$2,500 Recommended 5.1 Surround Sound System

[admin]

If you have $2,500 to spend on a 5.1 surround sound we can't think of any better system to buy than this one. $2,500 is absolutely everything you will need, including cables, power protection, and Blu-ray player. Just add a TV and you will have a completely new home theater. We hand picked every product in this system because of their extremely high performance vs price ratio. You will be hard pressed to find better equipment for the money, and often times for even double the money. For $2,500 you will end up with a home theater on a budget that will make your friend's "home-theater-in-a-box" or expensive "cube" system look like toys.

Discuss "$2,500 Recommended 5.1 Surround Sound System" here. Read the article.

 

[zieglj01]

It is nice to know, that my ears are not filled with wax.
It is nice for someone else to say, that the Pioneers can
play loud and clean.

 

[agarwalro]

Huge vote for Andrew Jones and the Pioneer speakers bearing his name.

A $1000 receiver well drive them just fine and then one won't need the $84 cable, shoot, maybe even a $500 receiver. That opens up budget for an another SB1000 or PB1000.

 

[shadyJ]

I'm know I will rub a few people the wrong way with this post, but there are definitely some poor choices in that list, the chief of which is recommending a pre-processor and separate amp on that budget and with those speakers. My understanding is those speakers would not be difficult load for any receiver. Buying an amp for them is throwing money away. The alternatives suggestions of the Denon and Yamaha receivers are far more logical. Also the article stresses that one of the most common mistakes people make when piecing together a home theater is that they skimp on the subwoofer, and then the article recommends a seriously skimpy subwoofer. None of the alternatives are much better. I would also add that for not much more than the the price of the recommended surge strip, you could get a full fledged UPS from APC or Cyberpower with enough wattage output to protect several major home theater components from a sudden power outage, which is particularly nice to have for any projectors and HTPCs.

 

[zieglj01]

My understanding is those speakers would not be difficult load for any receiver. Buying an amp for them is throwing money away. The alternatives suggestions of the Denon and Yamaha receivers are far more logical.

The Pioneers can be driven with a good receiver.

 

[ImcLoud]

$2500 is a tough budget to recommend a system for... IMO I think the Pioneers {while they are impressive especially for their cost} should be in a much lower budget...
Like
Denon 1612 $200
STF2 sub $329
With an $80 bluray player, some inexpensive cables, {Blue jeans, mono price, AR, ect} and a mono price surge pro - $78 For only $78.72 each when QTY 50+ purchased - 8 Outlet Home Theatre Power Center w/ Data and Video Protection - 3500 Joules | Home Theater Power Centers

That would put the budget under $1500 and be a better overall match...

When spending $2500 I would like to see a better AVR like 709, 1912, ect. with some better speakers like Ascend 340 front with 200 surrounds, WD diamonds, or sale Focals ect... a vtf2 sub and the same blue ray, wires, and mono price surge listed above...

Now when you step up to $3500 you can get an XPA5 with the umc200 with the ascends, diamonds, ect....

So not a bad job, and nothing against the pioneers {I like them a lot} but IMO they belong in a $1500- budget not $2500....

 

[zman1974]

You can wall-mount the 22's. You just have to be willing to mount a beefy bracket that allows bigger speakers to be clamped to the mount. I found mine on Amazon thanks to a forum member for $25.00. This mount also allows enough room for the rear port to breath properly.

 

[gene]

I'm know I will rub a few people the wrong way with this post, but there are definitely some poor choices in that list, the chief of which is recommending a pre-processor and separate amp on that budget and with those speakers. My understanding is those speakers would not be difficult load for any receiver. Buying an amp for them is throwing money away. The alternatives suggestions of the Denon and Yamaha receivers are far more logical. Also the article stresses that one of the most common mistakes people make when piecing together a home theater is that they skimp on the subwoofer, and then the article recommends a seriously skimpy subwoofer. None of the alternatives are much better. I would also add that for not much more than the the price of the recommended surge strip, you could get a full fledged UPS from APC or Cyberpower with enough wattage output to protect several major home theater components from a sudden power outage, which is particularly nice to have for any projectors and HTPCs.

