AVS › AVS Forum › Other Areas of Interest › What's Your System Configuration › GoofyJeff's HT Upgrade Thread
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

GoofyJeff's HT Upgrade Thread

post #1 of 13
Thread Starter 
Over the next few months/year or so I'm planning on upgrading my entire home theater setup. Keep in mind that I live in a small apartment and don't have the budget to go all out like some of you folks here.

With that in mind, the first upgrade will be to replace my cheap $150 Sony receiver with the Yamaha RX-V473 which I will be ordering at some point next week.

I can't wait to start this upgrade process and wanted a thread to document my progress. cool.gif
post #2 of 13
Thread Starter 
Around the holidays, I should have enough saved up to replace my mains and get a proper center channel. Right now I'm using a pair of old Kenwood stereo speakers for the mains, and a pair of cheap Magnavox bookshelf speakers I got from Goodwill as my center. Looking at the Jamo C60 for the center and Jamo C603s for the mains.

They seem to be good speakers... any thoughts??
post #3 of 13
Thread Starter 
Just ordered the Yamaha RX-V473 and should get here Thursday or Friday, just in time for Movie Night this weekend!! I suppose I should take Before and After pictures of my setup to document the upgrades too...
post #4 of 13
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoofyJeff View Post

Around the holidays, I should have enough saved up to replace my mains and get a proper center channel. Right now I'm using a pair of old Kenwood stereo speakers for the mains, and a pair of cheap Magnavox bookshelf speakers I got from Goodwill as my center. Looking at the Jamo C60 for the center and Jamo C603s for the mains.
They seem to be good speakers... any thoughts??

I haven't heard Jamos myself, but many on the forum have said that they are a great sounding budget speaker, great bang for the buck etc. so I think that would be a good choice.
post #5 of 13
Thread Starter 
My dad just got Jamo IC608's for his mains and surrounds, as well as the C60 center channel which I'm planning on getting, when he did his living room. He, my stepmom, their friends and neighbors everyone is blown away by how good it sounds. I haven't had the chance to audition them myself yet since they live in Florida and I'm in 'Sconsin, but I know my dad and he is VERY picky about his speakers and how things sound, so if it's good enough for him, it should certainly be good enough for me in my apartment. The dream of having an actual theater room and kickass setup needs to wait until I can land a more stable job and buy a house.
post #6 of 13
Thread Starter 
Pictures of my current setup


Overview of my setup. Hopefully early next year I can get a new TV stand and a larger TV to replace this Toshiba 26", but it works for now.


The Sony STR-DH520 will be replaced with the Yamaha RX-473 by this weekend. I will be keeping the Sony Blu-Ray player for the foreseeable future


Framed screengrab of my custom 20th Century Fox logo which kicks off my pre-show reel


Framed "Movie Night" image sitting between the two cheap Magnovox bookshelf speakers that I picked up at Goodwill that are serving as my center channel. Will be replacing them with a Jamo C60 center around the holidays.



Old Kenwood stereo speakers serving as my mains. Will be replacing them with the Jamo C603s around the holidays. The penguin on top is something I made back in middle school. cool.gif


Dell Inspiron desktop serving as the brains of my Home Theater, running Windows 7 and XBMC Dharma along with the Cinema Experience script. Also pictured is my Polk Audio subwoofer.

For my surrounds I'm using a pair of Polk Audio bookshelf speakers. Hard to take a good picture of them right now since they're tucked in the corners. My brother will be helping me build stands for them (as well as the new Jamos) this winter.
post #7 of 13
Thread Starter 
UPS tried delivering my new receiver while I was at work. I'll get it tomorrow instead. Guess what I'll be doing tomorrow night? cool.gif
post #8 of 13
Thread Starter 
My receiver is there waiting for me to get home, and I've still got another 2 hours or so of work... oh the agony!!! mad.gif
post #9 of 13
I feel your pain. I just replaced my speakers 2 years ago. I got all Infinity Primus besides my sub. Their at the same price range as Jamo. Hard to say if they are better, but they sound great for the price range anyway. I would have preferred to get Klipsch but that was nearly triple the price for what i wanted. All these together cost me $1,400.00. Today you could get them for $1,000.00.

Here is what i have which you can see in my profile picture as well..

