Room: – 55m2 with vaulted ceiling (approx 5.6m at the tallest point) – 8x7m open plan living/dining/kitchen area, listening area is approx 4x7m with the main listening position at 3.8m from the TV/LCR.
– The wall separating the room from the rest of the house is a double stud wall air-gapped with heavy use of green glue noise-proofing sealant between Hunton fiber-gips boards behind the wooden exterior in order to insulate the rest of the house from the sound, so late night listening is easier without having to turn it down too much. (15mm wood – 48x98mm stud with 100mm insulation – 22mm air gap – 48x98mm stud with 100mm insulation – 12,5mm Hunton fiber-gips board – 15mm wood)
WHAT WAS YOUR GOAL WHEN LOOKING FOR NEW SPEAKERS AND SUBWOOFERS?
I was looking for on wall solution with well integrated sub.
I previously had a 5.0 system with Dali Oberon 7s as LR Oberon vokal as C and Alteco as surrounds. I then later switched over to a complete Sonos system for a smaller front stage, First with an Arc, 2x Subs and ONE SL for surrounds. I swapped the arc for a sonos amp and a couple of Dali Oberon 1s for a 4.1 system and was much happier as the stereo separation was much better again, even with losing the center channel.
Later on, I was still missing some of the punch from my Oberon 7s and the dedicated center channel, and I wanted to get that back but didn’t want floor-standing speakers so I went on the lookout for a good on-wall system that would be as sleek as my Sonos but perform as my Dali.
WHERE DID YOU HEAR ABOUT US?
I first heard about Arendal Sound in 2022 browsing the web for an upgrade to my audio system.
WHY DID YOU CHOOSE ARENDAL SOUND?
Arendal Sound provided an on-wall option for both the 1961 and 1723 series with OEM Vesa mounts. Having chatted with customer support and seen a lot of YouTube reviews I decided to purchase the 1961 series as they would be the best on-wall option taking space and sound as a trade-off. Also, because of the build quality, 10-year warranty, price, and design.
YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH THE PRODUCTS?
I got a 1961 monitor and center for LCR so they would all be identical for the most seamless transition across the front stage, and 1961 height speakers for surround speakers. I ended up using height speakers for the rear channels as due to the layout of my room and in-wall conduits I had to place the rear channels higher up than ear height. The 1961 height channels turned upside down with the sloped baffle design gave them the per-effect angle from the back wall to my main listening area.
I have always thought proper bass was the most important for music and movies/TV, so I went with the 1723 1S subwoofer. I have the system installed as my main system in a large open plan living, kitchen, and dining area with tall ceilings (55m2) so could probably have had a 2S as well, but the 1S serves me well so far, and the app for my phone gives easy adjustment for my listening position. I went with the 1S simply due to size, and I use my system 50/50 for music/movies.
WHAT ELSE DOES YOUR SYSTEM CONSIST OF?
-AVR: Denon X1700H
-LCR: Arendal Sound 1961 Monitor and 1961 Center Matt White
-Surrounds: Arendal Sound 1961 Height Matt White
-Subwoofer: Arendal Sound 1723 1S Satin Black
-TV: Samsung QN900B 65” (Philips HUE light strip behind for ambient lighting) -Media: Apple TV 4K
-Cabinet: IKEA bestå with extra ventilation cutouts to keep it cool
How happy are you with Arendal Sound products?
The system performed better than the Oberons I had before, while at the same time taking up less space and looking better, and being a Norwegian company is a bonus! But even so, it was the customer support that won me over. A great system is only good if the company behind it can and will support it and its customers properly. The system looking better, and taking up less space has benefits for other members of the household too making it easier to integrate and be approved by others.
Next up on my to-do list would be in ceiling channels and some acoustic treatment of the rooms with some proper REW calibration, but that will come later.
