First Timer, Help Please :)

[Scattcatt]

To start, this will be a long-winded explanation but I want to ensure that I cover everything so you have all the necessary details to help. I also would have hyperlinked everything but unfortunately couldn't for not having the required post count.

My wife and I upgraded from listening to TV content on TV speakers to a Vizio SB5451w-C2 boxed soundbar kit back in 2014 which we felt took our listening experience from "okay" to "great!" I'm sure that alone proves that we're not exactly audiophiles. We've loved this setup for some time but now we're thinking about taking our first steps toward what we would call an "awesome" setup.

Room:

Our living room is somewhat closed-in and measures roughly 15ft x 30ft

Content:

• Movies
• Shows
• Video Games

We primarily use our home theater for movies, and we'll watch anything from war movies like Saving Private Ryan to Disney animated movies like Frozen. The shows we watch are about as varied. Gaming-wise we like shooters, RPG's, and racing games (arcade and simulation)

Devices:

5 gaming consoles and 1 media PC

TV:

Vizio P65-F1

Most of our 4K HDR content comes from an Xbox One X.

It looks like a lot of Klipsch items are on sale this week, we're considering getting the following 5.1 setup with the ability to go to 5.1.2 in the future:

Receiver: Sony STRDN1080
Center: Klipsch R-52C
R/L Option 1: Klipsch R-820F
R/L Option 2: Klipsch R-51M
Surround: Klipsch R-51M
Subwoofer: Klipsch R-120SW

We are complete noobies with this though and could use some guidance. Our budget would be around $1,500 (this setup with the option 1 right/left speakers at Bestbuy would run us $1,600 this week with everything being on sale), we may be persuaded to go slightly higher if the bang for your buck is significantly worth it.

1. I know very little about receivers in general. I've chosen that one because of the wattage that's claimed to be possible per channel. Those R-820F's are rated for 150w continous and this is the only receiver I could find that could output that much at a reasonable price. I've historically been checking out Denon's for years, but didn't see any capable of this wattage without the price becoming astronomical. Is this receiver going to be adequate for the setup we've chosen or something comparable?
2. Going from option 1 on right/lefts to option 2 will save us $360 which is nothing to laugh at. I'm considering doing this to buy the R-820F's in the future and use the extra R-51M's for ceiling speakers for the 5.1.2 setup. What kind of a performance hit will we take if we decided on going with the R-51M's over the 820F's to start?
3. We've had trouble with HDCP 2.2 compatibility when we attempted to upgrade to a different soundbar system last year, but using the ARC should fix these problems if we don't run everything through the receiver. Would we be losing anything by using ARC vs running everything through the receiver then the TV should we end up with HDCP handshake problems?
4. Is there anything else we will need besides speaker wire and a subwoofer cable to get this connected?

I'm open to suggestions for alternatives, I've chosen these because all of these are pretty much half off right now. Let me know if I'm missing any information, and thank you in advance for you help!

 

[HTfreak2004]

First congrats on your wife being an enthusiast like yourself your a made man !

Welcome to the best site for the audio/video bug and it’s sure to be an invaluable tool to your love for home entertainment!

I’m actually almost to work at the moment so I’m short on time to post but klipsch is a great option especially with the sales on now!

You will need some HDMI wires as well. I hope the guys are ready to help you as I’m off to work!

 

[shadyJ]

That doesn't seem like a bad system. Measurements of the R-820F have actually been published, and they aren't terrible (can be seen here). They do seem like they would be a bit bright on-axis though. There is about a 3dB rise from 4 kHz to maybe 12 kHz that occurs from 0 degrees on-axis to 15 degrees off-axis. They do mellow out at 30 degrees off-axis. That means if you find them to be fatiguing speakers, angle them to that the listener is at a 30 degree angle. You might achieve this if you just had them facing forward in a parallel direction instead of having them facing the listener directly. The R-51M speakers might have the same type of response. I would say if you intend to listen at very loud volumes, go for the R-820F speakers, but if you don't plan on cranking the system, stick with the R-51M speakers. Don't worry about 'power matching' any of these speakers to the AVR's specified output, believe me that doesn't matter. That AVR's amp power spec is totally inflated. It is probably still sufficient for your needs though. At this price point, the amp power on most AVRs are pretty much going to be in the same ballpark.

