Installing a 16ch Processor in My Theater Room: Acurus MUSE and M8 Amplifiers

[@Youthman]

Installing an Acurus MUSE and (2) M8 Amplifiers Shop for Your Next Upgrade - obsessedhometheater.com/ Shop Acurus - bit.ly/Shop_Acurus OHT Merch - bit.ly/Obsessed_Home_Theater_Merch This video is sponsored by Arendal Sound. Expand Your Home Theater Knowledge - bit.ly/Home_Theater_Seminars Platinum Channel Sponsor: Arendal Sound - bit.ly/Arendal_Sound Subwoofers - bit.ly/Arendal_Subwoofers 1723 Speakers - bit.ly/Arendal_1723_Series 1723 THX Monitor - bit.ly/Arendal_1723_Monitor 1723 Subwoofer 2V - bit.ly/1723_Subwoofer_2V 1723 Subwoofer 1S - bit.ly/1723_Subwoofer_1S Use the affiliate links below and help support the channel with no cost to you. Amazon Early Black Friday Deals - amzn.to/4eH4tkm. Audio Advice - www.audioadvice.com/youthman Best Buy Black Friday - howl.link/ne339tnwqoofs Crutchfield Black Friday Early Deals - howl.link/rrg7d0lgn47b0 Weekly and monthly Zooms on Patreon - www.patreon.com/youthman FREE Home Theater Design Tool - bit.ly/Home-Theater-Design-Tool Recommended Home Theater Gear - www.amazon.com/shop/youthman Submit your Home Theater - hometheatertours.com. Ways You Can Support: Patreon: www.patreon.com/youthman Youthman Merch - teespring.com/stores/youthman/ ____ Disclosure: Affiliate Links are used in the description of this video. I earn from qualifying purchases. Valencia Bespoke Series Theater Seats: Monza Carbon Fiber (NEW) - bit.ly/Valencia_Monza Tuscany Ultimate Luxury - bit.ly/valencia-tuscany-ultimate-luxury Oslo Ultimate Luxury - bit.ly/valencia-oslo-ultimate-luxury Naples - bit.ly/Valencia_Naples Valencia Cinema Series Theater Seats: Venice - bit.ly/valencia_venice Budapest - bit.ly/valencia_budapest Piacenza - bit.ly/valencia_piacenza Piacenza Powered Headrest - bit.ly/valencia_piacenza_powered_headrest Verona - bit.ly/valencia_verona Verona - Powered Headrest - bit.ly/valencia_verona Valencia Premier Series Theater Seats: Oslo - bit.ly/valenciaoslo Oslo XL - bit.ly/valenciaosloxl Zurich - bit.ly/valenciazurich Tuscany - bit.ly/valencia_tuscany Bern - bit.ly/valencia_bern All Valencia Seating - bit.ly/valencia_all

[@VimalKiranK]

No IMAX enhanced No Auro3D No Dirac BC No DTSX Pro No HDMI 2.1 in built No multiple subwoofer calibration I don’t understand what the point Acurus want to make advertising by only 16 channels of processing Apart from that good video by Micheal

[@Youthman]

I requested to review the Acurus as it’s at a much lower price point than Trinnov Altitude 32.

[@HOILA144]

Wow lot of work . Great video keep up the great work

[@almac2323]

That processor and amps have you working harder not smarter!😂 The banana cable thing is a dealbreaker!

[@Youthman]

It actually wasn’t difficult at all to install the Phoenix connectors. It will likely be a little more time-consuming when I reinstall the banana plugs because I have to re-strip the wire

[@dhowting]

Oooooooo those look so good! I love equipment that seemlessly blends into the room you put them in. So clean and simple not drawing attention to them selves.... I think I would have liked the power buttons to be the same brushed black as the cases with a very faint backlit LED glow coming from behind them. So, bridging two channels adds their apperage together to send more power to each speaker? Thats suoer cool!!!! You need a bunch of wires long enough to reach all your speakers with banana plugs on one end and bare wires on the other so you can just sit the equipment you're demoing off to the side and run wires from it to your speakers so you just have to swap out the connections at the speakers instead of tearing your cabinet apart......unless you can't access the back of your speakers as easy as your cabinet of course.

