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Home Theater

Amp

Hey Stu.

Just a second vote for an Onkyo Reciever. I have an Onkyo 919THX Integra. It is almost 10 years old now. It still performs flawlessly. I have it upstairs in the living room with Boston Acoustics Fronts, and B&W THX rated surrounds/center. Also B&W sub. and 51" Toshiba CinemaSeries HD Rear Projection.

I will be putting a home theatre in my basement as well, likely with projector unit as you are describing. I will buy more Onkyo hardware in a heartbeat. I would shun the Yamaha. Buy whatever level you can afford in an Onkyo, but you will be happy with it in the long run. Also the B&W speakers are fine...especially the THX Rated ones.

Have fun building your dreams.
 
I have two recommendations...

Check out the SVS speaker package. I have one of their subwoofers, and they make amazing stuff.

Go to AVSForum to continue your research. I've received incredibly good advice there when I was shopping around for my home theater components.
 
In the summer of 2004, I decided to upgrade my 1985 Sony 19" TV, 1977 Radio Shack speakers, and other vintage equipment to the home theater of my dreams. I researched for months, and ended up buying the Yamaha HTR-5790 7.1-channel receiver, which is almost identical to the model you're considering, if I recall correctly. I've been happy with it; it's gotten heavy use (a teenager lives in the house), I've had no problems with it, and the various surround programs are great. I bought it based on reviews, features, and price.

As for speakers, I was impressed with Bose, having heard their in-store demos, but my research convinced me that better speakers were available for less money. At our local Best Buy, the sales rep recommended a brand called Athena. They sounded great to me, but as I'd never heard of the brand, I was wary. So I researched (yeah, I'm anal about that) and learned that Athena is a division of a large Canadian speaker company that's been around since the 1940s. The reviews I read were overwhelmingly positive, and the general consensus was that their speakers sound as good as brands costing twice as much. So I bought two FS-2s (mains), a CS-1 (center), an SB-400 (subwoofer), and four RS-1s (surrounds) for about $2,600 total, as I recall. I've lived with them for almost two years, and their sound quality still blows me away. (I hadn't heard anything as good since I used to hang out with a college buddy of mine in the late 1970s who spent all his spare income on stereo equipment. He had a Marantz quadraphonic system and four Altec-Lansing Voice of the Theater speakers.) They sound equally good with movies or music, which was a major criterion for me.

And based on reviews, I bought the $500 Athena Micra-6 5.1 system for our bedroom stereo. For the price, it's great, and if I'd never heard the more-expensive system, I might have been satisfied with it as our main system. (Best Buy seems bot to sell Athena anymore, probably because most people have never heard of the brand.)

For the TV, I bought a conventional Mitsubishi 65" rear-projection HDTV. Although there are better TVs on the market now, for the price, it couldn't be beat -- and for me, sheer size is an essential part of the movie-viewing experience. My wife and I rarely go to movie theaters anymore. I don't see any reason to ever upgrade our speaker system, but someday I'd like to upgrade the TV to a projector and 10' screen.

Anyway, good luck with whatever you decide to get!

Honu
 
stubeeef said:
While I don't have a budget, I will not go stupid on it. Will keep it below $10k. Prefer to keep it less than $7k.
Click to expand...

Holy crap! :eek: I guess you and I have totally different ideas about "going stupid on it." :D

Back in late '04 I outfitted my house with a home theater setup that I'm very happy with for about $700 or 900 (I forget which), all told. Receiver, speakers, second room speakers, DVD player, cabling, speaker mounts, in-wall wiring hardware, Airport Express for music, etc. About the only thing I didn't buy then was a TV/projector, choosing to stick with my current one until prices go down more. Of course that can easily be the biggest expense, so I can understand having a higher budget. ;)

I'll third the recommendation of Onkyo. I grabbed a "refurb" system insanely cheap on their website. 6.1 receiver, all speakers and subwoofer, front speaker stands etc. This thing must have been slated to be a floor model or something, but obviously never left the box, and the price was a steal. One of the things I really like is that the speakers are large enough to really push some air, not like the tiny speakers that are typical with Bose or other low end all-in-one systems. I spent a lot of time listening in stores and those small speaker systems just sound terrible! I've got so many friends who spent 5 times more than what I did one home theater sound and their systems sound pathetic. Yeah, I'm gloating. :D I love the sound of my system almost as much as I love the deal I got.

