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Dedicated Room vs Living Room/Opinions?

centralflori

centralflori

Super Member
[/COLOR][/COLOR]I currently have a dedicated listening room with my best gear in it. I am having serious thoughts about moving the best gear to the living room. This is where I spend most of my time and the system in here gets much more use. The upside is I would use it a lot more. The downside is I couldn't just crank it as loud as I want, whenever I want, although there is some time most days that I can crank it. The thing is, where it is now I just don't use it much at all because I feel so away from everything.

Has anybody else had these thoughts or brought the gear back from the dedicated listening room?:scratch2:
 
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Sounds like you already know the answer, you say you do have plenty of time to crank it so I say go for it. What may you miss in time? Proper set-up, an escape, a place to swap out new gear quickly, wife issues.
I have been on both sides and find myself feeling the same way alot, downstairs in basement is a bit isolating and can be lonely, there also isnt all the natural light that living room can give but like you I have a more humble system I can use up there too.
There is pros and cons and give and takes but do whats best for you, my wife put up with my gear way too lomg to ever ask for her to give it up again and to be honest with a Projector I couldnt be up there anyway for concerts and sports that I like on a big screen..................I miss the upstairs at times to be honest. Cheers
 
Wifey and I are playing "Let's Make A Deal" at the moment. She wants my den. If I give it up, (it's a very nice room), I get the entire finished basement. I currently have listening areas in both.

I'm probably going to do it. I'll have the whole basement (workshop, listening area, all my gear display and music storage, TV area, and workout/exercise area) and I can pretty much listen as I want. You can still hear it upstairs, but she really won't be in a position to complain. Too much. Plus, I'll be reasonable in my volume levels. Pretty much.

We do have a formal living room, but I wouldn't be able to crank it at all.

It's always about compromises, both ways.
 
My wife is just fine with the "big rig" in the LR, so that's where it is. Music is what we do, when we're not doing something else (and sometimes even when we are ...).
 
My main system is in the living room not like I have much choice. granted it trims down on loud listening times but then we have also instituded a date night on Fri or Sat night where we spin tunes have a bit to drink and hang out on the couch. Kinda fun.
 
Living room happens to be the most acoustically friendly in the house. So the main system is there. Unfortunately, wifey has dominion over that space and is fond of (frequent!) re-arranging. Trying to maintain it as a dedicated listening environment is an exercise in futility.

I retreat to the man cave for daily tunes, a wee den housing my workbench, stacks of projects, various secondary systems and several pairs of assorted mini-monitors that I rotate along with a handful of small subs. I can crank it all I want, but nothing here's gonna rattle the windows much. Recently moved some main system components in just to get occasional use out of them.

It's a compromise that works for the most part. Though I do envy you guys with dedicated listening rooms!
 
centralflori said:
[/COLOR][/COLOR]I currently have a dedicated listening room with my best gear in it. I am having serious thoughts about moving the best gear to the living room. This is where I spend most of my time and the system in here gets much more use. The upside is I would use it a lot more. The downside is I couldn't just crank it as loud as I want, whenever I want, although there is some time most days that I can crank it. The thing is, where it is now I just don't use it much at all because I feel so away from everything.

Has anybody else had these thoughts or brought the gear back from the dedicated listening room?:scratch2:
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No never, a dedicted audio room is a gift from god.

BTW, you are overdue to get on the turnpike South, if you know what I mean.

Leave your wallet home (just to be safe), & come on down. :banana:
 
I moved the pool table out of the living room (BTW the pool table was the Wife`s idea!) and moved the dedicated 2 channel rig in! Now Suzie pulls out all our old posters and says lets get these framed so we can hang them in the Music room! Wow I know I am a very,very lucky man! If you move your gear to the living room and you use it more it`s all good! And if you can crank it on occasion thats even better.
 
As long as you don't have to give up a room, I say go for it. You can always move the gear back if it doesn't work out. I switch gear around quite often and don't have to worry about the WAF in the den but do in the family room. Boy was it tough getting those tube amps in the family room!
 
