Instead of who has the best setup or who has the most expensive setup, lets hear (no pun intended) who has the most poorly matched/cheapest/most thrown together setup. This would also include temporary setups.

I'll start:
TV: 20" Sanyo tube, fake woodgrain sides + single cable input + excellent color:o
Mains: JBL L-100 (circa 1972) Free!:D
C/SR/SL: KLH kit, $15:o
LFE: 10" Rockford Fosgate sub and a 100W plate amp from ebay in a roughly 1cuft mdf enclosure
Stands: Stands for the mains I built using pine, TV stand is from walmart.
Reciever: Sony STRDE698 7.1
DVD: Sony 5-disc carousel occasionally freezes in the middle of movies:mad:
Xbox: Modded w/ Xecuter 3CE, Clear case, 250GB HDD, runs XBMC:D
Cable: Pioneer Digital Cable tuner w/ basic digital cable service:o
Couch: 1970's 7' couch x2, They been re-upholstered.
Pics:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2054/2182984929_36dc15ddfa_o.jpg
Sub is upside down and out of the cabinet to avoid resonant freqs and for a more even frequency response.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2351/2182984843_73657724b5_o.jpg
SR/SL speakers are beside the main viewing seat, works well for Xbox.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2241/2182984879_623ba05630_o.jpg
Fairly decent for a college student I'd say. Looking for 37"-42" LCD and Athena speakers as budget allows.

Don't be embarrassed now... lets see some of your systems!

finally! ... my set up is better than someone else's set up!
lol

finally! ... my set up is better than someone else's set up!
lol
Thanks for the encouragement, what do you have?

I don't have a picture of mine but here it is:

TV: Panasonic TH-42PZ77U 42" plasma
DVD: Pioneer DV-C505 5-disc changer, interlaced but has components
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-D508, so old it doesn't even have s-video ports
CD: RCA RP-8065 5-disc changer
Main speakers: Yamaha NS-A638
Surround Speakers: None
Cable: None
OTA: Hardly any digital channels and the reception on the analog ones is terrible

I have to hold open the DVD changer tray and drop a disc onto the carousel while it spins around and although my speakers are 3-way, one of them is only 2-way because of a non-functioning midrange speaker.

I spent more on the TV than I originally planned too so unfortunately the rest of my setup must suffer.

I don't have a picture of mine but here it is:

TV: Panasonic TH-42PZ77U 42" plasma
DVD: Pioneer DV-C505 5-disc changer, interlaced but has components
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-D508, so old it doesn't even have s-video ports
CD: RCA RP-8065 5-disc changer
Main speakers: Yamaha NS-A638
Surround Speakers: None
Cable: None
OTA: Hardly any digital channels and the reception on the analog ones is terrible

I have to hold open the DVD changer tray and drop a disc onto the carousel while it spins around and although my speakers are 3-way, one of them is only 2-way because of a non-functioning midrange speaker.

I spent more on the TV than I originally planned too so unfortunately the rest of my setup must suffer.

I would have done TV last, that setup sounds like a nightmare!

I hope this gets more responses. This could be an entertaining thread. More pics please. :p

Thanks for the encouragement, what do you have?

http://a24.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/30/l_9e90b199bed65b403011573d1153e7b7.jpg =)

http://a24.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images01/30/l_9e90b199bed65b403011573d1153e7b7.jpg =)

Ok your not allowed in here :cool:

lol, that cracked me up
but seriouslly, there are alot of set up in here is is just so crazy it would make mine look like a dump.
But the real lesson here is "enjoy of what you have" people will never be happy of what they have and always wanted more.
i recommend the book The Art of Happiness
=)

I would enjoy it more if my speakers weren't 30 yrs apart in age! Well put though, I do enjoy it as do my other roommates.

I almost agree with you, malovich, but to me, the heart of a theater system is the visuals. I can stomach one 3-way speaker, one 2-way speaker, and a DVD player that functions more like a merry-go-round, but trying to live with a TV that needs a good pounding during the middle of a movie is completely out of the question.:D

I almost agree with you, malovich, but to me, the heart of a theater system is the visuals. I can stomach one 3-way speaker, one 2-way speaker, and a DVD player that functions more like a merry-go-round, but trying to live with a TV that needs a good pounding during the middle of a movie is completely out of the question.:D

To each his own.....

OK. I'll play although my setup doesn't qualify as "cheap"; just mis-matched.

TV: Toshiba 50HM66 DLP. 50" TV that sits on an Ikea TV stand that's about 6" too narrow so the TV hangs over both sides.
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-D607S (Strictly composite switching and only two digital inputs: 1 optical, 1 coax. It only decodes Dolby Digital. Can't do DTS).
Speakers: Mirage AVS-1000 bookshelf speakers & AVS-500 subwoofer. Nice but small. My front speaker stands are an old set of floor speakers that I've had since high school (in the early '80s) -- brand long forgotten but they were cheap, cheap, cheap. The rear stands are from Ikea.
Cable: SA8300HD PVR. There goes the coax digital input on my receiver. Have to wire the component cables directly to the TV for HD output.
HDM: Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD player. Can't use the bitstream audio output because the player converts it to DTS which my reciever can't decode. So I'm stuck using PCM output.

