AVS › AVS Forum › Audio › Speakers › Speaker help, and reciever suggestion(NEW MEMBER)
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Speaker help, and reciever suggestion(NEW MEMBER)

post #1 of 21
2/6/13 at 11:20pm
Thread Starter 
Hi everyone, I just joined this site literally 5 minutes ago, but I need some advice. Ok, so I've been reading these forums sometimes for help when I have some doubts about A/V reciever components and such, and I finally need a question answered that hasn't been because of my specific setup. My question has to do with speakers I have.

I have:
1. A pair of Pioneer S-H152B-K(I got for $1 each). Rated at 160 watts max

2. A center Pioneer S-H052C-K(I got for $1) Rated at 135 watts max

3. A pair of Sony SS-B1000(Just bought for $60) Rated at 120 watts max

4. A pair of Klipsch RB-10(Got for free)Rated at 50 watts max

5. 5 Sony SS-MSP1 sattelites(Got for basically $10 all together) Rated at 100 watts max

6. 2 Sony SS-MSP1 subwoofers(Got for$15 together) rated at 70 watts max self powered

I have all but #5 hooked up to my Sony STR- DN1030, which supports 7.2 channels, and can have all the speakers in the correct location, including the subs that go in front in stereo formation according to the picture in the manual. The Pioneers are front, Sonys are surround, and Klipsch are rear.

My question is:
Should I try to match all the speakers in my setup to Sony SS-B1000, match to Pioneer surrounds, or hookup the Sony SS-MSP1 sattelites for the sake of maching? I plan on keeping the Klipsch, because none of the other speakers I have are mountable with a screw, unless I can sell them and possible buy matching speakers and stands to hold them.

I specifically looked for a matching subwoofer, and got the Sony STR-K502P with the SS-MSP1 speakers, and it brought up this question while I was searching the value of the system.

What are your guys' suggestions?
Reply
Reply

AVS Top Picks

post #2 of 21
2/6/13 at 11:23pm
Thread Starter 
Oh ya, should I keep the STR-K502 just for the heck of it, or sell it since I got the sub I wanted to match? Thanks.
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 21
2/7/13 at 3:14pm
Thread Starter 
*bump*
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 21
2/7/13 at 3:14pm
Thread Starter 
*bump*
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 21
2/8/13 at 12:04am
Thread Starter 
Wow, this forum sucks. I think I'm gonna be the first member to be a member for a day.
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 21
2/8/13 at 12:59am
Well, if you were reading the many different threads about speakers, AVR's, cabling, etc. You should of learned that many of us recommend to match the front 3 speakers. Right, center and left. The surround, surround back and subwoofer do not need to match.

Also, if you think this forum sucks delete your membership.
Edited by GusGus748s - 2/8/13 at 1:31am
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 21
2/8/13 at 1:23am
Thread Starter 
Well, since you answered my question, it doesn't suck anymore. Thanks.
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 21
2/8/13 at 6:00am
You have a very odd collection of speakers. What is your goal? The important thing is that you front stage matches, as suggested by Gus. I don't know anything about those Pioneer speakers, however. I would worry abit about mixing horn speakers (Klipsch) in with traditional tweeter- does that reciever have room correction software?
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 21
2/8/13 at 4:57pm
Agreed by the other posters, your front 3 speakers should always match. The surrounds are less important, but I prefer to have matching surrounds. The subwoofer is the least important to match, but you want a good quality subwoofer.

