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The right speaker setup - your expert advice needed

post #1 of 12
5/31/12 at 6:11pm
Thread Starter 
Hello,

I am an occasional, but long-time lurker on avs but finally bought a house that warrants a decent sound setup. I am pretty much sold on getting a Denon AVR2112ci for my receiver and I have already wired the house for 7.1 sound using 12awg speaker wire.

Assuming the AVR2112ci is around $450-500, that leaves me with a MAX of $500-600 to spend on a 5.1 speaker set up and I could really use some advice on what speakers to get for the room which is about 15 feet by 20 feet. Some options to consider:

1. Energy Take Classic 5.1 - $399 - might not be powerful enough?
2. Energy Take Classic 5.0 for $249 and then add a better sub
3. Klipsch HD Theater 1000 - $500
4. Anything else that you guys might suggest

Any advice is much appreciated, thanks in advance!
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post #2 of 12
6/1/12 at 12:46am
Congrats on your new home purchase.

Now for the bad news...I don't think you're going to get much more than a HTIB set for that budget, and it'll be fairly unremarkable in that size room.

I would get to know SlickDeals (with a net) and FatWallet (with a com).

Why the 2112? Networking? can be done cheaper with a refurb Blu-ray player.

The 1712 offers Multi-Eq level of Audyssey, which would be more attractive to me for 'decent sound', and would open up more of your budget to speakers.

Really, 5-600 is what you'd be looking at for one decent 'real' subwoofer, for the space you're trying to fill. I suspect that's why you havn't gotten any responses. But it's true. Unpleasant to hear? Maybe, but the money you'd end up wasting through incremental 'upgrades' would be more unpleasant that saving for a better initial set-up.

For a 1100 budget... 300 for a receiver, 500 for a sub, and 300 for a decent pair of speakers for your front L and R, and then add the center and surrounds later as your budget allows. This will allow you to get some quality pieces that you'll enjoy now, and wont feel the need to upgrade for some time.

Look at it as a % of the cost of that nice, new house? You won't live there forever, but good, quality speakers could easily go with you to the next house. I spent / wasted more $ upgrading speakers than it would've cost to buy the right tool the first time. For 600 for five speakers AND a sub ? MAYBE if you found one heckuva deal on used equipment through Craigslist or similar outlets... but ... you'd better be able to recognize that deal the second it pops up, and have the chutzpah to pull the trigger. So not very likely.

Not trying to rain on your parade. Truly I'm not, but I don't want to see you spend what you have now on something you won't be happy with. Piece it together slowly, be patient, look for deals, and do more research so you'll recognize the deal when it does pop up.

Joseph
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post #3 of 12
6/1/12 at 2:46am
^^^^
he speaks the truth
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post #4 of 12
6/1/12 at 4:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jproy13 View Post

^^^^
he speaks the truth

Indeed. Couldn't do it better if I tried.

The price premiums for these network receivers are hard to understand unless people don't know what you can do with a < $150 (<$80 refurb) blu ray players.
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post #5 of 12
6/1/12 at 5:52am
Quote:
Originally Posted by xerxes717 View Post

Hello,

I am an occasional, but long-time lurker on avs but finally bought a house that warrants a decent sound setup. I am pretty much sold on getting a Denon AVR2112ci for my receiver and I have already wired the house for 7.1 sound using 12awg speaker wire.

Assuming the AVR2112ci is around $450-500, that leaves me with a MAX of $500-600 to spend on a 5.1 speaker set up and I could really use some advice on what speakers to get for the room which is about 15 feet by 20 feet. Some options to consider:

1. Energy Take Classic 5.1 - $399 - might not be powerful enough?
2. Energy Take Classic 5.0 for $249 and then add a better sub
3. Klipsch HD Theater 1000 - $500
4. Anything else that you guys might suggest

Any advice is much appreciated, thanks in advance!

I went in thinking the same thing. I had no idea getting the proper speakers would cost so much until you listen to the different speakers. Wow what a difference. All said and done, what i thought would be a 750 speaker system turned into over $2500 including sub, but we like loud music too. I have the same reciever as you and i love it. Airplay, multizone, audyssey, good output etc.

However, I have a Klipsch HD theater system in another room which is a much smaller room and sounds pretty darn good for surround but not loud music.

I've heard the Def Tech procinema 400 series in a decent size room and i like it better than the klipsch, its about 600 bucks.
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post #6 of 12
6/1/12 at 6:29am
I think that your receiver choice is very good; you get a lot for a very good price.

Those speakers systems are, unfortunately, not going to cut it; totally inadequate.

I suggest that you get the Jamo S426HCS3 system from Amazon for $320, and the Polk PSW505 subwoofer for $260.

That will be the best system I know of for only $600. It is also the ONLY one I know of that will do a decent job with that room, unless you want to spend a lot more money.

That system will give you fairly decent sound. To move up to something that will sound substantially better, you will need to spend well over $1000 for speakers.





Quote:
Originally Posted by xerxes717 View Post

Hello,

I am an occasional, but long-time lurker on avs but finally bought a house that warrants a decent sound setup. I am pretty much sold on getting a Denon AVR2112ci for my receiver and I have already wired the house for 7.1 sound using 12awg speaker wire.

