Ok, I'm at a loss here is what I want/need to do and I'm trying to do it on the cheap if at all possible (I know it's not but I don't want posts saying go buy this $1800 setup cause I can't/won't; I'm married)

Just bought a new house, have never had a Home theater system. The house has 7.1 in the living room pre-wired; it is about 400-500 sq. ft.(This will run the Wii, PS3 (Blu-Ray), HD DVR, IPOD/Stereo) Then in the master bedroom it is pre-wired for 5.1; it is about 250 sq. ft. (only going to have HD DVR and DVD player in this room) Then throughout the entire house including the back patio and garage it is pre-wired for I believe 2.0(?).

So my question is would this receiver power all of this or would I need two receivers. Also as I said before I don't want an super expensive setup, but what would be the best set of speakers to get for this type setup. I may have to just start in the living room and then move to the other rooms in a couple other months. I also don't have $900 for just a receiver. I'm looking at max of $1k total or at $500 - $800 for just the living room as a start. Any suggestions you guys can provide would be awesome.

Then in the master bedroom it is pre-wired for 5.1; it is about 250 sq. ft. (only going to have HD DVR and DVD player in this room).Is the bedroom wired for a stand-alone system, or does all the wiring run back to living room?


So my question is would this receiver power all of this or would I need two receivers. Well, if they're wired as separate systems, then obviously two receivers. If they're all wired to a central location, no cheap receiver is going to do all that plus the back patio and garage. You're talking about a fairly complex set-up at that point with additional issues besides running all the speakers. For instance, if the bedroom is wired to the central location, you'll have to find a way to control the living room receiver the bedroom speakers are connected to, in the bedroom. Get the picture?

Also as I said before I don't want an super expensive setup... I'm looking at max of $1k total or at $500 - $800 for just the living room as a start. I fear that your desires have already outstripped your budget. Might just want to stick with the living room system and deal with the rest later (if at all).

...but what would be the best set of speakers to get for this type setup. Are you talking about in-wall speakers, free-standing, on-wall surface mounted, or what? You didn't tell us which kind the pre-wiring is pre-wired for...

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

First all I just want to tahnk you for taking on this question for me. I appreciate your help, and any others who may offer suggestions. here is the information that I have:

[FONT="Comic Sans MS"]Is the bedroom wired for a stand-alone system, or does all the wiring run back to living room? I just got home and was able to check it appears that the wires for the bedroom just run in the bedroom they do not run to the central location (however doing so if need be would not be hard to do looking at the way they are routed through the attic).


For instance, if the bedroom is wired to the central location, you'll have to find a way to control the living room receiver the bedroom speakers are connected to, in the bedroom. Get the picture? I was aware of this issue and I've picked up a Harmony 1100 with 2 RF receivers, to handle this obstacle. I expected that something like that would be in the way.
What other obstacles do you believe I will face?

I fear that your desires have already outstripped your budget. Might just want to stick with the living room system and deal with the rest later (if at all). I figured this much, and I believe that is what I'm going to do for now.

Are you talking about in-wall speakers, free-standing, on-wall surface mounted, or what? You didn't tell us which kind the pre-wiring is pre-wired for...
Sorry left this part off. The house that I have has a entertainment system built into the wall where the TV sits. So the LF, RF and Center Channel all sit on a ledge on top of the TV. There is a space underneath the TV built into the wall to house the Sub it is about 2 feet tall and 4 feet wide. For the rear speakers (don't know how many there are supposed to be) they are on another ledge (pot shelf) on the back wall of the living room. Then for the middle two there are two junction boxes (in the ceiling; they have covers on them now) but I believe they will allow for on wall hookup of the speakers.

Hope all that helps. Thanks again.

I just got home and was able to check it appears that the wires for the bedroom just run in the bedroom they do not run to the central location (however doing so if need be would not be hard to do looking at the way they are routed through the attic). Not sure why you would have to go into the attic for that? There should be someplace in the bedroom with a bunch of speaker wires coming out of the wall at a single location...

Sorry left this part off. The house that I have has a entertainment system built into the wall where the TV sits. So the LF, RF and Center Channel all sit on a ledge on top of the TV.
Oooh, nooo... You don’t want the left and right speakers on top of the TV. You want them spread apart, so you can hear the effect when sounds pan across the front. It’s best to have them the same distance apart as the distance from the TV to the seating position, or as close to that as possible

There is a space underneath the TV built into the wall to house the Sub it is about 2 feet tall and 4 feet wide. Nooo, nooo, nooo! A sub stuck inside a built-in cabinet is about the worst thing you can do! Typically you want them at or near a corner. Sounds like whoever built this thing knew more about carpentry than home theater. But that's pretty typical. :D

For the rear speakers (don't know how many there are supposed to be) they are on another ledge (pot shelf) on the back wall of the living room. Then for the middle two there are two junction boxes (in the ceiling; they have covers on them now) but I believe they will allow for on wall hookup of the speakers. The size and layout of your room will determine how many rear speakers, and their locations. A 5-speaker system is adequate for most rooms, unless they are overly large, with the rear located to the sides, slightly behind and above the listening position. But there can be some benefit to ne or two rear speakers directly behind the seating location. Since you budget is tight, I think I’d just stick with the 5-speaker set up.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Well I don't know how it's constructed but here is a picture of my setup in both my living room and mbr. The L, R, and Center channel don't sit right on top of it each other. There is space between them and they are about 4 feet apart (the boxes with wires). The rear speakers are above the couch as you can see they are supposed to be placed on that ledge you see in the picture. The bedroom should be pretty straight forward.

So here's my question, I need a receiver that is going to run the living room (7.1) and the speakers that run the whole house. I'm looking at either a 606, 607, 706 or 707 by Onkyo? Is this what I should be looking at or are these too low powered to run this. Also as you suggested I was looking at just setting up the living room to run 5.1 instead of 7.1 although it is wired for that. Do you think that the Klipsch HD 500 would be a good system to start with. I understand then that I would want to run klipsch throughout the rest of the house so is this a good set to go with to start?

Thanks again for your help.

Any help? Just bought a NR807 with the Newegg deal. Hopefully this isn't overkill.