For the second room (living room), I bought a pair of Polk speakers. Again, love the recommendation, love those speakers too. With this setup, I can have my iTunes playing in 4 different rooms simultaneously - family room (main home theater room), living room (2nd speakers), office (computer), and bedroom (fed from tape record out of the Onkyo). Sweet. :cool:

My DVD player is a Pioneer I picked up for under $100. The biggest criterion was that it had to play both SACD and DVD-Audio, which this one does exceptionally well. I think it has component out, but that doesn't apply until I upgrade my TV.

One note on 7.1 sound - I'm kind of curious, is there really any content out there with it? Very few DVDs I've seen even have 6.1, and I can't imagine noticing much difference in slightly separating the center of the rear. Seems like a little bit of "more is better" overkill if you ask me. :rolleyes:

Anyway, my details may or may not be applicable to your higher budget, but I'll just say that if you shop carefully, you can get great sound without a huge price tag. And of course if you don't, you can overpay tremendously for either only a tiny improvement, or possibly even something worse! Just don't fall into any audiophile traps, regardless of what you get, and enjoy it! :D
 
First,

Thanks for the inputs, more are better!

Second,

There are lots of good possibilities, and price vs capability is what matters to me. But I like doing things right the first time, with capability that should last. 7.1 is a feature I loved with my last yamaha, it sounded infinity better than the 5.1 I have now with the same speakers different amp.

I want my A/V reciever to have lots of connectivity possibilities, good amps, clean sound when asked for, and outstanding effects when asked for, reliability is a must.

LCD's are now as good or better than DLP, the technology is shifting, at least in the price ranges I'm looking at.

Right now in my family room I have a 5.1 system running off an ok sony receiver (str-de935) running some older but great Polk M3's and an Active Boston Acoustic subwoofer. It is ok on the 32 jvc tv, but not what I want. It is also fed by monster optical from an ap exp to the receiver.
I want some good sound (I have mild to moderate Tinnitus anyway) and GREAT Video. A little wow factor like an electric screen wouldn't hurt either. The budget is coming from my labor costs, you see I am doing the tile, drywall, drop ceiling, painting, and finish carpentry. The floor alone will save me over $4000 in labor. I have spent a grand total of $900 on the labor for my 225 sq ft office. The floors are $.89 tiles and I did the framing and hung the drywall. Electrical was $600, $150 to help me grout the tile, and $150 to "mud" or finish the drywall. So after finishing approx 700 sq feet myself, the savings will pay for the home theater (my rationalization). By the time I finish out this space I will have added almost exactly 1000 sq feet of finished heated space to my house, increasing the equity by atleast $70k! (bonus and basement sq ft don't appraise as highly as "normal" sq ft.)

I will celebrate with a Kick @ss system and the first movie will be Pink Floyd " The Wall"!

I will be going to a few higher end audio stores over the next weeks so I can get some more ideas and hands on play. I am more and more thinking that I want both the receiver and the dvd player to be the same brand just to eliminate another remote and not have to buy an unversal one if possible (just projector/cable/surround sys)

I respect the Onkyo brand, I have previously owned Carver/Kef/still have some B&O/Yamaha/Polk/BostonAcoustic/and even some sony/jvc. This is going to be fun. I plan on setting up the room myself, and am waiting for my custom cabinet guy to come by and help me plan this one out (16' of cabinet on screen wall, and 20' of cabinet on 1 length of wall).
 
I have an 8 year old Sharp LCD projector with a mere 640x480 panel resolution. It is projecting beautiful images onto a 120-inch 1.2-gain widescreen from Dalite. Your budget is $7 to $10K for the entire system (a wise decision)...and yet I am inclined to spend that much on the projector alone. It's an expensive hobby, alas one of many. I've been waiting a long time for the perfect projector, but, like U2, I still haven't found what I'm looking for. It's coming, though; I can sense it. Maybe even this year.

