In Pursuit of Perfection

Many seek perfection; few achieve it. For every Johann Sebastian Bach, there are a thousand John DeLoreans. Only the fearless dare proclaim perfection as their goal.

When I hear about CAT MBX, a consortium of electronics manufacturers, dealers and other specialists formed with the goal of achieving audio and video reproduction perfection (or close to it), my eyes roll. Curiosity gets the best of me, though, so I investigate. I visit a nearby CAT MBX member, Los Angeles-based custom installer Robert’s Audio & Video, and emerge not indifferent, but impressed.

I soon receive an irresistible invitation from the head of the consortium, CAT President Brian Barr. Would I like to experience other systems designed by the group? How could I say no?

Redefining Custom
I am eager to see and hear more of CAT MBX because I love custom audiovisual systems, and the group is known for taking the custom concept to new heights.

Barr, his brother Michael, and Dr. David Howitt, a materials science engineering professor at the University of California at Davis, founded CAT (California Audio Technology) in the mid-1980s as an outlet for their expertise in computer numeric control (CNC) manufacturing. CNC machines manufacture parts automatically: An engineer models the product shape on a computer, then a CNC machine carves it out of wood, plastic or metal. Using CNC, CAT started designing speakers to meet the needs of a particular customer or installation. Engineers completed construction on site, installing custom circuit boards that compensate for the shape and size of the speakers’ surroundings.

“Temple of CAT” at Residential Systems Inc. in Denver, Colo. (Click image to enlarge)

The brothers knew, though, that any installation could go awry. CAT speakers demand extremely high-quality amplification, yet the company had no control over which amplifiers its dealers used. Nor could it ensure its speakers were installed correctly. And of course, the speakers could be partnered with mediocre video equipment.

Barr elaborates: “A home theater project often involves people who are not trained or licensed in their craft. It’s not uncommon to see theaters with inadequate electrical power, rooms displaying Henry VIII artifacts directly in front of the loudspeakers, and lighting designs that wash out the video screen. We thought there should be a protocol that describes how these systems are installed and built, and verifies that each installation performs as it should. We decided to assemble a group of professionals from different disciplines to create the protocol. This group is CAT MBX.”
CAT MBX centers around five companies—Acoustic Room Systems, Cinema Design Group, Russ Berger Design Group, SH Acoustics and Theo Kalomirakis Theaters—that provide acoustical, electrical and structural engineering. The group also includes 34 dealers and several manufacturers of audio, video and home automation equipment including CAT, Audio Design Associates (ADA), CinemaTech, LiteTouch, Monaco Audio, Monster Cable, Runco, Stewart Filmscreen and Xplore Technologies.

Southwestern Cooking
We start at Hometronics in North Dallas, Texas. Hometronics President Greg Margolis leads us to his showroom, where no speaker is visible. He opens a fabric-covered door to reveal one of its speakers—a column packed with two subwoofers, two woofers, two midrange drivers and a single tweeter.

Clients work via their CAT MBX concierge, who manages project planning and connects them with highly qualified professionals.

“That tweeter is a proprietary design that costs about $400,” Barr says. “I would rather put in one good tweeter than three or five mediocre ones.”

I am heartened to see CAT MBX has avoided my two speaker-related pet peeves. The speakers include 5.5-inch midrange drivers; in my opinion, a speaker must include one or two drivers measuring between 3 and 5.5 inches in diameter to convey the tone and character of voices properly. The speakers in Margolis’ theater have medium-sized 8- and 12-inch woofers, as well as several subwoofers; systems that use only large woofers measuring 15 inches or more often exhibit boomy, poorly defined bass. When it comes to speaker design, the CAT MBX engineers and I seem to be of the same religion.

Hometronics has two CAT MBX installations, including a stereo system. (Click image to enlarge)

Like the system I heard in L.A., this one plays as loud as I dare to turn it up. Yet it reproduces the delicacies of my favorite CDs: the percussion that dances around in singer Holly Cole’s Temptation, the deep reverberance of the harmonica and guitars in Sara K.’s Hobo.

“Check out the imaging,” Barr suggests, motioning for me to stand 6 feet in front of the screen. Normally when you move this close to a pair of speakers, the sound seems to come directly from the two speakers instead of from a point midway between them, as it should. But Holly Cole’s voice emanates from right in front of me, as if we were standing face to face.

Bring on the Bass
Next we drive to an airfield in Mesquite, a Dallas suburb. “Dallas is right in the middle of the country,” says Bill Skaer, president of Eric Grundleman’s Cool AV, “so anyone who owns a private plane can stop by in the middle of a business trip.”

The fly-in theater exudes cowboy-style comfort, replete with lighting and decor in a Lone Star theme. Charmed by Skaer’s cordial Southern manner, I cringe as I load my heavy-metal DVD, Live Aus Berlin by the German band Rammstein. Wondering if George Strait would have been a more considerate choice, I ask tentatively, “Uh … mind if I turn it up loud?”

“You can’t hurt these things,” Skaer replies with a chuckle.