This is a prime example of offering poor advice not based on any personal experience with the equipment in the recommended list. It's easy to sit behind a chair and criticize but it takes far more effort to integrate and test systems which in this case is exactly what we've done. The Pioneer speakers do work well on a $500 A/V receiver, but they also sound better on a good separates solution like the Emotiva. These speakers are good enough to employ better electronics. The SVS sub is NOT a poor performer, its inexpensive and compact and has plenty of output to keep up with the speakers. I am using an EMP ES1010i in this very test system with great results. Corner loading this sub will earn our "medium room" size recommendation. At our GTG show people were very impressed with its output for its size and cost despite it not having tons of output below 30Hz.

This is a great system for anyone on a modest budget and you would be remiss to judge it without hearing it.

 

[jcl]

I'm know I will rub a few people the wrong way with this post, but there are definitely some poor choices in that list, the chief of which is recommending a pre-processor and separate amp on that budget and with those speakers. My understanding is those speakers would not be difficult load for any receiver. Buying an amp for them is throwing money away. The alternatives suggestions of the Denon and Yamaha receivers are far more logical. Also the article stresses that one of the most common mistakes people make when piecing together a home theater is that they skimp on the subwoofer, and then the article recommends a seriously skimpy subwoofer. None of the alternatives are much better. I would also add that for not much more than the the price of the recommended surge strip, you could get a full fledged UPS from APC or Cyberpower with enough wattage output to protect several major home theater components from a sudden power outage, which is particularly nice to have for any projectors and HTPCs.

If you order the UMC200 now you won't get it shipped until I think 1/13. The first two shipments sold out. I didn't see any comments on the Emotiva forums yet. In fact I read one post that said their first impressions thread had been removed. So while Audioholics has done a preview, I think it's still a bit of an unknown quantity. Given how their previous processor launches went I would err on the side of caution and let others venture in first.

 

[shadyJ]

The Pioneer speakers do work well on a $500 A/V receiver, but they also sound better on a good separates solution like the Emotiva. These speakers are good enough to employ better electronics.

This doesn't correspond with my understanding of audio science. Can you explain how those speakers sound better with a separate amp?

 

[gene]

This doesn't correspond with my understanding of audio science. Can you explain how those speakers sound better with a separate amp?

An amp with more headroom can and does improve the fidelity of sound, especially when driving music at louder listening levels.

Of course if you're of the opinion that all amps sound the same, then by all means get the cheapest A/V receiver that has the features you need and use that.

 

[africord]

What if?

I've been pondering a slightly different question: What if you spent $2,500 on a system that started life as a 2.0 or 2.1 and added the surround features later? I don't watch that many movies on my current archaic setup, but do listen to music both prerecorded and streaming. What would you change in the system?

One other comment, I haven't heard the Pioneers listed in the system, but am a big fan of Boston Acoustics and would probably do the swap out suggested. Is that a mistake?

 

[Cliff_is]

...Also the article stresses that one of the most common mistakes people make when piecing together a home theater is that they skimp on the subwoofer, and then the article recommends a seriously skimpy subwoofer. None of the alternatives are much better. I would also add that for not much more than the the price of the recommended surge strip, you could get a full fledged UPS from APC or Cyberpower with enough wattage output to protect several major home theater components from a sudden power outage, which is particularly nice to have for any projectors and HTPCs.

Actually, the recommended Pioneer subwoofer for this system is only $169, so the recommendation of one or two $500 subwoofers is a huge step up. Although Most AH forum members are bassaholics and consider $500 to be entry level, the general public considers that high-end. Most of the client's I work with end up asking why they even need a subwoofer or what is the smallest one they can get. The SB1000 is in the price range most people can be convinced to buy and small enough for the approval of a spouse. Sur, we could have recommended a giant sub for more money, but the person reading this article probably doesn't want a second coffee table. So, it may not be the system you would choose, but this article isn't geared towards the Audioholic.

