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Home Theaters In A Box
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Registered User regular
I just spent most of my tax return money on a 42'' 1080p HDTV and a PS3, Wii and 360. Before I bought that stuff, I was rocking a 22'' shitty TV from the late '80s and a Dreamcast. Now I am having a feeling of "Why stop now?"
I know people always say that you should buy each part separately. And I KNOW that is a better way to go, but it just seems like it's so much more money. I also know that Bose is a butt-hole company and should be avoided, but damn is the room set up with a nice Bose system at Fry's doesn't make me want to buy one (I couldn't afford one anyway, so I guess it's a moot point.)
But, yes, I need help. Help me make my walls shake and my neighbors hate me. I don't want to spend more then, say, $500, but I'd like to spend even less then that if I could. I'm not against a HTiaB, and if someone knows of a recipe for, or a list of their, home theater, then I would love to get some recommendations.
I know people always say that you should buy each part separately. And I KNOW that is a better way to go, but it just seems like it's so much more money. I also know that Bose is a butt-hole company and should be avoided, but damn is the room set up with a nice Bose system at Fry's doesn't make me want to buy one (I couldn't afford one anyway, so I guess it's a moot point.)
But, yes, I need help. Help me make my walls shake and my neighbors hate me. I don't want to spend more then, say, $500, but I'd like to spend even less then that if I could. I'm not against a HTiaB, and if someone knows of a recipe for, or a list of their, home theater, then I would love to get some recommendations.
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And can be bought from...
http://digitaldiscounted.com/product_info.php?products_id=1984
http://www.accessories4less.com/cgi-bin/category.cgi?item=ONKHTSR800SLV
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/492532-REG/Onkyo_HT_SR800S_HT_SR800_7_1_Channel_Home_Theater.html
I know BH Photo is a reputable site, but I would check out the others before you buy.
Ok, I'm totally new to this stereo thing, I've never had more than a 2.1, so this is a really stupid question, but if I dropped the dough on a high quality system like that, would I be able to hook up my computer to it? I'm replacing my TV with a high quality LCD monitor and my media center PC.
I'm assuming the answer is yes, just wondering.
Your sound quality depends on your sound card and the type of connection between the two.
Did you get a TV, or a computer monitor?
You might also want to get a universal remote. Say... one of these.
http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harmony-Advanced-Universal-Control/dp/B00093IIRA/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1202691562&sr=8-1
or Brawl. 4854.6102.3895 Name: NU..
I haven't got it yet, waiting for my annual pay bonus on the 20th, but I was going to get a Westinghouse L2410NM. My current TV is about the same size and its best inputs are Composite, so it's definitely a significant upgrade for me.
No Vista?
hat said, I'm very pleased with what I have in terms of sound, and don't regret that money at all.
Click image for my huge backlog
That must be an outdated amazon.com descripton. The Logitech product page for the harmony 880 does confirm vista support.
http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/remotes/universal_remotes/devices/372&cl=us,en
With this, the review on Cnet said that the HDMI on it doesn't support sound, and that I'd have to use another way to get the sound through. Could I have the video from my 360/PS3 going through the HDMI and also use the optical out audio from them at the same time?
No?
ok..
SE++ Map Steam
We were thinking it.
Also, as long as we've got a discussion going on about Harmony remotes, has anybody had hands on time with the Harmony One? I'm looking for a new remote and since that's the newest (and supposed improved successor to the 880) I wanted to get people's opinions on it.
or Brawl. 4854.6102.3895 Name: NU..
For your budget, you're going to need to make some sacrifices (for no real reason). While I don't know the answer to your question, I can tell you that I am using
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers/onkyo-tx-sr604-silver/4505-6466_7-32008414.html?tag=prod.txt.2
and
http://reviews.cnet.com/surround-speaker-systems/onkyo-sks-ht540/4505-7868_7-31930496.html?tag=prod.txt.1
It's fantastic. Yes, the reciever has HDMI issues, but I live with those just fine. With the right universal remote, once everything is set up and YOU know how it works, you can then tell your remote how it works, and then no one will ever fuck anything up ever again.
Based on my experience with the 880 and this article, the updates are the touch screen, the looks, and the button layout (which are all very shallow updates). While the 880's button layout isn't perfect, it's learnable like every other remote ever made.
I like the design of the One more than the 880, the screen seems crisper (but in person that may change), and touch screens have more cool factor. What I love about the 880 is the large off button at the top and that I can have 6 activities on a single screen. I haven't heard if you can do this with the One or not, but unless it uses different software, that is just something you can toggle.
The One is very, very sexy. It is also $100 more. It also does the same exact thing as the 880.
I've never used that one, but I have an older Harmony, and it is absolutely the cat's ass. Awesome remote.
As for the home theater question, you'd have to ask other folks here for their opinions on receivers, but we love our speaker setup. They sound great, and are deep enough that we don't need a bass attached. And they're relatively cheap. Good stuff.
Make sure you pick up a reciever that supports HDMI 1.3, otherwise you won't be able to get DD-TrueHD and/or DTS-HD output when watching Blu-Ray movies on the PS3 (same goes for HD-DVDs if you ever pick up a player or the 360 add-on).
~ Buckaroo Banzai
I'm also curious about this. Looking at that system, I only see RCA inputs, rather than the 3.5mm inputs that computer sound cards require. How does one go about hooking up a computer to a setup like this?
Using these:
Add more for multichannel analog audio. (Although I heard some of Creative's cards are retarded and require some more unique cables.)
500 dollars or so there for a system eons better than any HTiB.
