Home Theater Virgins- The official thread

[Istoc]

See I thought about it too. But funny thing was I got both Monitor 70's for $300 shipped. Brand new. I also do a lot of music listening in 5 channel stereo, which those will be fantastic for. I prefer to have the sub deliver as little of my audio experience as possible which is why I didn't spend a whole lot on it. Just a standard Sony SA-W2500. I have my sub come in as low as possible to cover the "ground shaking" experience that most standing speakers can't cover.

[DVan8504]

Originally Posted by Istoc

See I thought about it too. But funny thing was I got both Monitor 70's for $300 shipped. Brand new. I also do a lot of music listening in 5 channel stereo, which those will be fantastic for. I prefer to have the sub deliver as little of my audio experience as possible which is why I didn't spend a whole lot on it. Just a standard Sony SA-W2500. I have my sub come in as low as possible to cover the "ground shaking" experience that most standing speakers can't cover.

Gotcha. Yeah I don't blame you for buying the 70s for that price. I didn't pay much less than that for my 60s.

[Istoc]

Do 60's have as gentle a tweeter as the 70's do? If so have you had any issues with the infamous tweeter blowout? I mean I don't run speakers excessively loud and I know how they sound(Did an in home test with em) and I would hate to have the tweeters blow.

[DVan8504]

Originally Posted by Istoc

Do 60's have as gentle a tweeter as the 70's do? If so have you had any issues with the infamous tweeter blowout? I mean I don't run speakers excessively loud and I know how they sound(Did an in home test with em) and I would hate to have the tweeters blow.

I haven't heard the 70s, but I don't think mine are harsh at all on my 60s. I have no complaints with my Polk products. I've only had them about 3 months though, and I rarely crank them. At the price they're practically disposable so if a tweeter did blow, I'd just view it as a chance to upgrade.

[Kratos3]

Originally Posted by itzlinky

Howdy guys,

Newbie here as well.

Was considering a HTiB for awhile and decided to go build my own instead. Hoping to start with 2.1 and build my way up, keeping budget at $800 ATM.

Receiver:
Onkyo TX-SR608 7.2 Channel Home Theater Receiver
http://www.jr.com/onkyo/pe/ONK_TXSR608/
$400

Sub:
Bic America VK-12 12-Inch 1000-Watt Kevlar Series Front-Firing Powered Subwoofer
http://www.amazon.com/America-VK-12-.../dp/B0016J3H18
$240


That leaves about $160 or so left in budget. I was hoping to get some decent fronts which I will later move back toward the rear.

I was considering either a pair of Klipsch B-3s or Polk 40s. Any other suggestion or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

If you're eventually moving them to the rear, consider what you will be buying for up front in the future. It's recommended that you timbre match your speakers for more seamless transitions in effects.

The Klipsch are going to be more dynamic and possibly a better fit for movies, and the Polks are going to be a little smoother and mellower. Both are nice speakers.

So what I'm sayin' is are you more of a Klipsch guy or a Polk guy?

Good luck!

[surfdude12]

Hey guys,

I have a pair of BIC Acoustotech HT-75 Front L/R Towers. I blew the L Front lower out about a year ago playing RB6 Vegas, sent it in and got it fixed. Now I have a new issue with the same L Front Tower:

During certain audio sequences/tracks, it buzzes a lot, but still seems to give output when its not buzzing. Example: during Baraka, it buzzes like crazy, but during Minority Report last night, it buzzed just a little.

Is it a wiring issue? I checked the other day and it looked ok. Also, during "test one" it gives output fine.

Is the tweeter/woofer blown, but not the rest of speaker? If part was blown, wouldn't the whole speaker be out?

Do you suggest getting it repaired again or just buy a new set?

[Istoc]

It sometimes depends. Everything I've ever seen would indicate the tweeter went out. Could have just gotten weak over time and needed replacing. I hear it isn't that hard to replace them, or expensive to have them replaced. Although I also hear if the tweeter has died most likely the crossover went bad aswell. Good luck sir. I wish I had more knowledge I could lend.

[DVan8504]

Originally Posted by surfdude12

Hey guys,

I have a pair of BIC Acoustotech HT-75 Front L/R Towers. I blew the L Front lower out about a year ago playing RB6 Vegas, sent it in and got it fixed. Now I have a new issue with the same L Front Tower:

During certain audio sequences/tracks, it buzzes a lot, but still seems to give output when its not buzzing. Example: during Baraka, it buzzes like crazy, but during Minority Report last night, it buzzed just a little.