[@performingspecs7841]

The set up interface looks pretty cool. The speaker set up looks pretty easy.

[@Youthman]

Yes it’s very intuitive and I do like the colored display.

[@peppersmith]

Gotta love Home theater.. The Toys!! Oh, The TOYS😍😍

[@Plague_GG]

It’s nice you can bridge the speakers with an easy click instead having to use a physical jumper. Also, it’s weird that the Processor has an IP address but you still have to use the touch screen. You showed the GUI for the amps, but I’m curious what functionality the processor has over IP.

[@Youthman]

I’ll be sharing that in the future video

[@bigjack79]

At its price point, I would be interested in seeing what features it has that an AV10 doesn't. Based off what I am seeing online, other than physical size, I couldn’t see recommending this over an AV10 or Anthem 90/70 at the price point. Their price point means they have to be closer to Storm and Trinnov in performance.

[@Youthman]

I does not have more features. Some things the AV10 has that the MUSE does not is AURO-3D, AirPlay 2, eARC, 8K, HDMI 2.1, Alexa, HEOS, Spotify, IMaX Enhanced, ROON, Dirac Live. Will have to see how it sounds.

[@robertmedina3195]

There's no chance for this thing. If it were $3,000 MAYBE I'd consider it. I own an AV10 and really don't see where this fits into the market unless it's being purchased by someone who hasn't done their research or does not have room for something larger. The fact that it says "Upgradable" is a huge red flag. Also doesn't include remote as it states IR remote is an optional accessory?

[@victorjohnson8374]

This is a great video. I hope there is an app included. So it makes it easier to set up.

[@Youthman]

There is a webUI Victor. I’ll share in today’s video.

[@Tormentor1985]

The equipment does look amazing. Tho it's sad to see the touch screen does not seem to be really responsive and the lack of banana plugs is also a bit of a turn down. Otherwise the cables can be disconnected and reconnected really easy and there is no way you can accidentally short these cables. For the mono vs stereo trigger cables. If its a mono connector I would not take the risk and use a stereo one. I'am not sure but if there's even a small possibility that you can short circuit while pulling in or out the cable while in use I would definitely use a mono one.

[@Youthman]

I’ll share the touchscreen more in today’s video. It’s not like the touchscreen of a tablet, it’s pressure sensitive so you actually have to press it like a typical button except it’s a screen. There’s no reason to remove cables with the power on so no worries of shorting using a stereo trigger cable.

[@Tormentor1985]

Thanks you very much for the reply. I have been following you since the la'scala and dual Klipsch subs time and always love your videos. Looking forward to the new video again 🍻

[@Youthman]

Thank you kindly.

[@VividTheater]

Looks awesome, with beastly power! However, if the processor has no onscreen display or has no ability to be controlled via pc then that would be a deal breaker.

[@Youthman]

It does have an app. Look for a new video soon.

[@TheFiore5]

Pros and cons so far I saw on the front screen hdmi 2.0 only, that's disappointing. I wonder if the processer is modular where you can update the hdmi board? Hopefully works out. Thanks for the setup video

[@Youthman]

I don’t think it’s a dealbreaker. I doubt most people that are using this processor in their theater room will be using it for gaming. And 8K content will not be mainstream anytime soon.

[@graysonpeddie]

@@Youthman Yeah for gaming, I'm just not that sensitive beyond 60Hz as I mostly play puzzle and JRPG games. And gaming at 8K is going to be taxing for new games and is not worth going for HDMI 2.1. 8K won't be taxing for Portal and Portal 2 though.

[@Youthman]

Yeah, I’m a casual gamer myself so not having HDMI 2.1 isn’t a dealbreaker for me.. I mostly play call of duty (zombies and the campaign) God of War etc.

[@rdhdieselperformance3693]

@@TheFiore5 the whole unit is modular, DSP, HDMI etc can all be upgraded as new things come

[@davemccague222]

Hi Michael. Off topic but will you be reviewing the marantz cinema 30 soon. I know you did an unboxing but I am hoping the review is coming soon.

