RBH CinemaSITE Custom Home Theater System Review

CinemaSITE Installation

When I first saw the RBH Sound CinemaSITE at the 2004 CEDIA show I was instantly captivated by the sheer genius of the product. For years it was only possible to get the elegant look of a custom home theater by either a) having a one-off custom wood-worked cabinet designed and, or b) utilizing an existing furniture solution that allowed integration of speakers on shelves. The problem with either of these solutions can be summed up by a factor of cost, inconvenience and severely compromised sound quality. The RBH Sound CinemaSITE on the other hand has been completely designed from the ground up to serve as a custom install solution for housing their Signature Series line of in-wall loudspeakers. In addition to being sonically designed to hold the RBH Sound in-walls, the entire system is laid out in a way that makes installation a breeze. Try that with a custom product!

CinemaSITE 5.1 System
Starting at $17,900/system
System includes:

• CinemaSITE front wall and two rear columns

• 5 each SI-740

• 2 each SI-12/P

Upgrades
Additional column (no speakers): $1,349/ea.
Upgrade 1 each SI-740 to a SI-760: Add $176/ea.
Upgrade 1 each SI-740 to a SI-6100: add $1,476/ea.
Upgrade 1 each SI-12/P to a SI-1010/P: add $370/ea.

CinemaSITE Listening Tests and Conclusion

Sure, it looks good - but what about the sound? Well, for starters the CinemaSITE we reviewed utilized three SI-6100 speakers across the front sound stage with dual SI-1010P subwoofers. This is the driver-equivalent of a full T-2 loudspeaker system in an in-wall configuration. Let me just say that there is plenty of horsepower to drive even a very large home theater room. We set up a microphone and calibrated the system as best we could after it was all put together. Once the RBH Sound guys departed I was able to do some additional tweaks and get the system leveled out quite a bit to where it had a very smooth frequency response and bass integrated within the room. We found that adjusting the phase of one of the subwoofers resulted in a more uniform low end frequency response at the primary listening positions overall and didn't appear to have any negative effects on bass response of the system.

Stereo and Multi-Channel Music

One of the first items I listened to was The Best of REM: In Time DVD-Audio disc , if only because I was so familiar with its content and it comes with both a 192kHz/24-bit stereo and 96kHz/24-bit surround M LP track. Listening to "Everybody Hurts" I found that the CinemaSITE's triple array of SI-6100s created a fully immersive and coherent sound stage with very good imaging.

One of the more amazing characteristic features of the SI-6100-based system is the absolute rock solid sound stage which is maintained regardless of whether you are sitting or standing. Why is this important? Well, if you are like me you appreciate a home theater with stadium seating and this system ensures that all seats in the house get phenomenal sound.

"Losing My Religion", with its tight drum mix and mesh of bright instrumentation, proved that the CinemaSITE had room to spare at the top end. At no time did the track sound compressed and sibilance was smooth, containing none of the grain generated by lesser tweeters.

To finish off this disc I skipped over to "E-Bow the Letter" which exercised the SI-1010Ps, and slammed me into my seat in rhythm with the powerful kick drum. Vocals were also crisp and clean and reverb slid off the SI-6100s like a sheet of silk.

I next queued up Marillion's Marbles on the Road Concert DVD in order to hear a live concert event which traditionally has more "honest" vocals and a less produced sound. I was rewarded with a veritable concert in my theater room. The CinemaSITE simply cannot be overdriven - at least not with the SI-6100s across the front, and certainly not in my room. Listening to "You're Gone" almost brought me to my feet; the sound was so honest and revealing. Steve Hogarth's vocals were so very passionate and real coming from the system you could almost feel him in the room. "Angelina" provided some excellent reverberant vocals and a Hammond organ sound accompanied by enunciated lead guitar solos and a gentle, rolling bass line. I'd have to say that this song was one of the most well-rounded on the DVD and gave the CinemaSITE a nice blend with which to fill the room - a task it performed flawlessly and without compromise.

Movies and Soundtracks

We queued up XXX: State of the Union and settled back in to see how well the CinemaSITE would perform with a high-powered action movie. We weren't disappointed. The twin SI-1010P subwoofers did double duty on my sitting position as explosions frequently rocked the room (such as the scene where Darius Stone, played by Ice Cube, plays cat and mouse with another tank in close quarters.) The score by M arco Baltrami (who also did the score for I, Robot) came through with vigor and filled the surrounds. Fortunately for me, the overall soundtrack was not as ridiculously thin as the plot! Bullet ricochets, vehicles, and rock-solid punches made this movie increasingly better as time and events progressed. The RBH System really lent an immersive believability to the movie that fully enveloped me into the picture and helped me forget I was sitting in the home theater room. Quite simply, this is a better theater experience than anything I have heard lately in the M yrtle Beach area. It was particularly noteworthy that having the dual SI-1010P subwoofers allocated enough earth-shaking bass to easily fill my room and create plenty of tactile response at the seated positions. While I'm sure adding a ButtKicker would be fun, it really didn't feel needed in this system.

CinemaSITE Review Summary and Conclusion

The CinemaSITE is a revolution in custom home theater. This is not just another loudspeaker system; this is a breakthrough in simplifying the process of integrating a custom home theater solution into someone's home. The price, ease of setup, customization options, and sheer reliability of the system make it a no-brainer for those installers who have been using or looking into custom solutions for their clients. Having gone through the entire installation process I can say first hand that this system is going to make some customers VERY happy, while saving installers and dealers significant time and headaches. You really have to see and hear the CinemaSITE to believe it.

RBH Sound
382 M arshall
Layton , Utah 84041
Phone:(800) 543-2205
Fax: (801) 543-3300
http://www.rbhsound.com

About RBH Sound
A Utah based company with over 28 years of experience, RBH Sound has taken loudspeaker manufacturing to the next level with their line of freestanding and in-wall/in-ceiling speakers designed for custom installation. RBH's highly acclaimed Signature Series is available in over 30 high quality, genuine woodgrain veneers and was designed to both look and perform beautifully. Since 1976, RBH Sound has been designing, engineering and crafting high-performance loudspeaker systems, delivering superior acoustic reproduction at sensible prices.

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

• — Excellent
• — Very Good
• — Good
• — Fair
• — Poor

Metric	Rating
Performance
Value