Your first experience in audio home theater?

[Homura]

I'm still new to this forum and am gaining tons of knowledge thanks to everyone that posts on these forums. A few of you might remember me asking about running audio through a computer and in the end I was advised to save my few hundred dollars and keep what I had. A few weeks have now gone by and I am loving my little set-up of the ps3 and my projector. I have boughten about 20 blus in the past few weeks and love coming home to watch em. However, I am slowly yearning more and more for a better sound experience. With computer speakers, I can't really place my speakers in all corners of the room and they just don't give a home theater feeling that I want.

Now I would think it is safe to assume that most of you on here did not dive straight into the home theater world and spend $10,000 or even $5,000; in the same way that most teenagers didn't not drive a Porsche Carrera for their first car. If you did, well then hooray for rich parents that spoil their kids. On a random side note, my first car was 1973 VW Thing that my dad and I did a full restoration on and took to car shows (I only drove it once ; my first car I drove was a Honda Civic). Anyhow, where did you guys start when you began purchasing your audio equipment?

I am fortunate enough to have my parents that are putting me through college. I have a part time job because it is a break from school and it provides some cash for the school year. Luckily, I don't widdle my money away at fast food and instead save my money. Now I'm a month away from graduation and am assuming that I will reap the same graduation gift that my brothers in the past have from the parents and grandparents. On top of that, I believe I will get a research grant for the summer of about $5,000. Obviously I need to save some, perhaps most of the money. But say I did have a nice little budget to enter into the other half of the hd experience and invest in some speakers. Is it the smartest thing to go straight into a system like polk rti a9's and a3's with a csi a6 and a psw 505 with a comparable receiver? Or are there slow steps that should be taken? What were some of your experiences when you first got into this realm? I understand that I should wait four years til I'm a dentist, or maybe a few more til I'm an established one, until I get my dream system. But I need something solid that will last me for the next 5-10 years.

[Mathus]

I just graduated highschool a year ago and im going to be buying myself a set of the klipsch reference series speakers for about 3000$. I have an amazing setup as it is and have already bought a tv so this is kinda the iceing on the cake to me. Save the real money for when you get a house. You like me will prob not be able to play those speakers all through the night in a college apartment. I also rarely have parties at my apartment because im afraid people will touch something, **** on my tv, bed or speakers. Noone likes **** all over everything.

[hoogoosedmoose41]

im impressed i wish i could have had that kinda fundage back then. when i was 16 i saved 600 to buy a pair of realistic mach 1 speakers and thought i was cool lol. i ended up getting 2 pair on a 2 for 1 sale.
I have the Klipsch reference stuff now youll love it~!

[Homura]

Is the consensus that a nice sounding home theater speaker set costs about $2000 for speakers alone and around $500-$1000 for the receiver?

[HAMP]

Originally Posted by Homura

Is the consensus that a nice sounding home theater speaker set costs about $2000 for speakers alone and around $500-$1000 for the receiver?

That's about right! I didn't spend $2000 on speakers even tho I think they might have cost me that if I didn't get some good deals.

[dobyblue]

My first HT 5.1 system was:

Receiver - Pioneer VSX-TX1014 - $399
Speakers - JBL SCS145.5 - $350

You don't need to spend thousands to enjoy 5.1 - that system was very enjoyable and suited my budget at the time.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by Homura

Is the consensus that a nice sounding home theater speaker set costs about $2000 for speakers alone and around $500-$1000 for the receiver?

A few things.... I think if you spend $2,000 on speakers, you shouldn't spend more than $500 on a receiver. The speakers will LONG outlast the receiver.

If you're not sure what to do, start with all of your money up front (left/Right/Center) and get a receiver. The surrounds/sub can be purchased later. I guarantee you that if you try to get an entire system within a smaller budget, you'll just end up eyeing new speakers sooner, because "Upgrade-itis" is a disease I tell ya!!!!

I also don't know if you've listened to many speakers, but if you're going to spend $2,000 on a pair of speakers, you're going to find quite a few very nice sets in that price range, and many can't be purchased online. You should listen to as many speakers as possible, and go to a Audio-Video store that carries brands you won't find at the big-box stores, you'll probably find many speakers you haven't heard before.

As much as it doesn't matter in regards to the sound, you should also consider staying awaying from the 100+ LB floor-standers, because you're going through school etc, and also if you keep them in the future you're going to have to fit them into your new living space/decor.


Last, and most importantly, don't take anyone's word here as gospel.... you're gonna have to listen to the speakers yourself, because everyone who has speakers in that price range will say "oh you should get ......" because everyone loves their own speaker (There are a LOT of Klipsch and Polk owners here, and ever "what speakers should I get" thread gets about 20 replies suggesting these two) Only you can decide if these speakers are the best for you, so I'm not saying they "aren't" I'm just saying you won't know until you audition them.


