Rate my beginner home theater

[bradley0001983]

Reciever demon x2400h
Fronts klipsch rf 63s
Center polk csi a4
Surrounds polk lsif/x
Surround backs klipsch 51s
Subwoofer paradigm pdr 80

 

[Leemix]

It should give you hours of fun and enjoyment
There is always room for improvement but we all have to start somewhere. Its all part of the home theater experience.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[bradley0001983]

Ya I know the center gets lost now I think my next upgrade be reciever to a 9.2 or 11.2 not sure how it would sound but have another set of the polk lsif/x I think would make interesting front hights for Dolby atmos

 

[Leemix]

The best upgrades would probably be a much better center channel and a better sub.

 

[bradley0001983]

I thought the sub was pretty decent lol I also have a onkyo sub i use see mixed reviews on mix matching two subs but seems to sound decent but yes center is not good waiting find a good deal though

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Reciever demon x2400h
Fronts klipsch rf 63s
Center polk csi a4
Surrounds polk lsif/x
Surround backs klipsch 51s
Subwoofer paradigm pdr 80

Looks like a nice starter setup. Hard to rate on equipment alone though. Do you have everything placed for best performance? That can make even very expensive gear sound good hum. The biggest offender I see is the “sub”woofer. Room size will usually dictate how big you need to go. But that little guy has an 8” driver and a stated FR of 29hz(per CNET). To me, that could work in a small bedroom or office type of setup for music. For more of an HT experience, imo you’ll need to add something larger.how big is the room?
A new sub, and speakers will do much more for your sound than an AVR. If you’re considering Atmos then that’s a slightly different story, but it sound like a new CC and sub should be first in line.

 

[bradley0001983]

It's in my bedroom it's a pretty big room about 400 square feet I do have two subs going though so that helps placement is not perfect as the lsif/x are not placed perfect but doesn't really fit in room where the need to be but it all basically around my bed

 

[2channel lover]

Ya I know the center gets lost now I think my next upgrade be reciever to a 9.2 or 11.2 not sure how it would sound but have another set of the polk lsif/x I think would make interesting front hights for Dolby atmos

Since I haven't heard your set up I don't want to rate, it, in general 7.1 is great, but your CC is not a brand match which automatically knocks it down a notch or two from delivering the best SQ.

Maybe you have a large dedicated HT space, but I wouldn't get too caught up into a larger speaker set up yet. I'd focus on getting a brand or tone matching LCR so I would look to upgrade the CC first, and my previous sub was a 15" Paradigm...granted it was a 20 yrs old, but these new subs I have run circles around it, both musically and movies...you definitely should upgrade that before expanding to a 9 or 11 channel system.

IDK if you have ceiling access to install atmos, but a AVR with Atmos capability would also be ahead of expanding to a 9.2 ch system.

 

[Pogre]

I thought the sub was pretty decent lol I also have a onkyo sub i use see mixed reviews on mix matching two subs but seems to sound decent but yes center is not good waiting find a good deal though

Another vote for upgrading your subwoofage. I'd do that first and go with a phantom center till you can get a match.

You're going to hear lots of votes for that sub tho. It's not about having enough bass or even a lot of it, it's about the quality of that bass. A good sub can elevate a whole system when set up properly. Mediocre subs add boom and volume, but also a lot of distortion. The type of distortion that permeates through the whole range and you don't really notice until it's gone. I felt like I got a whole new system just upgrading my subs.

 

[bradley0001983]

What I don't get is the sub isn't a cheap sub why is it so bad

 

[ryanosaur]

Ummm...
What are you missing? Lacking? Wanting?

Price ≠ quality. Sometimes, but def not always.

*shrugs.

Sound quality is speakers. A good sub will help out a lot. When I look at your list, I would start with the sub... the best single sub you can get... and do the sub crawl to find it's best home.
Then match or replace your front 3 speakers. This should truly be the main focus of your budget.
After that... depending on your needs, look for a long-game plan to update your AVR to something that will give you better flexibility with room correction in the form of Audyssey XT32 and the Audyssey App. (maybe)

 

[lovinthehd]

What I don't get is the sub isn't a cheap sub why is it so bad

Well, it is a fairly cheap sub in the bigger picture, apparently it listed for $300. Never experienced one but as was said it's got limited performance at the lowest frequencies not unusual for an 8" sub; Paradigm calls the lower response 32 hz with a vague reference to DIN, so hard to know if that's -6dB down or an in-room type spec or what.

 

[bradley0001983]

Now I just lost replace front 3 speakers ? I know your center is run of mill but I feel like the klipsch rf63s are pretty damn good speakers and the denon x2400h is brand new . I still have my marantz 5004 and like alot about it .. the klipsch 51 seem decent the polk lsif/x I unsure about the dipole thing.. I eventually want all klipsch or polk canr decide i leaning towards klipsch

 

[bradley0001983]

I know the center lol I text horribly lol

 

[bradley0001983]

I'm a pretty good shopper so I get good deals i think so i constantly looking to upgrade

 

[ryanosaur]

You did ask... no need to be defensive.
Again... What are you missing, lacking, or wanting?

 

[lovinthehd]

I'm a pretty good shopper so I get good deals i think so i constantly looking to upgrade

I'd concentrate more on getting good solid gear where you can enjoy instead of always shopping/upgrading (which afflicts much of audiophilia)....and like Ryan says, concentrate on specific goals. Sound quality is primarily about the speakers, and the comments you've gotten about center/sub I generally agree with. You really want to cut holes in your bedroom ceiling for Atmos? I've not yet wanted to fool with my own ceilings so none of my avrs has that.

As to your surrounds you might like this article. https://www.audioholics.com/loudspeaker-design/surround-speaker-dipole-vs-bipole Personally I use monopoles.

 

[bradley0001983]

As much as I love good sounding music and movies I like messing around with it as much if not more not sure if I will ever be totally satisfied I always gonna wanna get something better or different just to see how it sounds .. my biggest reason for posting was to see how I doing opinions and what's worth keeping long term

 

[lovinthehd]

As much as I love good sounding music and movies I like messing around with it as much if not more not sure if I will ever be totally satisfied I always gonna wanna get something better or different just to see how it sounds .. my biggest reason for posting was to see how I doing opinions and what's worth keeping long term

Well that's somewhat understandable but I'd say do a lot of learning about how audio works along the way. Lots of great articles here on AH to help, too. There's a lot of snake oil in this game! Might even consider a diy project, nothing like hands-on learning....

 

[ryanosaur]

If you wanna know what you are missing... go to the next big audio show and see what is out there.

I'm not interested in speakers $60K.
(OK... there is this one pair at 50... but... no.)

(And then there is this $10K pair... more realistic... but is it worth the upgrade? ('K, I'd like to think yes, but... no.))

On the other hand, there are many great speakers at even less than a 20th of that last one.

But Subs do not come that cheap. Hsu is your best Value at cost-to-performance.
Unless you go the DIY route. And the same can be said for speakers. There are kits for all, that you can build, with Flat-Pack Cabinets that will outstrip anything retail by far... You just need a little know-how and craftsmanship.

And the only reason I brought up the AVR is to get you better features for Room Correction and the ability to control what is going on. Not a priority... just a possible path forward when you get a better grasp on the other variables.

Address your room and placement options (free, or inexpensive if approached smartly).
Subwoofer.
Speakers.
Electronics.



Edit: thanks to @KEW I saw a missing link: fixed.