Thanks for all the thoughts everyone. We don't really have a shortage of space. We only have the wife and I and our son who is 18. We have one child that has their own home now and one away at college except summer.
My son spends most his time in the family room. My wife has her favorite chair in the sitting area in the master bedroom. When I'm not watching tv with my wife in the master, I am in the living room in between the two.

Think it makes sense to go for it. Moving the main rig is definitly on the to do list.:yes:
 
masterlu said:
No never, a dedicted audio room is a gift from god.

BTW, you are overdue to get on the turnpike South, if you know what I mean.

Leave your wallet home (just to be safe), & come on down. :banana:
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:lmao::lmao::lmao: Well I have heard a good system is sort of like a religious experience.:D

Thanks again for the kind invite. It is definitly on the list to make it to the House of Ivan - McIntosh Museum.:drool::thmbsp::D
 
Fisherdude said:
Wifey and I are playing "Let's Make A Deal" at the moment. She wants my den. If I give it up, (it's a very nice room), I get the entire finished basement. I currently have listening areas in both.

I'm probably going to do it. I'll have the whole basement (workshop, listening area, all my gear display and music storage, TV area, and workout/exercise area) and I can pretty much listen as I want. You can still hear it upstairs, but she really won't be in a position to complain. Too much. Plus, I'll be reasonable in my volume levels. Pretty much.

We do have a formal living room, but I wouldn't be able to crank it at all.

It's always about compromises, both ways.
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Clay, Wifey and I have a very similar deal. She has the upstairs Study and no gear allowed in the living room. I have free reign (sort of) for stereo gear, exercise equipment and old TVs in the finished basement.

Cheers, Mark
 
Snade said:
Clay, Wifey and I have a very similar deal. She has the upstairs Study and no gear in the living room. I have free reign (sort of) for stereo gear, exercise equipment and old TVs in the finished basement.

Cheers, Mark
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Just like "War of the Roses" except without the tape. :D
 
I would move it to the living room, if you will get to enjoy it more often, even if you do have to limit the volume on occasion, but only if it will be a place that you will not be disturbed.

No fun having the main system in a high traffic area where you would be disturbed, or if it is near any other distractions or background noises, like from the kitchen or a nearby TV or phone, or increased traffic noise from the roadway, compared to your current listening area.

Not being able to relax and get caught up in the music because of these distractions would only lead to an unsatisfying and frustrating listening experience, but if the living room would be quiet and relaxing, yet still let you feel like you were more involved with the household, I say go for it!
 
I am in the process of starting to finish off my basement which is totally unfinished. I will have a very nice big room for my audio systems, guitars and amps and PC/recording gear. Right now it is all in the living/great room and attached dinning room. I can't wait to be able to go to my dedicated man cave and do my thing. My wife is always welcome to join me and we have no kids so it will be great to have this area to enjoy. That way my wife can do what she wants to upstairs if she desires and can remodel the great room as well to her liking. I am hoping the void my stereo system will leave will have a fire place installed so we can have a fire and still watch a movie on the big screen and listen in 5.1 surround upstairs. But I will be able to have my dedicated room and I can't wait!!! To each his own as the saying goes!
 
What you need to do is acquire more gear so that you can't decide whether the listening room or the living room has the better system.
 
I have a dedicated listening room for 2 reasons:

1. It's a place I can go to relax and listen to music without outside disturbances. A glass of wine or single malt scotch and just listen.

2. I have a 16 month old baby that needs to touch and play with everything. If I didn't keep my main gear "locked" away from prying hands, my $10k+ gear would soon become nothing more than $1k worth of broken gear.
 
trhee said:
I have a 16 month old baby that needs to touch and play with everything.
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Other than a few CD mishaps (scraped on the hardwood floor), my babies were easy to train re: "don't touch." Now that they are older and want to play my UK mono Revolver on the TT, I have bigger worries.

BTW, I enjoy having a rig in the LR. Sometimes I feel social and don't want to hide out in the basement with the critical listening rig.

Ken
 
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