Reference System 5: J. Walker Clarke

This system has been a work in progress for many years, and has lived in several different types of spaces. The most recent change was adding a retractable Stewart Electriscreen. During the day, the room functions as a sunroom. It is brightly lit with natural light from five windows. Bali blackout honeycomb shades allow the room to be darkened for daytime viewing. This makes for a very flexible living space that can easily convert to a very respectable home theater. It is a great example of a room that you would not walk into thinking, "this would make a great home theater." It shows people how easy it is to integrate a very respectable home theater into a typical living space.  Auralex Sonosuede room treatments turned a poor room into a very cool acoustical space.

The Emotiva combo is a relatively new addition and has ample power for the Axiom speakers and sub, which can easily rattle dishes in the nearby kitchen. The wife and kids enjoy the simplified operation of the system via the Harmony remote. Simplicity and ergonomics mark the highlights of this home theater reference system.

Photos and Images

Here are some basic images of Reference System 5 to give you an idea of the room design and layout. As you can see this is a dedicated room which caters partially to aesthetics. We'll be working more acoustical products into this room over time and taking additional measurements to continue to smooth out the frequency response as much as possible throughout the audible band.