Now here comes the big mismatch part of my system:

DVD/CD playback: Kaleidescape 5U Server w/5.5 TB of storage and a Kaleidescape KPlayer-2500. Most people who have a system like this have it wired into their glorious home theatre; I've got the server sitting on a wire rack in my unfinished basement.

How's that for mismatched?

That is decently mismatched with many pitfalls! Sounds like all you need are a set of matching speaker-stands and a new receiver, a fairly cheap "upgrade". My setup is completely mismatched and no one part of it can be a base to upgrade from, maybe the receiver but thats it. Xbox has no merit in upgradeitis.
And you mean Mirage AVS-100 not 1000 right?

Instead of who has the best setup or who has the most expensive setup, lets hear (no pun intended) who has the most poorly matched/cheapest/most thrown together setup.

I'll start:


I think your stuff matches perfectly.

malovich, I think you need to redefine what you want this thread to be about. Mis-matched and cheap are not one-and-the-same. Mis-matched would be like having one black dress sock and one white athletic ankle sock with a hole in the toe. Cheap would just be a pair of socks with holes. MacTVJunkie's setup is definitely mis-matched, more so than both mine and yours. My system, with a new plasma TV and old components is also mis-matched. Your system actually matches very well, it just consists of old components.

Please don't misunderstand me, I am not being condescending, just stating the facts as per the title of this thread - as of right now, MacTVJunkie has the most mismatched system.

Congratulations MacTV, now stand and take a bow.:)

Now, how about anyone else? Let's see some more mismatched systems.

That is decently mismatched with many pitfalls! Sounds like all you need are a set of matching speaker-stands and a new receiver, a fairly cheap "upgrade".

Agreed. In fact, a new receiver is next on the list. Currently looking at the Onkyo TXSR605 as my front runner.

I'm not sure I'll bother with new speaker stands just yet. The plan is to finish the basement at which point I'll have a home theatre room to house all of the equipment.

And you mean Mirage AVS-100 not 1000 right?

Could very well be. I bought them as a package about 8 or 9 years ago and can't rightly remember their model number.

By the way, I'm not sure if I should be happy that I'm currently "winning" the most mis-matched category. :D But I agree that malovich is the front runner for the cheapest system category.

Should I omit the "cheapest" category or leave it? How would I better define in the title/first post where this thread is going?

I don't think it hurts to have both a mis-matched and a cheapest category. That might get a few more of us to crawl out of the woodwork.

I'm even summoning up the courage/gumption to post a picture of my setup. That ought to be good for a few laughs.

Edited main post to reflect temporary setups aswell.

TV: Sony KDF 37" RP Bravia 720p
AVR: Harmon Kardon AVR 310
Media Players: Sony PS3/Toshiba HD-A2/DirecTV HR10.
Front Speakers: Polk Audio 8b
Center: Merak MCH6
Rear: Klipsch Quintet II
Sub: Dhalquest 12"

don't know if that's a mis match, but it works for our current place.

lol, i posted my pic in seriousness. Here's why,
My left and right front are PCM, my center channel is JVC, my left and right surround are Yamaha, my left and right rear are Bose, and my subwoofer is Klisph =) if that's not mix match, then i don't know. I think we count only mix match right? because mines aren't cheap =)

lol, i posted my pic in seriousness. Here's why,
My left and right front are PCM, my center channel is JVC, my left and right surround are Yamaha, my left and right rear are Bose, and my subwoofer is Klisph =) if that's not mix match, then i don't know. I think we count only mix match right? because mines aren't cheap =)

Mis-matched that is, 5 speaker brands and one of them being bose....

Mine isn't too horribly mismatched, but i figured i'd put it up here anyway. it was pretty cheap, at least for me, though some of the components are pretty nice. (at least, for me)
TV: 27" Toshiba CRT with a chip in the screen and some weird wiggly lines on it sometimes- $30 on craigslist
Receiver: Onkyo TX-SR504- $170 on major sale on amazon.com
Front L & R speakers: Infinity SL-40 circa 1990- free from my mom "Now promise, no crazy parties with these..."
Center channel: Sony something with 3 1/2" cones- $20 on craigslist
Rear Surrounds: Infinity bookshelf with 'woofers' replaced due to age- $40 on craigslist
Surrounds: Some really sh!tty sharp speakers that came with my bookshelf stereo in high school.
LFE: none yet
Xbox for games and movies
Wii

My next planned upgrade will be my tv this fall after working all summer and getting rich, it'll be something like an Aquos 46", and i'm hoping by then Sharp will have the LED backlighting. i'll probably get a 360 or PS3 at the same time, so that i'll have some actual HD content to watch on the glorious TV.

i'm going to get an LFE eventually, but i'm pretty happy with the bass my SL-40's give me and my landlord lives next door, so uber bass is probably not that great an idea.

at some point i'd like to upgrade the surround speakers too, but i need to figure out better placement for them besides on the arms of my chair...

but not too shabby for a college boy, eh?

