big plunge or wait till new basement

[coilman]

alright guy's here the scoop. trying to put together very long lasting ht. my current system obsolete- sherwood rec/w make shift klm speakers-ouch: just got pansonic 58" plasma. in the living room 18x11. planning to remodel basement within year or so. plans - put plasma in basement 20x25- get denon 3808ci w/def tech sts towers-mythos 3 center-mythos surronds or as rep at bb says " go with comparable klipsh's". already have panasonic bd-30. trying to wait for speakers avail to hear. need some idea about def tech's ability to go di/bi-pole for surrounds. also rep was saying with def tech.s you still would want sub- to which doesn't make sense unless he was strictly talking about the klipsh's. any suggestions of substitutes for components are appreciated. thanks alot

 

[lsiberian]

I know we all want to have that nice new system, but I suggest an alternative to both. Why not add and change over time? This lengthens the time of shopping and enjoying. I recommend a maximum of 1 upgrade a month. That way every month you get a new toy to enjoy. Usually this fits in a normal budget. I do think it's better to wait until your HT is built to audition systems in home.

1. Different speakers sound better in different places

2. You will not be limited by room aesthetics.

3. You will have more money.

Few of us can build a full system all at once and it's a really bad idea. It gets you into a cycle of crazing spending that can lead to debt and other bad things.

I suggest you take it slow and take your time. Make sure each pick is exactly what you want.

Plus in a year many of the top brand speakers may be on clearance

IOTW enjoy your TV for now add over time.

Make sure you enjoy every new toy to it's fullest. That means instead of shopping for new stuff. Watch movies on your new TV. You have a 58" plasma for crying out loud. If you just got it you should be enamored with it.

Oh and Don't listen to people at best buy. I don't like Klipsch myself, but it is one of the few speakers in there store I would allow a friend to buy in my presence.

I suggest you at least give SVS a shot. I would suggest my favorite series(Infinity Beta, KEF iQ), but they aren't exactly easy to audition anymore.

For subs I suggest you take on the Infinity Perfect build on the DIY portion of the site.

With a dedicated HT room you can easily go 7.1.

Checklist of things for a dedicated HT room

Front SoundStage(L, R, C)
Surrounds(LS, LR, RR, RS)
Dual subs if possible(Preferably DIY)
Good comfortable seating(don't forget this)
Cupholders if you like to drink stuff and want to reduce spillage.
Sound Treatment.
Full 7.1 Reciever or Pre-amp/Amp combo depending on the speakers

Trying to think of other stuff. I'm sure others can add on.

Audition List

KEF,
Infinity,
Paradigm,
PSB,
SVS,
EMP,
TSC,
BW

There are many more. I suggest you audition every speaker you can. But maybe after you get the room since you will want it to sound amazing in there.

 

[coilman]

thanks, i appreciate the response. my main concern is that it is a goal over time. for i'll be trying to listen to various speaker pkgs. the avr is a reasonable choice since it will be updateable for future use. since it been since the 70's that i've devoted this much time,effort & research for components in the audio/vidio world. so getting the most bang for the buck is important to me. reading as many threads and mags as possible to make good judgements. believe me that i don't take the cost of things lightly at all--just well over due----thanks

 

[Tiguron]

I would hold off on the receiver until the last minute. The technology has been changing alot in the last few years. Each year the same features come with a much lower price tag. The more you can hold out the more you can save. The Denon is a great unit, but you may be able to get it as a clearance item, or get the new version for less.

 

[AVRat]

Will the 20 x 25 space solely used for HT? If so, the 58" plasma may be a little underwhelming. Any plans for a larger projector/screen setup? This can easily be done for the price of a good plasma. If this sound appealling, for a little more you could do a hybrid system that uses the plasma for regular TV viewing and a drop down screen in front of it for the HT experience or big game times.

Your question is a tough one since you really want a decent audio system now to compliment the plasma and be able to use it in a MUCH LARGER room later on.

The DT Mythos towers will definitely work in the larger room. But I feel the extra money spent on the units with "built-in powered 'sub'" can be better spent on the towers w/o sub and the money put towards a dedicated true sub. For example the Mythos One/Nine for the front three. The salesman was correct about needing the dedicated sub to supplement the STS towers. The "built-in powered 'sub'" really doesn't provide the deep, visceral impact that a good dedicated sub provides. Which is the reasoning for my previous statements.

 

[lsiberian]

I want to throw this idea out there. You could look at getting a nice small satellite sub set that could stay in the living room for tv/movie watching in there. Then get full range speakers for your basement space.

