Part 1 : A high-end auditorium "à la française"
Anagram Acoustics invited us for a special visit of its Home Cinema showroom located in Neuilly Plaisance, near Paris. The auditorium has been baptized ‘Zero Mode' in reference to its acoustic design. It was created by a team with extensive experience in electro-acoustics and video and took more than one year of construction and development. This showroom, dedicated to multi-channel sound, was designed to comply with very specific criteria:
One single, 7.1 system The system must be totally invisible, hence integrated in the walls The look and feel of the room must be close to that of a ‘conventional' living room – wall to wall carpets, glass paving etc. As for the system itself, the acoustic signal treatment must be invisible and takes place in several zones of the room Acoustics have been developed specifically for Home Theater, based on the experience gained from designing recording studios Loudspeakers were designed "sur mesure" following acoustic integration specifications Surroundings, video calibration and sound adjustments were optimised in order to deliver their best performance. The projection screen is a 2.40 meter (or 7.9 feet ) base, 16/9 acoustically transparent screen by Screen Excellence which is mounted on a velvet-coated frame.The final result is very impressive: In fact, we really didn't want to leave as we truly enjoyed the different films we watched to test the system finding ourselves completely "immersed" in the action in a room of less than 330 square feet.
Among all products that were used for the installation of this auditorium the Anagram Acoustics team selected electronic and audio components that are renowned for their very high quality/price/performance ratio:
Pioneer 868 DVD player Rotel RSP 1098 A/V processor Behringer DCX 2496 active crossover 3 Rotel 1080 amplifiers 2 Rotel RB 03 amplifiers 3 front AcoustiCraft Screen One loudspeakers 6 surround AcoustiCraft Rear One loudspeakers 2 AcoustiCraft Solo Subwoofers 2 AcoustiCraft SuAmp sub amplifiers 1 BenQ PE7820 projector.The system offers particularly effective Surround sound, thanks to very well balanced wall effects that resituate exceptionally well defined, tight bass that goes deep down in the audio spectrum.
Anagram Acoustics' system includes a huge 19th order Schroeder panel, designed from their own specific calculation, which is positioned at the rear end of the room ( 1.50 m in depth on the whole width of the room). Although it requires quite a lot of space, it unquestionably brings ultimate Surround sound diffusion quality and eliminates the room's natural modes, justifying the ‘Zero Mode' designation.
Having spent a long (highly enjoyable!) time carefully listening to this system, we can only suggest you to pay a call to their showroom, for which you will need to book a "rendez-vous" in advance! This approach provides a superb alchemy of tailor made acoustics and a highly dynamic audio system, the result of which is one of the best performing Home Theater auditoriums that we have ever experienced. The price tag, well about 25,000 £, but this includes everying from the design to acoustic simulations and modeling, equipment, building the walls (this was originally an open space with absolutely nothing!) as well as the final audio / video calibrations and installation.
Thumbs up to Daniel Bujon and Patrice Congard who gave birth to this beautiful creation - visible only by appointment.
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History: ANAGRAM ACOUSTICS is the Home Cinema division of ‘Anagramme Productions' that was established in 1981 as an electro-acoustic, acoustics and video consulting company. Its business is predominantly focusing on the professional segment and the company can claim prestigious references. The creation of this auditorium means that Anagramme Productions is now adressing the high-end consumer market.
Anagram Acoustics
Tel : +33 (0)1 43 00 53 40 - +33 (0)1 41 00 19 50
Fax : +33 (0)1 41 54 19 59
E-mail : patrice.congard@anagramme.fr