I want Advice on Upgrading My Home Theater Audio Setup

[nathanlee]

Hello everyone,

I am running a 5.1 setup with an older receiver & a mix of Polk Audio and Klipsch speakers; I mainly use the system for watching movies and streaming shows but I would like to take my audio experience to the next level.

My budget is around $2,000 & i am curious if it is worth upgrading the receiver first or if I should focus on getting better speakers or even adding Atmos support. I have also considered upgrading to a 7.1 or 7.2 system but I am not sure if thats the best use of my budget.

Any suggestions on which components I should prioritize? Also, if anyone has experience with recent receivers and how much they improve sound quality.

As well, I found these resources when doing research on this; https://forums.audioholics.com/forums/threads/home-theater-setup-what-would-you-sap-analytics-cloud-tutorialupgrade.105106/ & if anyone have any resources, tutorials or personal experiences please share with me, It would be greatly appreciated!!


Thank you...

 

[Eppie]

Hi and welcome. It would help to have some more details. What make and model AVR do you currently use and which model of Polk and Klipsch speakers are you using, including the subwoofer? What dimensions does the room have and how far away are you sitting from your front speakers? Your front speakers will have the greatest impact on sound quality but we need to know the whole picture before making recommendations. If not in the U.S. it helps to know what country you are in as to availability of different brands.

 

[lovinthehd]

Generally without knowing more details I'd think you'd be better off looking at better speakers first. or at least before changing the avr.

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

New subs.

 

[JerryLove]

There's not enough info; but it usually works like this.

5.1
Speaker quality
Subwoofer quality
Room treatments.

If all those are perfect, then we can talk 7.2 or Atmos; but for 99%, one of those 4 is still the best spot for improvement.

The receiver just needs to do whatever you need done. Decode 4k, power 7 speakers, whatever. You won't notice a sound improvement through a receiver change.