Help with Speakers and AV receiver

There are a few things that you can do...but first are you looking for a 5.1 or a 7.1?

I would recommend (5.1):


Definitive Technology ProMonitor 1000 (2)
Front R and L

Definitive Technology ProMonitor 800 (2)
Rear R and L

Definitive Technology ProCenter 1000
Center Channel

Definitive Technology ProSub 800
Subwoofer

That should be about $1400

Pioneer Elite VSX-42 Receiver

And whatever is left over would go to cabling (speaker wire and such)

That should be right at the cusp of your budget and still give them a sound that will fill up their room.


Another option (though it's not my top recommendation) is:

Definitive Technology ProCinema 600
This is a complete 5.1 system for about $800-$900 (somewhere around there)
You can pair that with the same Pioneer Elite receiver or any other around the same quality (higher end Denon, Marantz, higher end Onkyo, etc).

I recommend DefTech moreso than others because of the price point as well as their fantastic capabilities to fill a room and give a cinematic feeling. There are definitely other setups that you could choose but this is my recommendation.

fwiw,
pair of ascend acoustic cmt 340se's and cmt 340se center and a pair of htm 200se $1158
denon avr1712 $270 at accessories4less
hsu vtf2-mk4 sub $572 total $2000

i know its on the high side of your budget but thats a large room to fill with good sound
Edited by smasher50 - 11/15/12 at 4:20am

I'd say that, if all they have is the TV, they don't care that much about this stuff. Personally, I'd get a Pioneer Set (FS52, C22 and BS22) and a good sub and I'm sure they'll be more than happy. Receiver.. a Pioneer 527 maybe?

That way, they'll have a very capable system that I'm sure they'll absolutely love and, your husband and you will have some cash left

Feel free to post what you decided to go with

If you are hunting locally, the Pioneer system gets raves http://www.avsforum.com/t/1278774/pioneers-speaker-genius-hits-low-price-point

If you are hunting direct-order: http://www.emptek.com/PreSeason.php (for not much you could upgrade the fronts to towers),

or http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/value2pkg.html