Making a home theater on a VERY tight budget, looking for advice/suggestions/opinions

[opterasis]

I'm in the process of buying a house, and I've put a little bit of money to the side to start a home theater project. Nothing on the level some people here have, but just something fun for me to relax and enjoy movies and video games on a bigger screen than my 55inch, which the wife is always hogging. I'm trying to keep a budget of around $2,000, but I think I can still pull of something infinitely better than my 55 inch LG and Vizio soundbar. I have a few of the major pieces in mind, but I just would like opinions on what I've picked out so far, if there's anything better for a similar price, what else I'll need to purchase such as power condition if necessary, screen suggestions, etc.

Projector - BenQ w1070

Receiver - Onkyo TX-NR616

Speakers - Energy 5.1

[Mahatma]

Think about getting a 2-channel setpup.You can get a subwoofer for the punch later.Get better soundquality for the buck like that.

Good luck with your HT plans

[HAMP]

How large is this room? I really can’t see that has a nice match, A PJ with those small speakers. I understand being on a budget, so maybe a room size can help us look for better speakers.

If we subtract the PJ, then your AVR and Speaker set is around $1100?

[opterasis]

I don't remember the exact size of the room, it's a finished basement, so it's fairly large. If you have a suggestion for bigger speakers around that price, I'm very open to suggestions. I'm mostly doing this via my phone, so researching isn't as easy as it could be.

[Fors*]

With $2,000......what is more important to you the video or audio? $2,000 can get the job done, but you'll need to focus on what is important first and then add the other things next.

[blujacket]

I would put it all towards the Audio set up. You can use the 55" for now, and once your wife hears how good it sounds, will give you the hall pass for upgrading to a projector.

[ahmedreda]

Your projector selection is good however it is a short throw projector so it has to be fairly close to the screen. This might be a problem with a large room. Speaker wise, you could do polk monitors which can be had fairly cheap when on sale at newegg.

[octagon]

Originally Posted by Fors*

With $2,000......what is more important to you the video or audio? $2,000 can get the job done, but you'll need to focus on what is important first and then add the other things next.

Originally Posted by blujacket

I would put it all towards the Audio set up. You can use the 55" for now, and once your wife hears how good it sounds, will give you the hall pass for upgrading to a projector.

Absolutely. Having a clear upgrade path in mind from the beginning is one of the best ways to get the most bang for ones buck.

Decent gear that you're going to replace relatively soon won't be much of a bargain in the long run. Better to add pieces that you're going to hang onto one or two at a time.

And in this particular case replacing the soundbar is a more obvious starting point than the LG. A solid receiver and some number of speakers (not necessarily six or seven...the soundstage can be added to piecemeal too) will be a huge upgrade.

[WillGehring]

I'll start by saying that this is an addicting hobby. Once you hear the kind of sound you can get from a proper surround sound setup and see the kind of picture you can get from a nice projector there is really no going back. Now I don't know as much about projectors as some of these guys so I won't give advice on that, but when it comes to audio I would recommend spending more money on really good gear now rather than buying pretty good gear and then upgrading in a year. You can do this by starting with a 2.0 or 2.1 audio setup (which will be a huge jump in quality from your soundbar) and then adding pieces as the money becomes available. But you have heard that from others, not just me. If you want advice on that I will be happy to offer my suggestions.

Right now I'm going to assume that you want a complete surround setup for that budget. If we keep the PJ and receiver (a good receiver choice IMO), I still think there is room for improvement in speaker selection. I count about $720 leftover for speaker buying after purchasing the PJ and AVR, so here are a couple of systems that I slapped together which I think would give you a respectable first home theater experience.

Infinity Primus P163BK x5 + BIC America F12 = $725

Polk Monitor 25C + Polk Monitor 45B x2 + Polk Monitor 35B x2 + BIC America F12 = $680

JBL ES25CBK + JBL ES30BK x2 + JBL ES10BK x2 + JBL ES250PBK = $730

Any of those setups would be enough to impress most of your non-audiophile friends and they would be a big difference coming from your soundbar. If you are like me you are going to want to upgrade any of those setups within a year, but maybe you aren't like me. I hope that helped a bit.

