Home Theatre Help

[Napoole]

So i know you all are probably sick of these type of questions so i appreciate any help/advice i can get.

Wanting to upgrade my speakers from the insufficient HTIB versions i got years ago. I have already upgraded my receiver and although it is not the best available i would like to find speakers to work well with it. The receiver is a Sony STR-DG500 (110 Watts per Channel).

Im placing the speakers in a bedroom, roughly 10' x 12'. I use the speakers for music about 70% of the time and movies/TV the other 30%. I am looking for a quality entry level system. Klipsch and Polk are brands that seem to be roughly in my price range for the quality im after.

My questions are:
-Would I be better off buying bookshelf speakers for the fronts?
-I read that to get the best sound it helps to have all speakers in the system of a similiar physical design (space, shape, etc) Is this true? if so, are the small but box like surrounds/center the best choice if pairing with bookshelf speakers?
-Is Athena made by Klipsch? If so are they comparable to the brands mentioned above or are they on a lower level still?
-Any other brand or speaker specific recommendations for what im looking for?
-Any other advice/warnings to help me get the best for my money? (Other than just listening and deciding for myself, I have tried that and still find myself unable to decide)

Again, any help is much appreciated

 

[mazersteven]

1) Total Budget
2) How many speakers? 2, 5, 7.
3) Have you auditioned any speakers yourself?

 

[mazersteven]

-I read that to get the best sound it helps to have all speakers in the system of a similiar physical design (space, shape, etc) Is this true? if so, are the small but box like surrounds/center the best choice if pairing with bookshelf speakers?

Having identical speakers all the way around is ideal, but not always possible. Compromises have to be made. That is why there are horizontal center channel speakers. In-ceiling and In-wall speakers. Di-pole surrounds.

 

[chadnliz]

If you have been listening to speakers and cant decide you have not found the speaker thats right for you, if you do it right you will have no doubt. Like others said its ideal but dont think its written in stone to match all speakers, I doubt most would pass a blind test with non matched speakers within reason so dont buy the hype.

 

[bilgirami]

Napoole, I know the feleing. I went thorugh this a few months ago so I still have it fresh in mymemory. I had an HTIB before and was looking to upgrade. Did not have a huge budget so it was tough. I was looking to spend anywhere between 2K-2.5K. I auditioned a bunch in my area, Paradigm, AV123's onix, JBLs, B&W and I am sure a couple of other brands. But guess what, I fell in love with a company called Axiom Audio (www.axiomaudio.com). Best bang for the buck. Theya re definitely not the absolute best speakers you can buy but for the price you pay for the quality you get is amazing. I have their M60s (mains), VP150 (center), QS8 (quad pole surr) and EP350 sub. The speakers have an unbeleiveable sound stage. The details are amazing. I played my old CDs/DVDs that I have had for a long time and I can swear I heard sounds from the same CDs that I never did before. They manufacture their speakers in Dwight, Ontario, Canada, not in China. On top of everything else, the best customer service you will ever get. They also offer 30day in home trial and you can return the speakers if you dont like them. Its definitely worth a look.

 

[Napoole]

1) Would like to stay under about 2k if possible, but will go higher for the right speakers
2) Receiver is 6.1 so i would like all 6 replaced eventually
3) Yes i've done some auditioning and comparing. Spent some time really listening to the differences in frequency response, boxiness of the sound, strain of the sound, etc. So far im leaning towards a pair of Klipsch bookshelf speakers (forgot to write down model #) at Ultimate Electronics for around $450

I also did some shopping via craigslist.com and found some good prices on older speakers (manufactured around 89 i think). Has speaker technology progressed enough since then that i would be better off buying new? Or, assuming these sound good still, would it be a better move to get the older ones? The Speakers in question are KG2 WO's

Another thing: My receiver is rated at 8 Ohms. In all of your experiences, is it best to match the Ohms of the speaker to that of the receiver? From my understanding the only thing i am doing by using my 4 Ohm HTIB speakers is forcing my receiver to work a bit harder. Is that correct? Is the fact that the KG2's mentioned above have a 4 Ohm rating and also a 65 Watt max continuous power handling (325 max) going to cause problems with my receiver (110 watts per channel) So my speakers would only be "asking" for 65 Watts, but in order to compensate for the difference in impedance my receiver would likely be "sending" more than this. Is that correct?

Thanks again for all the help.

 

[santeini]

Don,t confuse your self. For home theater it is always better to use speakers from a single manufacture.(like the 5.1 sets which is available from a lots of manufactures) In your case since you are using it in the bed room,i suggest that get a book shelf speaker sets like the Q-Acoustics 1000i Series.

 

[jcPanny]

Used speakers

I would avoid speakers that are 20 years old. You won't be able to find a matching center channel and the woofer surrounds start to decay. However, if you find a high end model that you like, you might be able to get a lightly used pair from Audiogon for a good price.

 

[rnatalli]

4-Ohm simply means the speakers will draw more current from your amp which may or may not be able to handle it. I don't think I'd go with anything lower than 6 Ohms for a Sony amp. As for speakers, $2k is a good budget and you have lots of options. Get out and listen to as many as possible and don't forget the ID brands. Audioholics has a pretty good list:

http://www.audioholics.com/buying-guides/recommended-stores-manufacturers/recommended-manufacturers/loudspeakers

For a sub, I'd look into HSU and SVS.