The Klipsch subwoofers have reportedly had their share of reliability problems. It's really cheap at the moment, but... I would go another route that may save you some grief. At the moment you can get an SVS PB12-NSD for $500. That would be a much better sub that is far more reliable. You can also get a Hsu VTF-2 mk5 for $600 shipped, and that will punch a bit harder. Yeah they are both a lot more expensive, but they will both be a lot better than the Klipsch sub.

The Sony looks like a fine receiver. Personally I would go with Yamaha because they are the most reliable, but I think the Sony would be just fine, especially if you can get it on a good deal.

If I were shopping for an audio system in the $1500 ballpark, here is what I would get: This Integra receiver, a pair of KEF Q150s for the front left/right, one for the center, a VTF-2 mk5 sub, and maybe a pair of these Polk bookshelf speakers as surrounds. That will be a more refined system with much punchier and deeper bass than the Klipsch system you are considering. That Q150 will also function as a much better center speaker than traditional designs.

 

[Scattcatt]

Thanks for the advice! I like that setup you've created as well, I've never heard of any of these brands except Polk, glad we reached out! Can you re-link those bookshelves though? The link is broken. I'm pretty sure you were referring to the T15 Black's but I was surprised that they were only $60, but I may have the wrong set there.

 

[MTSound]

Thanks for the advice! I like that setup you've created as well, I've never heard of any of these brands except Polk, glad we reached out! Can you re-link those bookshelves though? The link is broken. I'm pretty sure you were referring to the T15 Black's but I was surprised that they were only $60, but I may have the wrong set there.

Good morning. I am new to this as well and I am looking at basically looking for a similar system with a similar budget. So please take what I say with grain of salt. I was at BB over the weekend and was able to demo the klipsch set up. They sound great but they seem to get a lot of negative response from the forums when someone mentions them which has me wondering why even though I can’t seem to find a clear answer on it. When I was there I did get quoted on a setup like yours with the exception of the receiver. Instead of the Sony I had the Yamaha 685 as part of the package. Total came to $1755. Now that I have the base line of budget I am looking at what other options are out there.

My concern with the klipsch is that even though they are clear they seem loud in the high end and has me wondering if they would be good for when you want to be at lower volumes

As for subs research has taken me to hsu, svs and Monoprice monolith. After hearing a klipsch sub side by side with a paradigm I fully understood why the klipsch sub gets negative reviews and all of the ones I listed get better reviews than the paradigm and ar a bit cheaper.

I’ve also been contemplating the idea of starting with fronts and sub then adding center an rears down the road but increasing my budget


Receiver wise I am looking at these sub $600 options

Denon avr x3500h
Yamaha rxv 685
Denon avr x2600h

Marantz sr6013 but that is at $900 and would throw my budget off quite a bit.


It seems to be several good options out there under $800/ pair for fronts. But I don’t have a place to demo them and maybe others will weigh in


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[shadyJ]

Thanks for the advice! I like that setup you've created as well, I've never heard of any of these brands except Polk, glad we reached out! Can you re-link those bookshelves though? The link is broken. I'm pretty sure you were referring to the T15 Black's but I was surprised that they were only $60, but I may have the wrong set there.

Here you go. Kef, Hsu, and Integra are all solid and well-reviewed brands. Integra is really just Onkyo's installer brand. Yeah, I meant the T15s. the surrounds aren't really that critical, and you have to make some sacrifices somewhere in a $1500 budget. The Polks have keyhole mounts in the back, and they actually have a better response when mounted a bit higher up above the listening position, so they are actually not bad for surrounds in a budget system.

