[ccfc1986]

Hey all. This is my first post here so please let me know if i'm missing any information etc. I currently have the following setup:


Onkyo 6300 7.1 surround receiver system


I am using the default speakers that came with the system. I am considering upgrading my center speaker as I believe this would be the biggest/best first upgrade to the system I can make at the present time. Do you all agree?


With that been the case, my room is relatively small, about 18x12 out so and I currently only use 5.1 not the full 7.1 I could use due to space and wiring limitations.


I was looking at Polk speakers as I know someone with done older model sets and they sound great. The center speaker I was liking at was the C Series II...it was on sale at Meg for $150. I would like to keep my purchase in the $200 range if possible...can I get something medium ranged for that price?


Let me know your thoughts and I will provide any information you may need to help me make a good decision with this. Thanks again.


Tony


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[Jay1]

You should really do the LCR all at once. The Pioneer budget speakers are still on sale at newegg, I think they're better then the budget polks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882117404

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882117403


Hard to believe you can get a good sounding center and floorstanders for under $200, but it's true. If you dont want floorstanders, get three of the centers, and stand the L/R up as a vertical mtm.

 

[ccfc1986]

Im talking about just the center speaker for $200. Ill do the other speakers shortly after (within three months). But if you recommend I wait and do center and front left/right at the same time I can do that.

Any new speakers would be 'better' than the htib ones I have now in theory right? So long as they are a bigger named brand? What should I stay away from and what should I go towards more?


Cheers


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[Jay1]

What kind of budget will you have for mains? Anyway, if you really just want to piece things together over time you should be looking at deals on higher end gear, for example you could get the Polk CSi A4 for under your budget

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CSi-A4-CSiA4-BLACK-Center-Channel-Speaker-Polk-Audio-/360458637534?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item53ed0250de


You could then save up until you find a deal on some RTi mains, like these which may not be available for this price in a few months

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ONE-RTi-A5-RTiA5-BLACK-Tower-Loudspeaker-Polk-Audio-/230794955133?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item35bc73897d


Speakers are so subjective you cant really "look" for anything unless you have specific requirements, which you havent listed any.

 

[ccfc1986]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Jay1  /t/1417659/new-center-speaker#post_22169973


What kind of budget will you have for mains? Anyway, if you really just want to piece things together over time you should be looking at deals on higher end gear, for example you could get the Polk CSi A4 for under your budget
http://www.ebay.com/itm/CSi-A4-CSiA4-BLACK-Center-Channel-Speaker-Polk-Audio-/360458637534?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item53ed0250de

I recently purchased the CSiA4 and really like it (i actually purchased it from the link you gave me). I spent a few days reviewing my options and came up with that as probably my best bang for the buck.


With that said, I am looking for some tips/hints/teaching on how best to configure my speaker system at the present time. Setting up my new center in my system with the settings as they were I noticed a difference in quality and depth of the sound. I want to tweak the settings to get the best out of the system. Here is my current system as is:


Onkyo HT-6300 ( http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=HT-S6300&class=Systems&p=s )

5.1 surround setup (2 rear and 2 fronts are both the cheap/poor quality speakers that came in the HTIB setup i bought a few years ago - i plan on getting better fronts (probably like the ones previously linked by Jay1 above, but not for another 3 months give or take)

CSiA4 Center ( http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/rtia/specs.php#center )


Is anyone here familiar with this particular receiver, i assume not... but i thought i would ask anyway. Based on the system specs of the speaker, i can and 'should' set the center speaker to around 40hz in the settings. First question - is this correct/valid? I am a complete idiot (if you couldn't tell already) in terms of setup of this sort of thing, but i do recognize better sound from the HTIB speaker i previously used for my center.


Are there any suggestions, comments etc? Any information i can give that would better help you understand what i am asking for etc? I appreciate your patience and support in getting me up to speed with all of this.


Cheers

 

[Jay1]

Congrats on your first step toward a higher end system! The issue you're having is why I originally suggested you buy the front 3 all at once... There really isnt anything you can do except replace the speakers that dont match. The crossover should be set to 80hz for all speakers.


If you have the funds, you could buy these A1's now to use up front, and then in a few months when you can afford the A5's, you could move the A1's to surrounds

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-RTi-A1-RTiA1-BLACK-Bookshelf-Speakers-Polk-Audio-/360453566639?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item53ecb4f0af

 

[ccfc1986]

Jay - thanks so much for your reply once again, i really appreciate your feedback on my questions.


As for the setting on the speakers, you say all 5 speakers (fronts, center, and rears) should be set to 80hz. I am not questioning you on this, I will set them that way (my auto setup for my receiver set the center to 40hz and all others to 120hz just now). I just want to understand the reasoning behind this? What makes you say 80hz is where i should set them at right now? Specifications for the speakers combined? The addition of the new speaker? I think it would be good for me to know *why* rather than just do it, as then I will learn and understand the concepts behind fine tuning a system.