LCDs are getting better. Their main problem for me is screendoor or fill factor. This has improved considerably, but I'd still like to see a higher fill factor, deeper blacks, and fewer dead pixels. Panasonic and NEC have good LCD projectors.

A great place to read up on all things home-theater is www.avsforum.com

After being accustomed to 120-inch screens, nothing less will satisfy! 50-inch plasmas? Nah, waaayyyy too small! :) Cinema is meant to be large, and it is thoroughly enjoyable to watch movies at home on a 120-inch screen.
 
ksz said:
I have an 8 year old Sharp LCD projector with a mere 640x480 panel resolution. It is projecting beautiful images onto a 120-inch 1.2-gain widescreen from Dalite. Your budget is $7 to $10K for the entire system (a wise decision)...and yet I am inclined to spend that much on the projector alone. It's an expensive hobby, alas one of many. I've been waiting a long time for the perfect projector, but, like U2, I still haven't found what I'm looking for. It's coming, though; I can sense it. Maybe even this year.

LCDs are getting better. Their main problem for me is screendoor or fill factor. This has improved considerably, but I'd still like to see a higher fill factor, deeper blacks, and fewer dead pixels. Panasonic and NEC have good LCD projectors.

A great place to read up on all things home-theater is www.avsforum.com

After being accustomed to 120-inch screens, nothing less will satisfy! 50-inch plasmas? Nah, waaayyyy too small! :) Cinema is meant to be large, and it is thoroughly enjoyable to watch movies at home on a 120-inch screen.
Click to expand...

Ya I am tempted to spend too much.

See my link in post #25 about a recent LCD vs DLP review. The LCD had better blacks, contrast, color, and no screen door.

Because things are changing so rapidly I will buy the projector at the last minute, maybe even the reciever too. I am going to use a cheap DVD player till the new standards are established and in production.
 
UPDATE:
To those that directed me to the AVS forum ( http://www.avsforum.com/ )
a very big THANKS!

My choices are running this way...
Speakers
Orb Mod 2 7.1
http://www.orbaudio.com

A/V reciever
Denon AVR-2807
http://usa.denon.com/ProductDetails/3038.asp

Projector
Panasonic PT-AE900U-EC
OR Epson PowerLite Cinema 550

DVD Player
Oppo DV971H
http://www.oppodigital.com/opdv971h_images.html

Screen
either a stewart or a da-lite.

Anyone with any of this gear, or good knowlege, jump in.
Havin a blast spending money I aint got for stuff I don't need in a house bigger than I thought I'd have! So much for minimalizm!
 
Was looking around at some old posts and thread subscriptions of mine and saw this thread still in my subscribe list. Thought I would update it.
Here is a link to a photo journal of things as of a few months ago. http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/555596824CqbdmN I still need to update many of the pix. I think I will later today.

I am using the following
SVS 7.1 surround system
SVS Sub ( it will shake the entire house and move the clothing your wearing.
Epson HomeCinema 1080p projector
Pioneer Elite VSX-94TXH receiver
Sony Playstation 3 80g for Blu-ray and games
Toshiba HD-A2 hddvd player
Oppo DV-981HD up-converting SD DVD player
DIY laminate 110" screen
SurgeX Electricity conditioner and protector
Universal remote and remote transmitter
Berkline 88series power recliners in the pictured setup with black leather and lighted cup holders to be delivered in mid January 08
I put in cabinets from Lowes Hardware and it was a nightmare.
I have a decent poker table and nice office chairs I got half priced on clearance from Office Depot.
I have lived on AVS forum for the last 18 months.
 
Mac Pro as Center of Digital Lifesytle

OK, so I just got my new Mac Pro and I've been thinking about switching to the whole digital lifestyle. Though I will use my Mac for work, I find myself listening to music on it through headphones and I've been using the built-in speaker more and more, and the wife is giving me the go ahead to move the system from my "office" to the living room. This is a great opportunity to get rid of my old clunk surround sound and monstrously heavy tube TV (I've got a 30" ACD) and get a nice smaller system. But I never gave any thought to this before, the Pro has TOSLink Optical Audio I/O but how do I take advantage of that? :confused:
 
stubeeef said:
I used to own some NAD, I forgot to check them out! Good idea!