Either way, congrats, and just don't go into debt trying to pursue the "perfect sound"

[Homura]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts guys; I am definitely taking them to heart in my thoughts. The more I am reading on these forums, the more I am understanding of slowly building a set-up. That's just what I want to do. So say I find that my budget is $1500-$2000 in the next month from graduation and I find I want to start my set-up. How do I go about with the set-up?

Obviously I need a legit receiver that will do everything I want for the next few years. I have been looking at receivers on the net, and obviously need to go try some out. My roommate has the onkyo 605 and I'm not all that impressed about it. My other roommate had an old pioneer elite that sounded great with his pioneer speakers. I got to looking and the new Pioneer VSX-1018TXH-K is looking pretty sweet, but I will keep my options open and keep my research going.

Speaker wise though, I now have between $1000 and $1500. Do I: a) get the best fronts and center that I can get for the price (gonna check the local paradigm retailer after my physio exam on friday ) or b) get the best 5.1 that I can for that price? In other words, it is smarter to spend the extra money that I would spend on rears and a sub and put that into better fronts and a center?

[Beta Man]

Fronts and Center IF you're willing to wait, and get the surrounds/sub later.... if you want surround RIGHT NOW, and can't wait, then get the 5.1, but ME, I'd try to wait. you can get surrounds fairly cheap.... the sub can get expensive, but some decent budget ones are out there too.

[Homura]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

Fronts and Center IF you're willing to wait, and get the surrounds/sub later.... if you want surround RIGHT NOW, and can't wait, then get the 5.1, but ME, I'd try to wait. you can get surrounds fairly cheap.... the sub can get expensive, but some decent budget ones are out there too.

I think I can wait for surrounds, I just want something that I come home to and go "damn that's sick!!" As for a sub, how long do they stay solid? Do they last like speakers do. The reason I ask, like 10 years ago my dad bought the best jbl sub that he could for his living room. Since then, we have moved and he is waiting to remodel the house until we rebuild the home theater room. Since the sub was just sitting there, I hooked it up with a receiver and some stereo speakers for my younger brother. Now when he plays Guitar Hero the whole house shakes . But I spoke with my bro and he said I could take the sub if I wanted. Would I be better off throwing that in the mix, or just keep what I get and buy a sub when the pockets yield?

[JTHV]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

There are a LOT of Klipsch and Polk owners here, and ever "what speakers should I get" thread gets about 20 replies suggesting these two) Only you can decide if these speakers are the best for you, so I'm not saying they "aren't" I'm just saying you won't know until you audition them.

This is exactly correct. Many people have bought into the Polk and Klipsch craze over the last 2-4 years because they offer good sound for less $$ but the speakers are actually not that great. Mainly because they simply offer little-to-no mid-range when turned more than half way up.

Go with what you think sounds best. I spent over $4,500 on 7 Martin Logan speakers and 2 Dynamo subs because thier sound for the price is unparelleled and they fit my HT Room decor perfectly.

It's all based on personal needs and satisfaction. If I could give you one piece of advice, don't go with the Satelite speaker setup. Create a surround sound system by using more of the component speaker ideology....you'll definetly hear the benefits.

[Homura]

Originally Posted by JTHV

This is exactly correct. Many people have bought into the Polk and Klipsch craze over the last 2-4 years because they offer good sound for less $$ but the speakers are actually not that great. Mainly because they simply offer little-to-no mid-range when turned more than half way up.

Go with what you think sounds best. I spent over $4,500 on 7 Martin Logan speakers and 2 Dynamo subs because thier sound for the price is unparelleled and they fit my HT Room decor perfectly.

It's all based on personal needs and satisfaction. If I could give you one piece of advice, don't go with the Satelite speaker setup. Create a surround sound system by using more of the component speaker ideology....you'll definetly hear the benefits.

I don't like how satellite speakers look comparatively, so I guess I made one smart decision already

[JTHV]

Originally Posted by Homura

I don't like how satellite speakers look comparatively, so I guess I made one smart decision already

Well some folks would say that they don't want big speakers next to thier TV's or behind thier couches so they go with the small and barely noticeable satellite setups. Where as people who care more for sound quality and maybe not so much about decor want bigger more full sounding speakers to go with thier $1,000 and up HDTV's.

