speakers 1723 Surround THX
Surround Speakers 1723 Surround THX
Height/Atmos Speakers 1961 Height 4x
Subwoofers 2 x HSU Research VTF15H MKII (Saving up to upgrade soon)
My home theatre equipment includes:
JVC NP5 Projector
135″ screen
Denon 8500H (Upgrading to Marantz Cinema 30 or a separate processor soon)
Emotiva XPA DR3 (Powers the fronts)
Emotiva LPA 7 (Powers the surrounds and backs and a planned upgrade to a newer Emotiva XPA)
Kaleidescape Strato E
Oppo UDP 203
PS5
Apple TV 4k
HOW HAPPY ARE YOU WITH ARENDAL SOUND PRODUCTS?
For some time now, I started choosing to watch and listen to the bulk of my content in my living room due to the convenience of it being downstairs. Since I got my new speakers, not only do we choose to go upstairs to watch almost everything, but I also go up just to listen to music in my theater quite often. My wife, who would be just fine with a soundbar now, wants to go up to the theater to watch shows just because of the upgrade in sound quality.
Anything else you’d like to share?
I’d like to add that the interactions I’ve had online with the team at Arendal has been exceptional. I, like most, that are into audio tend to do a lot of research, and I had an annoying amount of questions. The customer service team was quick in their responses, very patient with me, and answered all of my questions with expert advice.
I look forward to hopefully getting the opportunity to share my passion for audio and these top-notch products through this program.