I want 7.1 and atleast a low level of THX.
Click to expand...

Look at Rotel for AMPS and at the B&W CM series speakers

I have the CM7's and have fallen in love. A full set should set you back around $3000~4000 (Depending on the sub) which should be in budget.
 
stubeeef said:
Was looking around at some old posts and thread subscriptions of mine and saw this thread still in my subscribe list. Thought I would update it.
Here is a link to a photo journal of things as of a few months ago. http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/555596824CqbdmN I still need to update many of the pix. I think I will later today.

I am using the following
SVS 7.1 surround system
SVS Sub ( it will shake the entire house and move the clothing your wearing.
Epson HomeCinema 1080p projector
Pioneer Elite VSX-94TXH receiver
Sony Playstation 3 80g for Blu-ray and games
Toshiba HD-A2 hddvd player
Oppo DV-981HD up-converting SD DVD player
DIY laminate 110" screen
SurgeX Electricity conditioner and protector
Universal remote and remote transmitter
Berkline 88series power recliners in the pictured setup with black leather and lighted cup holders to be delivered in mid January 08
I put in cabinets from Lowes Hardware and it was a nightmare.
I have a decent poker table and nice office chairs I got half priced on clearance from Office Depot.
I have lived on AVS forum for the last 18 months.
Click to expand...

Just curious; did you do all the construction yourself? Cus that would be a big expense wouldn't it?

Edit; one other thing, why the clay tiles on the floor? Wouldn't a home theater be a lot nicer with carpet.
 
tringo,
I did most of the construction myself. I didn't do the electrical, the mud on the drywall, or the ceiling. I did get help with somethings to speed it along (the entire thing took 14 months).
I bought the cabinets at Lowes and that was a disaster!!

The tile is mostly covered now with carpet, but being that it is a basement and susceptible to water damage, the clay was a no brainer. It is compensated for by lots of heavy blackout curtains, lots of furniture, cabinets, and lots of heavy rugs.

Diode,
I already own the equipment in the list dated 01/01/08. i have tinnitus and my hearing is not what it used to be. 20yrs ago I had top of the line Carver Amps and preamps (still have the preamp), as well as kef 105.2's and other top speakers that I no longer can truely appreciate. I LOVE my present system and it is strickly for Home Theater, not critical music listening.
 
stubeeef said:
While I don't have a budget, I will not go stupid on it. Will keep it below $10k. Prefer to keep it less than $7k.
Click to expand...

Here is, I think the most importent question: Let's say you have a $10K budget. What is the best why to allocate funds. For example 30 years ago when people bought stereo music system the best advice was to allocate 60% of budget to the pair of speakers. But now with a screen in the mix 60% might be high. But still I would think there might be some general rules of thumb about what to spend on and what to skimp on. You will always have this same problem no matter if the budget is $4k or $40K -- How to divide a fixed sum?

That said there is a lot that can be done for nearly free. Room acoustic treatment, speaker placment and viewing geometry if done "right" can make low end equipment work well and if done wrong destroy the potential of even the best gear.

I would start the design of the system from the viewing seats. Place them maybe 2/3rds back from the front, buy a "correct" size screen then place the speakers. then choose the receiver that will best drive the speakers.

Plumbers will always tell you to build out new construction from the source. Here, go the other way, start with the people, place them, next place screen and speakers then buy electronics to drive the screen and speaks then buy "sources" that play the media. Do it all in that order.
 
here is how I spent on electronics (not room or furniture)

Projector $2600
Screen $250 (DIY laminate)
Receiver $1400
PS3 $400 ($100 discount online if opening up and charging to a sony card)
Oppo DVD player $220
Toshiba HDDVD $98 (Walmart 2 weeks before Christmas)
Speakers and Subwoofer $1800
Misc equipment stuff ($300) univ remote/cables/crap

What is important to you is what you should spend on. Speakers increase in cost (more or less) while electronics keep getting both better and cheaper. I bought my speakers first, and projector last.

a not uptodate set of pictures

http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/555596824CqbdmN

cabinets $9800
seats $2990
poker table $200 (nearly stole it ) chairs for table $600
blackout curtains $280
carpet and rugs $1300
 
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