I have small Bose speakers downstairs in my family room because I didn't intend on my family room being a serious movie watching room like I did my Theatre Room. At most, I'll have my nephews here and they'll watch Shrek downstairs and though they're happy to see him in 56", when I bring them upstairs and show them Shrek on a 110" screen (16:9 1920x1080i) thier jaws drops.

LOL...the things us kids do for enjoyment.

But yea man, go with what sounds right and also if you can get your hands on a good sounding woofer then take it. Because though woofers are very important, if you can place it close to a wall in a small room it doesn't really matter what kind it is or how much it costs. It will still sound up to par.

[bkbluray]

Originally Posted by JTHV

This is exactly correct. Many people have bought into the Polk and Klipsch craze over the last 2-4 years because they offer good sound for less $$ but the speakers are actually not that great. Mainly because they simply offer little-to-no mid-range when turned more than half way up.

Go with what you think sounds best. I spent over $4,500 on 7 Martin Logan speakers and 2 Dynamo subs because thier sound for the price is unparelleled and they fit my HT Room decor perfectly.

It's all based on personal needs and satisfaction. If I could give you one piece of advice, don't go with the Satelite speaker setup. Create a surround sound system by using more of the component speaker ideology....you'll definetly hear the benefits.

I bought a set of 5 Klipsch speakers because they were on a 1/2 off sale (I ended up getting them for $300), and they rock. The sound is so crystal clear compared to before (I used cheap Sony satellites before). I decided I didn't want to piece together my system over time. I also bought an 8" Infinity sub at the time too, and that has no problems shaking the walls.

[JTHV]

Originally Posted by bkbluray

I bought a set of 5 Klipsch speakers because they were on a 1/2 off sale (I ended up getting them for $300), and they rock. The sound is so crystal clear compared to before (I used cheap Sony satellites before). I decided I didn't want to piece together my system over time. I also bought an 8" Infinity sub at the time too, and that has no problems shaking the walls.

Good for you. I'm not saying thier bad speakers, I'm just saying...If you connected them to an amplifier that pumps out 140 watts a channel, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't sound "crystal clear" when listened to at "movie theatre" levels as the speaker's sound quality will start to give out or bleed heavily to the high freq. end because of the amplifiers high powered output. Thus making the sound quality experience unpleasent.

[pbparham]

My advice would be to get a part time job at an electronics retailer! I did, worked my way through school, and right after I graduated I spent a few months doing some purchasing through our accommodation program. I won't bore with the whole drawn out story, but everything in my sig was purchased at a discount of at least 50% off, some at 60-70% off retail! Its a perfect way to kill two birds with one stone! This is the only reason I have anything other than a 30" hd Panasonic tube tv, a ps2, and an old sony shelf system. I also have a good friend, an assistant bank manager, who worked about 10-15 hours a week at the same retailer. He put together about $20-25k worth of equipment for much, much less than that by using accommodation and employee discounts. Retail does have some benifit!

If you aren't able to do this, I would echo the thought of Beta-man. Receivers become dated rather quickly, but good speakers stay good. The nice thing about this process, and the devil of it as well, is that you can evolve a setup over time. I wouldn't suggest spending a ton on a receiver and leaving the speakers behind, because you'll be able to get a better receiver for less next year, but you'll be stuck with your speakers.

[Beta Man]

I don't know that I'd want to limit my options to what a retailer sells though.....

What did your store sell that this guy was able to build a $25k system? That's a decent amount of coin (even though I know you said he got it for far less) Does that include the T.V. etc? if so, I could see that I guess.

[Homura]

I don't think I'll be able to get a part-time job at a shop unfortunately. I'm about to finish my BS in Biochemistry at USC in another month. This summer I have a full-time research job set up til August. The last week in August I start dental school at USC and will be busy for four years year-round thereafter.

As far as going big on a receiver and leaving the speakers behind, I've already decided that I am gonna get the best speakers I can (fronts and a center for about $1500) and spend around $500 on a receiver that will allow adaptability for the next four years.

As for the coment on the polk and other speakers, I know you aren't bashing em, but what would you suggest sampling in my price range? There is a big jump price wise from what I'm looking at to what you purchased; which I can't afford.

Let the demo's commence

[bkbluray]

Originally Posted by JTHV

Good for you. I'm not saying thier bad speakers, I'm just saying...If you connected them to an amplifier that pumps out 140 watts a channel, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't sound "crystal clear" when listened to at "movie theatre" levels as the speaker's sound quality will start to give out or bleed heavily to the high freq. end because of the amplifiers high powered output. Thus making the sound quality experience unpleasent.

That makes it a little easier to understand.

[Beta Man]

Check out Axiom, B&W, Paradigm, Tannoy, and there are others too I'm sure.... but those come to mind.