User blog:Allgorhythm/My Wife Calls My Study a Playroom

The furniture in my study includes a built-in desk and credenza. The credenza, to the left of the desk, houses quite a few audio video components including a 360, a Japanese 360, XBox One, Japanese PS2, PS3, PS4, Japanese PS4, Japanese Dreamcast, Japanese Saturn, Direct TV Mini-Genie, and an Oppo 105D Blu-Ray Disc Player (IMHO the gold standard). Sitting at the desk, I have a computer monitor on either side and a 50 inch TV on the facing wall. Additionally, I have a Wacom Cintiq 13HD creative pen and touch monitor that functions as a fourth display. Note that the image on the big TV is the Ur-Dragon Generation 728 opening post:



Except for the subwoofer, the speakers are all built into the ceiling or wall and are part of the Definitive Technology Ultimate in Wall product line. The Center, Left, Right, Left Surround, and Right Surround are in-ceiling mounted Definitive Technology UIW RCS II speakers. The left and right rear surround speakers are in-wall mounted Definitive Technology UIW BP/A speakers. The subwoofer is a floor standing Definitive Technology Super Cube 6000. The 7.1 surround system is driven by a Pioneer SC-37 Elite Audio/Video Receiver :



Although I am primarily a console gamer, my system is capable of running PC games at the Ultra settings. I have a few PC games that I use to benchmark my system and having fun. My latest PC game is Witcher 3 that is spectacular:
 * CPU:  Overclocked Intel Core i7 2700K 4.7GHz - 5.2GHz LGA 1155 Quad-Core Processor

The computer is unique in that it is housed in a large cubical liquid cooled case that also contains and cools an XBox 360. The XBox 360 bears no resemblance to a normal console. The disk tray is a computer disk tray mounted below two Blu-Ray read-write drives. The pictures below shows the disk tray open with Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen in the tray:
 * Motherboard: Maximus IV Extreme-Z
 * 16GB RAM
 * System Cooling:  ORIGIN CRYOGENIC Custom Liquid Cooling CPU & Motherboard
 * GPU: Dual NVIDIA 3GB GTX 590 Liquid Cooled
 * Storage: Dual 120GB Intel 510 Series SSD in Raid 0
 * Secondary:  Dual 2TB WD Caviar Black
 * Optical: Dual Pioneer 12X Blu-ray Disc Burner
 * Audio:  Creative Sound Blaster X7 Limited Edition
 * OS:  Windows 7 Ultimate (because Windows 8 is a fiasco IMHO)



The Big Screen TV is connected to the A/V receiver through an HDMI cable that runs inside the wall. The power outlet for the TV is behind it. So, it hangs on the wall with no visible connecting wires like a picture frame. Since the speakers are mounted in the ceiling and in the wall, the speaker wires are also hidden inside the walls and ceiling. Even the subwoofer cable is hidden even though the subwoofer is floor mounted.

As much as possible, the wiring is hidden inside the cabinetry. Of necessity, the monitors need cables but those remain hidden until they emerge from special holes on the desk. The monitors are designed to be placed either on the desk for serious office work or on side tables on either side of the chair for multi-media viewing. Finally, there is a tray that pulls out to place the keyboard at typing level.

In addition to the A/V receiver that is quite sophisticated, I use some additional A/V switches that enable me to display any content on any of the four display--the fourth display being the Cintiq Pen Display. I am a student of languages so audio is very important.

The computer, in addition to an internal sound card, has an external studio quality sound processor designed for professional studio headsets. It has both 6.3 mm and 3.5 mm headphone jacks. I use the 6.3mm Jack for a set of Sony MDR7520 Professional headphones. I use the 3.5 mm jack for an earbud that combines both stereo channels into a single bud. This allows me to listen to one source through one ear and another source through another ear. A good application of this is when I watched the NASCAR All-Star Race a week ago. I follow Denny Hamlin and was listening to driver, crew chief, and spotter conversation through one ear and listening to the TV through the other. I was able to follow all the team's decision making as Denny Hamlin drove to victory. Naturally, I was also following a computerized race tracker called Raceview on the computer's 30 inch monitor.

The monitors have audio outputs. I have connected each monitor output to a studio quality headphone amplifier that I can use for one or two ear earbuds. In that manner, I can have multiple audio channels available simultaneously and can choose the best way to listen to them.

'''With such a professional setup, I don't know why my wife calls my study a playroom. Doesn't she know that watching a basketball game while going back and forth to the Black Cat to dupe hundreds of Ne'er do Parts and Finest Herb Ales is hard work?'''