Having oddball speakers, especially if they do not have the same impedance, can make your system performance not too good. But I know people who have oddball sets and are completely happy so the final judge is your ears.
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 21
2/8/13 at 10:32pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys. I don't have alot of money most of the time and run into deals sometimes. I actually kinda bought the Pioneers on accident when I got my sucky entertainment center for $30 and they said I could have them. I bought the Sony SS-B1000s for $60 new once I saw my Realistic Nova-18s were busted. My dad got the Klipsch Reference RB-10s at a garage sale for $5 and gave them to me. I just don't have hundreds to spend like everyone else here seems to. I have 10 gauge speaker wire hooked up to the fronts I got for free, 16 to the surrounds, and high quality RCA cables to the subs. Both subs equal 140 watts combined on the .2.
What do you guys recommend for a not so wealthy guy like me? I've looked on CL, and people are still selling their $300 speakers for $260. I can't even imagine why you would want to get rid of something that's better than what alot of people have. I can tell the difference between the Klipsch I have compared to the other speakers, like clarity, a little louder, and crisp, but not by much IMO, so I don't see that making a high price point.
I think my system sounds pretty good for what I got, but with as expensive as high quality speakers are. I'll never here the best sound I can get from my Sony A/V reciever if the Klipsch are the way to go.
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 21
2/8/13 at 11:05pm
Thread Starter 
Sorry it took so long to reply. I typed up a long reply, but it went to waste since this ite doesn't support even the slightest form of HTML5(found out the hard way by pushing submit, and it didn't post)...
Anyway. Yes, I do realize my speakers are kind of weird looking at each group individually. I just don't have that much money alot of the time, and run into what I think are good deals. I got the Pioneers on accident actually, as they came with an entertainment center I got for $30, and were included since they were just trying to get rid of them. The Sony SS-B1000 I bought for $60 were to replace my old 70"s Realistic Nova-18s that I surprising saw were busted. The Klipsch Reference RB-10s were bought by my dad at a garage sale for $5, and he gave them to me.
So you guys recommend ditching the Klipsch to get matching regular speakers? I can't match to the Klipsch because of the price, but would you guys recommend selling them to match the other Sony surrounds? I think my system sounds pretty good, and can't tell MUCH difference between the any of them, even the Klipsch which are praised for quality. I just want to have a good standard system that I will never have to replace. Even the subs which I know aren't top quality, sound pretty good since it's .2, 140 watts combined sub power, which can sound better(or so I've heard) than even a 140 watt single sub. The Sony STR-DN1030 I have has a auto calibrate, which is probably why I am able to get them to all sound similar. I do notice differences in quality from the Klipsch(better), but do you think selling them, and maximizing my mid quality setup besides reciever would be worth it? I will never have enough money for $200 a pair speakers to go higher than $70 a pair for speakers, so what ones would you recommend overall?
The Sony's are setup on the Realistc Nova 18s as speaker stands, and GameCube games for extra height, and the Pioneers on top of showboxs on the subs.
I was able to hang the Klipchs, but my main question overall I guess is, should I make my setup look nice by selling the sought after Klipsch for a good price, buy speaker stands for what I have, replace the Klipsch with speakers in the others' league?
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:02am
Here is what I would do:

Use the Pioneers for front LCR for movies.
Use a pair of whatever Sony's for L/R surrounds.
Another pair of Sony's for LBS/RBS.
Hook up the Klipsch to "speaker B" on your receiver and use them for music only.
Hook up the subs.
Throw the rest away.

I stumbled across this forum in the same shoes you were in. I had a cheap home theater in a box and a 42" EDTV plasma and a hodge podge of cheap speakers. Most of my stuff was about 5 years old, but way behind the times, ie no HD. I came on here looking to spend $500 MAX for a HDMI receiver and $1500 on a new Hugh Jass HDTV. $500 for a receiver to me was high end. I described my speakers, and asked for advice like you did, but not many people replied. Then I started reading on other people's threads, people who were searching for new speakers, receivers, subs, etc with a low budget. The answers that I was looking for was almost always buried in some thread somewhere. I learned a lot, but it also cost me a lot of $. I always came upon threads like "What's the best speaker for under $200?" then it was "What's the best speaker for under $500?" then it was "What's the best speaker for under $1000?" then it was "What's the best speaker for under $2000?" etc etc. I didn't see a need to start a new thread most of the time, as someone had already experienced my situation and talked about it here. That was 3 years ago, and since then I have spent over six-seven times my original $1500 budget, and I'm still searching for the holy grail.

To be completely honest, read more before posting and you'll find your answers. Save up some cash and comeback on here. Give these guys a budget to work with and you'll get a ton more responses. Or stay off the forums if you want to save your $ lol
Edited by dannybenz - 2/9/13 at 4:31am
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 21
2/9/13 at 6:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ricsim78 View Post

Having oddball speakers, especially if they do not have the same impedance, can make your system performance not too good. But I know people who have oddball sets and are completely happy so the final judge is your ears.