[STARKILLER--1138]

Originally Posted by opterasis

I'm in the process of buying a house, and I've put a little bit of money to the side to start a home theater project. Nothing on the level some people here have, but just something fun for me to relax and enjoy movies and video games on a bigger screen than my 55inch, which the wife is always hogging. I'm trying to keep a budget of around $2,000, but I think I can still pull of something infinitely better than my 55 inch LG and Vizio soundbar. I have a few of the major pieces in mind, but I just would like opinions on what I've picked out so far, if there's anything better for a similar price, what else I'll need to purchase such as power condition if necessary, screen suggestions, etc.

Projector - BenQ w1070

Receiver - Onkyo TX-NR616

Speakers - Energy 5.1

opterasis, that is a good package you put together for medium to small rooms. I use the same Energy speakers in my setup and love'em. There's a reason the Energy Takes get rave reviews. They aren't just some thrown together system. Each speaker is the same; so, you're placing the same speaker in each position in your room providing seamless transition from front to back, side to side, and all around. They provide crystal clear sound and clarity in my little room. Haven't heard the sub, so can't comment on that, but 5.0 package is a no brainer for the money. You won't, IMO, find a better speaker package anywhere near that price. I've owned speakers from Def Tech, Sonus Faber, Martin Logan to Axiom, BIC, Paradigm, and, was the first person in Washington State to own M&K's S150P's in a 5.2 setup many years ago. The .2 were M&K's MX350 THX subs, but those had been out a while. Anyway, when I say I love these speakers, I just want you to know where I'm coming from. The Takes won't perform like an ultra high-end system like the S150P's, but they will give you great sound even at loud volume in a small room.

That said, you may notice I used "small room" alot. That's becaue these speakers are meant for small rooms, say, no more than 1800 cubic feet. If your finished basement is bigger than that, you may want to look at something that can fill the space better especially if you want to go loud.

Cannot comment on the projector as I have no experience with it, but the receiver looks good.

[Shpongle DMT]

OP I think you would be best off to focus on getting the sound portion down before you worry about upgrading from your 55" TV. For example, you can start off with the following for a front/center/left combo

L/R: Definitive Technology ProMonitor 1000s $219 each
ProStand 1000 $109 a pair
C: Definitive Technology ProCenter 2000 $349

So $896 so far, that leaves you with a little of 1100 to get an AVR and subwoofer.

Subwoofer: Well that will depend on how big the room is. You need to figure out the total volume of the room in order to choose a subwoofer that is appropriate. Hopefully it's a closed room and does not open into the rest of the house. The smaller the room the less you will have to spend in this area to get the proper effect of the LFE channel in movies. Companies to look at though

SVS, HSU, and Power Sounds Audio

For the AVR: The speakers I posted are very efficient so you won't need crazy amounts of power for them to play loud. Find one that has features that you like, plus fits in with the budget along with the subwoofer. Getting the items I mentioned will net you the biggest improvement in your home theater experience over your sound bar. Later down the road you can add in two more Promintor 1000s for the surrounds.

[blujacket]

Here's a good system

Receiver
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16882117412

Speakers
http://www.ascendacoustics.com/pages...isor.mv#bottom

Select 5 CBM-170 SE's

Sub
http://www.powersoundaudio.com/colle.../products/xv15

A little of $2000, but would be a great system

[djkest]

I like the value of HSU research items.

I'd get the BenQ projector and the "Hybrid 1 3.1" package here:
http://www.hsuresearch.com/products/hybrid1pkg.html

And then get a pair of speakers for the rear once you secure funds. I was really impressed with these speakers for the money and they would be great for movies.

[Jutty]

Just recently i have bought the energy take classic 5.0,,totally love them,,end of this month ill be getting my BIC F12 (atm im running an older KLH e10), my room is a 14x12
For what i paid for the takes ($199) ,im very happy with them

and on a different note,,,STARKILLER... love the sideshow premium formats and 1/6 scale.
Personally i havn't got into the premiums yet,,still with the 1/6 and Hot Toys..prices are slowly increasing though

[pacman9270]

It definitely would help to get the dimensions of your room. My take from this forum is that you want to the entire package NOW. If that's the case, I completely understand. You have some good selections considering your budget. If you want better suggestions/advice you should share...