As for a UPS, we have suggested those in other articles but we needed to keep within a budget. Also, the Panamax is better than most of the competition at the price. We chose it because of the automatic voltage monitoring (over and under voltage protection), isolated filter banks, coax protection, and spaced outlets. The voltage monitoring for sustained high or low voltage is something that most of the competition lacks.

 

[jcl]

If you order the UMC200 now you won't get it shipped until I think 1/13. The first two shipments sold out. I didn't see any comments on the Emotiva forums yet. In fact I read one post that said their first impressions thread had been removed. So while Audioholics has done a preview, I think it's still a bit of an unknown quantity. Given how their previous processor launches went I would err on the side of caution and let others venture in first.

To clarify an item in my earlier post - I believe the first impressions thread was removed from the Emotiva forums because today, 12/13, is the first day that the product is being shipped to customers.

 

[gene]

I've been pondering a slightly different question: What if you spent $2,500 on a system that started life as a 2.0 or 2.1 and added the surround features later? I don't watch that many movies on my current archaic setup, but do listen to music both prerecorded and streaming. What would you change in the system?

One other comment, I haven't heard the Pioneers listed in the system, but am a big fan of Boston Acoustics and would probably do the swap out suggested. Is that a mistake?

nope the Boston Acoustics line is a very good one and prettier than the Pioneers.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

It's amazing how things add up. It's like going to Walmart or Sam's club and seeing the total price at the end of $300!

Anyway, there's more than one side to every story. I'm sure everyone of us could come up with our own different version of a $2500 system.

This is just one take.

 

[agarwalro]

Gene, I know you have a FS52 review in the works, is there also one for the UMC-200?

 

[gene]

Gene, I know you have a FS52 review in the works, is there also one for the UMC-200?

Yes and an OPPO BDP-105 as well.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I am using an EMP ES1010i in this very test system with great results. Corner loading this sub will earn our "medium room" size recommendation. At our GTG show people were very impressed with its output for its size and cost despite it not having tons of output below 30Hz.

I agree. Lets just say that a single corner loaded i1010 did excellent job in small room, unlike a certain pair of 12" sealed subs (also in corner) in a very large room

I'm glad to see Pioneers recommended outside of their regular $1000 point system with big step up to $2500 system. This speaks volumes on how actually Gene is impressed this these "little" speakers...

I believe (and I could be wrong here) Pioneers are rated at nominal 6 Ohm and higher 80s (88-89?) Sensitivity - We'll wait for official measurements, but the manuf numbers telling me a solid amp will not hurt at all...

That said Imho dual PB1000 with Pioneers on $2.5 budget should be doable with mid-tier receiver and monoprice accessories

 

[3db]

This is a prime example of offering poor advice not based on any personal experience with the equipment in the recommended list. It's easy to sit behind a chair and criticize but it takes far more effort to integrate and test systems which in this case is exactly what we've done. The Pioneer speakers do work well on a $500 A/V receiver, but they also sound better on a good separates solution like the Emotiva. These speakers are good enough to employ better electronics. The SVS sub is NOT a poor performer, its inexpensive and compact and has plenty of output to keep up with the speakers. I am using an EMP ES1010i in this very test system with great results. Corner loading this sub will earn our "medium room" size recommendation. At our GTG show people were very impressed with its output for its size and cost despite it not having tons of output below 30Hz.

This is a great system for anyone on a modest budget and you would be remiss to judge it without hearing it.

Are you saying there's a marked difference in sound with amplifiers driving speakers well within their power envelope? If so, I'm disagreeing with that assertion.

I would switch out the Emotiva equipment for either a Denon or a Yamaha receiver, upgrade the speakers and change out that sub to the Outlaw LFM-EX which is only $50 bucks more, plays louder and deeper.