 

[shadyJ]

Good morning. I am new to this as well and I am looking at basically looking for a similar system with a similar budget. So please take what I say with grain of salt. I was at BB over the weekend and was able to demo the klipsch set up. They sound great but they seem to get a lot of negative response from the forums when someone mentions them which has me wondering why even though I can’t seem to find a clear answer on it. When I was there I did get quoted on a setup like yours with the exception of the receiver. Instead of the Sony I had the Yamaha 685 as part of the package. Total came to $1755. Now that I have the base line of budget I am looking at what other options are out there.

My concern with the klipsch is that even though they are clear they seem loud in the high end and has me wondering if they would be good for when you want to be at lower volumes

As for subs research has taken me to hsu, svs and Monoprice monolith. After hearing a klipsch sub side by side with a paradigm I fully understood why the klipsch sub gets negative reviews and all of the ones I listed get better reviews than the paradigm and ar a bit cheaper.

I’ve also been contemplating the idea of starting with fronts and sub then adding center an rears down the road but increasing my budget


Receiver wise I am looking at these sub $600 options

Denon avr x3500h
Yamaha rxv 685
Denon avr x2600h

Marantz sr6013 but that is at $900 and would throw my budget off quite a bit.


It seems to be several good options out there under $800/ pair for fronts. But I don’t have a place to demo them and maybe others will weigh in


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

If you go with Denon, get the x3500 over the x2600, unless you need one of the newer features on the x2600. I prefer Yamaha myself, but Denon isn't bad at all. As for fronts speakers, take a look at the Outlaw Audio BLSv2 that is on sale right now. Really outstanding speaker for $500 a pair. The JBL Studio 530s are also excellent speakers. I like the CG5 speakers from RSL too. I also really like the Hsu CCB-8 speakers, very powerful bookshelf speakers that image superbly. Pair those up with a VTF-2 mk5 for a small discount. There are lots of other great choices for 2.1 channels systems out there in this price range, Infinity, Ascend Acoustics, Monolith THX, KEF, and more.

 

[Scattcatt]

That Integra receiver is actually even less expensive than the Sony anyway, so might as well go with it. We'll be out shopping around some today. Do you have a comparable one from Yamaha for consideration as well? If it fits the budget, I have no problems going with it if Yamaha's reputation is really top-notch. Might drop by Best Buy later with this new-found knowledge to see what other offerings they may have. I saw a couple of threads on speaker wire earlier that I'll use to help us out there, but if you have any suggestions on this too we'll gladly take the help!

 

[shadyJ]

That Integra receiver is actually even less expensive than the Sony anyway, so might as well go with it. We'll be out shopping around some today. Do you have a comparable one from Yamaha for consideration as well? If it fits the budget, I have no problems going with it if Yamaha's reputation is really top-notch. Might drop by Best Buy later with this new-found knowledge to see what other offerings they may have. I saw a couple of threads on speaker wire earlier that I'll use to help us out there, but if you have any suggestions on this too we'll gladly take the help!

do NOT buy speaker wire at BestBuy. That is the kind of accessory that they have huge mark-ups on. Many hardware stores like Home depot have rolls of 14 AWG for decent prices. Monoprice and Blue Jeans are also good places to get cables from.

As for Yamaha, you can look through this page to see what appeals to you. If you don't need the absolute latest feature set, get an older one, you can get a good deal on it.

 

[Scattcatt]

do NOT buy speaker wire at BestBuy. That is the kind of accessory that they have huge mark-ups on. Many hardware stores like Home depot have rolls of 14 AWG for decent prices. Monoprice and Blue Jeans are also good places to get cables from.

As for Yamaha, you can look through this page to see what appeals to you. If you don't need the absolute latest feature set, get an older one, you can get a good deal on it.

Noted. Thanks for the link, ever had any problems ordering from this site? I'm checking through those Yamahas now. Definitely don't think we'll need any features beyond being atmos capable, good quality, and capable of driving the system well (obviously),especially if we set it up purely using ARC alone. Other apps and stuff we can just use the consoles for. Bluetooth, casting and separate zones don't really mean anything to us

 

[shadyJ]

Accessories4less is a solid site. I have used them before and so have many others, they have been around for years, and I haven't heard anything bad about them yet. Keep in mind these are mostly refurbished units they are selling, and that is why they are so cheap.