Assuming the AVR2112ci is around $450-500, that leaves me with a MAX of $500-600 to spend on a 5.1 speaker set up and I could really use some advice on what speakers to get for the room which is about 15 feet by 20 feet. Some options to consider:

1. Energy Take Classic 5.1 - $399 - might not be powerful enough?
2. Energy Take Classic 5.0 for $249 and then add a better sub
3. Klipsch HD Theater 1000 - $500
4. Anything else that you guys might suggest

Any advice is much appreciated, thanks in advance!
Reply
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post #7 of 12
6/1/12 at 7:48am
Good way to save on the receiver so that you have more money for speakers is to look at the factory refurbished/factory warrantied models at accessories4less.com. For instance, the DENON AVR-2112CI is $369 + shipping. But I also agree with others here. Better to go with the Denon 1712 or 1912 and put more money toward the speakers and sub.

Then more full range speakers vs. the smaller satellite type you are looking at will have a better sound. Check out the Polk Monitor series at Newegg.com. Subscribe to their mailing list, for they typically have discounts of some kind on the Polk Monitors almost every week.
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post #8 of 12
6/1/12 at 8:05am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by wlhungdude View Post

Congrats on your new home purchase.

Now for the bad news...I don't think you're going to get much more than a HTIB set for that budget, and it'll be fairly unremarkable in that size room.

I would get to know SlickDeals (with a net) and FatWallet (with a com).

Why the 2112? Networking? can be done cheaper with a refurb Blu-ray player.

The 1712 offers Multi-Eq level of Audyssey, which would be more attractive to me for 'decent sound', and would open up more of your budget to speakers.

Really, 5-600 is what you'd be looking at for one decent 'real' subwoofer, for the space you're trying to fill. I suspect that's why you havn't gotten any responses. But it's true. Unpleasant to hear? Maybe, but the money you'd end up wasting through incremental 'upgrades' would be more unpleasant that saving for a better initial set-up.

For a 1100 budget... 300 for a receiver, 500 for a sub, and 300 for a decent pair of speakers for your front L and R, and then add the center and surrounds later as your budget allows. This will allow you to get some quality pieces that you'll enjoy now, and wont feel the need to upgrade for some time.

Look at it as a % of the cost of that nice, new house? You won't live there forever, but good, quality speakers could easily go with you to the next house. I spent / wasted more $ upgrading speakers than it would've cost to buy the right tool the first time. For 600 for five speakers AND a sub ? MAYBE if you found one heckuva deal on used equipment through Craigslist or similar outlets... but ... you'd better be able to recognize that deal the second it pops up, and have the chutzpah to pull the trigger. So not very likely.

Not trying to rain on your parade. Truly I'm not, but I don't want to see you spend what you have now on something you won't be happy with. Piece it together slowly, be patient, look for deals, and do more research so you'll recognize the deal when it does pop up.

Joseph

Wowsa.. that's a bit disheartening to hear, but I do hear you loud and clear and really appreciate the candor. I'm starting to realize that my original "don't those HTIBs cost about $500 to fill a room with sound" plan was way off base and is slowly turning in to maybe 4 times my originally projected cost.

I will certainly open up the budget in an effort to do this right the first time and I will also take a look at the DefTechs, Jamos and Polks mentioned by you guys.

The 1712 might be an excellent option instead of the 2112ci since it does have the multi-eq and my media center is already connected to the network. What originally turned me off of it was the inability to do analog to HDMI but when I think about the fact that I don't have any analog devices, I wonder why I cared at all. It's just a way of being prepared for anything I guess.

Thank you to everyone for responding, this has been an eye opener and you guys are amazing for treating the noobs nicely
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post #9 of 12
6/1/12 at 8:16am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by commsysman View Post

I think that your receiver choice is very good; you get a lot for a very good price.

Those speakers systems are, unfortunately, not going to cut it; totally inadequate.

I suggest that you get the Jamo S426HCS3 system from Amazon for $320, and the Polk PSW505 subwoofer for $260.

That will be the best system I know of for only $600. It is also the ONLY one I know of that will do a decent job with that room, unless you want to spend a lot more money.

That system will give you fairly decent sound. To move up to something that will sound substantially better, you will need to spend well over $1000 for speakers.

Great, thank you!

Any thoughts on these Jamos? http://www.amazon.com/Jamo-S606HCS3-...pd_sim_sbs_e_1

They seem to be a bit of step up from the S426HCS3 for only a little bit more. I would still get a sub to work with them as well, perhaps the Polk you mentioned.
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post #10 of 12
6/1/12 at 10:30am
While I'm not personally familiar with the Jamos, they look good to me. I have seen that set go a little cheaper, and you certainly could do worse. The 606 set looks like it's worth the extra over the 426.
You will still want a solid sub. I'd look at the offerings from the Internet Direct sub companies most often recommended here, namely HSU, SVS, or Rythmik. There are others, like Epic and Chase, and they would all offer more performance for the price than anything you'll find in a brick and mortar store, or even Amazon, for that matter.
Personally, I went from a sub from an Onkyo HTIB straight to a HSU vtf 3 mk3, with no regrets. I haven't heard the other brands, but they all have their fans here. Check out the subwoofer forum for more info. Tons of good stuff there.
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post #11 of 12
6/1/12 at 10:58am
Everybody has their opinion on this and they are all valid. Let me add another. If it were me, I'd put my money into the best pair of mains I could get then add a sub, center channel, and finally surrounds as I was able to afford them. This way you don't have to compromise too much and will have a nice pair of mains to work off of. And btw don't ignore the used market like Audiogon, for example.
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post #12 of 12
6/1/12 at 11:42am
Thread Starter 
Outstanding, you guys are awesome, thank you!
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