A little home theater help?

[NayNay]

Not sure if this is the right place to post or not
But I'm looking to invest in my first home theater.
And was wondering if anyone could suggest a good starting point?
Thanks

[Almadacr]

Budget !

[bluthx]

You need to consider:

1) rear projection or direct view?

2) home theater in a box (HTIB) or component sound system

These should get ya going to start with.

[Ryan0503]

Originally Posted by Almadacr

Budget !

Yes ... what's your budget and what type of room are you working with (ie theater or dedicated space)

[NayNay]

My starting budgets around 500 just too get started. It's going to be set up in my living room. If it helps my tv 42 inch the rooms decent size too.

[Spicoli]

If you already have The TV part your almost there. You can get a decent receiver on craigslist then try and get a deal on some bookshelves (new)then sub rears and center also local craigslist.

If you are patient you can get great sound for that dough.

[bluthx]

Originally Posted by Spicoli

If you already have The TV part your almost there. You can get a decent receiver on craigslist then try and get a deal on some bookshelves (new)then sub rears and center also local craigslist.

If you are patient you can get great sound for that dough.

100% AGREE. You'll be happier with seperate componants than "HTIB".

[Smigro]

Originally Posted by Spicoli

If you already have The TV part your almost there. You can get a decent receiver on craigslist then try and get a deal on some bookshelves (new)then sub rears and center also local craigslist.

If you are patient you can get great sound for that dough.

Very true. Newegg has some really good deals on speakers sets right now and finding a capable receiver locally should not be a problem.

You get a starter speaker set like this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882290066

and a receiver like this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882120195

[NayNay]

Originally Posted by Smigro

Very true. Newegg has some really good deals on speakers sets right now and finding a capable receiver locally should not be a problem.

You get a starter speaker set like this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882290066

and a receiver like this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882120195

Thank you!
I like that speaker set a lot.

[Ryan0503]

I would pick a good reciever and decide what spreakers you want ... the start with the towers and keep adding as you get the money till you get to a 5.1 system (at least) ...

[Smigro]

Originally Posted by Ryan0503

I would pick a good reciever and decide what spreakers you want ... the start with the towers and keep adding as you get the money till you get to a 5.1 system (at least) ...

That is always a route to explore as long as the person who is buying is patient and can live with adding on as the the funds come in. It is actually what I did to get my system where it is know.*

With that in mind, you could always look into this option. You would have to add a sub, center channel and surrounds when you have the extra money, but this would definitely sounds better than speaker set I linked earlier.*

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882120195

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882290271

[Ryan0503]

Originally Posted by Smigro

That is always a route to explore as long as the person who is buying is patient and can live with adding on as the the funds come in. It is actually what I did to get my system where it is know.*

With that in mind, you could always look into this option. You would have to add a sub, center channel and surrounds when you have the extra money, but this would definitely sounds better than speaker set I linked earlier.*

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882120195

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882290271

It definitely requires more patients but the pay off is worth it ... in the end your only buying one system ... I bought a cheaper system cuz my funds were limited and then a few years later bought another system ... it would have been more cost effective to just start buying pieces of the system I wanted in the first place lol

[Smigro]

Originally Posted by Ryan0503

It definitely requires more patients but the pay off is worth it ... in the end your only buying one system ... I bought a cheaper system cuz my funds were limited and then a few years later bought another system ... it would have been more cost effective to just start buying pieces of the system I wanted in the first place lol

That is exactly what did and finally said enough is enough. IMO the adding as funds are available will net you the best possible option.

[NayNay]

Originally Posted by Smigro

That is exactly what did and finally said enough is enough. IMO the adding as funds are available will net you the best possible option.

Yeah I was just going to jump in and buy a cheaper system, but I see the many benefits of buying in parts and building up to a great system. I think I'm patient enough to wait.

[Silo5]

Originally Posted by NayNay

Yeah I was just going to jump in and buy a cheaper system, but I see the many benefits of buying in parts and building up to a great system. I think I'm patient enough to wait.

Excellent choice! I still have the Sony HTiB(stored away) I bought almost 10 yrs ago: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-1jOtMwh...SA-VE445H.html. It was actually an upgrade from my old Bose system!. I've tried selling it at garage sales and still no takers! What does that tell you? Looking back, I wish this website would have been around to get the very advice you are now receiving.

Good luck in your endeavor and enjoy the ride!!

[Ryan0503]

Originally Posted by Silo5

Excellent choice! I still have the Sony HTiB(stored away) I bought almost 10 yrs ago: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-1jOtMwh...SA-VE445H.html. It was actually an upgrade from my old Bose system!. I've tried selling it at garage sales and still no takers! What does that tell you? Looking back, I wish this website would have been around to get the very advice you are now receiving.

Good luck in your endeavor and enjoy the ride!!

I still have my Sony HTIB ... it was a great system for what it was ... it sounds good but once I heard a "real" home theater system ... there was no going back lol

[nando820]

Start with a standalone Onkyo receiver, they usually offer more bang for the buck and sound pretty good as well. I have one on my main movie room and I'm more than pleased

As for speakers slowly build your way up. Meanwhile you can even find some used legacy bookshelf speakers at thirst stores that will probably sounds better than small satellite speakers

http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-NR616...o+receiver+7.1

http://www.amazon.com/Jamo-426-HCS-W...s=jamo+speaker

[JunkBoy]

I have a mix of rear and surround speakers on my 7.2 system and I want to get matching sets. I saw Big Daddy post about Home Theater Direct and the reviews I've read about them are very positive and the prices are pretty cheap. A little more than going HTIB but those level 2's look like a good starter set. I'm planning on getting either 4 of the level 2 surrounds but I really want the level 3's.

Definitely look through Craigslist! There's bargains to be had!

[chrisjarvis]

I just purchased the Skyfall bluray/dvd/digital download package. My receiver, a Sony DG-720, shows all speakers operating when playing the bluray and DVD, but no sound is coming out of the center or the surround speakers. A speaker test shows all speakers operating properly. All other DVDs are working properly and providetrue 5.1 sound. The 5.1 sound on Skyfall works only when I stream the digital download using Apple TV. What's wrong with the discs? Why does it seem as though there are no surround sound tracks?