Preferred whole house audio

[rtarver]

Is there a preferred whole house audio brand here for cqc? Usual suspects are russound, home theater direct, nuvo, etc. looking for something easy to control via cqc with probably 4-6 sources and 4-6 zones. Sources are likely to be several from my m-audio card streaming ripped music, pandora from the net,etc. Now that I think about it, all my sources are likely to be from the pc.

Will probably purchase speakers independently, but not necessarily.

Thanks,

Russ

[ellisr63]

I used to use the Russound CAV-6, MAudio, JRiver setup for 6 music zones in my last house, and it worked fine (controlled with CQC). I haven't had the setup for a few years now so I am not much help on getting it working but it all worked fine.

[Shaky]

The B&K CT600 series Multi-Zone amps tend to get recommended on here. With a little patience they can usually be found on ebay for a good price.

I got one a year or two ago based on recommendations here. Works really well. Serial connected, but some models also have IP and there's a driver for CQC.

[sic0048]

I use a b&k ct series whole house audio system and I really like it. It is higher powered than most of its competitors and it sounds really good. The one draw back is that the keypads are ugly as sin. The good news is that if you use cqc for control, you may not need any keypads. I run my system without any and use either ir remote controls or tablets/ivs to control it.

You can generally find them on eBay (sans keypads) for $450 or less.

[standon]

I use a Russound C series for mine. I do have about 4-5 keypad zones, so I went with the less expensive option between the Nuvo Grand Concerto and Russound since I think they have the most attractive keypads.

[rtarver]

For those using the B&K systems, do you simply use th r/l channels and ignore the video line?

There are 3 or 4 on ebay right now. $300-$600. The $600 version comes with dog ears and accessories.

Russ

[sic0048]

That's what I do. I use an auto patch switcher to distribute hd video via rgb wiring.

However, b&k does make a hd video switcher for the ct series. They come up for sale occasionally on eBay too. Don't know too much about them, but they seem to work fine.

[ellisr63]

I had an Autopatch Precis that I was giving away for a long time that would have worked perfectly for this purpose. Look on eBay and you will see them for as little as $50 now that everything is HDMI.

[rtarver]

Ok,

I trolled the forum for a bit but couldn't find the referenced b&k driver. Is it included in the general install, or posted somewhere else here?

Dean, if you're reading, is the 'old Charmed Quark' website current with supported devices etc? I often end up there when surfing on my iPad.

Russ

[Dean Roddey]

The 'off line' stuff that is shared between the two versions of the site are the same stuff. That's partly why that stuff is separate, so that it can be accessed from either place, and not require Silverlight.