After listening to three minutes of chest-pummeling rock at a volume I have not experienced since attending Ted Nugent’s 1977 Cat Scratch Fever concert tour, Skaer is all smiles. I cannot remember playing a home theater system this loud, yet I hear no distortion.

Eric Grundleman’s Cool AV features a fly-in theater, where clients can drop in via private plane. (Click image to enlarge)

I notice the bass does not vary from chair to chair as it would in most rooms. “How’d you get the bass so even?” I ask Barr. “Take a look,” he replies, ushering me into the equipment closet. I notice immediately that this theater uses far more amplifiers than I expect. “Why so many?” I ask. “Because this room has 12 subwoofers,” Barr replies.

“Twelve?”

“Four are actually putting out bass you hear,” Barr elaborates. “The other ones are emitting ‘reverse’ sound waves that cancel out the room resonances, so you don’t get that boomy effect in certain parts of the room. The bass varies by no more than two decibels in any of the seats.”
CAT MBX in a Closet
So far, Barr has proven that CAT MBX can create great sound in a large home theater showroom. Our next destination, though, presents a different challenge. The space is no larger than a guest bedroom in a tract home, yet this Austin home theater houses two large tower speakers, eight in-wall subwoofers, in-wall speakers for the center and surround channels, and ADA’s $80,000 tube surround-sound processor made specifically for CAT MBX—all installed under the supervision of Dyer Electronics’ Kyle Griffith. The homeowners love it: “Doesn’t it sound great?” the lady of the house raves, even as I play “Herzeleid,” my favorite Rammstein song (the lyrics of which Griffith’s assistant translates roughly as, “I’m depressed, my life’s a drag,” and so on).

Indeed, it does sound great. In such a setting, even small speakers usually sound unbearably loud. This room, though, sounds every bit as good as the two I heard in Dallas. “I can’t believe they invested so much in such a small room,” I muse. “This is nothing,” Barr says. Turning to Griffith, he asks, “Can we see the new house?”

We arrive at the construction site of perhaps the most striking home I have ever seen. The bar accommodates two CAT MBX tower speakers, which will frame a gorgeous view of Austin’s hills. The theater, when complete, may represent the greatest realization of the CAT MBX concept, with the finest in-wall speakers CAT can build and Runco’s $250,000 MBX-1 video projector.

Speakers on Stun
I have heard CAT MBX work in rooms large and small. But can it accommodate any decor?

A trip to Houston-based dealer Audio Concepts will provide the answer. There, I encounter Area 51—the coolest-looking dealer showroom on the planet. It resembles the bridge from the Starship Enterprise of TV’s Star Trek: The Next Generation. A curved railing frames futuristic chairs, and an AMX touchscreen controls the room’s advanced technology. Stylized acoustic treatment lends a 23rd-century look.

Three CAT MBX installations prove the concept’s versatility: Audio Concepts’ Area 51 (left), a concealed speaker in Hometronics’ theater (center) and the Lights Camera Action showroom (right). (Click images to enlarge)

Despite Area 51’s unusual layout, it sounds like a CAT MBX room. Audio Concepts President Joe Heusi regales us with CDs from his extensive collection of audiophile recordings, which reveal the system’s wonderful depth and ambience. Then Barr and I crank up our favorite DVDs and CDs, causing Heusi, a devoted classical music fan, to retreat to much calmer surroundings. But the CAT MBX system never complains—despite that the center speaker is near the ceiling, an unusual and potentially problematic placement.
Area 51’s projector hides behind the screen and reflects its image through the screen with a mirror. Unfortunately, a center speaker behind the screen—“Where I prefer it,” Barr says—will block the light from the projector, so the speaker must reside above the screen. But the engineers did such a good job that I never notice the height until Barr points it out.

The Harder They Come
Next we travel to an installation that rivals the Austin home’s status as the most over-the-top CAT MBX system. Anthony Pavia, president of Lights Camera Action in Ridgefield, Conn., leads me through a breathtakingly beautiful home still under construction, filled with custom ironwork and soaring ceilings—and 38 rooms that boast CAT MBX audio.

Connecticut’s Lights Camera Action will soon begin the largest CAT MBX project yet, with nearly 100 rooms of high-end sound.

The great room will soon house a $300,000 pair of CAT 1055.0 10-foot tower speakers. Gesturing to one of two niches built for the speakers, Barr explains, “Each speaker has its own foundation, separate from the home’s foundation. The speakers weigh a ton each, so they need the support. They’re made from 8-inch-thick Avonite panels.”

“What’s Avonite?” I ask.

“A waterproof polyester acrylic material commonly used for countertops— like Corian but denser,” Barr answers. “It’s extraordinarily stiff, so it doesn’t vibrate as much as fiberboard. Cabinet vibrations make the sound unnatural and limit where you can place a speaker in a room. With Avonite, we avoid those problems.”

“Do all of the CAT MBX speakers use Avonite?”

