Home Theatre Suggestions

embrik

Hey folks,
So, I'm looking to get a nice receiver and a 5.1 to 7.1 speaker system. I think 5.1 would probably suit my setup best, since the "listening space" is relatively small. My TV is about 8.5 feet from my couch, and I think a set of 7 speakers might get in the way. I'll let you confirm with these photos:

Looking at couch/tv
Looking at TV whilst sitting on couch
Looking left of my tv from the couch

I have a pretty good idea of which receiver I want to go with (Silver Onkyo SR605), but feel free to recommend something different.
My TV is a Sharp Aquos LC-32D5U (32").

I'll have the following connected:
Sony DVD Player (HDMI)
XBox 360 (component)
Gamecube (component)
DirectTV HD DVR (HDMI)
Dell Optiplex 745 (DVI to the TV, audio through receiver - stereo miniplug if possible (could convert to RCA))
and, for good measure,
JVC VCR (composite)

Sorry to list all this crap, just want to make sure my bases are covered.

So, what do I need from all you awesome forumers? Well, besides suggesting other receivers, what do I do for speakers? Brand suggestions are cool, brand and model suggestions are better. I don't have a price cap, per se, but I'd obviously not object to saving some money. I think the receiver I listed (which currently retails for around $500 US) would probably be about as much as I'd want to spend there, and for speakers, I dunno what would be considered a lot of money for speakers, as I've only ever bought surround sound for my PC, which is a bit different.

Oh, and I already know that the green recliner doesn't really go against my red wall, but it was free, and it's comfy, so it stays for now!


tl;dr : I need help picking out speakers and a receiver for a home theatre system.

embrik

Okay, I'm going to bump this once, and once only. Can anyone recommend me some speakers to stick in that room? How much is average for a 5.1 system? I can't believe there wouldn't be any opinions.

Rabid_Llama

All I can say is 5.1 might be the better choice. I have a 7.1 and it runs into a lot of compatibility issues since EVERYTHING is geared toward 5.1 sound. It is really quite frustrating.

drinkinstout

I really enjoy my Klipsch speaker setup (http://klipsch.com/products/lists/bookshelf-systems.aspx)

mine is about 7 years old and I guess comparable to the Cinema 10 system. Excellent sound.

ElJeffe

Go with Paradigm for the speakers. Awesome, awesome performance, and a comparatively low price. I have never heard speakers for those prices that sound as good.

Perhaps mini-monitors for the front, atoms for the rears, and a CC-170 center channel. Don't skimp on the sub, though - a cheap sub sounds dirty and shitty. If you can bring yourself to drop $1000 on speakers, it'll be well worth the price. Getting a $500 receiver and only spending a few hundred on speakers would be a waste of resources. If you're not willing to drop a grand on speakers, I highly recommend you get a cheaper receiver. My experience has led me to think that the total cost of all your speakers should be roughly twice the cost of the receiver, so as to get a good match in performance capabilities.

Speaking of receivers, Onkyo makes fairly good ones, but for $500 I would go with Marantz. This one is $50 more, and its predecessor sounded fantastic. The only reason I don't have a Marantz in my home is because when I was shopping around, the Marantz I could afford had a truly awful remote. I went with a good Yamaha instead, but I sort of miss not getting a Marantz. If $550 is too much for you, they have a $370 model that probably sounds great, as well.

The Onkyo you listed has HDMI upconversion on all inputs, which is nice, all it really means is that you have one video cable going to the TV instead of two. Converting analog signals to digital at the receiver instead of at the TV won't make anything look better. And no offense, but judging by your set-up, electronic tidiness doesn't seem to be a concern. ;-)

Beyond that, the Marantz has all the features you'd need, and it'll likely sound better. Go check them out in person, of course, but you may want to give them a try.

But seriously - Paradigm for speakers. You can drop anywhere between $500-1000 (or more, of course) on them and they'll sound good.

Oh, when it comes time to buy rear speakers, you'll be making a choice between monopole and dipole speakers. Most speakers are monopole - they're single point-source speakers. Dipoles are basically two speakers crammed together, one facing forward, and one backward. They emit sound out of phase, and the result is a more immersive, less localized sound. This has strengths and weaknesses. For ambient sounds, they're great. If the audio has rain, or crowd noise, or anything like that, it really helps make it feel like you're in the middle of things. It's also fantastic for listening to music. The downside is that sound effects that are supposed to sound like they're coming from a fixed point - a gunshot, or any other sort of singular effect - will sound a little less distinct. I have dipoles (Paradigm ADP-370s), and I love them dearly. It's more a matter of choice, though dipoles run a little pricier. (Mine were $550/pr, but I think the ADP-170s are only $250/pr or so).