Is it a wiring issue? I checked the other day and it looked ok. Also, during "test one" it gives output fine.

Is the tweeter/woofer blown, but not the rest of speaker? If part was blown, wouldn't the whole speaker be out?

Do you suggest getting it repaired again or just buy a new set?

This seems obvious, but have you put your ear next to each speaker in the tower to try and locate which one is buzzing?

[BigSnax]

Awesome thread; I'm new to the home theater game and this thread is very informative.

[two34five]

Hey,

Im looking to upgrade my home theater system for around $500.

I dont know much about audio but I did a little research and I think Im going to get a Onkyo TX-SR508 mainly because it supports hdmi 1.4 and a 7.1 setup. Also its only $275 shipped.

Now for the speakers I was looking at the Polk RM705 system. My question is can I eventually add 2 speakers to this system and do they have to match or should I go for a 7.1 system like the Onkyo SKSHT750. Either option would be about $280 shipped, bringing my total total to $550.

I just want to know if this is a good setup for the price or if there are better options.

I appreciate any help.

[phillychad]

Hello everyone! I tried starting a new thread... BUT, I'm a "newbe" here so, here goes...

The other day, at SEARS, I was killing time while the Misses was busy spending $$$ we don't have... Anyway, I was in the Electronics dept (they still call it that!?) and overheard a salesman telling a potential customer the differences between PLASMA -vs- LCD/LED. Let's just say by the time my wife found me, I was pacing back and forth like Darth Maul waiting for the shields to drop (ten points if you know the reference! ha) after hearing what this supposed knowledgeable guy was saying, I was ready to pounce!

He said "Look buddy, PLASMA is a dead technology... In a few years, EVERYTHING will be this here 3D LCD/LED (pointing to a rather nice Sammy 8000 series)." He continued, "Do yourself the favor and get the LCD, look.. you want a bright, crisp picture that doesn't have to be viewed in TOTAL blackness or do you wanna save the grand and get these (pointing to an even nicer PN58C8000) dark fragile screen PLASMA's" The customer said "really? are the PLASMA's THAT bad" "Look fella" the employee said "We sell 5 to 1 of the LCD's for a reason, do yourself the favor and go with flow, not against it"

Ok, ok... I'll admit it... I AM a PLASMA fan BUT REALLY!?! C'mon! "a dead technology"!!??!! I mean, am I missing something? Look, the bottom line is that both panels have their plus's and minus's but to say that you need to view a PLASMA in "total darkness" is a flat out lie! I went thru two more expensive LCD's before I settled on a PLASMA... You know why? Because, for me, I can't stand watching a movie like it's shot with a camcorder. Yes, I know all about Judder and stuff but the truth is. On a LCD you simply cannot escape that crisp, live newscast feel. Now before I get slammed by the LCD crowd, know this. I think that this "live feel" I describe is a plus IF in fact you like that. Truthfully, I wish I kept my LCD while watching the World Cup BUT you couldn't pay me to watch lets say... The Fifth Element on an LCD. It just doesn't look right!

So that was my experience... It left me questioning wheather this guy knew something I don't... Is PLASMA on it's way out? I know LCD/LED outsells PLASMA so maybe??? It IS all about the bottom line so... Have any of you shyed away from LCD's over this "live" image I speak of? Maybe I could get use to it... Truth be told, I was watching UP on BD while listening to this NIT WIT on the new LCD 9000 by Sammy and it looked tack sharp, beautiful BUT all the while I kept thinking to myself that allthough it is "fun" to see a movie like this once in awhile, I sure wouldn't want it in my living room...

I must say this... If I was rich, heck!... If I even made a bit more then the slave wages I get now, I would love to own to sets... one 3D LCD/LED for when I want to watch "live" programs, and one PLASMA (all SAMSUNG of course) for when I wanna impress my friends and self! You hear that sound? That's the sound of lots of LCD owners grinding their teeth at me right now! Ha haha... RELAX guys (and gals)... Your sets are fine AND good! Just call me when you wanna see that Blu Ray ya just bought the way it's meant to be viewed... hahaha! (insert Dark Knight JOKER's laugh here)

Chad...