[@Youthman]

Yes, should be a few weeks.

[@donjaun540]

I hope you'll do a follow up video on less expensive choices including what you have now. The monolith amp etc. 👍😎

[@soundguy71.]

Good afternoon, Youthman, I did the deed last night. I pulled the trigger on a pair of Polk R700, and the Onkyo RZ-50. Did I choose good? Rz$900 the R700 $1650. Please let me know

[@Youthman]

Congrats! The R700 are great speakers. I enjoyed my time with them. I have not reviewed any of the newer Onkyo AVR’s.

[@soundguy71.]

The reason i got the R700 was because of your review ​@@Youthman

[@soundguy71.]

What separate amp do you recommend for R700?

[@SupraManG]

I just also pulled the trigger on getting the RZ-50. It wasn't my first choice but one of the few that came on sale and it will be enough to carry the new KLIPSCH REFERENCE PREMIER SPEAKERS I upgraded to.

[@donjaun540]

I love your videos. I do wish you had a better safer option to getting to the back of your audio system. I feel unless you move as you get older it is only going to get harder and harder to get in and make any changes. Sorry I'm just concerned.

[@Youthman]

I appreciate the concern. I should be able to get behind my cabinet for the next 15 years, but we will be moving next year and I’ll have a rack.

[@donjaun540]

@Youthman Oh nice. I used to think 🤔 I could plan my life, but in just the last five years my back broke and I lost my right kidney to cancer. I would have never thought 🤔 I would be disabled starting at 49 years old ‼️ Life took a horrible change. I enjoy your happiness and enthusiasm with the audio world. I will never be able to afford those expensive things again, but I still like to hear and watch. This is the real reason why I ask for more affordable options. I hope I'm not a downer. I do believe in being truthful though. 👍😎🙏

[@Youthman]

I’m truly sorry to hear that. You are correct though. None of us knows what challenges we will face. We are not promised tomorrow. We are only given today. Each day we choose how we will live it.

[@donjaun540]

@@Youthman Very true

[@johnmasters3851]

That's a shame that it has no Banana posts

[@Youthman]

I actually found the Phoenix connections to be easy to install. It wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be.

[@Youthman]

There’s a specific reason why they used those, but I don’t recall the technical details

[@richarddavis748]

Is there a Phoenix to banana adapter?

[@Youthman]

I didn’t see one, but they do have bear wire to banana adapters. I just didn’t feel it was worth a $90.

[@djsmitch]

The touch screen doesn’t seem to work that well I think they need to improve that

[@Youthman]

I do want to have a better look at that when I don’t have the camera right in front of the screen and leaning off to the side lol. It was also almost 2 AM when I finished filming the video. The good news is they do have a Web UI. I’ll take a look at it tonight and share a video on it hopefully tomorrow.

[@graysonpeddie]

Yeah I'm not buying the amps just to take out the pre-installed banana plugs in the speaker cables. I just bought speaker cables with banana plugs last year so I do not have to assemble the speaker cables with banana plugs myself.I could see myself buying an Acurus MUSE but not M8 Amplifiers just to have an awesome Ethernet port in each amps. I prefer just a switch for bridging channels.

[@briankrohn7482]

Only one subwoofer out stinks. Im shocked a manufacturer would make a 16 channel processor with one subwoofer out.

[@Youthman]

The Monoprice HTP-1 has only 16 XLR outputs as well. Tonewinner has only 14 XLR on its 16ch processor. I believe the MUSE is assignable so if you had less bed layer speakers like 5.4.6 or a 7.6.2 you could have more then one subwoofer connected to the built in XLR’s. I’m certainly OK with the dongle to add four additional XLR’s. If it only had the ability to connect one subwoofer, that would be an issue.

[@rdhdieselperformance3693]

@@briankrohn7482 it has 3 sub outs

[@Youthman]

He is correct. I have since discovered you can add two additional subs via the adapter cable.

[@briankrohn7482]

Cool thank you ​@Youthman

[@mikelary88]

Are they independent while using the adapter or do you need a miniDSP to gain that control?