In general, you should split your money equally between rears, fronts, and the center, and then spend a little more for the sub. For example, $200 for the rears (combined), $200 for the fronts (combined), $200 for the center (it's where all the dialog comes from, so you want it to be a good, clear speaker), and $400 for the sub. If you have to skimp, don't skimp on the center. Also, you can get full-range speakers and hold off on the sub for awhile. Things won't boom as nicely, but they won't sound tinny and crappy, either.

Oh, and don't fucking buy Bose.

embrik

Cool, that's just what I needed to know. I'll be stopping by some stores to check this stuff out. I definitely think I can do $1000 for the speakers. As for the receiver, I was principally looking at the new Onkyo models because of the new features like HDMI 1.3 and the new audio standards that BluRay and HD-DVD utilize. I don't know how concerned about those I should be, though.

As for my mess, I know... it's bad... I keep telling myself that it'll be one of my "rainy day" projects, but it hasn't rained here much recently.

Thanks for the Bose reminder. I know they used to be crappy, but I wasn't sure if that was still the case.

So, my next question is, for the rear speakers, would having them up on stands (like in those Klipsh models that drinkinstout posted) work best? I think it would probably be best for me, especially since I'd prefer not to drill any holes, and it probably wouldn't be good if half of the speaker was on the floor, being blocked by the couch.

Oh, and where should I locate the sub? I might be able to put it on the right side of the couch, but not behind, or can I put it near the TV? I know that subs are not really "directional", so placement isn't important. (Or am I wrong?)

drinkinstout

based on your pictures and you not wanting to drill holes, stands would be almost required for your rear speakers... as for the sub, I would put it in the corner, to the right of the TV.

Wezoin

The way my dad sorted out his home theatre system (and I think it probably suits most people best) is he bought one of those "home theatre in a box" packages for like $500, then slowly started replacing the speakers as he had the money. (It started off as a pioneer set, but now has 3 paradigm speakers in it, and you can hear the sound quality getting better as he replaces them, but being $250 - $350 each those speakers wouldn't have been something he could afford to buy all at once)

What I'd say is decide on a fairly nice cheap set that you like, then on your "dream" speaker set and just slowly upgrade from the cheap to the dream.

ElJeffe

Wezoin's idea isn't a bad one - it's what I'm doing, more or less. Every time I get a chunk of money, I get a new speaker or two.

As to sub placement, there's a really neat trick you can do. Because of the non-directional nature of the sub, and for reasons I won't go into because I don't fully remember them, if you put the sub at point A and stand at point B, it will sound the same as if you put it at point B and stand at point A. What you can do, then, is stick the sub on the floor right where you'd be sitting on the couch. (Ideally, you'd place it right where your ear would be, but the sub needs to be on a firm surface and not on a squishy sofa.) Then you play something through the system that has some good bass, and crawl around on the floor until you find the spot where the sub sounds the best. That's where you should put it.

Realistically, of course, you're not going to place it in the middle of the floor, so you should probably pick two or three spots where it would be convenient to place it and check those out. Given that a quality sub can be 70 pounds or more, it's probably easier to move yourself from place to place than to huck the sub around.

Also, newer HDMI standards are a good thing, but a lot of equipment can be connected online to update the firmware to newer versions. Something to look out for. I'm not an expert on the difference between assorted HDMI standards, so I don't know how important it is, but current is going to be better than not-current.

As to Bose, yeah, they still suck. They're tiny, tinny, and made from shitty materials. They also cost about an order of magnitude more than they're worth. And apparently they're designed to break after a few years, at which point Bose customer service offers to take in your old system for a few hundred dollars' credit towards an upgrade. But yeah, my mom had a $2500 system that wasn't even 5.1 - it was Pro Logic - that was easily outperformed by my $400 receiver and $500 worth of speakers. The only advantage it had was that the speakers were "little and cute". It died, and my mom got to choose between paying $300 for them to repair it (it was something like a blown fuse) and shelling out another $2000 to upgrade to their Super New Awesome Deluxe System. She should've taken that $300, thrown in another $200, and bought a Home Theater In a Box. Would've been a fuckload better.

tl;dr: Fuck Bose.