[danyduc]

I am looking for a receiver for my HT wich will be 5.1 and connected to a PS3 fat.
I was thinking of going with Pioneer VSX 520-K, anyone has experience with it?
I am open to suggestions, i want a good unit but not too pricey...

Regards,

[TKNice]

Originally Posted by phillychad

Hello everyone! I tried starting a new thread... BUT, I'm a "newbe" here so, here goes...

The other day, at SEARS, I was killing time while the Misses was busy spending $$$ we don't have... Anyway, I was in the Electronics dept (they still call it that!?) and overheard a salesman telling a potential customer the differences between PLASMA -vs- LCD/LED. Let's just say by the time my wife found me, I was pacing back and forth like Darth Maul waiting for the shields to drop (ten points if you know the reference! ha) after hearing what this supposed knowledgeable guy was saying, I was ready to pounce!

He said "Look buddy, PLASMA is a dead technology... In a few years, EVERYTHING will be this here 3D LCD/LED (pointing to a rather nice Sammy 8000 series)." He continued, "Do yourself the favor and get the LCD, look.. you want a bright, crisp picture that doesn't have to be viewed in TOTAL blackness or do you wanna save the grand and get these (pointing to an even nicer PN58C8000) dark fragile screen PLASMA's" The customer said "really? are the PLASMA's THAT bad" "Look fella" the employee said "We sell 5 to 1 of the LCD's for a reason, do yourself the favor and go with flow, not against it"

Ok, ok... I'll admit it... I AM a PLASMA fan BUT REALLY!?! C'mon! "a dead technology"!!??!! I mean, am I missing something? Look, the bottom line is that both panels have their plus's and minus's but to say that you need to view a PLASMA in "total darkness" is a flat out lie! I went thru two more expensive LCD's before I settled on a PLASMA... You know why? Because, for me, I can't stand watching a movie like it's shot with a camcorder. Yes, I know all about Judder and stuff but the truth is. On a LCD you simply cannot escape that crisp, live newscast feel. Now before I get slammed by the LCD crowd, know this. I think that this "live feel" I describe is a plus IF in fact you like that. Truthfully, I wish I kept my LCD while watching the World Cup BUT you couldn't pay me to watch lets say... The Fifth Element on an LCD. It just doesn't look right!

So that was my experience... It left me questioning wheather this guy knew something I don't... Is PLASMA on it's way out? I know LCD/LED outsells PLASMA so maybe??? It IS all about the bottom line so... Have any of you shyed away from LCD's over this "live" image I speak of? Maybe I could get use to it... Truth be told, I was watching UP on BD while listening to this NIT WIT on the new LCD 9000 by Sammy and it looked tack sharp, beautiful BUT all the while I kept thinking to myself that allthough it is "fun" to see a movie like this once in awhile, I sure wouldn't want it in my living room...

I must say this... If I was rich, heck!... If I even made a bit more then the slave wages I get now, I would love to own to sets... one 3D LCD/LED for when I want to watch "live" programs, and one PLASMA (all SAMSUNG of course) for when I wanna impress my friends and self! You hear that sound? That's the sound of lots of LCD owners grinding their teeth at me right now! Ha haha... RELAX guys (and gals)... Your sets are fine AND good! Just call me when you wanna see that Blu Ray ya just bought the way it's meant to be viewed... hahaha! (insert Dark Knight JOKER's laugh here)

Chad...

Yeah, I hear what you are saying and it's tough to decide what to do sometimes. I tend to agree with the guy only because everything is getting thinner and thinner and I think LCD and OLED support the thinner designs better. They are also a little cooler. That said, I have a plasma because for what I was buying, it fit my needs perfectly.

-TK

[gregodorizzi]

I'm a newbie just getting into HT, and I've come across comments in the forum on processors (e.g., Crestron CP2E) but few explanations about their utility. Examination of the products' web sites were informative, but I'd like to know from users how they put these devices to work.

[mikeroz]

Hi Guys,

I've recently bought the following and wanted to see if anyone could help me get the best out of it.

Sony STR-DH810 AV Receiver
Sony KDL-40W5500 Bravia LCD Screen
Mission MS8 Subwoofer
Mission M3C2i Centre
Mission MV6 x 2 Front Speakers
Mission MV2 x 2 Rear Speakers with stands

I have connected a PS3 Slim, X-Box 360 Slim and Apple TV.