1. Room dimensions
2. Amount of light.(Not a measurement. Is this a blacked-out room?
3. How far will your projector be mounted from the screen.

You can't go wrong with BenQ, for the price. Onkyo makes a good AVR, so you can't go wrong there either. If you're pairing it with that Energy 5.1 package, you may be good to go, but room size does matter.

[STARKILLER--1138]

Originally Posted by Jutty

Just recently i have bought the energy take classic 5.0,,totally love them,,end of this month ill be getting my BIC F12 (atm im running an older KLH e10), my room is a 14x12
For what i paid for the takes ($199) ,im very happy with them

and on a different note,,,STARKILLER... love the sideshow premium formats and 1/6 scale.
Personally i havn't got into the premiums yet,,still with the 1/6 and Hot Toys..prices are slowly increasing though

Thank you, Jutty; and, congrats on your Energy 5.0 setup. I never thought I'd be so happy with these speakers. They do everything so well. You're definitely right about the high cost of PF's and 1/6 these days. I remember when the Luke PF came out in '04-'05, it was just $250. Throw some pics up in the gallery when you get a chance. Would love to see the setup.

[opterasis]

I haven't forgotten about this thread, thanks for the input everyone, I'll be back when I get things settled down with room dimensions!

[Jcole20323]

Originally Posted by ahmedreda

Your projector selection is good however it is a short throw projector so it has to be fairly close to the screen. This might be a problem with a large room. Speaker wise, you could do polk monitors which can be had fairly cheap when on sale at newegg.

The benq W1070 isn't a short throw projector. The w1080st is the short throw model. I would definitely go with the w1070 if you have the room size for it. I have the w710st short throw and i Love it, mainly because I am in a 400 sqft studio and have no space for a longer throw.

As far as speakers go I would look into getting a used set of Polk Monitors. I have the Polk Monitor 50 for my fronts, Monitor 40 for rear, Monitor CS2 center and dual monitor psw10s for my subs. Its not the most powerful setup but they are pretty darn good for the price. They are older models and I was able to purchase them all separately on ebay for around $400 all together. If you want something with some more power jump up to the monitor 60 or 70s.

I have a friend who uses the Onkyo NR616 and he likes it. I use the Yamaha vx-673 7.2 for my system and its worked out very nicely for me.

I know you didnt ask about the screen but I went on Amazon and bought this DIY screen material and made my own screen using poplar 1x4s to make a 100 inch diagonal screen.http://www.amazon.com/Carls-Blackout-Projector-Material-66x110-inch/dp/B007KA07YM/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1373587068&sr =1-1&keywords=diy+screen+projector

[ahmedreda]

Originally Posted by Jcole20323

The benq W1070 isn't a short throw projector. The w1080st is the short throw model. I would definitely go with the w1070 if you have the room size for it. I have the w710st short throw and i Love it, mainly because I am in a 400 sqft studio and have no space for a longer throw.

As far as speakers go I would look into getting a used set of Polk Monitors. I have the Polk Monitor 50 for my fronts, Monitor 40 for rear, Monitor CS2 center and dual monitor psw10s for my subs. Its not the most powerful setup but they are pretty darn good for the price. They are older models and I was able to purchase them all separately on ebay for around $400 all together. If you want something with some more power jump up to the monitor 60 or 70s.

I have a friend who uses the Onkyo NR616 and he likes it. I use the Yamaha vx-673 7.2 for my system and its worked out very nicely for me.

I know you didnt ask about the screen but I went on Amazon and bought this DIY screen material and made my own screen using poplar 1x4s to make a 100 inch diagonal screen.http://www.amazon.com/Carls-Blackout-Projector-Material-66x110-inch/dp/B007KA07YM/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1373587068&sr =1-1&keywords=diy+screen+projector

It is all relative. In my case, the w1070 has a short throw and the w1080 has an even shorter throw compared to the w7000. I have a 130" 16x9 screen and the projector needs to be about 18 feet away. The w1070 maxes out at 14 feet , the w1080 maxes at 7.75. It is hard to tell which one works better for him without knowing the room dimensions.

[arl-323]

not to thread jack but starkiller what chairs are those?