“The high-end installations do,” Barr says. “A half-inch-thick piece costs between $30 and $50 per square foot—about a hundred times as much as fiberboard. We vary the number of layers of Avonite depending on the sound quality the customer wants to achieve.”

Island Paradise
Our next stop is Martha’s Vineyard, home of CAT MBX dealer Home Electronic Design. President of the company Bill Bennett takes us through his showroom, and Barr and I move around from chair to chair, listening for subtle differences between this system and the others we have heard. The disparities seem too subtle to note, but being devoted audio enthusiasts, we discuss them for at least an hour afterward.

On the Vineyard, the flash of New York is unwelcome; understated homes are the rule. “I’m surprised you find a market for these systems here,” I say, knowing that CAT MBX systems start at around $300,000.
“Martha’s Vineyard is where people come to get away from it all, and part of that is great entertainment,” Bennett responds. “We just finished our first CAT MBX system for a client, and we have another going in this spring.”

The CAT MBX “closet” in Austin, being built (left) and finished (right). (Click images to enlarge)

“Just how far could you take a CAT MBX system?” I ask. “What if someone came to you and said they had absolutely no budget limitations?”

“They don’t want to tell me they have no budget limitations!” Barr laughs. “If we went up to 8 inches of Avonite on all the speaker cabinets, and put in at least 24 subwoofers—which is the number you’d need to get the bass perfect—we could go over $3 million on the speakers alone.”

Home Electronic Design’s showroom features CAT MBX in-walls built into cabinets. (Click image to enlarge)

The highlight of the Vineyard trip is a party at Bennett’s home. Anthony Pavia has loaned two 1,300-lb. speakers from his store so Bennett can set up a stereo system in his barn. Barr adds some Plinius amplifiers and a sweet-sounding MSB CD player. Each side of the barn has a 6-by-6-foot barrier of hay bales, which prove to be outstanding sound absorbers; it is almost as if we are listening to the world’s largest and best pair of headphones. We spend the night experiencing our CDs as never before, enjoying sound that is as natural and enveloping as a summer rain.

The Grand Finale
Our final stop is Denver, Colo.—home of custom installer Residential Systems Inc., and perhaps the most advanced CAT MBX system created to date. To showcase the system, RSI President Ken Karnes has created a “Temple of CAT,” an exquisite room that reminds me more of Radio City Music Hall than a home theater. Tower speakers rest in dramatically lit niches, the way ancient Egyptian art might be displayed in a museum exhibit.

“We raise the bar a little with every showroom we build,” Barr explains, “and this is our most recent one. We require at least eight subwoofers, but this one has 12. We require Avonite front plates on all the speakers, but in this theater the front three speakers are made entirely from Avonite.”
Barr points out that the acoustic design of this room was completed by acoustician Steven Haas of SH Acoustics. “This is key to the program,” Barr explains. “Installers are not as good at acoustics as acousticians are. Some dealers consider themselves acoustics experts, but since there’s no licensing program for acousticians, you don’t know if they’re competent.

“That’s the hardest thing about being a CAT MBX dealer—you have to give up some control,” he continues. “Basically, the dealer sends us a detailed drawing of the room, and we design the speaker system to fit. The service providers fine-tune the room dimensions and place acoustic treatment devices as needed. Some dealers can’t admit that others might be more qualified in certain areas of home theater design. It’s better to bring in the pros.”

Editor in Chief Butterworth and CAT President Barr. (Click image to enlarge)

Karnes then shows us what bringing in the pros can do. This easily ranks among the top three home theaters I have heard, and it is probably the best. Everything sounds … yes, nearly perfect. No matter where I sit, the bass is well-defined and balanced relative to the midrange and treble. The stereo imaging sounds remarkably realistic, the midrange natural and uncolored. Especially exciting is Aaron Neville’s “Mary Don’t You Weep,” (from his Devotion DVD-Audio disc), which features a gospel chorus in the surround speakers. Barr calls me to the front of the room and asks me to face backward. As I turn, the walls seem to disappear. The system’s surround speakers create a virtual balcony, and the gospel singers spread out across the back of the room.

AFTER TRAVELING FIVE STATES to hear eight systems, am I convinced? Has CAT MBX achieved perfection?

Eight of the subwoofers housed in Eric Grundleman’s Cool AV fly-in theater are fed a “reverse” bass signal created with professional digital signal processing units. (Click image to enlarge)

I doubt anyone sharing my tenure as a reviewer of audiovisual systems would be comfortable describing any electronics product or system as perfect. But the CAT MBX systems I have heard may be as close to perfection as anyone has come in home entertainment. The fact that the craftsmen behind these systems are at least striving for perfection—taking every step they possibly can to get it right—makes their efforts as worthy of our attention as the finest watches and the fastest cars.

The pursuit of perfection demands more time, money and commitment than 99.99 percent of us are willing to offer. But I am glad someone is trying, and I consider myself privileged to have experienced the fruits of their efforts. I encourage you to do the same.

CAT MBX
888.HEARCAT
www.catmbx.com