[@littlewicky1]

Great video as always! Love seeing high end gear like this. Since the external amps had a web gui, I am curious that the Pre/Pro didn't. Have tried navigating to the IP address of it, like you did the amps?

[@Youthman]

Yes I tried that. I don’t think they have developed it but I sure hope they do.

[@kman7222]

what do they cost $$$$?

[@Youthman]

I believe the MUSE is around $10K and the ACT4 is $15K. I’ll add the info in the final review.

[@kman7222]

@@Youthman thamks

[@jeroenk3570]

Doesn't the Muse have a web interface, like the amps?

[@eflizotte]

It has to…there is no way they would build a web GUI for the amps and skip building one for the whole processor… Just type it’s IP address into your browser like you did w the amps and you’ll be off and running

[@Youthman]

Yes they do. Look for a video showing the webUI tomorrow.

[@robertmedina3195]

Phoenix connectors are the absoulte worst. I use them at work and they're god awful. If you're only using 16awg wire they're okay but often get stuck into their ports. They're also a good way to create wiring shorts because its easy to have strands of wire not being seated perfectly, I see it out in the field all the time. Also, using their own calibration software is another big no thank you. Lastly, that front panel looks nice aesthetically but a nightmare to use and keep clean. Oh well. Buy an AVM90 or Marantz AV10 for $5,000-$10,000 and you'll be much better off versus this processor. The amps are just another 8 channel D class you can get from Buckeye or I forget the other company that offers 8channelX200 watts. Starfire? Lol... can't be right...

[@robintodd3901]

Looks good. Needing something right up there that isn’t Trinnov priced. Looking forward to your thoughts 👍

[@Youthman]

That is exactly what I’m hoping for. I’ve been a fan of accurate for many years. I still have an old school A200 which is a 200 x 2 amplifier. It’s a beast! If it works well, it could be a great addition for Obsessed Home Theater.

[@SealedOrPorted]

I am not familiar with this brand but am interested to see the features and capabilities.

[@Youthman]

I’ve been interested for many years. I own an old school beast of an amp, the Acurus A200 (200 x 2). The only reason I am not using it in my 2ch setup is it doesn’t have 12v trigger. Acurus has been around for many decades but very few people have heard of them. If it performs well, a lot of people will soon discover them 🤣

[@enigmascv]

You need an equipment rack chief! I'm 70 and couldn't do what you're doing. 😂

[@Youthman]

I absolutely agree. I probably could do this for another 15 years, but it’s definitely harder than when I installed the cabinet 10 years ago. 🤣 my next home will have a rack.

[@darrenorange2982]

10 grand for all that maybe more and it's phoenix connections 10 cent connections from china. Over priced lots of better options with better prices and performance.

[@ebarbie5016]

This smells like cheap Chinese junk. And what kind of room correction is this? It's not Dirac but some costume-made RC that God knows how and if it works.

[@christofg9710]

It is not Chinese junk, it is American made and sounds very good. It is placed between Anthem/Arcam and Trinnov/Stormaudio.

[@enigmascv]

It's US made! A tablet android interface would make life easier.

[@mattjones7547]

If only there was a way to look these things up. Like a link in the description, pinned comment, or google. Oh well, I guess we will never know 😂

[@Youthman]

🤣🤣🤣

[@Youthman]

Good news! They do have a webUI. I’ll check it out tonight and share a video tomorrow.

[@wendellwendellb339]

That is not something I would want to do!

[@Youthman]

Climb behind the cabinet or remove the banana plugs?

[@wendellwendellb339]

@ The disconnection of existing gear to connect new gear for testing and review. That part.

[@Youthman]

@wendellwendellb339 yeah that is a challenge for sure. As we build out Obsessed Home Theater, we will have a testing room and eventually a showroom as well so that I can finally build my theater and not have to continually have it in disarray.

[@wendellwendellb339]

I want to redo my cable management and tread doing that. I want to get a tone generating device to determine which speaker is which. That would make doing that a lot easier, than I can label the ones that I don’t have a label for. Any suggestions?

[@Youthman]

@wendellwendellb339 i’ve never used a tone generator. I labeled mine before I connected them.