Home Theatre Help

[meekman22]

Hello everyone. I'm in the process of finishing off my basement and we're nearing the end of the construction process. I've been reading through forums and doing a lot of research on the in's and out's of a good A/V system but, it's obvious I'm way over my head. Before going any further, I'd greatly appreciate guidance from some seasoned folks instead of relying on the part-time help at Best Buy.

Here's where I am thus far. The main room is 25'x18' and has a connecting room that's 21'x18' (I'm not sure if mentioning this room makes a difference but, I wanted to include the info just in case). The rooms are separated by a cased opening but, both have 9' ceilings. The larger of the two rooms will serve as our living/theatre room and the other is a bar and pool table area. I've already purchased a 65" panasonic plasma that will be wall mounted but, the rest is up in the air.

I'm interested in a system that sounds great; as close to a theatre experience as I can afford for 5k. I'd prefer something that's easy to set up and operate (I have a Denon AVR 3806 in my living room currently and have never understood how to use it properly). I'd also like to play music via internet & itunes...streaming video is also important.

I've looked at the Marantz, Onkyo, Yamaha and Pioneer A/V receivers as well as several speaker manufacturers. Thus far the Marantz SR 6006 or 7005 A/V receiver and Aperion Verses Forte Tower Surround HD speaker system are my favorites. However, I may be headed in the wrong direction; please HELP.

 

[fuzz092888]

I think you are headed in the right direction, I would say the Marantz SR6006 and the Aperion speakers would be an excellent choice for your price range. Marantz are very user friendly IMO and I think you'd be very happy with that setup.

My only other suggestion would be Marantz SR6006, Philharmonic 2s, Salk song center, Parts express surrounds, and a DIY parts express sub.

$960
$2000
$800
$40
$700
====$4500

Plus shipping and you're still probably under budget and I would argue that this system could blow the Aperion out of the water.

The DIY sub is simple, my suggestion is for the 15 inch titanic, and you more or less just screw everything together and connect some wires. Takes maybe an hour. Go over to the Philharmonic thread and you'll see that the Phil 2s are an amazing deal. The surround, for $40 you can have a 5.1 setup, for $80 you can have a 7.1. The surround don't do a tremendous amount of work anyways, and with the speakers I mentioned your front soundstage will be so big and awesome the surrounds will be an afterthought.

Good luck

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-764

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=300-652

http://www.salksound.com/songtcenter home.htm

http://philharmonicaudio.com/philharmonic2.html

 

[zieglj01]

The Marantz 6006 would be a nice one. -
You can get a refurbish one here
http://www.accessories4less.com/index.php?page=item&id=MARSR6006

I would go bigger than the Forte system for your room.

I would also look at something like the KEF Q series
KEF Q900
http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/542052223/kef-q900?s_c=site_search
KEF Q600
http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/548100941/kef-q600c-center-channel?s_c=site_search
KEF Q100
http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/543715648/kef-q100-bookshelf-speakers?s_c=site_search

And HSU VTF-15H sub
http://hsuresearch.com/products/vtf-15h.html

Or, 2 Rythmik FV12 subs
http://www.rythmikaudio.com/FV12.html

 

[meekman22]

Jim

Thank you for your advice. The refurbished route was one I hadnt thought of and by the looks of things, it'll save me some money, too. What's your take on the SR6006 vs the SR7005? Other than some additional power and minor connectivity upgrades, it looks very similar. Would the added power be useful later or do you think the 6006 will provide all I need?

What do you think of the Defenitive Technology speakers vs the KEF you mentioned?

 

[meekman22]

Another great idea..building my sub from a kit had not crossed my mind. I'll look into your other reccomendations.

Thank you for the advice!

 

[zieglj01]

Jim

Thank you for your advice. The refurbished route was one I hadnt thought of and by the looks of things, it'll save me some money, too. What's your take on the SR6006 vs the SR7005? Other than some additional power and minor connectivity upgrades, it looks very similar. Would the added power be useful later or do you think the 6006 will provide all I need?

What do you think of the Defenitive Technology speakers vs the KEF you mentioned?

You get more frills and you get to spend more money on the 7005
Other than frills, 15 watts difference is not that big a deal. The
Marantz receivers are more efficient, than a lot of receivers in the
surround mode.

The KEF speaker voicing, would be more all around pleasing to me
with HT and music. The Q900 drivers will throw a big soundstage.
I like some of the Definitive stuff - however, I am not a big bi-polar
fan. It all comes down to preference, choice and taste.

 

[fuzz092888]

The 6006 is definitely a better choice if you need more power an amp would be a much better choice than trying to get a receiver with more juice. Marantz receivers are about 86% efficient when all channels are driven which is pretty darn good compared to the competition.

The Phil's will throw a huge soundstage with their open back design. As for the surrounds, it really depends on preference. Most tend to agree that for multi channels music matching is important, but for HT it isn't essential. My personal preference is to make sure your front 3 speakers are the best you can get with the surrounds being more supplementary than anything. If you want you can always upgrade the surrounds later, but I tend to think you'll be so happy with he Phil's and the song center that you may forget the surrounds are even necessary. Just my opinion though and dont misunderstand me I think 5.1 and 7.1 are much better than 3.1 or 2.1. I just think the front 3 should be your main concern right off the bat.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well, I would call Electronics Expo and tell them if they would sell you the Denon 4311 (retail $2100) for $1330 since some guys on AVS Forum has gotten this deal.

If they will sell you for $1330, buy it.

Now you have about $4K budget for your speaker system.

Then call Ascend Audio and see if they would give you 10% off if you buy dual Rythmik FV12 subs (retail $500 each + shipping).

Now you have about $3,000 left.

That's just enough to buy the Philharmonic 1 towers + matching center + matching surround speakers.

What you then have is one heck of an audiophile system for both movies & music.

That Denon 4311 is great for network streaming too.

Oh, and get the $129 Panasonic 220 Blu-ray player for all your Netflix streaming and all kinds of streaming. Of course, it also plays BD, DVD, CD.

If you have Android phone or tablet, there is also Android apps for Denon AVR & Panasonic BD, and most likely your 65" plasma.

Or get some Ascend speakers w/ discounts.

Or get some KEF Q900 + Q600c or Q200c + Q100 surrounds.

 

[fuzz092888]

Although Dennis said in the Phil thread he's no longer taking orders for the center, which would leave you with the salk song center or something else. Otherwise the plan looks good.

You could go with three surrounds from Philharmonic if you have enough room to put one under your tv for your center which would work fine.

 

[meekman22]

I really like the KEF speakers and you're the second person who's recommended the Q's. I'm not sure how they compare to the Philharmonics but, my wife seems to think they look better. Is the Q model the best for home theatre or is there another KEF model that's better?

 

[meekman22]

I'm sorry but, have a stupid question; what's the difference between a bi-polar speaker like the Def Tech's verses the KEF's?

 

[meekman22]

What's your opinion on the KEF Q500 system?

 

[jcl]

I'm sorry but, have a stupid question; what's the difference between a bi-polar speaker like the Def Tech's verses the KEF's?

Simplified explanation is:

Bi-Polar has drivers at front and back of the speaker acting in phase.

Kef Uni-Q is a coincident source driver where the tweeter is located within the woofer.

I'm sure there are others here who can give you much more detailed definitions as well as a good explanation of the pros and cons of each design.