The best satellite set out there is the KEF 3005SE. They are very good speakers for the size. And the sub has a lot of bunch for that type of system. They are low profile so they could stay in your living room for music or something later on.

You could also use 4 of them later on for surrounds in your home theater space. They are the highest rated by that Cnet place. I think for the size yu won't find a better looking and sounding speaker.

 

[lsiberian]

Will the 20 x 25 space solely used for HT? If so, the 58" plasma may be a little underwhelming. Any plans for a larger projector/screen setup? This can easily be done for the price of a good plasma. If this sound appealling, for a little more you could do a hybrid system that uses the plasma for regular TV viewing and a drop down screen in front of it for the HT experience or big game times.

Your question is a tough one since you really want a decent audio system now to compliment the plasma and be able to use it in a MUCH LARGER room later on.

The DT Mythos towers will definitely work in the larger room. But I feel the extra money spent on the units with "built-in powered 'sub'" can be better spent on the towers w/o sub and the money put towards a dedicated true sub. For example the Mythos One/Nine for the front three. The salesman was correct about needing the dedicated sub to supplement the STS towers. The "built-in powered 'sub'" really doesn't provide the deep, visceral impact that a good dedicated sub provides. Which is the reasoning for my previous statements.

I agree with this statement, but PJ technology is also moving fast. So I suggest holding off on that type of upgrade too.

A 58" plasma isn't underwhelming if you don't know better.

 

[coilman]

thanks everyone

i appreciate all the reponds that i got. the basement won.t be solely dedicated to h/t. there arew other things that will be going in, 3/4's of the room to h/t. I'll take into account about the sub. it does change some thought on a system. thanks again!!!

 

[jostenmeat]

Definitely buy things ONLY with the basement in mind.

During the meanwhile, read up on forums as much as you can, and visit plenty of stores when convenient. You will not find any other resource where you can learn so much on so many facets as you will on the forums. In fact, you can pay a professional very good money, and you still won't know as much.

Having 1/4 of the room for other things may very well turn out to be a benefit in disguise. One of the most common compromises that unknowing folks do is to have seating against, or close to back wall.

The placement of listener, and placement of speakers are IMO more important than the choice between one midlevel speaker and another. You can make the nicest most expensive speakers sound like crap if you place them terribly.

No excuse not to use a projector in a dedicated basement. There is nothing else like it.

 

[Shock]

Take the plunge! Take the plunge! Take the plunge!

 

[coilman]

seating

thanks j for that.because that is the very issue that i dealing with in the living room------Pj definitely will get a look at. tech is ever changing so looking at clearance is good plan of action. CC had a 889 denon for 700 last week. was thinking of trying to nego. a bvetter price. but glad i held off.

 

[yettitheman]

Wait on it. Remodeling projects always seem to get out of budget and out of time constraints. The money you use for HT may have to go to fix part of the foundation, or whatever else city code monkeys can find (or what is a big problem).

Things at minimum, when redoing the basement, check your wiring. Make sure you have enough outlets. Use at least 12/3 Romex (I am paranoid) or whatever size is correct for the breaker you will install. Also, if your HVAC and everything else is down there, try to make a partitioning wall or something and soundproof it. Make sure that you run good ventilation as well. Small things that will take time and a little more money, but will help you enjoy your new system in your basement more.

 

[lsiberian]

thanks j for that.because that is the very issue that i dealing with in the living room------Pj definitely will get a look at. tech is ever changing so looking at clearance is good plan of action. CC had a 889 denon for 700 last week. was thinking of trying to nego. a bvetter price. but glad i held off.

Don't buy anything from Circuit City. Period. They marked everything up.

There are wise words above.
A PJ is a major investment and if you lack good technical skills it may not be right for you. It will have the best picture and amaze you though. And if you get a decent LCD one you can even shelf mount it. Though I recommend a ceiling mount if you can do it.

There are 4 brands I can think of to chose from for a receiver in your price range. Denon, Onkyo(my preference years of use of their products), Yamaha, Marantz. Any of their receivers will be great for you IMO. If you have a blu-ray player it actually may be worth the upgrade. The new audio formats are pretty awesome. I think this generation of receivers will last a while for a variety of reasons partially being the economy.

Please note Polks have IMO a very different sound than most receivers so your ears may need to adjust. I think it's worth it and you ears will thank you. But again I'm not a Polk fan. I suggest taking it slow as always.