My main purpose for the setup will need to be Blu Rays so any help on settings would be fantastic.

Thanks

Mike

[callas01]

Originally Posted by mikeroz

Hi Guys,

I've recently bought the following and wanted to see if anyone could help me get the best out of it.

Sony STR-DH810 AV Receiver
Sony KDL-40W5500 Bravia LCD Screen
Mission MS8 Subwoofer
Mission M3C2i Centre
Mission MV6 x 2 Front Speakers
Mission MV2 x 2 Rear Speakers with stands

I have connected a PS3 Slim, X-Box 360 Slim and Apple TV.

My main purpose for the setup will need to be Blu Rays so any help on settings would be fantastic.

Thanks

Mike

run the auto-calibration on your receiver and then again go into the receivers amp menu, if its the same as mine, press the amp button at the top, then menu button, then go to speakers, press the directional pad the right arrow, then go to front speakers and again the > button, it should say large, then click the down arrow to small. click the < arrow and then scroll down until you get to the Front Cross or and put that at 80 hz, and do the same for the center channel and the rear speakers. Then on the back of the sub, turn crossover frequency to its max point which is 150hz.

Make sure the speakers in the front are about 6-8 feet(2-2.5 meters) apart and 12 inches from the rear wall, then place the center channel in the middle equi-distant from the front r/l speakers.

from there you will just have to adjust to your tastes, its hard to know what your room will sound like.

[mikeroz]

Thanks for that, tweaked it to those settings and I can already hear a difference.

Although the auto calibration is good, I could hear something not quite right.

Now to watch The Dark Knight!!!!

Thanks

Mike

[LiveFree]

Spent about 10k or so on my basement HT stuff several years ago. Bedroom HTIB just died and g/f is allowing me to uprgrade bedroom to a decent 2.1 and what not. Budget of about 2k-2.5k. Already spent 1k.

I want to be more involved with the set-up of the devices and go a more bang for your buck route. For a little background, I browsed Cnet and picked out their top TV and their top blu-ray player at the time when I was doing my basement. Heard about Aperion Audio and bit the bullet on one of their 7.1 packages. Had a salesman at Best Buy persuade me on a Pioneer receiver. Guys came over and set up the stuff for me. I also after being told again and again about ISF calibration bit the bullet on that. Got talked into buying some rather expensive monster cables. Really felt blind throughout the whole thing even though I'm satisfied with my basement if that makes any sense.

Anyway like I said I've already spent 1k on the following
Onkyo 606
32XBR6 with wall mounts (may replace later for a 3D set)
PS3 (because ^ possibility and have read good things online)
DVE basics (don't understand how to set contrast on the LCD or the backlight)
sound meter from radioshack


For speakers and sub I was leaning toward a pair of Energy RC-30s and a HSU VTF 1 sub. Would that be fine? I'm a little over 2k if I get these last two things.

[kris26]

Hi guys
Nice thread and good topic
I have this harmon and kardon avr 154
its not much but it works rightnow

i choose the speakers as small and it had theoptions of
logic 5.1/7.1 and dts neo6.0 which is supposed to be better audio
iam confused in logic mode i can hear rear speaker but not in detail
dts neo abit more including the regular sounds it seems

by the way iam using coaxial cable for audio
i think my reciever don't support audio over hdmi (pls someone confirm about this)
iam planning to use optical does it change any better audio vise

[Billyjoebobray]

I have been reading these forums for about a month now and have learned a lot. I have had many home systems but I never really looked that deep into them and just went with what the guy was selling me I am now starting to get serious and would appreciate any help.

I just bought a PS3, which has started all this, that I use for a Blu-ray player, and my TV is a 47" Phillips LCD. My old Denon receiver just crapped out on me and I am thinking of getting the Onkyo 608 after reading these forums. That brings me to my speakers...

Fronts: DCM FT10's
Sub: DCM-1212 Powered Sub
Center: JBL N-Center 2-way

The DCM's are about 5 years old and the center is 10+ years old now. I have read on here that all the speakers should be the same model for the best quality, so should I just sell these and start new. Or is it ok to just get some surrounds for now and then worry about the rest later.

I am looking in the $500-800 range atm for a receiver and speakers to get started.

Thank you,
Billy