Right. And since you already own all the speakers, you can test them and see which configuration you like best. You don't need help from people here to decide which ones to put where.
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:01pm
Thread Starter 
Ok. I'll search more carefully in existing threads. I did more research on the matter, and found out I can go to volume level 59(max w/ my current setup) with the MAX volume being 74 before my lowest watt speakers start to scream in pain. I find that 25 is the ideal listening volume for what I use my reciever for, and even lower than(17) that for non-surround content put out in multi stereo. So I'm in no real need of getting better stuff, but I decide to anyway since I can, which is why I'm here.
I do however, want to try and get the appropriate wattage so if I ever move my setup for a party, I can max the volume and not worry about breaking the speakers. My Sony SS-B1000 pair would be the first to break at 120 watts max, then the center at 135 watts max, but I'm going off of peak power input. My reciever can handle 1015 watts max(145 watts/channel), and I'm completely guessing that the max peak power is what to look for so I don't destroy everything, and not the continuous power output. Even less if my subs handle only 100 watts max. Correct? I'll look more in the threads, and Google, but please answer back if you run across this thread. It's hard to find an exact answer most of the time... Thanks.
Reply
Reply
post #15 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:09pm
The power management specs on speakers are unreliable.

Even if they were reliable, you can still tear up a pair of speakers that have a higher wattage rating than the amplifier by clipping the amp.

If your subwoofer has it's own built in amplifier (most do), then the wattage rating of the receiver has nothing to do with the power output of the subwoofer.
Reply
Reply
post #16 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:27pm
Thread Starter 
Ok. I though the RCA cable would tell the sub to go past what it can do, and break it in the process. I understand max watt doesn't matter too much from what you guys are telling me. So would I be able to turn my setup to max pushing 145 watts per channel to 120 watts max speakers being the lowest of the bunch? Or should I buy some BIC America DV62si Bookshelf Speakers (Pair, Black) for $72 in inteverals to eventually have all identical speakers that can handle the max output, plus 15 watt headroom? Then, try and and get identical subs besides the cheap 100 watt max ones in intervals after? I really appreciate your guys' help, I'm just trying to max my system without breaking anything. I can still return the Sony SS-B1000s if they won't handle my systems max.
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:39pm
You are putting too much faith in the numbers manufacturers give you as something that is useful.

For instance, here's some actual test output of your Sony receiver: http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/article/test-report-sony-str-dn1030-av-receiver?page=0,3

See the figures for power output where clipping starts to occur?

Best advice for how loud to run your speakers and receiver is to use your ears and turn them down lower when they start to distort.
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 21
2/9/13 at 4:57pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks cel4145. That was probably the best answer I've gotten, though everyone else suggestions were noted as well. This is the first reciever I've bought new, and I'm really enjoying the surround sound, so I was trying to max my speakers and such without spending a fortune.
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 21
2/10/13 at 9:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cel4145 View Post

The power management specs on speakers are unreliable.

Even if they were reliable, you can still tear up a pair of speakers that have a higher wattage rating than the amplifier by clipping the amp.

If your subwoofer has it's own built in amplifier (most do), then the wattage rating of the receiver has nothing to do with the power output of the subwoofer.

This is 100% true, just because a speaker is rated at a certain impedance does not mean it cannot dip below it. Clipping the amp can certainly damage your speakers as well. Just as with speaker power ratings, take them with a grain of salt.

NEVER rely on power ratings, many speakers have blown up because there is RMS and peak wattage and sometimes even those specs are "generous". You never know how much power your amp is putting out and there can be spikes, if you have a 100 watt amp, if you have the volume level at 50%, it does not mean it's putting out 50 watts. I have seen speakers rated at handling 200 watts of power blown up by a cheap 100 watt Sony receiver.
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 21
2/12/13 at 1:09am
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys. I was under the impression that at 75% volume level, my reciever would be putting out 752/1015 watts or so. My speakers sound very clear, and even the Pioneers from 2000(around there) sound better than the Sony SS-B1000s released more recently. I do realize my subs are kind of old, but they actually have 100 watts peak(instead of 70 I stated above), and sound amazing for what they are in my 7.2 setup. Thanks for easing my need/want to buy new stuff guys.
Reply
Reply
post #21 of 21
2/12/13 at 8:33am
If by volume level, you mean 75% up on the dial (whatever number that is on the display), be wary of over-relying on the receiver's numbering system, too. Some source media (and devices) output a stronger signal to the amplifier and will clip the amp at a lower setting than others.
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: Speakers

AVS Top Picks

AVS › AVS Forum › Audio › Speakers › Speaker help, and reciever suggestion(NEW MEMBER)