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New to home theater audio, need assistance.

post #1 of 33
12/25/12 at 9:25am
Thread Starter 
Our new receiver, Yamaha RX-v673 is on its way. Now I need assistance with speaker selection. I am initially looking at the take classic 5.1. I know that my receiver is a 7.2 setup but it will be a gradual build up to that level. Right now I'm looking for the best bang for my buck. I have several gift cards for amazon so I am limited to looking there. What say the hive?
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post #2 of 33
12/25/12 at 11:35am
Budget? Size of room? Music, ht or both?
The Energy take classic is a decent choice for a small room if your budget is limited. However, it will struggle in anything bigger than a small bedroom (both the sats and the sub will struggle).
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post #3 of 33
12/26/12 at 4:44am
Thread Starter 
Budget is 4-500. The room is 17x23 with 9 foot ceilings. It will be both music and theater but majority will be for sports/movies.
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post #4 of 33
12/26/12 at 5:24am
For that size room, 4-500 dollars will get a pair of front speakers or a sub...
However, another way to look at it is, almost anything you get will be WAY BETTER than the couple 2.5 inch drivers in your TV set...

So, the best strategy might be to start 2.1. Get a pair of Infinity Primus p362/3s, especially if you live close to a Fry's and can get them for 100/each. Then maybe the the Klipsch 12 inch sub, which has been on sale for 300 dollars recently. haqt would be a great start to a 5.1 that would fill your rather large room, and maybe later you can get the center and a couple p163s for surrounds.
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post #5 of 33
12/26/12 at 5:32am
Thread Starter 
I think I need to balance the desire for great sound and speakers with the need of having 5.1. Right now we're using a Sony HTIB in our equal size open floor plan living room. So we have a low expectation bar.
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post #6 of 33
12/26/12 at 6:46am
Fronts $170 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290269

Center $99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290212

Rears $85 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290200

Sub $189 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290130

$543 Grand total Shipped. While not stellar it will be WAY better than the Sony HTIB and it has components down the road to use should you upgrade.
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post #7 of 33
12/26/12 at 6:47am
Whoops.....just saw the Amazon thing. I do think Amazon has Newegg deals however?? May be wrong....
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post #8 of 33
12/26/12 at 12:45pm
I think with your budget you might be better buying a pair of front bookshelf style speakers and a subwoofrr like someone mentioned. The Klipsch RW12D for 300 bucks on newegg is a steal on a subwoofer right now. I haven't priced any bookshelves lately. Then later on when you have more money to invest you buy a bigger set of front speakers and a center channel, and move the bookshelves to your surround speakers. It is the smart way to start out a surround system and hopefully not end up with speakers you don't want later on.
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post #9 of 33
12/26/12 at 1:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ajstrider View Post

I think with your budget you might be better buying a pair of front bookshelf style speakers and a subwoofrr like someone mentioned. The Klipsch RW12D for 300 bucks on newegg is a steal on a subwoofer right now. I haven't priced any bookshelves lately. Then later on when you have more money to invest you buy a bigger set of front speakers and a center channel, and move the bookshelves to your surround speakers. It is the smart way to start out a surround system and hopefully not end up with speakers you don't want later on.

+1

Or, how about this option ...
sub - Klipsch RW12K $300
RL - Cambridge Audio S30's $219 on amazon (free shipping if you have prime)
CC - Cambridge Audio S50 $199 on amazon (one left that you can buy through amazon)
Surrounds - use your current front LR speakers. Upgrade later if you want.
Total $618

Just slightly over your budget but a very solid/respectable upgrade.

(Jim Z has been recommending the Cadence CSX12 as a good budget sub. That would save you $30.)
Edited by sdg4vfx - 12/26/12 at 2:01pm
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post #10 of 33
12/27/12 at 10:09am
Thread Starter 
Sorry for not responding, I was traveling all day yesterday.

I know it just feed into the modern steryotype of young people and our need for instant gratification, but I would like to go 5.1 up front.

My thinking is that When I do end up upgrading I could do so with some nice Front speakers and then move the ones I had to my Rear Sorrounds. Having a 7.2 receiver gives me some flexibility or at least that is what I thought. Same with the subwoofer, I could get one that will work for now, and then eventually add a second that will rock my socks off.

I think i added confusion when I brought in the HTIB. That is in a different room and is staying there, I was just giving a point of reference for what our current audio system is like. Am I wrong for thinking ?the Yamaha RX-V673 with a $500 speaker set would completely blow that away?
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post #11 of 33
12/27/12 at 10:15am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NewToHT View Post

Fronts $170 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290269
Center $99 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290212
Rears $85 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290200
Sub $189 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290130
$543 Grand total Shipped. While not stellar it will be WAY better than the Sony HTIB and it has components down the road to use should you upgrade.

