The Epson is great! Very versatile for various lighting conditions. THX or Cinema are great for when you can black out the room and then living room or dynamic for when you need to keep some ambient light. Picture quality is very good and I'll hold onto this until a reasonable 4k is available.

I would consider a better screen with a smoother surface. There are a few high end options and they look less grainy. A good 4k screen would be a good compliment to go along with the 5030/6030.

If you have the 70.2, I'd recommend bi-amping per the instruction manual, setting speakers to 4-ohms, using the high quality RCA jacks for TV/CD next to the phono input, and using RCA cables for analog input from your CD player. These are the settings I have settled on for music and it sounds pretty amazing. When do you plan to get the speakers?

Cheers,

T Cobe

Congrats MoGray64 on a great decision!!!!
It sounds like a super setup to me, I am sure you will love it!!!!!
Well done.
Happy listening when you get it all in place,
God Bless,
Wayne

Congrats MoGray64, you're going to be very happy with that setup. Those T1s do have that pesky effect - once you audition them, you're under their spell. Happened to me too.

T.Cobe - When I got my T1s, I moved my T2s to the surround positions, replacing the T7s I had there. The T7s are fantastic, but as you surmised, having the LFE extension into the T2s is magical. In my space, the low end is really nicely controlled with no hint of spacial locality. Prior to the T1/T2 combo, I had T2s in front an a paradigm studio sub 12 behind the couch. That was also a great bass setup, but there was still a front/back location discernible. I found myself regularly tweaking the paradigm sub level setting to try to perfect the balance. Very subtle, and the overall sound was great, but I find the T1/T2 setup to be much more seamless.

As a side note, I moved dthe T7s and Paradigm sub to my bedroom, and the combo is amazing there. The acoustics are better than my living room (wall to wall carpet, smaller, more complex angles), so I actually get a 'tighter' sound than my living room. I'm assuming its largely because I need to get more sound absorption in place in the Living room - hardwood floors with only one area carpet. I have a few pillows along the wall between the T1s, but there is still a lot of blank parallel surfaces ripe for reflection.

Re Epson - I have an 8350 and have been pretty happy with it. Great picture, providing the room is reasonably dark. The only issue I've had is I get an 'auto iris failure' message around 3-5% of the time when I turn it on. I just have to power it down and repower it and the message goes away. The price is down to $899 on amazon (it was nearly $2K when I bought it 4 years ago), which makes it a great deal given its performance. Its not 3d, but the 1080p IQ is quite good.

Hi T Cobe. Thanks for the input on the set up.

As for the ETA on the speakers, I am in the middle of a major remodel that includes raising the roof and ceilings in the main living areas 2 feet and adding on a theater room. The forms for the theater foundation went in yesterday. With the fact that all my furniture now resides in the garage and the remodel work wont be done for about 8 weeks I am guessing I will get the speakers in July. Anticipation is half the fun???

Hey MoGray64 I know what it is like to wait on speakers while you build. It is tough but it will all be worth it in the end.
I am sure it will be a wonderful home theater!
Happy Listening when you get there, hang in there.
God Bless,
Wayne

I have yet to listen to T1s because I'm afraid! I'm sure it's a great choice though, and likely better than any of the other combinations mentioned heretofore. I am going to be on the lookout for T1 used if the price is right