Help me decide...narrowed down

[sbinkley]

I am slowly going to redo my HT speaker set-up (with the permission of the wife yay!),however the speakers will need to be wall or shelf mounted. I am trying to do the best with sound (primarily movie and tv),aesthetics, and budget (I'm a teacher after all). My previous setup was a Mirage MX 5.1 (which I have been pleased with but struggle with dialogue in movies) and a Pioneer Elite VSX90. Here is what I have come up with. Any suggestions greatly appreciated. **Room size is 16' wide, 19' long, 8' ceilings.

• Axiom M22 (front left & right) and VP150 (center) $1268 + shipping. Continue using 2 of my Mirage satellites for surround until budget replenishes. Also be purchasing the Monolith 10THX sub.
• HTD Versa HTS1 for all 3 front channels $1092 w/shipping. Same as Axiom setup for surround and sub. (not sure on this one as I can't find any good feedback on these).
• Definitive Technology Mythos Gem (front left & right) and Mythos Seven (center) $958 w/free shipping (Crutchfield). Same as Axiom setup for surround and sub.
• Revel Concerta M8 (wall mount one for front left & right) and Concerta C10 (center) $1000 w/free shipping (Crutchfield). Same as Axiom for surround and sub.
• RSL CG23 system (3 CG23 speakers, 2 CG3 speakers, and the Speedwoofer 10S sub) $1239 w/free shipping.

Thanks for all the help!

 

[zieglj01]

Revel would be my preference

 

[shadyJ]

The HTD speakers look like they could be good, but Revel is always a sure bet. The RSL would be fine, but they would be better with a stand off distance away from the wall, not right on it. I would not purchase free-standing speakers with the idea of placing them right against the wall, unless they were engineered to be placed there. Some other decent in-walls to look at are Klipsch, Hsu, and Polk Audio.

 

[sbinkley]

The HTD speakers look like they could be good, but Revel is always a sure bet. The RSL would be fine, but they would be better with a stand off distance away from the wall, not right on it. I would not purchase free-standing speakers with the idea of placing them right against the wall, unless they were engineered to be placed there. Some other decent in-walls to look at are Klipsch, Hsu, and Polk Audio.

I thought the Revel looked like good options. Unfortunately I can not afford to do a C10 with M10s for the front, so hopefully M8s will work for the front channels for awhile. When it’s time to upgrade the surrounds I could always purchase the M10s and put the M8s in the rear. I dunno, thoughts?

 

[shadyJ]

I thought the Revel looked like good options. Unfortunately I can not afford to do a C10 with M10s for the front, so hopefully M8s will work for the front channels for awhile. When it’s time to upgrade the surrounds I could always purchase the M10s and put the M8s in the rear. I dunno, thoughts?

Now that I take a closer look at those Revels, I would skip them. I had thought they would be some kind of on-wall analog to the Concerto free-standing speakers, but that is not the case, These are speakers that use 3" woofers. That is no real kind of woofer, and if you try to drive those speakers beyond a modest loudness level, they will not be happy, and neither will your ears.

The HTD speakers look like they could be good, and they are certain to have a hell of a lot more dynamic range than the Revels, but how would you install the Versa HTS1 as a center speaker? You can't easily install that horizontally in regular walls. That has to be installed vertically.

Is this sound system going to be paired up with a projector based system or a flat screen TV setup? Where, and how, do you intend to mount or install the center channel?

 

[sbinkley]

Now that I take a closer look at those Revels, I would skip them. I had thought they would be some kind of on-wall analog to the Concerto free-standing speakers, but that is not the case, These are speakers that use 3" woofers. That is no real kind of woofer, and if you try to drive those speakers beyond a modest loudness level, they will not be happy, and neither will your ears.

The HTD speakers look like they could be good, and they are certain to have a hell of a lot more dynamic range than the Revels, but how would you install the Versa HTS1 as a center speaker? You can't easily install that horizontally in regular walls. That has to be installed vertically.

Is this sound system going to be paired up with a projector based system or a flat screen TV setup? Where, and how, do you intend to mount or install the center channel?

I was under the impression the HTS1 was Wall mountable horizontally or vertically with the key hole mounts. I have a 75” flat panel these will be mounted around. Center channel under the tv. Thanks for the advice/honesty on the Revels.

 

[zieglj01]

I was under the impression the HTS1 was Wall mountable horizontally or vertically with the key hole mounts. I have a 75” flat panel these will be mounted around. Center channel under the tv. Thanks for the advice/honesty on the Revels.

Yes, they can be mounted either way

 

[shadyJ]

OK I thought the HTS1 were in-walls, not on-walls.