Priced it through amazon $674. A bit more of a stretch than I can take right now. I do like that setup though.
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post #12 of 33
12/27/12 at 10:50am
Polk, Pioneer and Infinity seem to offer the best "bang for the buck" speaker that is consistently on sale or pretty cheap! The set up you have researched will be MUCH better than a HTIB set up, like the Energy take classic (good speakers, but very very small rooms) or the Martin Logan 5.1 set up.
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post #13 of 33
12/27/12 at 12:44pm
Thread Starter 
Would the polk m30 book shelf speakers be inadequate for front speakers?
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post #14 of 33
12/27/12 at 1:09pm
Well, it would be way better than the Take Classic speakers maning the front (5.25 inch driver versus 3 inch driver)...but for your sized room, it will struggle some! Again, it will not struggle as much as your TV speakers, or the Energy Takes. I was able to pick up a pair of PolkM40s for 100 bucks (about 8 months ago, but), so maybe that is the way to go. Two 5.25 inch drivers in the M40s will make the output much better. However, you could probably live with the 30s for awhile and like you saw, move them behind you in phase II. (and just to warn you, for some of us the Phases never end!)
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post #15 of 33
12/27/12 at 2:37pm
Thread Starter 
The slope is slippery indeed. I guess my goal from this is to have good quality sound. The best 5.1 setup I can get within my budget. With the expectation of adding a set of quality floor tower fronts and a quality sub In the future.

I know how my co-decision maker works and my window for getting this many speakers at once is small so going the 2.1 route, though it would be eyes quality, is not in my best interests.

Is the smaller 10" polk sub a fesible option. It is about $110 cheaper which would help me get a better pair of fronts. In going with the polk center channel shown above as that seems like a great deal.
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post #16 of 33
12/27/12 at 2:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rschuler313 View Post

I know how my co-decision maker works and my window for getting this many speakers at once is small so going the 2.1 route, though it would be eyes quality, is not in my best interests.
Is the smaller 10" polk sub a fesible option. It is about $110 cheaper which would help me get a better pair of fronts. In going with the polk center channel shown above as that seems like a great deal.

No on the Polk 10" sub - and while the Polk Monitor is better than the Energy Takes,
there are better options around.
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post #17 of 33
12/27/12 at 2:59pm
Thread Starter 
Such as?
My knowledge of speakers and audio goes about as far as matching min/max receiver output to the required input of a speaker. I appreciate all the help so far.
Quote:
Originally Posted by zieglj01 View Post

No on the Polk 10" sub - and while the Polk Monitor is better than the Energy Takes,
there are better options around.[/quSuch
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post #18 of 33
12/27/12 at 3:10pm
Much like the Energy Take clssic speakers, that 10 inch Polk sub will sound thin and strained in a room the size of yours. However, you won't find a sub that will do the job for 100 bills.
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post #19 of 33
12/27/12 at 3:59pm
Thread Starter 
So as my budget is fixed($500ish), and the place of purchase is fixed(amazon) then it seems like I am going to have to compromise some place.

Sub,
Front
Center
Rear surround

Where should I be willing to cut a corner.

I think we established that the Sub and the center are essential for getting good all around sound, am I incorrect on that?

So with that in mind.
Sub: Polk PSW505 12-Inch Powered Subwoofer $189.99
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000092TT0/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Center: Polk Audio Monitor Series CS2 Center Channel Speaker $129.99
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002MPNLC/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&smid=A3DRD2WX13H6ZQ

Sub Total so Far: $319.98

That leaves $180.12 give or take $50ish

Should I compromise on either the sub or center to give more money to devote to front and surrounds, or should i give up on the possibility of squeezing 5.1 on my budget and get a better set of front to later get rears?
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post #20 of 33
12/27/12 at 4:02pm
Thread Starter 
I also have to purchase speaker wire and the sub cables so that is a budget constraint as well. I am going to have a run of minimum 40 feet to my fronts and my sub from where my rack will be in the back of the room. Do I need 14 gauge speaker wire for that? Can't forget some sort of mounts as well, man this is an expensive hobby.
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post #21 of 33
12/27/12 at 4:24pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rschuler313 View Post

So as my budget is fixed($500ish), and the place of purchase is fixed(amazon) then it seems like I am going to have to compromise some place.
give or take $50ish
Should I compromise on either the sub or center to give more money to devote to front and surrounds, or should i give up on the possibility of squeezing 5.1 on my budget and get a better set of front to later get rears?

I would look at the JBL speakers
ES20
ES25C
and the ES250 subwoofer
Then skip the surrounds for now.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=jbl#/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=jbl+es+speakers&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Ajbl+es+speakers
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post #22 of 33
12/27/12 at 4:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rschuler313 View Post

I also have to purchase speaker wire and the sub cables so that is a budget constraint as well. I am going to have a run of minimum 40 feet to my fronts and my sub from where my rack will be in the back of the room. Do I need 14 gauge speaker wire for that?