I assume when i buy new speakers (i think im going to purchase 2 A5's in the coming months for fronts, then 2 more A5's for rears in about 6 months time) the settings for these might change? If so, where do i go and how do i do it without bugging you guys all the time

Thanks again for all the help. It is very much appreciated.

 

[Jay1]

I guess you might need 120hz for those onkyo speakers, with 4"-3.25" drivers they likely dont go below 120hz. 80hz is the THX standard crossover frequency, this is the point where bass is completely omnidirectional, which means you cant tell it is coming from the sub. These sub frequencies are very taxing on your speakers, and the receivers amps, which is why you want to send that info to a dedicated sub. Not doing so can lead to distortion/compression, and possibly damaging your speakers. You should definitely plan for a new sub after upgrading your mains, as this would give you a bigger upgrade then adding surrounds.

 

[ccfc1986]

Thanks Jay !!!!


I will leave my onkyo speakers at 120hz and will increase the center to 80hz as you suggest. Thanks for the suggestion and the detailed info on why that is the case.


I will also probably go with the A1's for now for new LR, and then later on get a pair of A5's and switch the A1's to rears and A5's to LR (mains?). Before i get the A5's i will probably go with your suggestion of a new sub though - so knowing whats decent would be good - if you could give 2-3 suggestions, that'd be great. I would like to stick with the same brand, but if there's a 'better' sub suggestion outside of Polk, I am all ears.


Cheers

 

[Jay1]

What kind of budget would you have for a sub? The $500-$600 range is where you start getting subs with solid 20hz capability, but you can still get decent less capable subs for less.

 

[ccfc1986]

Lets say for a sub i would look to spend anywhere from 300-500 at most. Is this doable? Maybe give best option on the low end, a midrange and a high end? That would be great to compare/contrast to see the differences to see what is considered best stats for X etc.


Thanks

 

[Jay1]

 http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-770 (very nice for the money, not as strong below 30hz as the rest)

http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/stf-2.html (solid all around, falls off a bit below 30hz)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882269026&Tpk=energy%20s10.3 (you would buy a pair for dual subs, not quite as good as the HSU, but pretty close and dual subs leads to smoother in room response))

http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_info.php?cPath=2_41&products_id=951 (ED is sketchy with delivering and customer service, but this would be the best performance under $500)

http://www.epiksubwoofers.com/legend.html (shipping pushes this ove budget)

 

[ccfc1986]

Thanks for the recommendations. Very much appreciated again...


I was wondering about a setting on my speakers/receiver... Each set of speakers has a setting to adjust the DB of each. I currently have the following configured:


Sub.... -2 DB

Center.... +4 DB

Left.... -4 DB

Right.... -5 DB

Surr right.... -9 DB

Surr left.... - 4 DB


Bass 0 DB

Treble 0 DB


Dynamic EQ - On

Dynamic volume - Off


These settings were pretty much auto configured by hooking up the configuration microphone and running through the auto setup.


Is there anything there that makes any sense? Anything that seems way off etc?


Cheers


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[Jay1]

That's pretty normal. The goal is to have everything equal at the main listening position, the auto setup adjusts everything for you.

 

[ccfc1986]

I would like to get new front speakers (Left/Right). I purchased the RTi4 center, and want to get a R/L. Do you guys recommend these?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-RTi8-BLACK-Towers-from-Polk-Audio-GREAT-DEAL-/390313133259?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item5ae079c4cb#ht_4298wt_1163

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PAIR-TSi400-TSi-400-BLACK-Tower-Speakers-Polk-Audio-/360458629079?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item53ed022fd7#ht_3505wt_1163


Again, i am playing audio in a relatively small room, about 12 feet/14feet and currently have the base 4 speakers for my LR and Rear Left and Rear Right. I want to replace the front two at this point in time only (replace the other ones after my wedding and i get some money left over hopefully!).


Cheers all.

 

[commsysman]

A pair of Tsi200.

 

[Jay1]

The match for a CSiA4 is the Rti series

 

[ccfc1986]

Thanks for the reply. I think the a5 should be enough for what I'm looking for. Right?


Tony


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[Jay1]

Yes, the A5 is a very good option.

 

[ccfc1986]

I just bought two a5s. I was wonderi g if these are even ok as surrounds if I bought even better mains 6 months down the road. I think the fxi6 (think that's the correct name) are the surrounds I should get....just a thought....


Also, looking to get away from my current receiver as I have read its better to get a receiver with pre outs and an amp to power the rti range of speakers? I know my receiver puts out 130w in theory in 7.1, I'm assuming with me only using 5.1 there might be more (or more consistent) power to the speakers in the setup? Should that me enough to drive my csi a6 and 2 rti a5 s?


If not .... can we start the discussion again on possible options on a new receiver. Budget would be no more than 800$ but obviously would need room for an amp, and I'm not sure where to even start with that... I've read I could get a three channel amp, say 200w to drive my center and mains, then use the avr for the surrounds?


Questions? Thought? Suggestions? Thanks all for the input as always.


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