Building new entry level HT from scratch and need advice!

[ToolZero]

That is a fantastic deal on wire. I wanted the white and at that point I was willing to pay more to have it come from one of the companies I was already buying from.

I have everything except the mic. It's all at stage one of the install, meaning it's all up and working, but the wires are hanging everywhere. I'm buying the crown molding this week to make the wife happy.

I have no idea how to tune this system, so I'm eagerly waiting for the mic. I also need to go through someone of the setup guides online and tune what I can. I'll post some pics soon.

Dang the SVS SVS PB12-ISD/V is BIG!!! It came on a pallet! My wife just about had a heart attack when she saw it.
Note to self: Pay attention to dimensions of the sub next time.

Here's a pic of the new sub next to my old one.

 

[jaxvon]

HAAHAHAHAHAHA

I bet that makes you feel manly. I noticed one thing missing from your setup....the veritable Radio Shack Analog SPL Meter! It's $40 and indispensible when calibrating your HT. Just one last goodie you should buy while you're waiting for the Microphone.

Oh, and you should mount the SPL meter to a camera tripod. We humans move a lot more than you think, and can influence the measurements.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

Toolzero that is freaking hilarious.....i nearly wet myself looking at that pic...rofl!

I'm really curious about your Axioms! I have pretty much narrowed my speaker choices down to the Klipsch rf-35's and rc-35 and the axiom m60ti's with the vp-150 center. I‘m just trying to decide if I want to spend the extra money on the axioms. I wish so bad I could hear them! You gotta love their customer support though....I called with a question, left a message and 5 min later Joe Vassello calls me back...."ah hem...I forgot what I called about" What a super nice guy and very helpful.

http://www.axiomaudio.com/archives/joev.html

Yeah I had read your posts already Zero and that’s what got me looking at the axioms....had you listened/demoed any Klipsch by chance prior to going with the axioms?

My speaker budget is $2000-$2300

My Receiver budget is $500-$900

DVD $300-$650 I think I’ll end up going with the Denon 1910 or 1920 (what’s the difference?)

 

[ToolZero]

The M60ti's, QS8's and VP150 will run you $1700 shipped. I don't think you will find better sounding speakers for that price. You still will need a sub, don't forget.

From what I understand the Axiom speakers perform very efficiently, meaning you will be fine with only 100-150w/ch. My Denon 3805 works great.

For me it was important to keep everything off the floor, so I went with the bookshelf M22ti's. I haven't tuned anything yet, but so far it sounds amazing. The clarity is stunning. I should have gone with the $599 SVS sub, to get the size down.

It's taking me a little while to get used to the clarity. I turn up the volume higher than I used to now, and the sound penetrates like crazy. When I am upstairs in my house, music still sounds great. This is not a good thing when you have a 14 month old trying to sleep. I will have to schedule times to watch movies when the wife and kid are out of the house.

I looked very seriously at Klipsch speakers when I started my quest. What finally turned me away from them was the people in these forums who have a lot more experience than me, and the price of the Axioms seems impossible to beat for the quality of speaker they are. Additionally, I really like the service, support, and help Axiom provides. If I bought Klipsch I would be on my own.

You won't be disappointed if you go with the Axioms, and I doubt you will be disappointed if you go with Klipsch either.

The Denon 1920 has better DAC's and de-interlacer chip. It also plays SACD's and DVD-A's. Compared to the 1910. I think.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

Well today I made a decision....I went with the Klipsch's! I was able to purchase the rf-35's and the rc-35 for $1150. So I was pleased with the final pricepoint the rep made me and after listening to them one last time, felt that these were speakers I could definently be pleased with!

As far as a receiver goes, I 'm leaning toward the Denon 3805 right now but still considering the Elites and Yamaha 2500. Any preferences? My only concern is I might wish I had the THX format down the round.....but the Denon have such a nice midrange sound....any thoughts?

 

[ToolZero]

Congrats!

I like the look of the Elites so much better than the look of the Denons, but Axiom strongly recommended I go with the Denon so I did.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

yeah when I talked to Joe yesterday he did recommend the Denons first and HK second with the axioms.

I think Denon is a safe bet all around but I could get an Elite 54 with thx for less than the Denon.....hummm....not sure yet.

 

[patnshan]

Dang the SVS SVS PB12-ISD/V is BIG!!! It came on a pallet! My wife just about had a heart attack when she saw it.
Note to self: Pay attention to dimensions of the sub next time.

That's friggin hillarious! That little thing looks like something your shoes came in next to that big a#$ SVS. My God! My wife will kill me if I come home with that!

Pat

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

Awesome isn't it? It'll be like a real earthquake in his living room....pictures coming off the wall, glasses vibrating on the table! What more could a guy want!!!???....lol

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

Well….My Klipsch RF-35’s and RC-35 center came in yesterday and I went out to Ultimate Electronics here in Tulsa OK with a Crutchfield ad for the Denon 3805 at $900 and the Denon 1920 DVD at $315. Ultimate Electronics generally doesn’t match/beat online retailers, but the manager gave me a new 3805 for $850 and the 1920 for $299. So I was pretty excited about that. I am truly amazed how great this receiver sounds straight out of the box!!! I know I made the right decision. I have a lot of tweaking to do but at this point I’m real excited! Right after I got it all set up I threw in the opening scene of Master & Commander to see if it sounded anything like it did in the demo room I was in. AWESOME!!! I just need to add a sub and upgrade a couple of cables and I’ll be done.
Any recommendations on some decent rca’s/composites for DVD-A playback?

 

[jaxvon]

If you're not worried about SACD, then you can just use an optical or coax digital connection for DVD-A. As for component video, KnuKonceptz has a 4m cable for $23 shipped.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

I did already attach a good Monster Z Dig. Cable but I also will play alot of SACD.....so what cables to you rcommend for that?

 

[jaxvon]

At the moment, SACD is analog only, so you'll need 6 RCA type cables. You can buy a 5.1 set that will have different color coding, or you can use 3 pairs of 2-channel cables. It won't make a difference in sound, but it won't have the convenient color-coding.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

Will SACD only play through the standard 'audio outs' and not through the 5.1 ch audio outs? If so, how does the multi-channel versions of SACD's work? I'm not sure if I have that set up right on my 3805. Any ideas?

 

[AVRat]

See the bottom of pg. 11 in the 3805 manual.

 

[Daz3d&Confus3d]

yeah I did that but I'm not getting any sound via my receiver unless I run the rca's through the reg. audio out into 'dvd in'? I'm getting sound but I don't know if thats the right way to hook it up. I wasn't getting any sound through the 'ext. in' I tried pressing the 'ext. in' on the remote but I get nothing??? So I'm not sure.