HTiaB Broke Down... trying to figure out my best option

[xtraorange]

Howdy all,

A few months back I thought I had determined exactly what I was going to do to replace my old HTiaB... however it just didn't work out the way I hoped and I was forced to scrap my plans, so I'm starting fresh.

Situation:
My old 5.1 philips HTiB broke down. It's likely repairable for (estimated) 80 bucks, but before I waste my money, I'd like to view my options. The speakers are all decent for HTiB speakers, but they're 3 ohms, so they wont work with almost any new "real" receiver.

Budget:
I would prefer to spend around $300 now, and more later... however I would be willing to go up to $600 now (and more later) if it's worth it.

I realize my budget is very small, but my goal is to start purchasing equipment with the hopes of eventually replacing some aspects with better units. I originally had my eye on the Yamaha RXV-671 (Amazon.com: Yamaha RX-V671 7.1-Channel Network AV Receiver: Electronics).... however once I discovered my current speakers would not work with it, I had to shy away from it.

System will be used for:
HTPC movies and music
X-box gaming
Internet radio (either through HTPC or built in)

Eventually, I would like my system to:

• 5.1 Surround
• Have reasonably quality sound for movies and music at "immersive volumes" (for lack of a better description... basically, I'd like to be able to crank it a bit on not have distortion)
• Have a firm base punch
• Offer upscaling from composit(?) (whatever the red, yellow, and white connection is called)
• Hopefully optical audio out, though this isn't a deal breaker - I have a surround sound gaming headset that would benefit from optical audio out

From the start, my system should:

• Offer multiple HDMI connections
• Run independent of the TV (in other words, I'd like to be able to have music playing from my HTPC without having the TV on)

I wouldn't complain if it had:

• Phone app control
• Built in internet radio

Does anyone have any thoughts as to what I should do? Is there a cheap HTiaB that has speakers I could use with a new receiver later? Or perhaps includes a decent receiver I could upgrade the speakers to? Is there a cheap set of speakers I should just get with the receiver I really want, and upgrade the speakers later?

Thank you so, so much!

 

[fuzz092888]

I've heard good things about this

Energy Take Classic 5.1 Review - Watch CNET's Video Review

The only problem is that you need a receiver to go with them so look here

DENON AVR-1712 7.1 A/V Surround Receiver | Accessories4less

You could also do something like this

Onkyo HT-S5500 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver/Speaker Package Preview — Reviews and News from Audioholics

Just go to amazon or look around, you should be able to get a good price on them and you can use the receiver for future use and just replace speakers.

HTIBs are tough since you're basically asking for everything at once and for about the price many of us started out paying for just the towers. Personally I think there are many more drawbacks to HTIBs as compared to building your own system, but if you're impatient then it's not the worst place to start, at least not anymore.

These suggestions are a good place to start and I'm sure more people will chime in, but at least you can see where you're heading. Cheers.

 

[xtraorange]

Thank you for the feedback!

So in general you would suggest just going back to another HTiB, but with a full receiver?

 

[fuzz092888]

Given your low price range I think another HTIB or a speaker package with a cheap receiver would be your best bet.

Either way, getting real receiver would allow you to upgrade the speakers and hold off on the electronics for awhile.

If it were me, I would get the cheapest HTIB with full receiver or speaker+receiver I could be happy with and immediately start saving for new tower speakers and matching center. Once you reach that point you have a choice. You can either replace the receiver or the subwoofer. At that point it really depends on what your needs are and how long it has been since you started saving. The longer you wait the more likely it is that you will want to replace the receiver since they keep adding more and more new features.

After that replace the subwoofer with something a little more robust and that will reach deeper. Now you have a new front soundstage, a new subwoofer, a new receiver, and a bunch of leftover speakers that you can use for surrounds and you should have a nice 7.1 or 9.1 setup (depending on how many speakers came in your original HTIB or package). Then you can start replacing those if you so choose and by that time you'll probably be bored with some piece of equipment you have or you might want an amplifier or......

And the vicious cycle continues on until the day you die

 

[anamorphic96]

If you can stretch the budget to 500.00 now you could easily have a nice system. Especially if your coming from a HTIB.

Check out the Andrew Jones designed Pioneer speakers with a cheap receiver from accessories4less.

They are closing out the current Pioneer models at stupid cheap prices on newegg.com. 4 sp-bs21's and an sp-c21 and matching sub should cost less than 300 which leaves 200 for a receiver which is easy to do.

Hope this helps.

 

[sholling]

I'm not big on HTIB systems but with your budget a factory refurbished Onkyo HT-S7409 is probably the best you can hope for. The nice thing about Onkyo HTIB systems is that they include a real receiver. Once good enough to build on later when you can afford better speakers and a better subwoofer.

 

[LB06]

Well, how broken is your old HTiB exactly? Is the DVD/BR player broken or is it the sub or one or more speakers? Because you might be able to 'recycle' some components.

This way, you could for example invest in a good/better separate receiver and two good fronts and reuse the other components from your old HTiB. You'll still have surround yet are able to redirect more money towards specific components, leading to a higher quality of those components, leading to you having to spend less money in the future (because for instance you don't have to upgrade the front speakers anymore). When on a budget, try to be creative

If this isn't possible or you don't want it, a HTiB with a 'real' reciever rather than a DVD/BR player to drive the speakers and incrementally upgrading is your best bet. Or if you really don't mind losing the 5.1 you could get a receiver + 2.1

Some other (random) remarks:
- What on earth are you still doing using composite connections? Unless you're still gaming on your NES there's no valid excuse really . Almost all devices have component connections and it's far superior to composite. Upscaling composite is pretty useless as well, because there's not enough detail to begin with. It's not just about resolution, it's also about detail in the original picture. Also, upscaling is generally not found in the lower-end receivers.

- You going to have a very hard time finding a receiver with an optical out. You're better off connecting it directly to the source. This will probably be your only options, apart from routing the audio though your receiver's pre-outs, getting it through an ADC, encoding it on-the-fly to DD5.1 with Dolby Digital Live and then connecting your headphones there.

 

[xtraorange]

Thanks to everyone for your input so far, I am looking into the given suggestions!

Well, how broken is your old HTiB exactly? Is the DVD/BR player broken or is it the sub or one or more speakers? Because you might be able to 'recycle' some components.

The player itself is shot, it will not start, research indicates that it may be a capacitor, but I'm no where near skilled enough to locate the fried one and replace it, so a trip to a repair shop is minimum to fix... as I recall last I called they wanted 70-80 for the repair, but I may be off there.

This way, you could for example invest in a good/better separate receiver and two good fronts and reuse the other components from your old HTiB.
[...]
If this isn't possible or you don't want it, a HTiB with a 'real' reciever rather than a DVD/BR player to drive the speakers and incrementally upgrading is your best bet.

That was my initial plan. What I really wanted to do was simply replace the dvd player unit with a real receiver... but I later discovered that pretty much no real receiver will work with 3ohm speakers.

Some other (random) remarks:
- What on earth are you still doing using composite connections? Unless you're still gaming on your NES there's no valid excuse really

Actually, that's exactly why. Old gaming systems are my primary reason. Plus an older DVD player that I don't really want to spend the money replacing.

- You going to have a very hard time finding a receiver with an optical out.

I know, that's why it's not a requirement. The advantage would simply be that anything the receiver plays I could listen to wirelessly in surround sound and not bother the family. If it doesn't pan out, life goes on.

Thanks for your input!