Center Channel
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_108PC351BK/Infinity-Primus-PC351.html?tp=189

Mains
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_108P363BK/Infinity-Primus-P363.html?tp=185

Rear Surround
http://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Primus-P143-Bookshelf-Satellite/dp/B0044D3R7M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345848804&sr=8-1&keywords=infinity+primus+p142

Sub, the cherry color is $100.00 who knows why. I got mine through Amazon Warehouse deals as a return at half price when the were still $1200.00 otherwise I would have gotten Black. Nice thing is it's wireless, and is made from the same materials as the Primus line so it blends well with the other speakers.

http://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Classia-PSW310BK-Subwoofer-Radiators/dp/B001C4EDDS
post #10 of 13
Thread Starter 
My boss surprised me and gave me a pair of Mini Advent speakers to use as my center until Christmas. The cheap Magnovox speakers from Goodwill just weren't cutting it with the new receiver. I'm not sure if the receiver was sending too much power or what, but if I turned the volume much about -40 to -37db the receiver would power off and then tell me to check speaker cables when powered back on. I had run into that same problem every once in a while with the old Sony where it would power off and go into Protect mode.

I'm very much in love with how just replacing the receiver improved the sound on my system dramatically. I played a few select scenes from SuperLeo's Blu-Ray Demo disc as well as the train crash scene from Super 8 and OMG it sounds amazing. I cannot wait to take advantage of the long weekend this weekend and enjoy several flicks. cool.gif
post #11 of 13
Quote:
Originally Posted by GoofyJeff View Post

My boss surprised me and gave me a pair of Mini Advent speakers to use as my center until Christmas. The cheap Magnovox speakers from Goodwill just weren't cutting it with the new receiver. I'm not sure if the receiver was sending too much power or what, but if I turned the volume much about -40 to -37db the receiver would power off and then tell me to check speaker cables when powered back on. I had run into that same problem every once in a while with the old Sony where it would power off and go into Protect mode.
I'm very much in love with how just replacing the receiver improved the sound on my system dramatically. I played a few select scenes from SuperLeo's Blu-Ray Demo disc as well as the train crash scene from Super 8 and OMG it sounds amazing. I cannot wait to take advantage of the long weekend this weekend and enjoy several flicks. cool.gif

Sounds good man. It's all about the journey...
post #12 of 13
Jeff,

I wanted to take a moment and say thanks for sharing your system with us. Just to re-iterate the above post, it's all about the journey, and the enjoyment experienced along the way. What you can, when you can.

Now, some simple tips toward better sound; I'm uncertain as to the layout and configuration of your room, but I can see some issues that can easily be improved. Regardless of how elaborate, or how modest, every system is entirely dependent on loudspeaker optimization to the space in which they're being used. So a little experimentation and re-arranging may be in order.

It is very likely that you're fully aware of several of these items, however it's always a good idea to re-examine what can be improved. The single most important aspect is symmetry. Specifically, I'm referring to left-to-right symmetry in how your speakers are oriented. Ideally, you want to form approx. an equilateral triangle between the LP, and the L & R. If possible, they need to be off the floor and as close to your seated ear level as possible. However you accomplish this is fine. Also, as you likely know, they need to be aimed directly at your LP (listening position) and preferably away from the sidewalls. Ideally, you don't want any type of cabinetry or other items in the immediate surroundings of the speakers. They radiate much of their energy in all directions, and adjacent surfaces that reflect this smear detail and blur the image and soundstage.

It's nice to hear the new receiver made a significant difference, ... you're off on the slow and steady upgrade path toward a better experience.

I'm not sure what all equipment you have, but don't hesitate to share your potential purchasing ideas and wishes with everyone here, as there's much knowledge and wisdom with regard to the very best components at every price range. There truly is some incredible steals out there, .... so it's all good from here on.

Enjoy learning and experiencing everything this hobby has to offer. Whether it's music or movies, there's certainly much fun to be had. What you can, when you can.


Best of luck
post #13 of 13
Thread Starter 
FOH - thanks for your comments! My brother will be helping me build speaker stands later this winter once his schedule opens up a bit. I'll add more pictures of my current setup this weekend, showcasing the new Yamaha receiver and Mini Advents.

But in the meantime, my current equipment is...

TV - 26" Toshiba LCD (don't know the exact model number. I'll update this post when I get home)
Blu-Ray - Sony BR something (don't know the exact model, one of their lower ends though)
HTPC - Dell Inspiron desktop running Windows 7 Home Premium. Using XBMC as the front-end and the Cinema Experience script for added "movie theater like" entertainment (trivia, trailers, etc). Media is currently stored on several external USB drives until I can build a proper media server running UnRAID.
Media Streamer - Roku 2 XS

Receiver - Yamaha RX-473
Front L-R speakers - Old Kenwood floorstanding stereo speakers I inherited when my Dad and stepmom moved to Florida
Center speakers - Mini Advent bookshelf speakers given to me by my boss
Rear L-R speakers - Polk Audio T15 bookshelf speakers
Subwoofer - Polk Audio PSW 10
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
AVS › AVS Forum › Other Areas of Interest › What's Your System Configuration › GoofyJeff's HT Upgrade Thread