Yamaha has some pretty decent speakers, so perhaps it does matter. Are they from an HTIB? What don't you like about them?
I'm compelled to ask because $500 could get you a much better subwoofer or a better center, either of which may make a more significant improvement to your system than new surround speakers.
I suppose the best match would be some Polk Audio speakers. If you could accommodate the Monitor 30 , then these are still going for a decent price. The R150 isn't quite as good a speaker and isn't as good of a bargain, but it is smaller and easier to wall-mount (just takes a single screw and can rest against the wall). If either of those would be too large for you, then the OWM3 might be more to your liking (also comes in white).
For $500 you could upgrade all four surrounds AND your center (to the CS2 or CS20). If you're happy with your center but dissatisfied with your surrounds, then you'll only need to spend a couple hundred bucks (with the recommendations above). Before pulling the trigger on anything, however, it would be nice to know what surround speakers you have now, as well as their placement--maybe for one or both reasons, you won't need to upgrade them after all.
Yamaha has some pretty decent speakers, so perhaps it does matter. Are they from an HTIB? What don't you like about them?
I'm compelled to ask because $500 could get you a much better subwoofer or a better center, either of which may make a more significant improvement to your system than new surround speakers.
I suppose the best match would be some Polk Audio speakers. If you could accommodate the Monitor 30 , then these are still going for a decent price. The R150 isn't quite as good a speaker and isn't as good of a bargain, but it is smaller and easier to wall-mount (just takes a single screw and can rest against the wall). If either of those would be too large for you, then the OWM3 might be more to your liking (also comes in white).
For $500 you could upgrade all four surrounds AND your center (to the CS2 or CS20). If you're happy with your center but dissatisfied with your surrounds, then you'll only need to spend a couple hundred bucks (with the recommendations above). Before pulling the trigger on anything, however, it would be nice to know what surround speakers you have now, as well as their placement--maybe for one or both reasons, you won't need to upgrade them after all.