Home theater budget setup! First time poster!

[Mullet says]

Hi there!

After a few days of reading I thought it was time to make my first post! I really wanted to get some decent sounds to go into my living room and I started by looking out at some of the bose package deals and quickly realized it's not the best bang for your buck from reading here...

I currently have an old Denon AVR-1601 with two Yamaha bookshelf speaker + satellites and an old Sony powered sub. (No center...)

THe room is roughly 11' by 16' and it's setup with the TV/entertainment is on the longer wall and the main part of the couch sits about 7-8ft back from this. I just wanted to mention the size of the room as I don't think it's too small but thought it would help to keep it in perspective.

Anyways... I know most of the stuff is fairly outdated so I think I'm ready to at least replace a good amount of it to start but of course I'm looking for some advice if possible! My goal is a decent sounding system without spending much over $2k that will be used primarily for TV/Blu Ray. I currently have a 55" Samsung LED on the wall.

I'm currently partial to the Yamaha receivers and Infinity Speakers.

Here goes my ideas/questions from what I've been reading so far and what I've heard and personally like so far.

AVR:

I know I'll need to replace my receiver as it's probably a good idea to pick one up that I can run the HDMI from the cable box and blu ray through to the TV.

I've been looking at Yamaha's RX-800/801/700/701 and I think I'm leaning toward the RX-700 because of the price point and I'm not sure I totally see the benefit of the newer models or even the 800. One of the differences I see between the 700/800 is the 800 has an extra HDMI output which I don't think I'll be needing. I think I'll only be using the one TV and that it.

Some of the network and Ipod features seem interesting but I'm not sure I'd like to pay the $600 for the 710 vs the $350 for the 700. If I'm missing anything else important someone feel free to let me know or even suggest some other options as well!

Front Speakers:

The 16x11 Yamaha bookshelfs I have right now just don't really fit anywhere nicely and I think it's time to upgrade anyways...

I've been looking at the Infinity P363 towers ($199ea) for the sounds/recommendations and they'll fit well.

Suggestions/comments?

Center:

Currently no center at all, looking at Infinity PC351BK ($199)


I'd like to get at least the receiver, center, fronts and a pair of surrounds for now and leave open the option to upgrade the sub and add another pair of surrounds if needed.

Surrounds:

Sticking to my Infinity kick... and wanting to keep them small I was looking at some of the smaller TSS speakers like the TSS-SAT500/800 to mount on the back wall.

Does this all sound fairly resonable/efficient or should I just be looking at other package deals?


I really appreciate everyone taking their time to have a read through this and any comments are welcome/appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[GranteedEV]

THe room is roughly 11' by 16' and it's setup with the TV/entertainment is on the longer wall and the main part of the couch sits about 7-8ft back from this. I just wanted to mention the size of the room as I don't think it's too small but thought it would help to keep it in perspective.

Is the couch decently far from the wall behind it?

I've been looking at Yamaha's RX-800/801/700/701 and I think I'm leaning toward the RX-700 because of the price point and I'm not sure I totally see the benefit of the newer models or even the 800. One of the differences I see between the 700/800 is the 800 has an extra HDMI output which I don't think I'll be needing. I think I'll only be using the one TV and that it.

Some of the network and Ipod features seem interesting but I'm not sure I'd like to pay the $600 for the 710 vs the $350 for the 700. If I'm missing anything else important someone feel free to let me know or even suggest some other options as well!

In my opinion, it's all about preamplifier and amplifier sections. I can't comment on the Yamaha, but I'd like to recommend this NAD for $550:

NAD T747 surround receiver

Because it has a robust amplifier section that can dish out a useful 200w into a 4 ohm load.

I've been looking at the Infinity P363 towers ($199ea) for the sounds/recommendations and they'll fit well.

the P363 towers are just a smart design with a lot of positive things going for them. I'd love to own them, although if I did I wouldn't be able to resist doing cabinet mods to make them uber

Currently no center at all, looking at Infinity PC351BK ($199)

You might not want to bother with a center if it's inconvenient. You might be perfectly happy focusing on fronts and subwoofers and surrounds.

leave open the option to upgrade the sub and add another pair of surrounds if needed.

I definitely recommend upgrading the sub to a REAL sub rather than an obnoxious little thump box. And additional surrounds are nice too, but leave that for later.

 

[Mullet says]

Thanks for the reply- the couch is pretty much on the back wall across from the TV. I was thinking the surrounds could go on the back walls facing inward a bit.(Or on the sidewalls?)

Do you think it needs to be much further behind for them to even be effective?

In my opinion, it's all about preamplifier and amplifier sections. I can't comment on the Yamaha, but I'd like to recommend this NAD for $550:

Because it has a robust amplifier section that can dish out a useful 200w into a 4 ohm load.

I'm not sure I totally follow that point, what makes the two amps so much different in this regard?

I'll have a look further now and do some more reading.

the P363 towers are just a smart design with a lot of positive things going for them. I'd love to own them, although if I did I wouldn't be able to resist doing cabinet mods to make them uber

lol that sounds good then!

You might not want to bother with a center if it's inconvenient. You might be perfectly happy focusing on fronts and subwoofers and surrounds.

The center isn't incovenient, it's just that the wall that the TV is on is surronded by two side bookshelves with a bridge over the top as well. There is just enough room either above/below the TV for it.

I definitely recommend upgrading the sub to a REAL sub rather than an obnoxious little thump box. And additional surrounds are nice too, but leave that for later.

The sub I have currently is an old Sony SA-WM40 sub that I'm using. Maybe I'm just used to it, but it doesn't sound terrible for movies at this point. Is that as bad as you would have expected? Got any suggestions for some I should give a listen to for upgrade?

Any feedback on those small infinity sattelites?

 

[GranteedEV]

the couch is pretty much on the back wall across from the TV.

This is a big issue for sound quality. The reflection that arrives at your ear from the wall really muddies up the sound because it's so close in time and amplitude to the the sound your brain was processing. I strongly recommend getting some absorption panels up on that back wall. 8 feet away isn't a huge distance so moving the couch much forward probably isn't a good idea, though the more space the better regardless.

I was thinking the surrounds could go on the back walls facing inward a bit.(Or on the sidewalls?)

Put them high up and slightly behind you, on the side walls aiming down towards you.

Do you think it needs to be much further behind for them to even be effective?

THe surrounds? Generally surrounds work best with

- multiple sources (IE 7.1 instead of 5.1)
- lots of diffusion behind you (to "breakup" the surround field)
- absorption on the front wall (so that minimal sound from the surrounds is reflected back towards you_)
- a coherent radiation in all directions (IE coaxial)

I'm not sure I totally follow that point, what makes the two amps so much different in this regard?

Like I said, I'm not familiar with any measurements on the yamaha. But Generally out of all the receiver amps claiming to be 100wpc, all are NOT equal. Generally you want amps that can deliver around 250wpc into a 4ohm load and most receivers, especially stuff below $1k don't fit the bill. The NAD is one of the few that comes close, though.

The sub I have currently is an old Sony SA-WM40 sub that I'm using. Maybe I'm just used to it, but it doesn't sound terrible for movies at this point. Is that as bad as you would have expected? Got any suggestions for some I should give a listen to for upgrade?

Listening to subs is a no go. The environment you would hear it in, and the setup, will dominate much of what you hear. But I suspect you can definitely benefit from upgrading to a truly good subwoofer in my opinion. Something that can hit 20hz, 110+db, and LOW distortion, and blend seamlessly to mains. I actually recommend two subs, because that will maximize your sound quality by minimizing the effect of the environment.