Instead of who has the best setup or who has the most expensive setup, lets hear (no pun intended) who has the most poorly matched/cheapest/most thrown together setup. This would also include temporary setups.

I'll start:
TV: 20" Sanyo tube, fake woodgrain sides + single cable input + excellent color:o
Mains: JBL L-100 (circa 1972) Free!:D
C/SR/SL: KLH kit, $15:o
LFE: 10" Rockford Fosgate sub and a 100W plate amp from ebay in a roughly 1cuft mdf enclosure
Stands: Stands for the mains I built using pine, TV stand is from walmart.
Reciever: Sony STRDE698 7.1
DVD: Sony 5-disc carousel occasionally freezes in the middle of movies:mad:
Xbox: Modded w/ Xecuter 3CE, Clear case, 250GB HDD, runs XBMC:D
Cable: Pioneer Digital Cable tuner w/ basic digital cable service:o
Couch: 1970's 7' couch x2, They been re-upholstered.
Fairly decent for a college student I'd say. Looking for 37"-42" LCD and Athena speakers as budget allows.


I think my setup qualifies as cheap. It's basically the cheapest HD setup you can have.

TV - 37" LG 37LB5D
Surround - Logitech Z5500
Xbox 360
HD set top box

I used to have a softmodded XBOX with a 200GB HD. It had XBmC on it and I loved streaming media from the network. the problem is that 3 months ago I bought all this stuff and once you have an HD tv, the xbox really doesn't look good. So i built myself an HTPC connected to the Tv and Z5500. Now it a great cheap setup. It sounds good too, the Z5500 is probably the cheapest, good sounding surround sound, and it decodes DD and DTS.

Okay, how about a cheap and mistmatched temporary (really most likely becoming a permanent) HD set up in the basement? I've got a Panny 200 (yes, the new one) being held up to the ceiling by a 2'X2' sheet of plywood attached to four threaded rods. The screen is a 4X8 sheet of 1/2" drywall wrapped in BOC with binder clips all around, but holding the material very flat. The "screen" (aka drywall) is held up by a horizontal 2X4 on each bottom corner. Hey, don't laugh too hard. This set up works really well and besides, most everyone is in awe of the picture and quickly forgets my redneck set up (no pun intended towards any rednecks as I are one 2!).

The receiver is an old Kenwood that's sitting on a shelf made of 2X4's horizontally coming out of a wall (towards the inside wall under the stairs), with a sheet of OSB on top. On top of the receiver is an HD DVD player (Toshiba A30) and then a Dish HD DVR on top of that. My speaker system is a Bose (oh no) Accoustimas system with the Bose subwoofer and rear Bose bookshelf speakers. The center channel is a Yamaha. Finally, my cool theater seats are three old lazy boys and a bunch of chairs I also take to my little league games.

Anyway, yes, I dream of having the most perfect theater (just like everyone else) but for the time being, while I finish my basement I really do have the best of both worlds for the time being.

Here's my family room setup. I don't have all the specific model numbers with me.

Projector: SP4805
Main Speakers: Bose 901
Surround Speakers: KEF (15 years old)
Center: HTD Center
AV Receiver: Denon AVR ( 10-12 years old) 110W x 7
AMP for 901s: Carver TFM-55x 550W
CD Player: Denon single deck. (15 years old)
DVD Player: Oppo 971
VHS Player: (brand x)
Sub: Cheap 15" passive driven by a Hafler DH500 500W amp.

Tom

My setup is cheap and mis matched, but performs very nicely.

Dish VIP622 HD PVR w/OTA Locals - $399
Original Xbox w/component out (720p) running XBMC - $99
Infocus SP5000 720p projector - $799
96" DIY Screen - $100
7 year old Kenwood 5.1 HTIB - $299 back then
Mains - 15" Pioneer speakers - Free
ONE FOR ALL Kameleon 8 learning remote - $20

Refurbished items are great:D

http://www.woodyfamilycinema.com/picture_library/IMG_4502.JPG

http://www.woodyfamilycinema.com/picture_library/IMG_4503.JPG

I bought an Infocus LP240 lcd projector for $220 one fleabay w/ 298 hrs on the bulb Sunday (2/10/08). My mismatched system will be morphing shortly!

My setup is fairly cheap and also pretty mismatched.

TV: Philips 47" LCD HDTV
Receiver: Kenwood 514(?) DD, DTS only
HDM: Toshiba A35
Cable: Cox HD
Fronts: 2 Kenwood 3-way towers from ~8 years ago
Center: Bose
Surrounds: Bose
Subwoofer: JBL (sp-something)

All of my speaker wires are mismatched and soldered and heat shrunk together, and the surrounds are on some weird off brand universal speaker stands.