Infinity Primus 360 5.1 vs. BIC DV64 5.1

[Noach1]

Hi again. Hoping for the Wisdom of the Lords of Audio herein.

I've listened to the Infinity Primus 360 and liked it more than Polk and Klipsch and some others. I know it'll make me happy. I liked the Primus 150's sound as well, for a bookshelf. I haven't heard the 160's but I'm assuming they're going to be a little better than the 150's or at least more of a match for the 360. I'd be getting two Infinity Primus 360's for fronts, a C25 center, and two 160's for rear surround. Total on sale at Crutchfield is $640 plus tax, free shipping. Seems like a great deal.

I haven't heard the BIC DV-64 or DV-62si but their rep hereabouts is pretty good and the package would be cheaper than the Infinity set. I would be getting two DV-64s for fronts, a DV-62CLRS center, and two DV-62si's for the rear; currently available on Amazon for $470 + tax out the door, including free shipping. Seems like a great deal.

I want to save the money, but the DV-64 is a two-way speaker, and I've been consistently disappointed with the midrange on two-way floor speakers, even higher-priced models. On the other hand, I haven't listened to many and I've often had to settle for less-than-optimum listening conditions. I was wondering which y'all thought was the better bang for my buck. $170 buys a fair amount of hookers and blow.

No new sub right now. I'm going to play with whatever setup I get using the cheapo Sony sub I picked up and see if I can do without the bootyshake until I have more dough. I mostly listen to acoustic rock, pop, and some classical.

So there you have it: should I go with the BIC DV system for $470 or the Infinity Primus 360 setup for $640? Any advice makes me grateful. I don't have a lot of time to decide.

-N.

P.S. Not interested in doing the custom Frias crossover mod at this time, more trouble/time/money than I'm willing to dedicate.

 

[mike c]

a cheaper speaker you havent heard or a more expensive speaker that you know you like...

If i were you, Id choose the one I already like.

170 bucks for both hookers and blow? beware of those cheap places.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

You'll be hard pressed to find a better center channel or bookshelf than the Venturi for the dollar spent. There's no way the Infinity will have anywhere close to the low end the Venturi has in both the center or bookshelf. As far as the towers and midrange, I cannot comment. MacManNM had the DV84's, and said the imaging was outstanding. He was blown away by the bookshelves and center after the mods were done.

If you like midrange, and like how the Infinity's sound, it may be a gamble to go with a BIC setup. As far as bang for the buck - there is no equivalent to Venturi. But if you have the extra cash, and know what you're getting for your money, then there's no disappointment in going with the Infinity package. In my opinion, you really can't go wrong with either package. Plus, look at the money you're spending. Many drop that much on one center channel.

 

[Sheep]

If your not willing to do the mod, I'd say get the Infinitys. From everything Jaxvon has told me, they are nothing to special without the mods(don't quote me on this ). I heard the Infinitys at BB and really liked them. The treble was a bit harsh, but I was not in an ideal room or distance away from the speakers.

The 160s are HUGE speakers. You may be better off with the 150s. Also, only the 160s and towers have visible stuffing inside. I couldn't see any in the 150s or 140s(Mind you, I was looking through the port..).

SheepStar

 

[mike c]

I was comparing the Infinity Primus vs. the Yamaha EF Series, I was about to buy the Primus til I heard the Beta series ...

so my advice to you ... dont listen to speakers not within your budget.

also, have you read reviews of the primus series? (if im not mistaken, there's one at stereophile)

 

[Noach1]

Thanks for the advice about the hookers, Mike, but it's OK. I get a discount 'cuz I'm pretty. ;-) Also, yes, gotta stop listening to speakers not in my budget.

I'm pretty sure that Primus review in Stereophile has sold Infinity a lot of speakers. I know I was impressed enough to go to the store.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for the wise words. Buckeyefan especially, you've been very kind to respond to my queries and I take your remarks about the BICs with great weight. I just don't want to add anything more to the list of things I need to upgrade, repair, replace, maintain, or otherwise mess with. I already have a motorcycle, a dog, a part-time bartending gig, a full-time yob, three computers, a motorized barstool, a closet full of camping gear, and some chick who insists on coming over and making me happy no matter how undeserving I am. One more project will sink me.

Sheep, the 160's are listed as 9" X 12" X 15", which doesn't seem too large to me. The 150's are 8" X 13" X 11".... no, you're right, that is a bit larger. But they're still bookshelf speakers and I have eleven bookcases, so I imagine I'll find 'em a spot. And if you want to talk about harsh treble, the last time I was in a listening room at the local Circuit Sh---y every tweeter on every floorstanding speaker they had wired up was blown. Except the Infinitys-- and they looked worn enough to have been there a while. Made me feel good about longevity, at least, although I suspect a Polk rep would have been disappointed with the presentation of his product.

Anyway, grateful for this forum and youse guys. If anybody sees any other great deals on two floors, a center, and two bookshelves in the under-$700 range, let me know. Thanks!

-N.

 

[gmichael]

I love my Primus set up. Great bang for the buck system. Yes, Stereophile did a review on the 360's in June of 2005. They made statements along the lines of, these are better than many $1k towers.
I don't know much about the Bic.

 

[mike c]

to be fair though, I would not have been able to tell the difference between the Beta and Primus series had I not listened to them seconds apart.

that being said, the Primus is a good buy! (also one of the reasons I bought it is brand name recognition)

 

[Buckeye_Nut]

There is nothing wrong with Infinity

Eventhough I dont currently own any, they've made a lot of good stuff through the years.

 

[AzN_plyR]

Also, only the 160s and towers have visible stuffing inside. I couldn't see any in the 150s or 140s(Mind you, I was looking through the port..).

SheepStar

Hey sheep, what is the advantage of more stuffing? and is there such thing as too much?

 

[Sheep]

Hey sheep, what is the advantage of more stuffing? and is there such thing as too much?

Reduces cabinet resonance and absorbs some of the backwaves from the driver I believe. I think there is such a thing. It reduces airflow, so to much would weaken the bass response.

SheepStar

 

[johsti]

If you know you already like the infinity's, then go for it.

If you are considering the BIC's, then I would not rule out the crossover mods. The mods should take no more than an hour of your time. All you do is unscrew the woofer(s) and tweeter, and take off the back plate where the binding posts are. Unlplug the wires from the speakers, bubble wrap, box and ship to EFE. You'll have them back in several days and reinstall them. There is no soldering or anything. It is impossible to screw anything up.

I thought the BIC's sounded fine with movies/tv in their stock form. I wasn't completely thrilled with their music performance though. The mods really made music much more enjoyable.

I think you would be hard pressed to find a better "bang for the buck" 5.0 speaker package than the BIC's you are considering. I wrote a reveiw on the exact same setup a few months ago.

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19189&highlight=bic