Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster here. I've read a lot on the forums and the internet in general but am certainly still a noob to all of this. I haven't been able to get a clear answer for a few questions kicking around in my head and I wanted to ask all of you for advice.
I'm finally at the point of upgrading my HT, it's well overdue. For ease on the budget I plan to do it in stages and will start with the subwoofer. I then want to upgrade my front L/R speakers and continue to use my current center channel, but with the age of my speakers I think I will be told I need to upgrade all three. I plan to move the front L/R speakers to the side surround position.
I have an Onkyo TX-NR838 powering my HT. My front soundstage are B&W 686 with a B&W HTM62 center. (these are the first series, not the S2 version). For my rear surround speakers I have Bose 301. For my subwoofer I have a Klipsch SW-350.
My living room where I have the HT setup is medium sized room at 1,856 cubic foot which is open to the hall leading to the bedrooms and has two unobstructed doorways 44" wide along the wall to the rest of the house (kitcen, dining room, family room). The kitchen/dining room is 1,600 cubic foot and the family room is 1,440 cubic foot, all open to each other.
I'm starting with the subwoofer for obvious reasons. The 8" driver with "350 booming watts of peak power" is a bit lacking. I am planning on going with two HSU VTF-15H MK2 subs. Overkill? I'm thinking no one will say it's too much. I do not have a UMIK-1 or REW so I plan to do the sub crawl method to place both subs. With the Kiplsch I have some very noticeable dead spots in a few of the seating positions so I will place one sub for best sound in the MLP and the other I will try to place in a spot to enhance the dead spot for the other listening positions. Since it's not a dedicated HT, space and aesthetics will dictate final placement. My question is, can I use my smaller sub for the sub crawl or does it have to be the 110 pound subs I plan to use? Moving the small Klipsch up onto the furniture will be much easier the lugging the HSU up there.
I am undecided on which route to go when upgrading my fronts. I want it to be as cost effective as possible. Would finding a pair of B&W 684 used on e-bay be too risky? Could i match up my existing center channel with a new B&W 603 S2 Anniversary Edition tower speaker? My HTM62 seems similar built to the new B&W HTM6 S2 Anniversary Edition. Should I just suck it up and get the new 603 S2 and HTM6 S2? If I'm replacing the entire front soundstage is there another brand that would be better? Keep in mind I plan to move my existing front L/R to the side surround positions for a 7.2 setup.
To recap:
Can I use a smaller sub to do the sub crawl and then place larer subs in those spots?
What do you all feel is the best route for me to go when upgrading my front L/R speakers?
Thank you in advance for all the advice and guidance!
