By: Dipin Sehdev
Room acoustics are the final frontier of home theater performance. You can spend thousands on speakers, subwoofers, and amplifiers, but if your room is untreated or poorly optimized, the sound will never reach its full potential. That’s why we’re such big fans of Dirac—a company that’s spent the last decade pushing the limits of digital room correction.
Now, Dirac is taking things a step further with Dirac Live Active Room Treatment (ART)—a next-generation calibration tool that transforms how bass behaves in real-world listening spaces. The big news? Denon and Marantz, two of the most popular brands in home theater, are rolling out support for Dirac Live ART across their latest AV receivers and preamplifiers.
For enthusiasts like us, this is a game-changer. Some folks still skip room correction entirely, but we think that’s a huge mistake. Whether you have a purpose-built theater with acoustic panels or an open living room with terrible reflections, Dirac can squeeze out performance you didn’t even know your system had. And with ART, the results promise to be on another level.
Let’s dig into what Dirac Live ART is, why it matters, and which Denon and Marantz products are getting the upgrade.
What is Dirac Live ART?
Dirac Live ART builds on the foundation of the Dirac Live platform, which already includes:
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Dirac Live Room Correction – optimizes a system’s magnitude and phase response for balanced, transparent playback.
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Dirac Live Bass Control – intelligently manages subwoofers, delivering smoother and more consistent bass performance.
Where ART differs is in how it tackles the hardest problem in home audio: low-frequency control.
Instead of relying solely on subwoofers and passive room treatments, ART turns every speaker in your setup into part of the solution. By using Dirac’s patented MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) technology, ART synchronizes all your speakers to actively suppress room resonances in the critical 20–150 Hz range.
That means:
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Tighter, faster, more articulate bass.
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Reduced boominess and muddiness.
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More consistent sound across multiple seating positions.
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Less need for bulky bass traps or expensive acoustic treatment.
It’s essentially giving your speakers the intelligence to work together as a room correction system, not just play sound.
Why ART Matters for Real-World Rooms
Let’s face it: most people don’t have the luxury of building a dedicated theater with perfect dimensions and heavy acoustic treatment. Many systems live in multipurpose rooms with open walls, high ceilings, or reflective glass surfaces.
That’s where ART shines. By coordinating every speaker in the system, ART smooths out the bass response for everyone in the room—not just the sweet spot.
If you’ve ever noticed that the bass disappears on one side of your couch but rattles the windows on the other, ART is designed to fix that. And for enthusiasts chasing that last 10% of performance in a treated theater, ART provides refinements that rival what you’d normally need professional acoustic consultants to achieve.
Denon & Marantz: The First to Get ART
Denon and Marantz, both under the Masimo Consumer umbrella, are the first major brands to bring Dirac Live ART to their receivers. That’s fitting, since both brands have become go-to choices for home theater fans who want premium performance without diving into esoteric separates.
Here’s the full list of compatible models:
Denon (North America)
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AVR-A1H – Flagship 15.4-channel receiver
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AVR-A10H – High-end 11.4-channel receiver
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AVR-X6800H – 11.4-channel powerhouse
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AVR-X4800H – 9.4-channel receiver
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AVR-X3800H – 9.4-channel entry into advanced Dirac features
(In Europe & APAC, these models are branded as AVC rather than AVR, e.g., AVC-A1H, AVC-X4800H.)
Marantz
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AV10 – 15.4-channel preamplifier
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AV20 – 11.4-channel preamplifier
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CINEMA 30 – 11.4-channel flagship receiver
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CINEMA 40 – 9.4-channel receiver
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CINEMA 50 – 9.4-channel receiver
If your unit already supports Dirac Live Room Correction and Bass Control, you’re eligible for ART.
Pricing: How Much Does Dirac Live ART Cost?
Dirac Live ART is available as a software license upgrade priced at $299.
Here’s the breakdown:
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Available directly from Dirac’s online store.
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Sold separately from Room Correction and Bass Control.
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Can be bundled with other Dirac Live modules if you’re new to the ecosystem.
That means if you already have Room Correction and Bass Control, ART is the next step up. But if you’re starting from scratch, you’ll want to consider which modules fit your needs.
Feature & Price Comparison
Here’s a quick chart to compare Dirac’s three main offerings:
| Dirac Module | Focus | Key Benefit | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dirac Live Room Correction | Full-range magnitude & phase correction | Balanced, transparent sound | $259 |
| Dirac Live Bass Control | Subwoofer optimization | Tighter, more consistent bass | $349 |
| Dirac Live ART | Multi-speaker active bass treatment | Studio-grade bass clarity across the room | $299 |
(Bundle pricing may vary; licenses are device-specific.)
How ART Works in Practice
So, what’s actually happening when you run ART calibration?
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Microphone Setup – Just like Room Correction, you place a calibrated mic in multiple listening positions.
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Measurement Sweep – ART captures how your speakers and room interact in the bass range.
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MIMO Processing – The software calculates how to re-align the phase and timing of each speaker.
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Active Room Treatment – Every speaker cooperates to suppress unwanted resonances in real time.
The result is bass that’s faster, smoother, and less boomy—not just at your main seat, but throughout the room.
This makes ART particularly appealing for families or home theaters where multiple people share the experience.
Should You Upgrade?
If you own one of the supported Denon or Marantz models, the answer is almost certainly yes.
For $299, ART provides benefits that no hardware swap in that price range could deliver. A subwoofer upgrade might improve performance at one seat, but ART improves the entire room.
We also think ART is going to be a particularly big deal for open-plan living rooms and challenging spaces where traditional treatments just aren’t possible.
Looking Ahead: Dirac’s Growing Influence
Dirac has always been on the cutting edge of digital audio, but with ART hitting mainstream receivers, the company is pushing deeper into the home theater world. We wouldn’t be surprised to see ART eventually appear in more brands—Yamaha, Onkyo, Pioneer, and beyond.
As enthusiasts, we’re thrilled. Every step toward better sound in real-world rooms is a step toward making high-performance home theater more accessible.
And personally? We can’t wait to get hands-on with ART and see just how much it can elevate our own listening rooms.
Final Thoughts
Dirac Live ART isn’t just another room correction upgrade—it’s a paradigm shift. By turning your entire speaker system into an active acoustic treatment solution, it delivers results that used to be the domain of professional studios and six-figure theaters.
With Denon and Marantz leading the charge, enthusiasts now have access to studio-grade calibration tools at home. And for $299, the value is undeniable.
If you’ve ever thought room correction didn’t matter—or that your system already sounded “good enough”—we’d challenge you to give ART a try. The improvement might just surprise you.
Compatible Products: Denon AVR-A1H, AVR-A10H, AVR-X6800H, AVR-X4800H, AVR-X3800H; Marantz AV10, AV20, CINEMA 30, CINEMA 40, CINEMA 50
Upgrade Price: $299 license
Benefit: Tighter, clearer bass across every seat in the room
