recommendations on home theater system needed

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TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
Hey guys- As most other people who post in here are, I am fairly new to the home theater game and am looking for suggestions from you all on what the best speakers/setup is that I can get for my money. Here is what I am working with:

- 15x15 room size- though the back of the room is open (no wall behind seating area).
- budget is $1500-$2000
- For this size room, would you recommend 5.1/5.2 or 7.1/7.2?
- Looking at getting floorstanding speakers for front left and right Was chatting with a guy at best buy about the klipsch reference dual 8" floor speakers (R-28F) and said he likes them a lot. Then I was reading in various forums that they weren't that great as compared to older reference models and other speakers. Now I am not sure what to think.

- This will be used for sports/movies 80% of the time.
- The receiver I was looking at at best buy was a Sony STR-DN1070. Is there anything comparable that is less expensive that you would recommend or is this a good enough receiver? I do want some loud speakers/subwoofer for the surround! :)

Thanks in advance for your help!

-Lance
 
T

TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
Thanks Admin! Much appreciated. The Hybrid 2 system you recommended- how do the HB-1 MK2 bookshelf speakers compare to the Klipsch reference floor speakers i mentioned above?

Also- do you guys commonly purchase refurbed speakers/receivers because they are discounted? If so, have you ever had issues with them? If I did go refurbed, I would probably get the Denon receiver for the 3 year warranty and peace of mind too I suppose.

Is there anything else you think I should get/consider too?

Thanks,
 
S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
I have not heard the newer generation of Klipsch speaker, but the older Reference line was not to bad to my ears. The Hsu speakers are a bit more neutral in comparison, and the treble doesn't have that signature sizzle of Klipsch. Some people love that sizzle, other people find it fatiguing after awhile. The Hsu subwoofers are far better for the money than anything Klipsch has, that is indisputable. If I were you, I would try to make the stretch to the Hsu VTF3 mk5 sub, it is pretty damned amazing.
 
T

TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
I have not heard the newer generation of Klipsch speaker, but the older Reference line was not to bad to my ears. The Hsu speakers are a bit more neutral in comparison, and the treble doesn't have that signature sizzle of Klipsch. Some people love that sizzle, other people find it fatiguing after awhile. The Hsu subwoofers are far better for the money than anything Klipsch has, that is indisputable. If I were you, I would try to make the stretch to the Hsu VTF3 mk5 sub, it is pretty damned amazing.
Thanks Shady. I would probably do just that and go for the MK5. If I am gonna spend around 2k or more, I want to do it right. I have a little wiggle room in the price, as long as its the right product. I don't want to spend 2k and get an average but good set up. If it is a couple hundred bucks more to step up to something much better, i will. Also, how do you feel about getting a refurbed receiver? I am kinda hesitant to do so. Have you had any issues before?
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Also- do you guys commonly purchase refurbed speakers/receivers because they are discounted? If so, have you ever had issues with them? If I did go refurbed, I would probably get the Denon receiver for the 3 year warranty and peace of mind too I suppose.

Is there anything else you think I should get/consider too?

Thanks,
You can't get any refub with 3 year warranty, only 1
Amazon WarehouseDeals sells Open Box/Returns product - these considered for warranty - as new since Amazon is Denon Authorized reseller.
Spend as little as possible on electronics and maximum on speakers - Getting speakers 2nd hand is even better, but it's near impossible to find good deals.
 
S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
Thanks Shady. I would probably do just that and go for the MK5. If I am gonna spend around 2k or more, I want to do it right. I have a little wiggle room in the price, as long as its the right product. I don't want to spend 2k and get an average but good set up. If it is a couple hundred bucks more to step up to something much better, i will. Also, how do you feel about getting a refurbed receiver? I am kinda hesitant to do so. Have you had any issues before?
The VTF3 is more than twice as powerful as the VTF2 but only costs about 50% more after shipping, so you get a lot of bang for the buck there. As far as refurbished receivers go, I think it will probably be fine as long as you get a decent warranty. The one refurbished item I ever bought I did have issues with, it was a Denon CD Player.
 
H

herbu

Audioholic Samurai
Amazon WarehouseDeals sells Open Box/Returns product - these considered for warranty - as new since Amazon is Denon Authorized reseller.
Kind of an interesting legal tightrope.
The law says if a product has been opened, you can't sell it as "new". That's why everybody packages their product in a bag or box with one of those little tamper-resistant stickers. Almost impossible to open and reseal without being apparent.

The law does not say what kind of warranty you can offer. And it sounds like Amazon & Denon have decided the warranty shouldn't suffer just because a package was opened. Nice.
 
afterlife2

afterlife2

Audioholic Warlord
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
The VTF3 is more than twice as powerful as the VTF2 but only costs about 50% more after shipping, so you get a lot of bang for the buck there. As far as refurbished receivers go, I think it will probably be fine as long as you get a decent warranty. The one refurbished item I ever bought I did have issues with, it was a Denon CD Player.
as a package deal Hybrid 3 5.1 package is $200 more, but OP is going to get A LOT more sub for that money. I offered Hybrid 2 as a way to stay in budget, but just to be very clear VTF2 is no slouch at all.
It will kick sirrious azz, but no one ever said I have too much sub :)
 
T

TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
Good to know. I will probably do the hybrid 3 5.1 package then and snag one of the above receivers that was mentioned.

side note- does anyone know where or who I can go through to get a good deal on a big screen tv too? Was thinking projector originally, but in a 15x15 room, i'm not sure it makes a lot of sense. looking for 70" or larger and prefer no off brands. This obviously isn't part of the 2k budget I mentioned above :).


Thanks!
 
S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
If the room has good light control, I would look into projectors. Only if the room is not open to anywhere and the windows can be completely shut, if there are any windows. If you do not have tight control over lighting, yeah, I would get a nice TV.
 
T

TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
It's a walkout basement and has two windows so the projector would probably only be usable at night (unless I got room darkening shades).
 
S

shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
In that case, I would go with a TV.
 
T

TheHockeyGuy22

Audiophyte
agreed. besides your local big box retailers, anyone know where I can get the best deal on one?
 
BoredSysAdmin

BoredSysAdmin

Audioholic Slumlord
Costco has decent deals on Vizio TV. They are good value. Definitely a step up from LG in every sense, including quality. LG is crap - don't buy them.
 
H

herbu

Audioholic Samurai
I just bought a new one for my mom from Amazon. Better price than Walmart, free 2-day shipping, warranty, arrived in good shape. Have not installed it yet.
 
moves

moves

Audioholic Chief
You can't get any refub with 3 year warranty, only 1
Amazon WarehouseDeals sells Open Box/Returns product - these considered for warranty - as new since Amazon is Denon Authorized reseller.
Spend as little as possible on electronics and maximum on speakers - Getting speakers 2nd hand is even better, but it's near impossible to find good deals.

It's not hard to find good deals on second hand speakers. Check http://canuckaudiomart.com/
 
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