Gary Altunian

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In-Wall Speaker Reviews
Sonance VP89 In-Wall Speaker System
Gary Altunian  |  Sep 22, 2008
Easy on the eyes and ears.

According to industry legend, Sonance got its start in the in-wall speaker business by installing a cabinet speaker in a wall and covering it with a custom grille. The customer was so pleased with the results that the founders of the company decided to design a true in-wall speaker, believing that others would want them too. As they say, the rest is history.

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In-Wall Speaker Reviews
SpeakerCraft Starlet 4 In-Wall Loudspeakers
Gary Altunian  |  Jun 16, 2005
Fine art in my walls.

The speakers in my walls are probably more expensive than the paintings many art lovers have on theirs. That's because good sound is important to me. Fine art is wonderful, but I get as much pleasure from accurate loudspeakers as an art lover gets from an exceptional painting or object d'art. So it doesn't bother me that the SpeakerCraft Starlet 4 in-wall speakers cost close to $4,000 per pair. I'll gladly spend more to get the performance I want.

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Custom Installation How-To
The DIY Homeowner's Guide: Installing In-Wall and In-Ceiling Speakers
Gary Altunian  |  Jan 28, 2008
Like many homeowners, you probably enjoy home theater, but you'd prefer not to have five speakers and a subwoofer on your living-room floor. Then consider in-wall speakers as a solution. The question is, can you install them yourself, or should you call a professional? The answer is, yes you can install in-walls yourself, with some planning, a few basic tools, and a little patience. Here's a step-by-step overview of the process of installing in-wall (or in-ceiling) speakers, as well as the parts and tools you'll need to complete the job like a pro.
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On-Wall Speaker Reviews
Totem Acoustic Tribe III On-Wall Speaker System
Gary Altunian  |  Nov 15, 2007
Sophisticated sound, elegant solution.

To fully appreciate and enjoy a flat-panel television, you must team it with a speaker system of matching elegance and quality. Floorstanding speakers seem like old technology. In-wall speakers are an option to consider, but they involve more work to install and have fewer placement options. A better solution in many cases is on-wall speakers, such as the new Tribe III speakers from Totem Acoustic. They're easy to install and are designed to match the finish of many flat-panel displays. Indeed, the Tribe IIIs' black or gray finish gives them the appearance that they came with the television.

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Home Movie Theaters
Unlocking the Best Audio Performance from Your System
Gary Altunian  |  Nov 21, 2008
Recently I sat down with Anthony Grimani, President of PMI, Ltd., an acoustics consulting firm, to discuss room acoustics and home theater design.
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In-Wall Speaker Reviews
Wall-to-Wall Sound
Gary Altunian  |  Oct 15, 2004  |  Published: Oct 01, 2004
We evaluate eight similarly designed and priced in-walls.

I think I've purchased enough drywall to finish the interior of a three-bedroom house. My local home-improvement warehouse now stocks extra inventory just for my in-wall speaker reviews. You see, I hate to cut holes in my living-room walls, and I'm not very skilled at patching them. So, for this review, I made some portable walls in which to test eight different in-wall loudspeakers, also known as architectural speakers, priced between $435 and $600 per pair. In fact, I made several walls and simply swapped drywall to accommodate the various models. That's why my home-improvement store likes me so much.

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In-Wall Speaker Reviews
Wisdom Audio Sage L100i In-Wall Speaker System
Gary Altunian  |  Sep 27, 2010
Price: $88,500 At A Glance: A unique listening experience • Unprecedented detail and transparency • Exceedingly good bass

Jaw-Dropping Home Cinema Somewhere on the audio quality scale, a home theater system crosses an imaginary line and becomes a home cinema system, one that’s capable of truly extraordinary music and film sound reproduction. I’m not exactly sure where that line is, or at what price, but I know it when I hear it. A true home cinema system delivers music that rivals a live event and a movie experience that surpasses even some of the finest commercial cinemas. In this rarefied universe of ultra-high-end audio systems, I tested a no-holds-barred home theater speaker system from Wisdom Audio based on the company’s L100i and C150i in-wall speakers and Suitcase Sub. As you’ll read, the in-wall speakers are just the beginning with this unique system.

Not Your Father’s In-Wall Speakers
In addition to the Suitcase Sub, this review system featured two L100i speakers for the left and right channels and a C150i for the center channel (although you can use either model for the left, center, right, or surround channels). The L100i and C150i are sized for placement behind an acoustically transparent video projection screen measuring at least 50 inches in height and of adequate width. The L100i and C150i are designed to deliver high-performance audio from speakers that disappear from the audience’s view behind the screen. The L100i is a two-part speaker system that consists of a 48-by-8-inch planar magnetic line-source array for the mid and high frequencies (above 275 hertz) and a separate enclosure of the same size that contains eight 6-inch woofers for bass/midbass. The three-part C150i features the same planar magnetic driver array combined with two bass enclosures that each house eight 6-inch woofers. The additional eight bass drivers in the C150i signal the importance of the center channel for dialogue information, onscreen action, and overall system dynamics.

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