Choice of speakers?

[BassnBronco]

I'm trying to build a decent system, pieces at a time. For starters, I'm looking to buy a pair of bookshelf speakers, a receivers, and a sub. Later on, I plan on moving the bs speakers to the back, as surrounds, buying a center, and a pair of floorstanding speakers. 70%/30% movies/music

I've listened to quite a few speakers over the past two weeks. Polks, Definitive Technology, Boston Acoustic, Klipsch, NHT, Paradigm, and B&W. Out of those, I've narrowed it down to B&W 601s3/AS650 (is $400 and $600 a good price for B&W?)and Paradigm Mini Monitors/PS1200. The prices for the speakers/sub are virtually the same. I'm having a very difficult time deciding between the two. Kind of leaning toward the Paradigm, because I like the PS1200. They didn't have a AS650 hooked up, and being a sealed box, I know it won't rumble as low as the PS1200. I want my sofa to shake and vibrate while watching movies! Anyone have any thoughts/experiences with either of the two?

For my receiver ... don't laugh ... I'm going with a Yamaha V361. It is 100Wx5. Is this receiver any good? I really liked the Onkyos and Pioneer Elites I looked at, but it came down to just needing 5.1, and not needing 75% of the features of the higher end receivers. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jcPanny]

New speaker system

Bronco,
There are some great bookshelf speaker options in your price range. You might consider adding some of the internet direct companies like AV123, Axiom, and Ascend to your list. From AV123 you could go with floorstander X-MTMs or bookshelf speakers in their rocket or Ref line (used).

Also, if lightly used speakers is an option, look for the Paradigm Studio 20's in your price range on Audiogon.com.

Finally, keep in mind that the sub does not need to be the same manufactuer as the speakers. A lot of people like the value of the products from SVS and HSU. I have the SVS SB-12 Plus.

On the receiver, the power specs on that entry level model are not realistic. I would consider a better model that has pre-amp outputs so you can add an amp in the future if necessary for 4-ohm speakers or the floorstanders. Look for RX-V659/HTR-5960 model in the $300 price range.

 

[jake5717]

If you want the sofa to shake I've got a buttkicker and wireless link ill sell ya.........GF thinks it’s dumb, but I love it especially when listening to music.

 

[BabelFish]

my friend had those and they were cool.. it was nice because you could "feel" the bass even when the sound was not that loud.. great for environments where sound loudness matters...

 

[jake5717]

It is a little distracting during movies because when there is an explosion or something you start thinking to yourself wow how cool was that and hoping for more shaking and stop thinking about the movie. With music though you get use to a constant rumble and it really adds to the music.

 

[avaserfi]

Sounds like it would give a nice massage. I like the idea.

 

[no. 5]

For my receiver ... don't laugh ... I'm going with a Yamaha V361. It is 100Wx5. Is this receiver any good? I really liked the Onkyos and Pioneer Elites I looked at, but it came down to just needing 5.1, and not needing 75% of the features of the higher end receivers. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I realize you only want 5.1, but even though a receiver is capable of 7.1 does not mean you need to use all the channels, and a higher end receiver has better amplifiers and pre-amps too. Not that the 361 is awful, but considering the speakers you want, I agree with jcPanny, a better receiver would be good.

The RX-V659/HTR-5960 (and the older models too) is a good choice, and if you like Onkyo, an older modle perhaps; TX-SR703.

 

[BassnBronco]

Greatly appreciate all the advice. I saw one of those "buttkickers." Are those the little devices that attach to the underneath of your sofa? At the time, they didn't have it hooked up, and I quickly dismissed it, because it didn't look like it would do much.

As for the receiver, the entry level 361 isn't really going to push 100Wx5? With Yamaha's reputation, I thought I could get away with a cheaper entry level receiver. I definitely wouldn't look at an entry Sony or Kenwood receiver, but thought it would be okay for a Yamaha. Prior to the Yamaha, I looked at the Onkyo SR604 for $399 and the SR505 for $299. I also saw a place online where I could get an entry level Pioneer Elite (the vsx-80 model) refurbished for $379. But I'm just not too sure about buying used/refurbished equipment, but it might just be too tempting.

I'm also not sure about buying equipment online without having demoed them. All the speakers I've looked at thus far have been 8 ohm. Which brand/speakers are 4 ohm? Wouldn't you get double the power if you hook up 4 ohm speakers to a receiver running whatever watts at 8 ohm?

I can't find any place that lists prices for B&W speakers. Is $400 good for the 601? $500 for the 602? $600 for the AS650? I keep thinking how the dollar is very low compared to the British pound and that I'm having to overpay for British speakers, if I were to buy them.

 

[jake5717]

yeah it packs a heck of a punch, it will rumble your couch.

 

[no. 5]

As for the receiver, the entry level 361 isn't really going to push 100Wx5?

“100Wx5” is a very amorphous description of power output; but looking at the manual, I see that the 361’s power output is measured at 1kHz at 0.9%THD, so if it’s asked to reproduce anything that that is more complex then a single frequency, there won’t be 100 watts on tap.
I don’t know what any one channel is capable of for power output, but looking at its power consumption, in an all channels driven test, 51 watts per channel looks like all it can deliver (320VA*0.8/5).

All the speakers I've looked at thus far have been 8 ohm. Which brand/speakers are 4 ohm? Wouldn't you get double the power if you hook up 4 ohm speakers to a receiver running whatever watts at 8 ohm?

At most you would get double the power, but it is FAR more likely that an amplifier or receiver will not “double down” (not many do), and if the amplifiers can’t handle the increase in current demand that the decrease in impedance brings (which is very likely, if the receiver is not rated for 4 ohms), you would risk frying the receiver and/or the speakers.