I have seen some old Cerwin Vegas on there for $100 and they will blow the shit out of any HTiaB. Go buy an open box receiver from Best Buy or Circuit City. By the way, My current sound system cost me all of $250 and it includes:
Yamaha HTR-5XXX (5.1 DTS and component switching)
Yamaha Center Channel
2x Yamaha 3-Way Speakers (Front, 8" Woofer)
2x Yamaha Rear Channel Speakers
8" Infinity Subwoofer (50 watts)
Speaker Stands for all speakers
I bought the receiver from BB open box for $125 and the speakers were $150 local pickup from eBay. Speakers stands were $25.
I recently spotted an Integra 6.4 on craigslist for $125. INSANE, but I missed out on it. (BTW, Integra is to Onkyo what Lexus is to Toyota)
That being said, if I had a chance to start new and had a bigger budget this time around, you bet your ass I'd buy each component separately.
2008, 2012, 2014 D&D "Rare With No Sauce" League Fantasy Football Champion!
Anyway, my advice is to be patient and buy it bit by bit. I have a killer 5.1 system that took me a while to acquire, but I got my digital receiver for $200, front speakers, $75 for the pair (Amazing sony bookshelfs. Friggin' awesome speakers), Rear JVC bookshelf speakers $50 for the pair (A little cheaper, wouldn't mind upgrading, but they do really well), killer Cerwin Vega center channel for $75. Since my TV has two HDMI inputs and the digital out, everything just goes into the TV and then audio goes through the optical line to the receiver. $400 and all I'm missing is a powered sub.
I can crank my system and everything is crystal clear and crisp. Very high quality sound. Watch for sales and pick stuff up when the opportunity is there. That's my advice.
Alternatively, you can get it all at once in one place, but I'd still recommend buying it in pieces. It's okay to mix brands. :P
EDIT: I guess I missed the DVD player - I got a higher quality LG upconverting DVD player for $100, but if you're okay with standard output, you don't need to spend as much. Also, I bought all this in Future Shop, Best Buy and Soundsaround (The only time I ever buy from Soundsaround is the once a year 12 hour sale they have here in Calgary every September. You can find some absolutely crazy deals. My car deck is from that sale - $400 deck for $200)
It won't get very loud, the subwoofer is weak at best (it's not even powered) and the receiver, while good because its Onkyo, lacks a lot of inputs and doesn't put out much power.
Still decent enough for the money and far better than the speakers on your television but try listening to an *actual* system (composed of a nice receiver, voice matched speakers, nice subwoofer, etc) and you'd see an enormous difference.
I still say buying some Polk speakers from Fry's on sale or looking in Craigslist for decent Polk/Klipsch/Athena/Integras or whatever else you can find and throwing in a decent powered sub from Craigslist too could net you a system for pretty damn cheap that is wayyyyyyyyy better than a HTiB.
But if simplicity is all you need, I'd get a 5.1 HTiB from Onkyo. Don't get a 7.1, it's worthless.
Make sure whatever HTiB you get includes full-range speakers with both woofers (hopefully at least 5 or 6 inches) and tweeters. The sub should be bigger still and make sure the crossover point isn't set high to compensate for shitty front speakers - it should be in the 50-80hz range.
There's a difference between volume and power. Volume is SPL (sound pressure level) in speaker terms and measured with db.
Ah, ok. That's what I figured, but I wasn't sure if those conversion cables would lower the quality of sound.
For those of you who are recommending that people assemble their own system, rather than buying the HTIAB setups, what do you recommend for a 2.1 setup (2 speakers + sub + receiver) in the sub-$500 range?
I'd hit a pro audio site like Musicians' friend and do some browsing. Behringer and KRK make great speakers that don't break the bank. Check out active speakers as well (built in matched amplifiers.)
You could probably get good basic powered sub and two powered monitors for $500ish
Start here, for example.
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/navigation?N=100001+8&Ntk=All&Ntt=monitors&Nty=1
110 watts x 5 channels. If you just want 2.1 now, this'll do it and allow you to go 5.1 later.
http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/HomeEntertainment/AV-Receivers/PioneerReceivers/ci.VSX-517-K%7CS.Kuro
EDIT: All I have hooked up to it is my LCD TV which is hooked into the optical port and my iPod dock, which is hooked into the CD in. Seems like a waste, eh?
That said, I would still buy separate components if possible. Right now I have a 5.1 HTiB setup, an old Sony model (probably 5 or 6 years old) which cost around $500 at the time. I've had no issues with the sound at all, however the motor that spins dvds is starting to go, and that means we're encountering a problem I didn't think about when purchasing the system - the dvd player is a single point of failure that can serious screw up our entire setup. I have our 360, Wii, and HD cable running through the dvd player for surround. If I have to take out the dvd player it will require an assload of work to get sound back up and running. And I would likely end up re-running my speaker wires and replacing all the speakers (they have a non-standard connection that wouldn't work with non-Sony hardware). So I say get individual components, so if something breaks you don't have to rework your whole system. I'm hoping this one live up until we move.
Personally, I plan to stick with stereo because any money spent on center and rear speakers could be put towards better L & R speakers.
...or transducers, subharmonic synthesizers, subtraction harmonic processors, turntables, noise reducers, jitter correctors, customizable crossovers, external DACs, turntables, power conditioners or any of the other gear I've prioritized adding to my Home Theatre over 5.1
Check out this site for their latest refurbished deals: http://www.shoponkyo.com/products.cfm?specials=1&group_id=1
They come with a one-year parts and labor warranty.
Same here. $30 speakers plus a cheap pair of headphones for when I need to be quiet is all I really need. Now, video quality, on the other hand, is a completely different story.
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