Look at the speaker wire chart
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#wiretable
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post #23 of 33
12/27/12 at 5:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rschuler313 View Post

Where should I be willing to cut a corner.

Skip the center and go cheap on the surrounds.
Quote:
I think we established that the Sub and the center are essential for getting good all around sound, am I incorrect on that?

I assert that no center is better than a bad center and that, at limited budgets at least, running a phantom center is a good compromise.
Quote:
Should I compromise on either the sub or center to give more money to devote to front and surrounds, or should i give up on the possibility of squeezing 5.1 on my budget and get a better set of front to later get rears?

Wouldn't compromise sub for anything but maybe L/R. Wouldn't chose a center less than the L/R (because you'll likely do better phantom than bad center).

Surrounds at our budget.: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0045US6DE/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_i5?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1CK179XVFDTZ5Y1DF8KC&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846

Surrounds half that cost that will get the job done: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004MEWZE4/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_d0_i6?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1CK179XVFDTZ5Y1DF8KC&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1389517282&pf_rd_i=507846
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post #24 of 33
12/27/12 at 6:23pm
Thread Starter 
I'm not thinking two different options.

1.
Go 2.0 route and get two floor standing speakers
Options in my range
http://www.amazon.com/JBL-ES80BK-3-Way-Floorstanding-Speaker/dp/B00166ZFXO/ref=sr_1_5?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1356660171&sr=1-5
http://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-TSi400-Floorstanding-Speaker/dp/B0018QROHC/ref=sr_1_6?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1356660171&sr=1-6
http://www.amazon.com/Infinity-Primus-P363-Three-way-Floorstanding/dp/B0046A8R3M/ref=sr_1_7?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1356660171&sr=1-7

2.
Get a quality set of front bookshelf speakers and a subwoofer.

PSW505 Sub
http://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-12-Inch-Powered-Subwoofer/dp/B000092TT0/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1356660728&sr=1-1
Monitor 45
http://www.amazon.com/Polk-Audio-Monitor-45B-Black/dp/B009WSVRL2/ref=sr_1_49?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1356660890&sr=1-49&keywords=Bookshelf+Speakers

This is proving to be very difficult on limited funds. I am limiting myself to try to stay close to the range of the gift cards I have. I can always venture out to other retailers after to complete my system based on better deals.
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post #25 of 33
12/27/12 at 6:59pm
Thread Starter 
Now thinking^^^^^^
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post #26 of 33
12/27/12 at 7:14pm
I would look at the Pioneer FS52 speakers, and mate them with a
nice subwoofer
http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-SP-FS52-LR-Designed-standing-Loudspeakers/dp/B008NCD2S4/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1356664383&sr=1-1&keywords=pioneer+fs52

This subwoofer can hit hard - Cadence
http://www.amazon.com/CSX-12-Mark-Active-Powered-Subwoofer/dp/B000YQA14U/ref=sr_1_1?s=aht&ie=UTF8&qid=1356664714&sr=1-1&keywords=cadence+subwoofer
Edited by zieglj01 - 12/27/12 at 7:21pm
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post #27 of 33
12/28/12 at 5:30am
Thread Starter 
I was searching Ebay earlier. Some good deals on Monitor 50/60 speakers. What's the deal with manufacturer refurbished speakers, stay away or worth the risk for the price?
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post #28 of 33
12/28/12 at 5:40am
Thread Starter 
I realized something else. I only have $200 to amazon and the other $200 is a use anywhere gift card.

Plan on gettting the PSW505 and cables from amazon.
Then the Monitor 45 and CS2 from newegg. Puts me a little over what I have at each place.

Down the road pick up some nice tower speakers and move the 45s to sorround duty. Then complete the system with a second sub and a set of speakers for rears.

Is that a doable plan?
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post #29 of 33
12/28/12 at 5:54am
good start to a good system!
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post #30 of 33
12/28/12 at 8:12am
Thread Starter 
Looking at also picking up a set of the monitor 30s for rear sorrounds.

Now onto cables.
Do i need the piece below for my subwoofer, or can I run the single subwoofer cable into it?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004EBX5GW/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&smid=A1DCPNQKKEISZB

Looking at using 14 gauge speaker wire, removing the base board and running it behind the baseboard. My receiver and speakers are 8 Ohms and the run will be between 35-40 feet, is that a good fit for wire?

Also looking at getting banana clips. Do i terminate both ends, I.e. at the receiver side and the speaker side, with the clips?

Remember I'm not an audiophile and this is also a budget build so if anything above is unnecesary that is a plus.
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